Friday’s mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., has elicited both calls for gun control and, from the other side, for law-abiding citizens to be able to defend themselves in case of an attack. Both aspects of the ongoing gun debate play into higher-than-usual sales at local gun stores, owners are reporting.

Bill Darling, owner of Gulf of Maine Gunsmithing in Raymond, said sales were up since Monday. Most purchases were of handguns. He said most buyers are worried about events they see on TV and aim to defend themselves and their families.

“It’s picked up some, I’d say 10 percent maybe,” Darling said.

Jonathan Burnham, owner of Maine Pawn & Jewelry in North Windham, is seeing more traffic into his store for guns.

“Lately we’ve had quite a little increase in gun sales,” Burnham said. “It’s partially affected by [Christmas] and partially affected by the scare of something being banned. Whenever they start talking about banning something, people try to scoop them up so they don’t miss the boat.”

Burnham sells AK-47s and AR-15s but mostly hunting rifles, handguns and shotguns. Both Darling and Burnham said they perform background checks through the FBI on every customer.