In my writings above, I perhaps should not have used the word "cheap". Instead, the word "affordable" conveys the idea I am trying to express a lot better then "cheep".
In the USA more than most other countries in the world, the ownership of firearms was something the common working man could attain with relative ease. With few exceptions, it's still true today, despite the efforts of the communist minded and treasonous ones here in the USA trying to reverse that.