Legal or not - Buying a gun for someone else?

[Lightsped]

So say I do not belong to a certain gun club, but a friend does. This gun club gives discounts to their members on gun purchases. Would it be legal for a friend to buy the gun, do the paperwork, and then private sell it to me?

BTW, this is not a real situation, I have just been curious about this for some time.

 

[Cosmoline]

I wouldn't do it! The savings isn't worth federal time for straw purchase. Just join the gun club and keep things on the up and up. It just isn't worth the risk.

 

[Sleeping Dog]

If it's ok with the gun club, it's ok with the feds. It should be no different than a friend "buying" a gun for you cheap because he works at a sporting goods store.

All the feds care is that the real owner (you) are the one on the yellow form. They don't care about who's paying or what kind of deal is offerred. Will the club run your name through NICS while giving the discount to your buddy? If so, you should be ok. If not, I'd pass.

 

[Graystar]

The intent behind the "strawman" law is to prevent people who are NOT supposed to have guns from getting them. If you can legally possess the firearm then there's no problem.

 

[AZ Jeff]

"Cosmoline" is a bit incorrect in his use of the term "straw purchase". A "straw purchase", as defined by ATF, is the act of using a person who IS QUALIFIED to buy a firearm to purchase a firearm on behalf of someone who IS NOT QUALIFIED.

If both parties here can legally buy the firearm, but one choses to do so to save the other one some money, then a straw purchase IS NOT being committed.+

 

[C.R.Sam]

Only legal if a bonefide gift.

The scenario in the original post would require false testimony in answer to 4473 item 12a.

Sam

 

[Cosmoline]

I'm confused--who's filling out the yellow form? If YOU are filling it out, with the club extending a discount to you--I see no problem at all. If YOUR FRIEND is filling it out, I would just not go there. Not worth the risk at all. For one thing, as has been pointed out, the transaction will require your friend to lie on Question No. 1--NOT a good choice.

 

[Lightsped]

In the circumstance described, it would be my friend filling out the form, buying the gun, then selling the gun to me.

Well, actually there is no such "gun club", and I am capable of legally buying my own guns. I was just curious.