Is there some method of storing CCW handgun when entering Canada?

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tulsamal

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No, I'm not asking about taking a handgun over the border into Canada. I know that is a go to jail kind of thing. But we are planning a vacation trip up towards Ottawa. Driving two days cross US to Niagara Falls, then into Canada for a week. Then back into the US and two more days of driving. Or more.

So I can live with no guns for me in Canada. It is all the long days of driving in the US that concern me. I carry every day in my small town and rural county... but the truth is that statistically it is highly unlikely I will even see a violent crime, much less be a victim of one. But seems to me that it becomes much more likely when we are long distance travelers. I was thinking about it last night and it seems like gun people over the years would have developed some kind of work-around. I'm not putting a gun and ammo into a bus locker. If you made the trip often, I could see getting a bank account up there along the border and getting a safe deposit box. But this is a one time trip. Do FFL's along the border routinely take in guns "to hold them" for people going into Canada? I guess they would have to log them into their book... you could take them to a border FFL for some kind of minor repair and then pick them up in a week?

I'm not really planning on doing this.. I will probably just live with no CCW gun on this trip. But I am curious if people have found ways to do this.

Thanks,

Gregg
 
From OK, that's definitely a lot of driving. I'm like you in that I'd feel something was "wrong" if I went that long, and that far, unarmed (at least, without a firearm.)

If you bank with a national-chain bank, there may be a branch along the border-end of your route.

Some gun shops do indeed offer this service, but, yes, they'd have to log it in. Like you said, you could just drop it off for some mundane, minor service (may be a good time to replace a recoil spring or something?)

For their hock fee, you could put it up in a pawn shop, then redeem it when you come back. Fees can vary wildly, though.

I've heard of some people traveling into prohibited areas in the SouthWest simply hiding a gun in the desert but, admittedly, it was usually for a one-day outing or something. The climate in the desert is a lot better for that than anywhere near Canada.
 
NY is at least as bad as Canada. The authorities in NY won't even be nice while they take you to the Klinky.

Seriously, unless you have a NYS recognized CCL, bad place.
 
Double, triple, and quadruple check your vehicle to make sure there is no live ammunition, and NO SPENT BRASS in your car. My last trip from Michigan to Toronto, Ontario involved a 20 minute inspection of my vehicle because my CPL showed up on the Canadian custom agent's computer screen with my Driver's License number. Ten minutes of "where is your gun?" and my answer "back home in the safe" wasn't good enough, so he pulled us over and went through the vehicle. They didn't rip it to shreds, but they did check every nook and cranny in the back and under the seats for spent brass.
 
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I'm sure you are right F-111. I already remembered the loaded spare HK P2000 mag in the console. That's 12 rounds of a dreaded .357 SIG Gold Dot HP so that alone would probably put me away for life!

I will look… I know they have no sense of humor about guns from the US… is it actually illegal to enter with spent brass? I know a guy that shoots IDPA internationally out of Canada… seems like he would end up with a cartridge case somewhere odd on occasion.

I normally keep a 15" Himalayan Imports BAS khukuri in the back of the car as well. Why do I suspect you are going to say that is somehow a terrorist item too?

I know about NY. I wouldn't leave the gun there. I was thinking more like Cleveland, OH.

I'm just going to have to be one of those clueless civilians bumbling along believing nothing bad can ever happen to them.

Thanks.
 
heyjoe said:
dont take a handgun into new york either unless you are just passing through to another destination where the handgun is legal
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Don't take a handgun to NYC, period. That place isn't free America. My job allows me to carry nationwide under federal law, and I still had a half hour of BS to contend with at LaGuardia airport in NYC, when I was legally trying to check a gun into baggage before my flight back to Denver.
 
Anything over a detachable 5 round rifle or 10 round pistol magazine is illegal in Canada, so don't bring any empty 12 round magazines. Importing live ammunition requires a permit, which for hunters or competition shooters is fairly routine, but possession of handgun ammunition without the proper paperwork is very much frowned upon.

I don't know if a spent pistol cartridge is illegal in Canada as it is in D.C., but I am sure they were looking for one as 'probable cause' to give my Jeep Liberty the drug dealer treatment.

So if you go for the "leave my gun at an FFL gunsmith for 'cleaning' while in Canada, don't forget to make arrangements for storing your spare magazines as well. I swear that there are enough people like you that want to do what you want to do that somebody would make a good side business in the firearms storage business near the major Canada crossings.
 
tulsamal said:
I'm not putting a gun and ammo into a bus locker.
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What's wrong with a bus locker (assuming you find a nearby bus station)?

p.s. When we drive from Kansas to Maryland the guns stay home. The penalty of getting caught with a firearm far outweighs my concern for self-defense. We just carefully plan our route and stops.
 
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The wife and I took an extended road trip from Colorado up in to Canada 2 summers ago. I tried everything I could think of to be able to take my gun on the trip. We entered Canada through Idaho and exited in Montana. I called multiple government agencies and asked several questions. I even was able to find and call the border port of entry station we would be entering through and my response was a very emphatic "NO GUNS IN CANADA. NO EXCEPTIONS"
I even tried to find IDPA matches to shoot while I was there- but I was told only to and from the match from the entry point- not touring the country.
So, we still went but I went gun-less that trip. I really had no issues being without it in Canada, their country, their rules ya know? My concern is here at home.
I even considered taking the barrel and striker out of my gun to keep it with me and mailing the slide and frame separately from Idaho to the hotel we stayed at in Montana. But then what about magazines, ammo and even holster? What a pain. Almost did it then I realized it really wasn't such a good idea.
1st world problems... dontcha know?
 
It probably depends on the bank, but I have tried a few times, in vain, to find one that will allow firearms in a safe deposit box.
 
Easiest solution is to avoid Canada and stay away from New York state. I think you have just as good a shot at prison for, "taking it to a gun store for storage" in New York as you do for carting it into Canada. Other than putting it in a Ziploc bag and burying it for a few days, your next option would be to leave it at relatives or friends in the states. Bus station or similar locker maybe, if they do not clear them every 24 hours. I live 13 miles from Canada and still would rather walk 45 miles to the nearest town in America before I'd drive there.
 
^^ He's planning a week in Canada. The "easiest solution" is to leave his guns and ammo at home.

But, yeah, burying it in the woods in a good, sealed container, and with accurate coordinates recorded (think geocaching), is an option I've heard used.
 
lonegunman said:
Easiest solution is to avoid Canada and stay away from New York state. I think you have just as good a shot at prison for, "taking it to a gun store for storage" in New York as you do for carting it into Canada. Other than putting it in a Ziploc bag and burying it for a few days, your next option would be to leave it at relatives or friends in the states. Bus station or similar locker maybe, if they do not clear them every 24 hours. I live 13 miles from Canada and still would rather walk 45 miles to the nearest town in America before I'd drive there.
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Avoiding a beautiful trip for the 1 in 25,567,342 chance you're going to need your pistol to protect yourself? Nah.
 
[
MedWheeler said:
Some gun shops do indeed offer this service, but, yes, they'd have to log it in. Like you said, you could just drop it off for some mundane, minor service (may be a good time to replace a recoil spring or something?)

For their hock fee, you could put it up in a pawn shop, then redeem it when you come back. Fees can vary wildly, though..
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Being that the OP is a resident of Oklahoma, any handgun that he leaves with an FFL outside of Oklahoma could only be returned if it was left for gunsmithing. Leaving it with an FFL merely for "storage" means they cannot give it back to him, but must ship it to a dealer in Oklahoma. The OP would then have to complete a Form 4473 and NICS to get his handgun back.

Federal law allows for the direct return of a gun without need for a Form 4473 or NICS when left with a licensee for gunsmithing.
No such exemption exists for guns that are just "stored for safekeeping".
 
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.455_Hunter said:
How would they know?
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They don't. I actually did it in FL. Read the paper work months later to find out it was a no no. I retrieved it. Now I drive there and take what I want and carry as well, including my bank visits.
 
F-111 John said:
Importing live ammunition requires a permit, which for hunters or competition shooters is fairly routine
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I drove through Canada about five years ago with a couple of rifles on the way to Alaska for a hunting trip. I don't remember anything about a permit for the ammo. I think the rules amounted to "we don't care" as long as the amount was under 50 rounds or so. Perhaps it is different now.

There was required paperwork for the two rifles. I downloaded that ahead of time and had all forms filled out and ready to go. On the way up, I declared the rifles at the drive-thru and they directed me to park and take the paperwork inside. The CA custom's guy was a real jerk - so much so that the gal at a desk behind him kept looking at me and shaking her head and mouthing "Sorry". But he eventually stamped and signed my paperwork. He didn't bother to come out to actually look at the rifles and he didn't ask about ammo.

The way back down was a bit different. The "border crossing" checkpoint was actually about 10 miles or so inside Canada. I didn't have to get out of the truck there, but the guy in the window asked me why I had two rifles when I was alone in the truck. He asked me which one I actually used to shoot the caribou. Then he asked me - again - why I needed to have the other one. Then he asked other questions and asked the firearm questions each a second time. Then more questions and then the same firearm questions a third time... But he didn't ask about ammo either or look at the rifles. He did tell me to stop at the CA side at my exit point and declare the firearms there also. I did, and they told me that it was a ridiculous request and they didn't even look at the paperwork.

Although that was the only trip with firearms, I've crossed the border into Canada a few dozen times over the years. The experience is usually straight forward, but pretty much dependent on the Custom's agent's attitude and what kind of a day they are having. I've been picked for a cursory vehicle search a couple of times and have never had a problem. But during one of those occasions, the vehicle in the next bay was found to contain an undeclared shotgun. Things got interesting real fast. Don't know what the outcome was, though, as they lost interest in my vehicle at that point and cleared me to move on.
 
+1000 on the pawn shop idea. I had to use it at Fort Lewis when I was declined utilization of an arms room for my personal weapons while on a two month TDY. I just kept the pawn money folded-up untouched in my wallet and handed it back over when I picked up the guns. I think the time limit before he could sell them was 90 days at the time.
 
I drove through Canada about five years ago with a couple of rifles on the way to Alaska for a hunting trip. I don't remember anything about a permit for the ammo. I think the rules amounted to "we don't care" as long as the amount was under 50 rounds or so. Perhaps it is different now.
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Your non-resident firearms declaration paperwork was your ammunition paperwork, and you were dealing with 'unrestricted' rifles, not restricted or prhoibited rifles, or handguns.

http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/cfp-pcaf/fs-fd/visit-visite-eng.htm
 
http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/cfp-pcaf/fs-fd/visit-visite-eng.htm

Thanks for posting that link. It was 2 years ago, but I don't remember the paperwork being so clear or easy to bring a gun in. I even called to ask questions about the form because I really couldn't tell if it was okay or not.
Although the boarder guards we were greeted by were friendly enough, they asked asinine questions. Repeatedly. We were the only car at the Kingsgate crossing at the time and think they were just screwing with us. I can only guess how trying to bring a gun in would only complicate the process.
 
Tulsamal wrote:
I normally keep a 15" Himalayan Imports BAS khukuri in the back of the car as well. Why do I suspect you are going to say that is somehow a terrorist item too?
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Not a terrorist weapon, just an illegal knife.

You are an alien about to enter another sovereign country. Their laws are different with respect to many things, not just firearms and they will expect you to have familiarized yourself with those laws before you came across the border. Unless you want to spend your vacation being interrogated by Canadian border officials, it would be best to leave guns, knives, clubs and the like back home in the safe.
 
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