Face to face handgun purchase...legal?

B

bear71

Inactive
Is it legal to purchase a handgun from an individual, not an FFL/dealer, pay them cash and be on your way?

What's involved with a face to face purchase that I should know about from a llegal point of view.

What if the gun was used in a crime, can that be checked?
 
You should really post where you are from, since every state is different. You may want to talk to your local police, or talk to someone at a gun store regarding the laws in your area.
 
federal law says no, there is nothing illegal about it. state to state can vary as yours might have different laws. if your the seller, get a copy of the buyers ID, make sure you have the serial nimber written down, and have a discription of the gun in the reciept with the buyers signature.
 
The information you seek can be gotten quite easily at a gunshop. They should tell straight. In my state, there are no restrictions other than the same restrictions listed on the form 4473. If you have knowledge that the purchase is in violation to any of the questions on the form (except age 21 for handguns; 18 is okay for private sales/purchases), then you know the legal answer. IF not, enjoy and conduct the purchase in accordance with State requirements.
 
Just note that "from the same state." Even if your state law allows individual sales, you cannot sell to someone from another state even if you are both in the same state at the time.

jim
 
Maybe I'm paranoid, but I would want a paper trail to prove who owned the gun. If for some reason, the gun was used in self defense, the police will most likely sieze the gun. They will run ballistic test and such on it. What happens if they find out the gun was used in a crime 2 years before you owned it? I would do all gun transactions through an FFL dealer.
 
Check your state law. In some places, like NY, it must be transferred from one permit to another.

Burn me at the stake but I think the face to face sale, with no check of the purchaser's record, is a horrendously large hole in the system that allows criminals to buy weapons from legal citizens without even the seller knowing the buyer's inelligibilty to purchase.

What use is requring dealers to maintain a record of the sale and call in for a background check when the gun can just be sold on a handshake between two people on the street? I know the buyer is breaking the law but come on now, we can make it a LITTLE harder for them to acquire guns from what are otherwise legal citizens. This is a hole in the system that is easily abused and if those on the side of gun ownership continue to ignore it we will only confirm to those in the middle that we are as unreasonable as those on the left paint us.

I think every person who sells a gun should be able to call in on an 800 number and check the eligibility of the seller based on a DL. There is still room for abuse but at least we are providing a method by which an honest private seller can do something to avoid selling to a criminal.
 
Musketeer, Mrs. Brady loves you.

Bear, you can call your local PD and ask to run the serial if you are buying. In my state you need a purchase permit to buy a handgun. If I were selling FTF I would require one from the buyer. If not, get the buyers DL number and require two forms of gov. issued ID. If the buyer has a problem with any of this, end it there.
I have only done one FTF. It was at a gun show. The seller took down my info from my permit card and looked at my Mil ID. That's it.
 
For handguns I sell which isnt often, we go to a gun shop and they do a check on him, then we transfer it, costs about 25.00 and keeps my rear end safe. Didnt used to be this way but in todays world better to be safe than sorry.
 
I haven't sold one or brought one from an individual but I'd go through an FFL just to cover my ass because we live in the kind of world where it could come back to bite you. I wouldn't want to unknowingly buy a stolen gun or sell to someone who would flunk a background check.
 
This type of transaction may very well vary from state to state~!:eek:

But, one thing is for sure:

"The Deal Ain't Complete If There Is No Receipt"
 
No, I hate gun control as much as the next guy. I'm just saying if all mail transactions have to be done via FFL, then so should the interstate FTF transactions. It's only fair.
 
Since you were so persistent and insistent on lecturing me on my notion of situational awareness, I think it would be ungrateful for me not to return it:


markj said:
For handguns that I sell which isnt often, we go to a gunshop and do a check on him, then we tansfer it, cost about $25.00 and keeps my rear end safe.
Click to expand...


...and I would do the same, and I applaud your prudence. Why take a unnecessary chance?


markj said:
Didn't used to be this way, but in todays world better to be safe than sorry.
Click to expand...



....but some might call that a lot of paranoia.



After all, what would be the chance that the firearms that you sell not often would end up being used in a crime that could get you in a trouble?


or you are afraid you are on the list of people targeted by criminals for acquiring firearms for the purpose of commiting a crime?
 
It's legal in Texas.

I'd recommend everyone buy at least one gun "off the books" so to speak, if the laws in your state allow. It may come in handy one day when you have to turn in all your guns to the .gov for smelting.
 
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