How much are you paying for transfer fees?

[LuckySG]

i have a few FFL buddies. one of them doesnt charge me to transfer.

Nice to have helpful friends.

 

[Bones2586]

About the same transfer fees over on the other coast. Average price is $20 for the fee and $5 background check. Cheapest seen is $15, for those folks who "know" the LGS owner.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

Nice to have helpful friends.

it is. hes a good dude. BTW im tryin to make it out to your plce by recommendation of @Kruejl @etrain16 @clearconscience @Joe13 @SKrueger

 

[Lazyfaire]

People who shop on line cant complain when a brick-and-mortar LGS balks. I agree that the LGS shouldn't turn them away but I see nothing wrong with upping the fee. Malls, clothing stores, and many others are struggling because of Amazon, Walmart and the many on line sites. When these stores close down and the malls close people get up in arms.

I'm a bit of a pawn shop and gun shop rat. I like to look around and see what's available. Don't always buy every time but like to interact with the employees. But I recently did buy a rifle online only because I couldn't find what I wanted, nor could FFLs that I contacted. Found it through Armslist, made the deal and used Lucky for the transfer. He charged me $20, but as usual he 'found' something I 'needed' hanging on his wall so it did cost me more than $20(happens a lot at his place!).

We are all better off supporting our local gun shop owners. We want and need them to be in business. The margins are thin for them anyway. Low transfer fees for something they don't sell to people who don't shop with them is a death of a 1000 cuts for them. My 2 cents

 

[LuckySG]

People who shop on line cant complain when a brick-and-mortar LGS balks. I agree that the LGS shouldn't turn them away but I see nothing wrong with upping the fee. Malls, clothing stores, and many others are struggling because of Amazon, Walmart and the many on line sites. When these stores close down and the malls close people get up in arms.

I'm a bit of a pawn shop and gun shop rat. I like to look around and see what's available. Don't always buy every time but like to interact with the employees. But I recently did buy a rifle online only because I couldn't find what I wanted, nor could FFLs that I contacted. Found it through Armslist, made the deal and used Lucky for the transfer. He charged me $20, but as usual he 'found' something I 'needed' hanging on his wall so it did cost me more than $20(happens a lot at his place!).

We are all better off supporting our local gun shop owners. We want and need them to be in business. The margins are thin for them anyway. Low transfer fees for something they don't sell to people who don't shop with them is a death of a 1000 cuts for them. My 2 cents

Hmmmm.

How about I offer you a nice set of shooting glasses with blinders so you don't see the two new brands of big firepower I am working on if they happen to be off to the side?

 

[Lazyfaire]

Hmmmm.

How about I offer you a nice set of shooting glasses with blinders so you don't see the two new brands of big firepower I am working on if they happen to be off to the side?

See what I mean!

I've even offered to just direct deposit my checks to him, but i think he likes to twist me!

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

there should be no "transfer" whole thing is dumb. we already have to do BGCs.

that being said, i get that the transfer is a service and time spent is money. i dont blame FFLs for charging one bit. if theres someone to be mad at, its the state of oregon.

 

[LuckySG]

there should be no "transfer" whole thing is dumb. we already have to do BGCs.

that being said, i get that the transfer is a service and time spent is money. i dont blame FFLs for charging one bit. if theres someone to be mad at, its the state of oregon.

That!

Dear Oregon - Please get out of the way with your intentionally understaffed department and let us have direct access to NICS and we stop chipping in $3M a year for your "help" along the way. You as the state can spend your time to ensure everyone that should be disqualified from purchasing has had their records updated.

 

[KKG]

i have a few FFL buddies. one of them doesnt charge me to transfer.

Yep, Just another FFL Dealer that really isn't a Dealer. If he was he'd even be charging his "Friends" a fee.

 

[LuckySG]

Yep, Just another FFL Dealer that really isn't a Dealer. If he was he'd even be charging his "Friends" a fee.

That is an interesting take, and I would not agree with the blanket statement. As a business owner you get to make all the decisions and each one affects your wallet. It feels really good to offer good friends a break, there is definitely more to the relationship that we don't need to be part of to see how it all rounds out where everyone is happy.

 

[KKG]

A "Break" is one thing but "No Fee" very different. "No Fee" is a direct route to the "Gone Out of Business".

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

A "Break" is one thing but "No Fee" very different. "No Fee" is a direct route to the "Gone Out of Business".

my friend has an FFL. his FFL is not his main source of income. he doesnt have a shop. just has his FFL.

 

[2506]

With tax, fees, and shipping unless it's an absolute screaming deal, it doesn't pencil out to buy online for me. Cheaper and easier to find what I want locally.

 

[KKG]

my friend has an FFL. his FFL is not his main source of income. he doesnt have a shop. just has his FFL.

That's just what I was saying.

 

[xtratoy]

Transfers are such a PIA for dealers. They are loosing money at

Transfers are such a PIA for dealers. They are loosing money at 20.00 just by what labor costs. My little local pawn shop charges 30.00 but I always give him 50. I appreciate his service and the way you illustrate that is by tipping people. I have seen him take 30 min of dirrected time to do one and then have to store the gun until it finnaly clears in a few days and that doesn't take into account the risk of making a mistake and loosing your licence or getting fined. A shop couldn't keep its doors open by just doing 20.00 transfers even if they had lines waiting for the service out the door. Even Cabela's automated system takes a fair amount of time for a trained employee to finish. There was a large Sporting goods dealer I used to know well and deal with in Fresno (Herb Bauer) 25 years ago. He charged 100.00 for a transfer exactly for the reason stated by LuckySG. He wanted you to buy firearms through him not from some on line wholesaler. The store was owned by a single guy and was auctioned a few years ago. He wanted to retire and no one wanted to pay what the store was worth to buy it, This was a major store, nearly the size of a small Cabela's. The reason for closing the doors was the pressure on profits brought by online sales. People (in the gun department) would come look at a gun on his shelf, then go home to buy it on line. So........if you want services like being able to handle the actual gun you are interested in buying before you lay your money down, you need to support the retailers that allow you to do it. Otherwise they will go away.

Transfers are such a PIA for dealers. They are loosing money at 20.00 just by what labor costs.

In Washington state it never takes me longer than the time it takes me to fill out the paperwork and then a couple of minutes more. In the meantime the FFL is doing whatever he wants to do. So it is the fault of the OSP Background check costing dealers money.

 

[CountryGent]

I got the impression from them that they were full of it.

They are totally full of it. There is nothing legally preventing an FFL for facilitating a transfer from one party to another. Hell, there is a box right on the 4473 to indicate just that:

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Transfers are such a PIA for dealers. They are loosing money at 20.00 just by what labor costs.

For a traditional shop, I don't doubt it. The FFL I've setup is a side business and all the overhead is taken care of by the larger business concern. So I'm only on the hook for the licenses (Federal, State, and Local) and some incidentals (safe, bound book, consumables, etc.). So the little paperwork is worth the short time for the money, and I can be helpful to others.

If one thinks that paperwork is a pain, try a handling a Federal form for the reporting of domestic and foreign financial data, which is 89 pages long, has 3,500+ fields to complete (which may or may not apply to the institution), and has over 4,000+ electronic verification checks that must be cleared before filing. That, ladies and gentleman, is a royal pain in the (beep). Been there, done that. A 4473, and related, is a day at the beach by comparison.

 

[LuckySG]

To bookend this, there is more than just filling out a form 4473. There is a conversation between the two transfering parties, and exchanging information to facilitate the shipment, hoping they don't ship FedEx because you then miss out on everything that would normally be productive time in the quiet lull of an early afternoon running errands stuck waiting for the driver to show up, and in and out of your register in an organized manner so it is easy to find any particular form when big brother comes asking for it. Between emails, phone calls and follow up it is 45 minutes to an hour per transfer start to finish.

 

[Mikej]

I was looking to buy a used 9mm from a private party on Armslist today. Price was good. I called the local pawn shop and they told me $25 + $10 background check. Met the seller there at which time they told us they are not allowed to do private party transfers despite what the lady told me on the phone an hour earlier and despite being an FFL.

Called two other places from their parking lot. The other places wanted $50 + $10 background check. (Redmond Oregon) This seemed way excessive for 10 minutes of paperwork!!!!

Is everyone paying $60 for private party transfers?

Seeing as it's such a drain on the dedicated "Gun Shops", a pawn shop may be more willing to take the $20.00-$30.00 for a private party transfer.

 

[KKG]

Seeing as it's such a drain on the dedicated "Gun Shops", a pawn shop may be more willing to take the $20.00-$30.00 for a private party transfer.

They would probably do it even if they didn't have an FFL!

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I understand the many "Whys" a FFL charges a fee for transfers.
Nor do I begrudge them for charging a fee....After all I do want my local gun stores to stay in business.

My complaint is more against the BGC for a sale between private parties
Having to pay for a transfer with a private party sale , is having me pay , for following a law...and I am not happy 'bout having to pay a fee for following a law.
Andy