Transfers insult to FFLs?

[ScotZ]

My experiance has been that there are two kinds of FFL holders. Real businessmen and hustlers. A real businessman relies on customer service and volume to grow his business. The hustler is always whining and bitching about how you just dont understand how hard it is for him to make a living at this. He wants you to think he is actually doing you a favor by overcharging you. Two totally different people doing the exact same thing. I avoid the hustlers at all cost. Do your research and decide what you think is fair market value. You will soon find out if you are correct or not. No matter who you do business with.

 

[Gord]

You forgot #3: the bravado-filled "I hold the Type 01 FFL, therefore I am the God of your little world" guys who feel that they are the final authority on anything and everything even remotely related to firearms. They posture, they insult, they ridicule - because they are more qualified than you. The proverbial gunstore commando.

They don't whine, they just do what they want whether it's good business practice or not becase dammit, they're right and that's all there is to it.

We'll call them "ego feeders."

 

[kungfuhippie]

Tactical Ninja,
I'm also in the Inland Empire. I don't like the "customer service" at Turners, or their prices for used firearms, though they have a nice selection of new. Haven't seemed to have any ammo lately. If you want I'll PM you my local shop. Once the owner gets to know you (that your not just some yokel off the street that wants to look but not buy) you'll like his shop. Ammo prices are higher than some places but he keeps surplus on stock which can come in handy.

 

[Gord]

Turner's does tend to have some pretty bad prices - and a pretty bad selection. I guess everybody down in San Bernardino is a mall ninja because all they ever seem to have are tricked-out shotguns, Glocks and .44 Mags.

I keep getting e-mail flyers for "excellent" CZ-52s, but they only ever have one in the display case and it always looks like it was dragged behind a truck all the way from the importer.

Unless your guy is in the High Desert, it probably wouldn't be worth the gas getting down to his place - I don't buy guns often enough to make it worth his while anyway, likely. I'd be playing with his stuff far more often than I would be buying it, unfortunately. Gotta save up.

If he's got a decent selection of 7.62x54R that he'll sell in small quantities I might pay him a visit - don't like ordering 440/880 rounds of something I don't know if my guns will like.

 

[Stiletto Null]

My choice shop charges $30, which might be a little bit high for the area (I hear there's a pawnshop somewhere that does $20 transfers), but the staff is nice and friendly and I'm always in their dinging up and fingerprinting their inventory anyway.

Besides, I've been known to spot shinies and then point my friends in when I couldn't afford them myself.

 

[atomchaser]

I've used a local pawn shop mostly. They are more then glad to make any easy 20 bucks. I used to use a local lawyer who had an FFL and only charged me 10 bucks (even if I was getting multiple guns), but I think he took some heat from ATF and turned his ffl in. Lately, I've been using an FFL who runs an indoor range. He makes most of his money of the range and doesn't carry many new guns and doesn't seem to mind the easy $25. I shoot at his range pretty frequently and buy ammo from him, so I'm probably more profitable to him that way then I would be just straight buying guns from him and not ammo and range time. I had a transfer with one other local dealer who the seller mistakenly sent a pistol to instead of the ffl I specified. He was a total jerk and basically held the deal up for a few days and charged be $45 bucks for the transfer. I guess he thought he came out on top, but he has never gotten another dime of my business and a lot of poor recommendations to people who asked me about local dealers.

 

[kd7nqb]

After reading this thread I spoke with my favorite gun shop owner. This was his answer:

"I encourage FFL's to discourage transfers, because that means I can do more transfers and make more easy cash."

He also argued that in general if you buy the gun online, you may very well buy accesories and ammo in his shop possibly even on the day it arrives. He also mentioned that if he does a transfer for somebody, that means they come into the shop twice not just once like buying a gun the old fashion way.

 

[aerod1]

There is an FFL dealer at my church that does my transfers for $15.00.

 

[eastwood44mag]

I've only dealt with 2 FFL's: one big shop and one guy working from his home.

The shop acts indignant, is farther away, and charges more. They lost my business. The closest shops all but refuse to do transfers ($50-100). They get NO business from me, so I drove an hour out of my way. The local guy is a lot better to deal with. Lower cost, closer to home, and doesn't treat his customers like crap. Add in the fact he's a collector and we can shoot the breeze about which guns will be the best investments. Hmm....I think I need to give him a call....and get another gun.

 

[TaxPhd]

I almost hate to ask you, TaxPhd, for obvious reasons but are you sure this applies to every state? And not all states have "state returns" as in "income tax returns".

It's been some time since I have done any sales tax work, but I don't know of a state that has a sales tax that doesn't also have a provision for use tax. There may be some, but I don't know of any.




Scott

 

[Rabid Rabbit]

We have three shops in my town. One is a hobby store and has really strange hours that are always moving so I don't go there often, another is a branch of a full size gunstore and is open two days a week. Both of these stores keep very little in stock except for trades and some basic guns, but live on the special orders 10% of cost and transfers $25. Their belief is the chance that they are going to have the exact configuration that you want is pretty slim so why tie up the money in stock. Just do a special order and everybody makes out. The third store charges $100-150 more than MSRP, are rude and would't order a Tarus 85 because there is only one purpose for "those guns".

 

[kungfuhippie]

would't order a Tarus 85 because there is only one purpose for "those guns".

I thought the purpose of any gun was to make holes in things? It's up to the person holding the gun where he intends to put the holes.

 

[mausercrank]

I wish everyone would come to me for transfers. I must be charging too much! Does 10 bucks sound over the top?

 

[ilcylic]

My local gun shop (Ron Peterson's, Albuquerque, NM) never gives me anything other than polite ribbing over FFL transfers, probably because they know I buy pretty much every gun I get through them, or private sale. If they had what I was getting transferred, I'd have gotten it there.

Last thing I got through them, in fact, came from Correia. New girl behind the counter asked "you couldn't find what you were looking for around here?" to which the (grinningly delivered) reply was "not unless you've got a crate of new in the grease milled reciever AKs lying around no one mentioned to me..."

It probably helped that I had relatives in three states call in gift certificates for my birthday the week before. They know my loyalty is with them.

 

[Rumpled]

I'm another victim here in CA. Here are some of my experiences. And yeah, we take it in the shorts when it comes to transfers, pawn shops included.

One range near me wouldn't (might now, new owner) do transfers of any kind.
They have to by law, so; if you pushed it they told me they would do it, make me wait a couple of hours and charge "about a hundred"

Another range charges $150 for the transfer if it's a model they can get, so even if they don't sell you the gun - they're gonna get the profit.

Another dealer will chage $40 or 18% of the price, whichever is higher - another profit taker.

All of the above would also charge the state fee of $25.
Also, in CA tax (~7.25% to 8.75%) is supposed to be paid on ALL interstate purchases, catalogs, web, you name it. If not collected by a dealer, there's a nice spot on our state tax return to pay it yourself. In many instances, the fees can/are taxed. Our rival state agencies DOJ and FTB (Franchise Tax Board) seem to have differing interpretations of the law, so different dealers follow differenet policies.

I found another small dealer that charges $45 plus the state fee of $25. So, $70 is a little lower than the average near me, but not the lowest.
He's willing to transfer anything legal, just asks you give him an opportunity to quote you on something new to see if he can do better. Fair enough. Getting something old and funky, cool. He's always busy, I try to pop in at lunch to do a transfer and wait for about 6-8 other people generally. Waits are often an hour or more. I've transferred about a dozen guns through him, and will do more. When it's time to buy something new, I'm just gonna pay his price; he's one of the good ones. (Though it did hurt to pay $70 to transfer a $89 CZ-52 even when I have a 03FFL myself. Good ole CA and our every handgun must use a 01FFL laws)

As far as getting your own 01FFL in CA, forget about it. It can be done, but is very difficult and no kitchens allowed; must have a store front.

 

[langenc]

I bought an $800 dollar smaller handgun and asked a shop whet was hi s fee for transfer.

I was advised it is 10% of purchase price. I told him "i dont think so."

 

[Firethorn]

langenc,

Sounds like the dealer to hit up when I buy a bunch of $50 guns.

 

[JWarren]

I've requested a few transfers in the last 3 years with varying experiences. I want to point out that as a small business owner myself, I always try to support the guys in business for themselves.

Often I don't mind paying a little more for something local. However, I like military weapons and milsurps. NO ONE around here stocks any milsurps, and in military-style weapons, they may have a token AR-15 on the rack. Typically buyers of military-style weapons know EXACTLY what they want and who that want it from. I'm like that.

Big Buck Sports (Hattiesburg, MS) charged me an outrageous transfer fee, treated me like a second-class citizen, and generally made the process difficult and unpleasant. In general, everything in thier store is overpriced, and I will not be back in there again-- even though they have the best selection of new firearms anywhere around.

Waldo's Sports Center (Columbia, MS) charged me a reasonable amount for transfers, and even informed me on my second transfer they would be giving me a lower rate going forward. Thier prices on everything is reasonable, but they simply don't stock what I buy in terms of firearms. As a show of appreciation, I buy all my non-milsurp ammunition from them. In addition, they carry reloaders and reloading components. I'm becoming interested in this practice and anticipate that I will buy my components from them.

A local pawnshop I recently discovered seems very willing to do business with me, but has a policy that they would like to have a chance to order the firearm first. I'm still deciding how I feel about that. I can't imagine they can get a better price then I can-- since I do exaustive research on anything I buy. I won't take an alternative brand, type, etc. I would rather pay more for the transfer and know we all walk away happy.

If a FFL doesn't like that, they don't DESERVE my business in firearms, or ANYTHING I will purchase.


John