whats the easiest way to ship a handgun?

[CheckonChico]

I recently purchased a handgun from a buddy of mine in amarillo. What's the easiest way for him to ship it to me? Can he just ship it fed ex, or does it have to go thru an FFL?....I need it shipped to me in Fort Worth. tia!

[WildBill]

I recently purchased a handgun from a buddy of mine in amarillo. What's the easiest way for him to ship it to me? Can he just ship it fed ex, or does it have to go thru an FFL?....I need it shipped to me in Fort Worth. tia!

That's not a good question. The easiest way would be USPS, but that's against the law.
You need to go through an FFL. Either that or make a road trip.

[CheckonChico]

lol! I meant easiest and also legal

[JJVP]

I recently purchased a handgun from a buddy of mine in amarillo. What's the easiest way for him to ship it to me? Can he just ship it fed ex, or does it have to go thru an FFL?....I need it shipped to me in Fort Worth. tia!

That's not a good question. The easiest way would be USPS, but that's against the law.
You need to go through an FFL. Either that or make a road trip.

He does not have to ship through an FFL if he is shipping in-state. FFL is only required for out of state shipping.

http://www.gunbroker.com/support/Suppor ... faqid=1118" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bizarrenormality]

He does not have to ship through an FFL if he is shipping in-state. FFL is only required for out of state shipping.

http://www.gunbroker.com/support/Suppor ... faqid=1118" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[OldCannon]

I recently purchased a handgun from a buddy of mine in amarillo. What's the easiest way for him to ship it to me? Can he just ship it fed ex, or does it have to go thru an FFL?....I need it shipped to me in Fort Worth. tia!

That's not a good question. The easiest way would be USPS, but that's against the law.
You need to go through an FFL. Either that or make a road trip.

He does not have to ship through an FFL if he is shipping in-state. FFL is only required for out of state shipping.

http://www.gunbroker.com/support/Suppor ... faqid=1118" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well, kind of true, but observe the cruel nature of the federal regulations:
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)]

So, in a nutshell:
1) yes, you can transfer a firearm to another resident IN your state
2) The US Post Office won't touch a handgun unless it's shipped from an FFL, regardless of in/out of state
3) Common carriers (i.e., UPS or FedEx) may ship it, but most won't unless it's going to an FFL, and both will require overnight shipping.

Frankly: Drive to Amarillo. Probably Cheaper. Or have him meet you in Wichita Falls, if you will split the difference.

[CheckonChico]

So UPS or FedEx would be fine??

[OldCannon]

So UPS or FedEx would be fine??

Technically, they SHOULD accept it, but they have the right to refuse. In addition, it will likely cost you $50-$100 to ship (overnight fees plus firearm shipping fees). You can NOT take it to a local UPS store though, you need to call the nearest main UPS shipping facility and explain what you need to do, they will tell you if you can do it. There is no federal law that says you can't ship a handgun intrastate, but the law does say the Post Office won't do it.

[CheckonChico]

Ok Thanks

[bizarrenormality]

Shipping companies can make their own policies but those policies aren't laws.

[alexrex20]

ship it UPS Ground and don't declare it as a handgun. it's not illegal, it's just against UPS company policy.

or FedEx, same difference.

if UPS or FedEx somehow loses your package, it may be hard or impossible to get a replacement or the value of the gun, because you didn't declare it as a handgun. but in all the hundreds of packages i've received through UPS or FedEx over the years, none of them have ever been lost...

just food for thought.

[74novaman]

So UPS or FedEx would be fine??

Technically, they SHOULD accept it, but they have the right to refuse. In addition, it will likely cost you $50-$100 to ship (overnight fees plus firearm shipping fees). You can NOT take it to a local UPS store though, you need to call the nearest main UPS shipping facility and explain what you need to do, they will tell you if you can do it. There is no federal law that says you can't ship a handgun intrastate, but the law does say the Post Office won't do it.

I did that, followed UPS policies down to the letter...they still wouldn't let me ship, even after I worked through about 3 levels of management on the phone and read their own policy off their website.

[03Lightningrocks]

There are FFL's listed on the forum that only charge 10 bucks or so for a fellow CHLer. Of course the shipping is in addition but I have yet been able to ship anything cheaper by myself than the FFL can ship it for...even with the 10 bucks added. It makes no sense to pay more and ship it with no FFL. In addition, you will get stressed out arguing with some shipping employee who has no idea of what the rules are.

[WildBill]

Sorry, I was wrong about the law, but right about being easy. That is the reason that most of the sales on the forum are FTF or through an FFL.

[OldCannon]

ship it UPS Ground and don't declare it as a handgun. it's not illegal, it's just against UPS company policy.

or FedEx, same difference.

...
just food for thought.

Here's more food for thought: Just because YOU think it's ok doesn't make it legal. It is, in fact, ILLEGAL to not declare a firearm. Period.

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]

Good thing you never got caught, eh?