Armslist

You can still do the transfer through an FFL. If you feel uncomfortable selling a gun to a radon person I would suggest just not doing it.

420 friendly…?

Is this an abbreviation for something, such as the C&R FFL license ?

Armslist is dead. Try googling, duck duck go your state and firearms forums. They generally have a buy sell and trade section.

Does not matter if they have a prescription the feds still consider them prohibited persons.

I tried buying guns and selling a gun on Armslist. I lived in Southern California at the time. I couldn’t believe some of the stupidity I encountered. I don’t want to bore you with details, but I dropped Armslist and sold my revolver on consignment. That came with another set of headaches but at least I got it sold. Consignment sales at the gun stores in SoCal cost the seller 20% of the sale price.

A couple years ago I was looking for parts for and old shotgun. A guy on armslist said he had the same shotgun and would sell me the parts from it. I was going to pay $100 for the parts. He wanted me to mail him the money order and he would mail the parts when he got it. "To make a long story short." I was going to do it. But, to make sure he had the shotgun and it was correct I asked him to email a photo of the gun. Some months before I had posted a photo of my gun on Numrich looking for the parts.
The guy had gotten that photo from Numrich and sent it to me Saying that was his gun. I emailed him telling him that was my photo. Never heard from him again. Scam.
I now Never use armslist.

hnusz said:

I have a few things on armslist. Last night got a text asking for bottom dollar sent a reply. Got a text back asking 420 friendly by chance? Immediately replied nope. Don't know if they had a prescription or was a what. But makes me want to just put them on consignment so I don't have to worry about selling to a prohibited person.

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You found the Narc.....

Agree, Armslist was barely legit before all the recent insanity. Its a minefield now- run away.

I still browse it but I have canceled my membership. I just bought 2 handi-rifles from a pawn/gun shop that lists on there. That said I have yet to have a purchase go through from a private party. Most don’t respond at best, at worst I’ve been left waiting in a parking lot for someone to not show up.

The knuckle heads are still on there. The subscription didn’t weed them all out.
I have however eventually sold the various reloading and firearms I listed on there. I find insisting on a bill of sale, that includes either your conceal carry permit number, or driver ID #, in addition to full name, has done an excellent job of killing deals with the questionable types.
Personally I can’t imagine not doing a Bill of Sale… you never know if a firearm is stolen for example. A BoS could at least prove I lawfully acquired the firearm & ain’t the bad guy…

When messages are weird, or suspicious, I play along with them. Example: If they are trying to buy my handgun in MO while being an IL resident, without FFL, I give them the number listed online of the local ATF supervisor.
The ATF could honey pot so many on Armslist… Maybe that is who is behind the unusual messages?!
If the messages are extremely low ball, I don’t exchange cell numbers & I sometimes try stroking them along to a meeting I won’t be going to. they have always catched on before being stood up.

hnusz said:

Last night got a text asking for bottom dollar sent a reply.

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And there was you first mistake. Anyone who asks you to negotiate against yourself on their behalf is an imbecile or worse. Never answer them.

Lot of individual scammers on Armslist, but the dealers who sell stuff there are usually ok, based on my experience.

Armslist, like Craigslist, isn't for everyone. If you are uncomfortable selling a firearm to a stranger it is definitely not for you. If you don't have the patience to weed through the tire kickers and low ballers it's not for you. If you are buying - caveat emptor and never give a stranger your personal ID information (you have been warned about that most of your life...).

hnusz said:

I have a few things on armslist. Last night got a text asking for bottom dollar sent a reply. Got a text back asking 420 friendly by chance? Immediately replied nope. Don't know if they had a prescription or was a what. But makes me want to just put them on consignment so I don't have to worry about selling to a prohibited person.

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I just sold a Hellcat on ArmsList and have been buying and selling on their for over a decade. Just a few months back, I purchased a like new Walther Q4SF for $800 with 5 mags from an out of state guy who shipped it to me. The Q4SF is a $1500 gun and mags are $40 +/- each... You just have to use common sense when you buy or sell. I never been burt after dozens of transactions.

Yes, I got a lot of flakes and lowballlers, but ignore them. I had a bunch of guys stop communicating after I explained to them that we had to meet at an FFL for the tranfer per state law. I do not know why some sellers get all riled up, disappointed, and make a big deal out of it. I don't know why they respond lowballlers or other idiots. I simply ignore the trash and respond to those who seem serious and motivated.

Took me about three weeks to sell, but a buyer finally came along, gave me his number, told me he wanted it and was prepared to meet me at a local FFL the next morning which he did.

I refuse to eat shipping cost or taking a huge hit on consignment or auction fees. I rather be patient and sell face to face. Also, prices for used guns on online forums go for less than in F2F sales, so that's just another reason why I rather sell through ArmsList.

kidneyboy said:

Armslist, like Craigslist, isn't for everyone. If you are uncomfortable selling a firearm to a stranger it is definitely not for you. If you don't have the patience to weed through the tire kickers and low ballers it's not for you. If you are buying - caveat emptor and never give a stranger your personal ID information (you have been warned about that most of your life...).

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Exactly!!! And if you are scared about selling to a prohibited person, put in your ad and stress to interested buyers that they must do a transfer through a FFL. I will something even split the transfer fee with them. That's a lot cheaper than going thr consignment route or paying to ship.

@kidneyboy Before the law changed in my state, I did a bunch of F2F business on ArmsList without going through a FFL. I always printed out two copies of a bill of sale. I let them see my license and I say there's to make sure we were both from the same state and the names were the same that were on the BOS. That always worked out for me and the other person.

hnusz said:

Never had any problems selling on armslist. Had some lowball offers just ignored them. Always say no shipping I work when the post office is open except for two Saturday's a month. Most don't want to wait or pay with a postal money order. Don't have PayPal or a cash app. Cash and face to face works best.

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You should find a local FFL who doesn't charge but $25 or so for face to face transfers, and have buyers meet you there or at another FFL of their choosing. Put it in your ad. Also, list the gun on popular firearm forums and note that they have to be local. If they are a longtime established member, if you feel comfortable, you could skip the FFL involvement all together. If you priced it right, it will sell eventually.

Even though you live in a universal carry state, you might try skipping the FFL transfer requirement if the buyer can present a state ID and carry permit. Back in the day, I would put that there was a small discount in price for those who had a carry permit.

It's so nice to drop your weapons off at your LGS, wait a few weeks, and get your check, minus the 20% they earned for dealing with all the crap.

hnusz said:

asking for bottom dollar

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I just tell them the asking price is my bottom dollar.

I have actually never had a problem with Armslist that wasn't readily apparent at the e-mail stage. The only minor hassle was the fact that I'm in the third-largest metro area in Minnesota, so most of the buyer pool is in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area, so it's a drive for one of us or the other in most cases. But I've sold a lot of guns on Armslist, and especially with how difficult it is to get safely paid electronically for guns or gun stuff, it's really nice to have cash deals on Armlist. I just require buyers to show me their license and permit to purchase (state law requirement) or permit to carry (also acts as a permit to purchase according to state law), and I've never had an issue.

edwardware said:

And there was you first mistake. Anyone who asks you to negotiate against yourself on their behalf is an imbecile or worse. Never answer them.

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I will sometimes ask a seller what their best price is because I don't want to insult them with a low-ball offer and if their offer is reasonable I will take it. And for the record, I don't consider myself an "imbecile" (although my wife might beg to differ...).

I abandoned them when they started charging buyers. I understand charging sellers and I would willing pay to list a gun, but I’m not going to pay just to browse. Before the change I bought and sold at least a dozen guns there with no issues. 100% FTF in a public place and I need to see proof you are a KY resident.

My favorite was when I was buying a gun and we set a time and place to meet. I asked the seller how I would recognize him and he said “I’ll be the one in the Kentucky State Police cruiser.” I think he was a little surprised when I showed up.

I still browse AL every evening. Twice since they've started charging I've paid for a single month, once to sell a gun and once to get the contact info for someone selling for something I really wanted. I've done a couple trades with people smart enough to list their numbers or email in the listing. It does suck what AL's become, I enjoyed it quite a bit before even with the obvious scammers. Like someone else said, it's easy enough to tell through email or text if it's a legit seller/buyer or not and I always meet FTF. I've never had an issue with Armslist or Craigslist.

It's unfortunate the potential buyer for OP mentioned 420. While I personally don't care if someone partakes and think the federal law on the matter is stupid, that's the law and would have stopped me from selling the gun to them as well. Don't ask, don't tell.