Trials and Tribulations of a Massachusetts Handgun Owner

[EddieCoyle]

Attention Mass Handgun Owners:

Here's an update (of sorts):

As you Massachusetts handgun owners probably know, the only way a dealer can transfer a non-roster handgun to you is if the gun was already in the Commonwealth before 1998. I've been looking for a S&W 1006 that fit these qualifications for a while now.

I was in a shop yesterday and mentioned this to the owner. He told me to find one on Guns America or Gun Broker with a pre-'98 serial number and he would transfer it to me. His reasoning was that if the gun was made in Massachusetts before '98, then obviously it was in Massachusetts before 1998! This means that we can now buy any pre-'98 Smith and Wesson handgun. I apologize if this is old news but this was the first I've heard of it. The same is true of other Mass manufacturers (i.e H&R, Springfield, etc).

If you're interested, PM me and I'll send you the name of the shop.

 

[Chipperman]

Interesting train of thought. The fatal flaw is that most FFL's (and the AG apparently) are interpreting the law as the gun having been legally OWNED in MA prior to 10/98. Being manufactured but not yet transferred would not seem to cut it.

With that said, if the dealer is willing to do the transfer, go ahead. It's his butt on the line, not yours.

 

[DMSHEPARD]

Keep us posted on how you make out. Even the dealers aren't 100% on the rules.

My local shop has a .22 Tomcat for $250 or so. It may still be there.

As to Glock mags one dealer said that there are no markings so no way to prove date or origin, "but you didn't hear that from us"








Class A Any Lawful Purpose.

 

[EddieCoyle]

Interesting train of thought. The fatal flaw is that most FFL's (and the AG apparently) are interpreting the law as the gun having been legally OWNED in MA prior to 10/98. Being manufactured but not yet transferred would not seem to cut it.

With that said, if the dealer is willing to do the transfer, go ahead. It's his butt on the line, not yours.

I'm looking for the link but if I remember correctly, the law does not say "owned" specifically. Even so, didn't S&W technically "own" the gun prior to sale? I know the law doesn't specify private ownership.

Anyway, you're right. It's the dealer that's assuming the risk here, not the buyer. There is no law against buying or owning such a gun; only FFL transfer. In fact, it's perfectly legal for a non-dealer to transfer a non-roster gun in a private sale.

 

[Chipperman]

Here's the text:

16.07 Transfers of Used Handguns

940 CMR 16.03 and 16.05(2) and (3) shall not apply to the transfer of (or offer to transfer) any handgun that previously has been sold at retail to a consumer and that was manufactured prior to the enforcement date for those provisions.
=======================================

As you can see, the text does say "sold at retail", so I do not think sitting in S&W's warehouse will suffice, as far as the AG is concerned.

 

[EddieCoyle]

Here's the text:

16.07 Transfers of Used Handguns

940 CMR 16.03 and 16.05(2) and (3) shall not apply to the transfer of (or offer to transfer) any handgun that previously has been sold at retail to a consumer and that was manufactured prior to the enforcement date for those provisions.
=======================================

As you can see, the text does say "sold at retail", so I do not think sitting in S&W's warehouse will suffice, as far as the AG is concerned.

Yeah but, "sold at retail" where?

 

[Chipperman]

The law does NOT say IN MASS
.
That's the interesting thing. Most everyone is interpreting that to mean it had to be owner in MA, but the text does not specify.

 

[CarbineKid]

I feel for ya, I also live in occupied territory. RI is only 5 minutes away. Anyhow Mass does have some very bad gun laws. The funny thing is its pretty simple to get a CCW permit there. In RI you can't get one(unless you know someone).

 

[depicts]

Eddie Coyle

Eddie,

my local shop has a warthog on the shelf for sale in Mass.

Call Ted at Northeast Trading in North Attleboro, MA.

I thought I saw an ad saying Four Seasons had them too, and I could swear they said they were MA complient.

Good luck

Bill

 

[EddieCoyle]

Eddie,

my local shop has a warthog on the shelf for sale in Mass.

Call Ted at Northeast Trading in North Attleboro, MA.

I thought I saw an ad saying Four Seasons had them too, and I could swear they said they were MA complient.

Good luck

Bill

They are. A bunch of Para guns made the list in December.

 

[jamz]

I was a MA resident until last May when I moved up to Maine. I had lived in MA since I was about 2 years old. I moved away because we couldn't afford MA anymore, not for political reasons. We had the choice of NH or Maine, and Mrs jamz' is from Maine, and her family is there, an she hates NH, so despite my NH preference, the choice was pretty much made.

There;s a lot of good stuff in MA, I was a bit sad to leave, but moving to a gun friendly state made it a lot easier to take. I had a LTC-A for "protection of person and property" (interesting considering it's illegal to protect property with deadly force in MA, maybe I had an "out"!). I think I was the first one issued in Sudbury in like 20 years (they just put in a new PD Chief).

Because I still work in MA, (and telecommute a lot) I have a non-resident "Temporary LTC-A All Lawful Purposes"......at a stunning $100 per year to the commonwealth.

I look with fear at every new gun legislation that comes down the pike in MA (pun ) becaue I know it has a pretty good chance of passing. I should renew my GOAL membership, even though I'm not a resident anymore.

 

[Dravur]

Teddie K's Auto

Using the same, lame logic that gets you the Mass. gun laws should require that any Car that Ted Kennedy could possibly buy should be checked whether it has the correct flotation devices.

 

[EddieCoyle]

Using the same, lame logic that gets you the Mass. gun laws should require that any Car that Ted Kennedy could possibly buy should be checked whether it has the correct flotation devices.

Ted Kennedy is a flotation device.

 

[Manedwolf]

I just find it sadly ironic that one of the most anti-gun states in the union is the very one where colonists made a stand against the British from Breed's Hill overlooking Boston, and through Lexington and Concord with militia armed with muskets.

I'd be willing to bet it's more hassle to buy a simple long gun there now than it was for someone to buy a Brown Bess back then.

 

[Manedwolf]

Using the same, lame logic that gets you the Mass. gun laws should require that any Car that Ted Kennedy could possibly buy should be checked whether it has the correct flotation devices.

Okay. Gun stuff is fine, but what the hell is with this lifelong obsession with Ted Kennedy a lot of people seem to have?

He's a somewhat-old senator. Yeah. There's lots of them. There's others who are far more dangerous to freedoms.

Any time anyone mentions anything about New England, someone's got to pop up with the Kennedy murder/sinking car/drunk jokes. It's a really, really, really stale old joke. There's more to New England than Ted Kennedy, okay? I'd be in favor of just ignoring his presence.

 

[McCall911]

Ted Kennedy is a flotation device.

So the AG gets involved in the gun ownership issue...
Wow, the Commonwealth must be a very, very low crime state! There the AG doesn't need to go after criminals but instead make law-abiding gun owners tow the line!



Hang in there, EddieCoyle.