Thread: Gun Shipping Questions

I may be making a deal with a BUYER in Washington State. What is the procedure for shipping a gun (rifle) from Oregon to Washington so the buyer can take delivery? I have never done this before but I thought a private seller could ship directly to the buyers receiving FFL but please advise me on the correct procedure. Thanks.

Yes....need to ship it to FFL....typically they prefer FedEx, marked, all the bells and whistles to jack up the shipping price, but talk to the FFL first and they will tell you what to do.

You can ship directly to the buyer's FFL once you have recieved their (the ffl's not the buyer's) information. Use Fedex or UPS since i think rifles are ok. It's only when you're shipping a handgun where they require you to use a hub rather than a store.

FFL's dont have a preference or a say in the shipping.

Sine it is a rifle you can use UPS, Fedex or even the Post Office. No markings on the outside of the box that indicates a firearm is inside. No need for special shipping other then signature required.

Here are the links for each services requirements;
USPS, http://pe.usps.gov/text/pub52/pub52c4_009.htm
UPS, http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/res...h_phr=Firearms
Fedex, http://www.fedex.com/us/freight/rule..._articles.html

Here is what the ATF has to say about it;
ATF Online - Firearms - Frequently Asked Questions - Unlicensed Persons

Q: May a nonlicensee ship a firearm through the U.S. Postal Service?
A nonlicensee may not transfer a firearm to a non-licensed resident of another State. A nonlicensee may mail a shotgun or rifle to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. The Postal Service recommends that long guns be sent by registered mail and that no marking of any kind which would indicate the nature of the contents be placed on the outside of any parcel containing firearms. Handguns are not mailable. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun.

[18 U.S.C. 1715, 922(a)(3), 922(a)(5) and 922 (a)(2)(A)]

Q: May a nonlicensee ship a firearm by common or contract carrier?
A nonlicensee may ship a firearm by a common or contract carrier to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. In addition, Federal law requires that the carrier be notified that the shipment contains a firearm and prohibits common or contract carriers from requiring or causing any label to be placed on any package indicating that it contains a firearm.

[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(2)(A), 922(a) (3), 922(a)(5) and 922(e), 27 CFR 478.31 and 478.30]

Thanks for the help everyone. Still I hate to sound ignorant but the buyer called his dealer and was told the gun had to go FROM my FFL to his but according to the aforementioned Q & A I can ship directly to his FFL. I just want to do the right thing. Thanks.

Yes you can legally ship it right from you to his FFL, see the 2 ATF links I quoted.

A nonlicensee may mail a shotgun or rifle to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State.

some FFl's only accept shipments from Other FFL's. ask him or her, if they have or could use another FFL that receives shipments from private parties, citizens.

Slightly off topic, but can the owner of a firearm ship their firearm to the manufacture for repair via USPS? If I'm reading it correctly it seems like the manufacture could ship it back to you via USPS, but the owner couldn't ship it to them.
M

Originally Posted by Morpheus

Slightly off topic, but can the owner of a firearm ship their firearm to the manufacture for repair via USPS? If I'm reading it correctly it seems like the manufacture could ship it back to you via USPS, but the owner couldn't ship it to them.
M

You can legally ship any LONG GUN USPS to any FFL. Manufacture is an FFL. If it was a handgun you can not legally ship a handgun for any reason without an FFL.

From the link above,

Q: May a nonlicensee ship a firearm through the U.S. Postal Service?
A nonlicensee may not transfer a firearm to a non-licensed resident of another State. A nonlicensee may mail a shotgun or rifle to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. The Postal Service recommends that long guns be sent by registered mail and that no marking of any kind which would indicate the nature of the contents be placed on the outside of any parcel containing firearms. Handguns are not mailable. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun.

Here again is the link directly to the USPS website specific to that, USPS, 432 Mailability

That is what I thought. Thanks for the clarification.
M

Originally Posted by DinhRose

You can ship directly to the buyer's FFL once you have recieved their (the ffl's not the buyer's) information. Use Fedex or UPS since i think rifles are ok. It's only when you're shipping a handgun where they require you to use a hub rather than a store.

Not quite. They require you to use a hub when the value exceeds a certain amount. I had to use a hub or hand it directly to a UPS driver and get a receipt because my AR was over $1000. UPS or FedEx stores are usually contract operations. UPS and FedEx don't want to assume liability for an expensive item if they are not directly controlling the item start to finish.

Originally Posted by RVTECH

Thanks for the help everyone. Still I hate to sound ignorant but the buyer called his dealer and was told the gun had to go FROM my FFL to his but according to the aforementioned Q & A I can ship directly to his FFL. I just want to do the right thing. Thanks.

If the buyer's FFL only wants to accept guns from left handed blondes wearing bikini tops, that's their prerogative, but it ain't the law.

Find a local FFL to ship it for you, talk to the buyer and make sure he knows he's going to have to pony up the shipping FFL's fees since his receiving FFL is a twat.

H

Originally Posted by DinhRose

You can ship directly to the buyer's FFL once you have recieved their (the ffl's not the buyer's) information. Use Fedex or UPS since i think rifles are ok. It's only when you're shipping a handgun where they require you to use a hub rather than a store.

No, you need to ship from a hub. The UPS stores will ask you what's inside and then will tell you they can't ship it. I did ship one rifle from a store, but I didn't insure it and I already had a UPS shipping label on it, so I just dropped it off at the store.

Also, if the store had insured it and shipped the Kimber I just sent back it would have been $55. From the hub and insured for the same amount it was $40. That alone is reason enough for me to go to the hub and avoid the store.

UPS: Shipping Firearms

Getting Your Firearm Shipment to UPS
Firearms (including handguns) may be shipped only through a UPS Scheduled Pickup Account (specifically, Daily Pickup, Daily On-Route Pickup, UPS Smart Pickup®, and Day-Specific Pickup), or through a UPS Customer Center (counters at UPS operational facilities). Note: Firearms (including handguns) are not accepted for shipment via, UPS Drop Boxes, UPS On-Call PickupSM, or at locations of The UPS Store® or any third party retailer.