legal shipping of handguns

[jhco]

hi guys I just had a question about legal shipping methods for handguns. heres why, I buy guns from gunbroker and they are always shipped fedex overnight but a walther i just bought was shipped via usps priority i didnt think it was legal to ship handguns via pos office services is this true or am i wrong

 

[DPris]

An FFL holder can mail to another FFL holder.
Denis

 

[jhco]

thanks denis

 

[buzz_knox]

DPris

Do you have a cite to the applicable reg?

Thank you.

 

[hanno]

Do you have a cite to the applicable reg?

Section 1715.
Firearms as nonmailable; regulations Pistols, revolvers, and other firearms capable of being concealed on the person are nonmailable and shall not be deposited in or carried by the mail or delivered by any officer or employee of the Postal Service. Such articles may be conveyed in the mail, under such regulations as the Postal Service shall prescribe, for use in connection with their official duty, to officers of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, or Organized Reserve Corps; to officers of the National Guard or militia of a state, territory, commonwealth, possession, or district; to officers of the United States or of a state, territory, or district whose official duty is to serve warrants of arrest or commitments; to employees of the Postal Service; to officers and employees of enforcement agencies of the United States; and to watchmen engaged in guarding the property of the United States, a state, territory, commonwealth, possession, or district. Such articles also may be conveyed in the mail to manufacturers of firearms or bona fide dealers therein in customary trade shipments, including such articles for repairs or replacement of parts, from one to the other, under such regulations as the Postal Service shall prescribe. Whoever knowingly deposits for mailing or delivery, or knowingly causes to be delivered by mail according to the direction thereon, or at any place to which it is directed to be delivered by the person to whom it is addressed, any pistol, revolver, or firearm declared nonmailable by this section, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.
18 U.S.C. 1715

Congress gave the USPS authority to promulgate regulations regarding the shipping of handguns between manufacturers and bona fide dealers. The USPS did so with the Domestic Mail Manual.

The Domestic Mail Manual defines manufacturers and dealers as: "Licensed manufacturer and licensed dealer mean, respectively, a manufacturer of firearms or a bona fide dealer of firearms, duly licensed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms of the Department of the Treasury, under the Gun Control Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-618), 18 USC 921, et seq."

Note regarding FFLs: Not all FFLs can use the mail. Dealers and manufacturers can, C&R holders (03 FFL) cannot.

 

[buzz_knox]

Thanks, hanno.

 

[Confederate]

If I ship a handgun to an FFL in another state, I assume I can ship it via U.S. Postal Service, is that right? Someone said to only FedEx it, but that doesn't sound right. I know that UPS stopped shipping handguns because their employees were ripping them off, or at least that's what I was told.

Cost wise, which is the best way to send it?

 

[wdlsguy]

If I ship a handgun to an FFL in another state, I assume I can ship it via U.S. Postal Service, is that right?

(B7) May a nonlicensee ship a firearm through the U.S. Postal Service?[Back]

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.

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/faq2.htm#b7

 

[Brian Williams]

If I ship a handgun to an FFL in another state, I assume I can ship it via U.S. Postal Service, is that right?

WRONG! Only a Dealer or a Manufacturer can use USPS, every one else has to use an overnight carrier.

 

[btg3]

For an individual shipping out-of-state to an FFL the rates for USPS or Fedex are currently around $50. Is this what other are experiencing?

This is surely a deal-killer in some instances. At a minimum, it puts non-FFL individuals at a disadvantage relative to FFL holders who charge as little as $15 to ship a handgun. The incentive is plainly to do the transaction FTF -- and no paperwork required. Surely the regulators are at work to change this???

Who has used an FFL to send a handgun? Any advantages?

 

[NGIB]

I tried to make a sticky out of this stuff as it gets asked at least every other day...

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

I know that UPS stopped shipping handguns because their employees were ripping them off, or at least that's what I was told.

Partly correct. Yes, there were an awful lot of "inside job" thefts, no, they do ship handguns, but only by Next Day Air Saver.

When I have to ship handguns back to the maker, I like it a lot better when the mfr. e-mails me a shipping label. Then I just stick it on the box and take it to any UPS location, even the anti-gun "UPS Stores." Otherwise I have to take it to the distribution center (35 miles away in Mesa), where the clerk will slice open the box I just packed and ask me to unload and "show clear."

At least I do get some value for the $50+ it cost to ship this way - it really does get there the next business day.