transfer wait time

J

jake99

New member
What is considered a reasonable amount of time, for a handgun transfer that you bought and had shipped to a shop? I figured it would be same day, but never seems to be. Does it vary by state? I'm in PA.
 
I'm not sure what you mean. Do you mean the shipping time to the shop? Do you mean the time it takes the shop to book in the firearm after it was delivered? Do you mean the time it takes do the paperwork and background check when you go to pick the firearm up?
 
And do you or don't you have a PA LTCF?

In my state, since I have a carry permit there is no wait time. If I happen to be at the gun shop when the mail man or UPS driver delivers the gun, I can walk out with it just as fast as we can fill out the 4473 and make a phone call.
 
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I meant once they have it. Do they have to do anything more than write the numbers on the forms? I'm asking because I get the feeling my local shop doesn't appreciate my business. They picked my gun up at the post office yesterday, I was there this morning, and they told me logging it in takes time, and it won't be available for me to pick up until Friday or Saturday. Yeah, I have a permit.
 
As far as federal law is concerned, all they have to do is book in the gun, which should take a few minutes at most. That said, a lot of gun shops have a large intake of gun transfers, guns bought from distributors, and gun accessories that come in every day. All that stuff needs to be booked into their system in one way or another. That takes time, especially if it's a busy shop and the shipping department is understaffed.

Anything more than a day or two seems like a lot, so I guess your shop is either really busy and/or understaffed. Also, transfers are often a low priority for shops. If you factor in the overhead, most shops don't make much of a profit (if any) on transfers, especially if you live in a state that adds in more paperwork for firearm purchases.
 
Well, since I was the only one in the store, I guess I'll take my business somewhere else next time. Thanks for confirming my suspicion..
 
Actually, that's ridiculous.

They're supposed to log the gun immediately upon receipt. They can't let it sit there for days without being entered in their bound book.

It should be a matter of minutes on both counts.

I'd complete the transaction and then tell them all about it before leaving and never returning.

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/licensees-records-required.html#time-to-record

Q: How much time does a dealer have to record acquisitions and dispositions of firearms in his or her “bound book?”
Generally, licensees have to enter the acquisition or purchase of a firearm by the close of the next business day after the acquisition or purchase and shall record sales or other dispositions within 7 days.
However, if commercial records containing the required information are available for inspection and are separate from other commercial documents, dealers have 7 days from the time of receipt to record the receipt in the “bound book.”
If a disposition is made before the acquisition has been entered in the “bound book,&rdquo the acquisition entry must be made at the same time as the disposition entry.
[27 CFR 478.125]
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You can see from that last line that they don't even have to record it before they give it to you. It can all be done at the same time.
 
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jake99 said:
I was there this morning, and they told me logging it in takes time, and it won't be available for me to pick up until Friday or Saturday.
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They're not being truthful.

Yes, logging it in takes time -- all of about five minutes if they write slowly. Each firearm they get in MUST be entered in their bound book either by the end of the next day. Today is Wednesday, so if they picked it up on Tuesday today would be the absolute latest they could enter it into their bound book (if the time limit is 24 hours). To tell you it "won't be available" (suggesting that it won't be logged in) until Friday or Saturday is downright disingenuous.

If they don't like doing transfers, they shouldn't undertake to do transfers. They certainly shouldn't lie to their customers.
 
I know gun shops in my area that require that guns from transfers, especially between individuals, remain in their books for 24 hours.

That said, the shops I do business with regularly either get them done immediately or politely refuse to do transfers.
 
I know gun shops in my area that require that guns from transfers, especially between individuals, remain in their books for 24 hours.
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Where in PA is this? Im in PA too, and have lived in a couple different places across the state, and have never run across that, and would like to stay clear of them.

Any time I transferred a handgun here, we walked in, did the paperwork, they ran the phone check, and we walked out, with the gun. Took all of about ten minutes.

And do you or don't you have a PA LTCF?
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PA does not have a waiting period on handguns. They also dont waive the instant check if you have a permit. Everyone goes through the instant check.
 
I got a call mid-day today that it was ready, and I got my transfer. In fairness, the guy just got back from a week away, and was just reopening his shop when I saw him yesterday. He said he had a pile of them to do, too. There's hand engraved #'s in three places, bolt, frame and slide, which I don't know if he had to do (?), but if he did, that takes time too. So I'm no longer annoyed. Thanks for the responses.
 
AK103K said:
Where in PA is this? Im in PA too, and have lived in a couple different places across the state, and have never run across that, and would like to stay clear of them.
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I live in Indiana, and deal with gun shops in Kentucky at times. It seems to be based on the FFL holder's policies and how they choose to do business.
 
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