What do you think???

G

GunFan

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I was looking for a nice Colt Combat special in .38 Super and made some offers on one of the larger sales boards. One fellow responded he had a NIB one at a nice price having bought 2 because they were hard to get. I was going to send him the FFL and money when he said he does not go through a FFL and ships it himself. Hmm I thought, I can't do that as my FFL only takes weapons from another FFL and this was an out of state deal. I was further surprised when the seller called me, I'm not even sure where he got my number from, and offered to just ship it to me directly with no FFL involved if I liked. Of course I just laughed at him and said no illegal transactions and that was a federal and state crime. He tried to seduce me into buying the gun and I politely said no thanks, I'll get one through an FFL and hung up. Reflecting back I wonder if this is some ATF or New York State "bait sale" designed to snare illegal buyers??? I am not at all the suspicious type but the whole call set off my "crap detector and I was wondering what others might opine??
 
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Anyone you don't know trying to make a transaction with you about firearms, knowing that they are violating a federal law is either a convict (and likely a source for the feds) or a federal agent/ police himself. There really are no other answers.

Even the dumbest crooks know that the police troll gun trading sites.
 
Either an entrapment, or it could be a scam. There's a guy in California who's tried to sell guns at well-below market. Turns out there's no gun, and he has your money.

Your Bravo Sierra sensors are up and alert. No good comes from these deals.
 
I was looking for a nice Colt Combat special in .38 Super and made some offers on one of the larger sales boards. One fellow responded he had a NIB one at a nice price having bought 2 because they were hard to get. I was going to send him the FFL and money when he said he does not go through a FFL and ships it himself. Hmm I thought, I can't do that as my FFL only takes weapons from another FFL and this was an out of state deal. I was further surprised when the seller called me, I'm not even sure where he got my number from, and offered to just ship it to me directly with no FFL involved if I liked. Of course I just laughed at him and said no illegal transactions and that was a federal and state crime. He tried to seduce me into buying the gun and I politely said no thanks, I'll get one through an FFL and hung up. Reflecting back I wonder if this is some ATF or New York State "bait sale" designed to snare illegal buyers??? I am not at all the suspicious type but the whole call set off my "crap detector and I was wondering what others might opine??
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Sound like someone trying to scam you. I doubt there was a gun to sell.

Your FFL chooses not to accept a pistol from a private party but it is not illegal. It is 100% perfect within the law. I have shipped many pistols directly to FFL who have completed transfers and I have transfered guns from individuals through several FFLs. Most of the time the local FFL just needs a copy of the sellers drivers lic.
 
"offered to just ship it to me directly with no FFL involved if I liked."

RUN AWAY, RUN AWAY, RUN AWAY.

Regarding FFLs no longer accepting firearms shipped from individuals without them, more and more are doing so. They're worried about being caught up by ATF in vagaraties (sp?) of the law and being prosecuted. Personally, I can't blame them in the least.
 
+ every thing said above. With out question run away screaming fraud, scam, entrapment Just DO NOT DO IT!
 
Think of it like this; why would a complete stranger (or even an acquaintance) risk going to prison for a number of years just to sell you a gun?


They would not.
 
Regarding FFLs no longer accepting firearms shipped from individuals without them, more and more are doing so. They're worried about being caught up by ATF in vagaraties (sp?) of the law and being prosecuted. Personally, I can't blame them in the least.
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I do not believe that this is the motivation behind them not taking a gun from and individuals. FFLs for a longtime have held a monopoly on the local gun market and many are getting killed because of online sellers make the market much more transparent. They can not longer charge what they used to.

More and more people are buying used guns on boards like this because they now understand that they can buy somewhere else and get it transferred in but too many local FFLs are angry because their strangle hold on the local market is gone. Its not about the ATF its about the loss of business by business who have been living off of virtual monopolies & old cheese for a long time.

When I recently moved to WV I lost my stellar transfer FFL in VA and went searching for a new one and was told time after time they would not take a transfer from an individual and many were trying to charge $25 to $50 from another FFL.

They see the open market as the death nail to their business. The biggest store in my area will not transfer a gun from anyone that they have in stock. They have guns in their case priced over MSRP and these are not hard to get guns they are common everyday guns like a Glock 19.

Luckly I found I guy who understands the market. Sell guns at a reasonable markup and does $10 transfers from anyone and everyone. He sells guns to the employees of the biggest shop in town because even with their discount he beats their price. FFLs are looking to limit access because they are losing money. Sorry I simply do not buy that they are scared of the ATF.
 
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He sounded like an older grandfather type of guy, perfect to trap unsuspecting gun buyers into a felony. I don't break the law in any way and I have learned the laws over the years, but a naive kid or newbie might make the mistake of his life. The reason I even posted this was to kind of get the word out and a dialogue going. Luckily you are all wise to this but maybe we helped even one person. The Nassau county police are being used by a local DA to crack down on Assult rifles, perhaps they are spreading into handguns too. The mayor of NYC is always looking to bust gun importers and what better way then gun selling sites??
 
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Make a phone call to the BATFE, and tell them this story--see if they pursue it.

If not, I think I smell Michael Bloomberg or Eric Holder at work here...
 
Make a phone call to the BATFE, and tell them this story--see if they pursue it.
If not, I think I smell Michael Bloomberg or Eric Holder at work here...
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Sure, they're going to pursue it—all the way to the nearest waste basket. The BATFE has made it abundantly clear its main concern is gutting the Second Amendment.

There is absolutely nothing illegal about an individual sending a gun to an FFL.
Seems like a lot of paranoia to me.
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FFLs who make it difficult for people to buy and sell guns cost themselves customers and respect. If they've got so many customers they can afford to throw them away, they obviously don't need my dollars.
 
Bill, read my post, its not the FFL that was a problem but him wanting to send the gun directly to me without using an FFL. It is illegal to ship handguns or lowers interstate that way. He was trying to avoind using any FFL and in my state, as well as federally, that is illegal.
 
I was going to send him the FFL and money when he said he does not go through a FFL and ships it himself. Hmm I thought, I can't do that as my FFL only takes weapons from another FFL and this was an out of state deal
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Did you not post this?
 
Did you not read this??

I was further surprised when the seller called me, I'm not even sure where he got my number from, and offered to just ship it to me directly with no FFL involved if I liked.
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WVsig said:
When I recently moved to WV I lost my stellar transfer FFL in VA and went searching for a new one and was told time after time they would not take a transfer from an individual and many were trying to charge $25 to $50 from another FFL.
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Do you think $25 to $50 is NOT a reasonable fee to handle an incoming transfer? It sounds very reasonable to me -- $25 is what I would consider a bargain.
 
Do you think $25 to $50 is NOT a reasonable fee to handle an incoming transfer? It sounds very reasonable to me -- $25 is what I would consider a bargain.
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No I think $25 is on the high end of what you should pay. A transfer should not take a FFL more than 20 minutes of his or his associates time. If you add that up at $25 you are paying him $75 an hour minus overhead. That is a lot to receive, log in and transfer a firearm. IMHO

I pay $10 here in WV. I used to pay $15 in VA.
 
I was further surprised when the seller called me, I'm not even sure where he got my number from, and offered to just ship it to me directly with no FFL involved if I liked.
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Yeah I read that he is clearly ignorant of the law. It would have never come up if your FFL would have accepted it from an individual... I think you are paranoid to believe that this was the ATF.

IMHO is just a guy who does not know the law. It happens all the time.
 
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