firearm search

Not sure what you're trying to do. You have the serial number of a firearm and you want to know where it is now? How did you come to have the serial number? Did you formerly possess this firearm?

Yes. Email the manufacturer.

Police departments do it all the time.?

sgt2465 said:

greetings,
is there a was to search for a firearm by serial number ?

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Yes. Type in the firearm model and serial number into a search engine. You may or may not come up with anything. Beyond that, you'll need to clarify what you mean. Are you trying to get info on a gun that you possess or have access to? Or locate one that you don't?

What are you trying to see if it is stolen or something else?

Daveboone said:

Police departments do it all the time.?

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That's a "sort of."
There's a database of stolen arms with a certain amount of accuracy and completeness.
ATFE has a very incomplete database of their own "traces."

A "trace" usually involves asking the maker of the arm for their records on the s/n. Which is usually "Sold to [distributor/wholesaler]." Then, that party is interrogated, getting an answer of "Sold to [vendor]." Who then gets a call. If that outfit still exists, then they are asked to check their 4473 records book. (Which likely only goes back ten years.) If the 4473 is found, the buyer's information is gleaned. That worthy gets a phone call "Do you own [firearm]?" Which then can fall down a rabbit hole.

Now, if [dealer] is not in business, ATFE calls over to its storage facility for closed dealer Bound Books. There the 13-14 employees can, sometimes, find the correct pile of books, and those books will be legible enough to read. If found, they get the 4473, then it's back to calling the person indicated.

Note the number of ways this trail will go cold.
Like the original firearm was sold to ABC Distributing, who then sold to Big Box Sporting Goods, Inc. who then may or may not have kept records on which of a thousand stores the arm went to. Said chain might not exist anymore, or various stores might have gone out of business--dead ends.
The sale might be 20 years old (that's only 2000). So, the Bound Book will not go back that far. Or, the arm was sold, traded, lost in a poker game, house burned down, owner passed away, etc.

It's a lot easier on tv--but most things are.

There are a couple search engines that are for stolen guns. You type in the info and sereal number and look for a hit. After you buy it the local PD will usually run a stolen check but will confiscate if it shows up stolen. One is hotgunz.com

Daveboone said:

Police departments do it all the time.?

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Yes, well, supposed to have a court order. A registry of who owns what by name and serial number is a big constitutional no-no.

From personal experience, in Kansas, an officer will call in a serial number to see if a gun was reported as stolen. Even without asking for your ID or if its even legally your gun. Comes back clean, he sets it back on the shelf. Then he looks at you tacticool 10/22 with chopped off stock and says "hey thats pretty cool". Friendly cooperation goes a long way.

If by chance it is stolen, I cant say what happens. Haven't been in that situation. But we all know its not good.

sgt2465 said:

the 2 firearms in question belong to my father, a police officer. he reported them stolen from his home.

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So you're trying to find two stolen guns? If they were reported, then the serial numbers are already in the system. That will help you get them back if somebody gets caught with them, but that's about as far as it goes.

My father (who was also an officer) had his 4046 stolen out of his patrol car in our driveway. It was recovered 8 years later in Cincinnati....we live in Oklahoma.

About the only thing you can do is monitor pawnshops, classified ads, and Armslist. There is no database for you to search.

I’d bet it’s 50/50 odds they even show up in the system if an officer ever even calls them in. Maybe a 5% chance a gun is ever found. I wouldn’t waste too much time looking. I don’t even bother recording serials of gun I keep in the pickup. I just electro pencil my name and DL on them, I figure my odds are better.
I don’t believe pawn shops are even required to check them. I think that varies by state.
Dad lost 3 one time, cops pulled the guy over 4 days later and he had all 3 in the truck. only one showed as stolen so they let his wife go with the 2 that said not stolen and hauled him in.

The Ohio attorney general recently put up a page on the AG web site where one can enter a serial number and see it it is in the Ohio law enforcement database.

https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Law-Enforcement/Search-the-Ohio-Stolen-Guns

Trouble is I have several that are so old there is no serial number on them. That really got one game warden trying to see if my shotgun was stolen while were on our own property. We all went back to the farm and my grandfather told him to charge me or leave. Then he called the guys superior and proceded to "educate" them after a talk with a lawyer.