Selling rifle over the mail. help!

[black bear]

Hi guys,
I have a nice Obendorf Mauser K98 that a collector in another state wants.
He said he is a curio and relics collector and have a FFL.
It is okay for me to ship direct?
Or I should be better off if I pay a dealer for a transfer?
This is my first time doing this so I need guidance, is the transfer only for the paperwork or also include the shipping?
How much is usually a transfer?
Need to know how it works.
Which shipping company is best. UPS, USPS. or Federal Express?

I'll appreciate very much your responses
Best regards
black bear

 

[Preacherman]

The first thing he must do is send you a signed copy of his FFL. You must have this on file in order to ship to him.

Secondly, by law, you may only ship to the address printed on the FFL. No exceptions.

Thirdly, any of a number of shipping methods will work - FedEx, UPS, US Post Office (yes, you can mail a long gun - it's handguns that are the problem). I recommend packing the rifle VERY securely, having had guns broken in shipment before. I'd wrap the rifle in something like an old towel, then put bubble wrap over that, then put it in a strong box (or an inner and outer box, if you have them available). Put a copy of the shipping address, and your return address, inside the box before you seal it.

Finally, I strongly suggest insuring the rifle for the agreed price, plus the cost of the postage. If anything goes wrong, at least you won't be out of pocket.

 

[nelson133]

Try asking about it on www.surplusrifles.com The guys over there can also help uou figure out is you are selling it for the right price.

 

[Amish_Bill]

Preacherman got it.

There is no Fed law against shipping directly to a licensee. (and for the purposes of qualifying weapons, a Type 3 Curio & Relic FFL holder is a licensee)

 

[Coltdriver]

After you receive an ink signed copy of his C&R FFL then go to the BATFE site and find the link to verify that the license is valid.

One really slick way to ship a rifle is to go to your local Mail Boxes Etc or UPS Store and get a sheet of cardboard. You can form the cardboard into a triangular box very easily. Makes for one very stout box.

USPS will be the cheapest way to ship. Its perfectly legal for you to ship a rifle via postal service. You must declare that the box contains a rifle when you hand it off to the USPS. No external markings indicating that there is a rifle inside are allowed. Ship it priority insured. As pointed out above, ship only to the exact address on the FFL.

 

[Amish_Bill]

Um, last I checked the online FFL check was only for commercial licensees. Has that changed?

 

[EOD Guy]

Secondly, by law, you may only ship to the address printed on the FFL. No exceptions.

There is no such law. You may ship to a licensee at any address. BATF acknowledged that fact in their March 2006 FFL Newsletter.

Having said that, it would be foolish to do so unless the individual was personally known to you.

 

[BigRobT]

I recently sold a shotgun to a fellow out of state. I placed it in a $10 hard case, then made my own shipping box out of a huge piece of cardboard I had laying around. Being retired Navy, I tend to overprotect things, as I've seen numerous boxes crushed, broken, opened, etc. I shipped it to his FFL transfer dealer. It cost about $15 for normal ground and $21 for two day, then insurance on top. He got it just fine. I did, however, have to point out to the postal clerk that mailing of long guns was OK.