How do I ship a handgun for reasonable price?

Florida Guy

Florida Guy

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I just sent a handgun less than 500 miles (within the same state) via UPS and it cost me $64.
They would only ship it to a ffl, not the buyer. Federal law says they can ship to buyer, but UPS says they won't.
If I sent through ffl, it would cost me their fee ($30) + shipping. Another local ffl wanted $45 + shipping.
So it would have been about the same price.

Is there a way I can (legally) ship my next handgun for less?
 
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Bottom line. No

The best way and usually cheapest is to find a friendly FFL that will not gouge you.

$30 plus shipping is still less than $64
 
Key point is that FFL to FFL can be by USPS in one of their $10 boxes. My local FFL charges $20 fee plus USPS postage, which is a bargain compared to common carriers.
 
For some reason, I thought that UPS would not be that expensive. I was thinking maybe $30.
After all, it was going less than 500 miles.
Problem is they make you ship it overnight.

I will go to ffl next time, now that I know how much UPS charges.
I just didn't feel like running around in all the rain yesterday.
 
some years ago, ups said you have to ship handguns by air because too many of them were being "lost." that ,and the fact that ups is antigun,keeps me away from them. find an ffl that will treat you right. you may want to do this again some time.
 
The fact is that UPS employees were ripping them off as fast as people could ship them. My agency dropped them like a bad habit after a series of shipments got "lost" on their way back to the armory. They are avoiding paying off the insurance for stolen guns because they can't trust their drivers.
 
the answer is to put in the time and research, and find a good ffl holder. i have found two who will do the paperwork, and ship by uspostal priority for 10.00 plus the actual shipping charge. 25.00 or 30.00 will usually cover everything including insurance.

it may be harder to find a good ffl dealer in some locales!
 
Florida Guy said:
I just sent a handgun less than 500 miles (within the same state) via UPS and it cost me $64.
They would only ship it to a ffl, not the buyer. Federal law says they can ship to buyer, but UPS says they won't.
If I sent through ffl, it would cost me their fee ($30) + shipping. Another local ffl wanted $45 + shipping.
So it would have been about the same price.

Is there a way I can (legally) ship my next handgun for less?
Click to expand...

Were you shipping from a UPS Hub?? or a store front?? You should not have had a problem at a"HUB" Intra-state
 
Like everybody else has stated USPS using a FFL is cheapest !
however if you prefer to do it yourself check around some bussiness's get a discount from usps ! i know my factory gets a substantial discount from ups and fed-ex
 
jimmyj said:
Dumb Question:
If the weapon is being shipped from Point A to Point B within the same State--Do you have to go though an FFL? or can you just ship UPS or Fed-X regular shipment?
Click to expand...

Some states allow private party to private party shipments, and some don't. Even so, if you use Fedex or UPS, they still require overnight shipping.
 
jimmyj said:
Dumb Question:
If the weapon is being shipped from Point A to Point B within the same State--Do you have to go though an FFL? or can you just ship UPS or Fed-X regular shipment?
Click to expand...

"Some states allow private party to private party shipments, and some don't. Even so, if you use Fedex or UPS, they still require overnight shipping. "




Intra-state Firearm Shipping

A nonlicensee may ship a firearm by a common or contract carrier to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. In addition, Federal law requires that the carrier be notified that the shipment contains a firearm and prohibits common or contract carriers from requiring or causing any label to be placed on any package indicating that it contains a firearm.

[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(2)(A), 922(a) (3), 922(a)(5) and 922(e), 27 CFR 478.31 and 478.30]
 
Another way to ship for slightly less is to open a FedEx account. There is a link though ebay or PayPal where if you have an ebay account you can set up a FedEx account ostensibly to ship you ebay sold items. I did just that, printed the FedEx shipping label at home, they charged my credit card (not a PayPal charge) and I dropped it off at the local FedEx office. FedEx emails you the pick up and delivery confirmations too. You still have to ship Next Day, insure it and declare that it is a firearm but the discount was something like 27%. A 4 lb. package coast to coast cost me about $58. Still too much but cheaper than the last time I shipped a similar package.
Yes I know ebay and PayPal are anti-gun but i figure I just beat them at their own game.
 
Not withstanding what the ATF says, states can enact a law that is more restrictive. So the ATFs position is not necessarily legal in all 50 states. California is a perfect example as all private party transfers must be conducted through an FFL holder.
 
I use FedEx and it costs me on average $65 to ship anywhere. The last time I shipped through my FFL, and he only uses UPS, it was over $80, plus I had to pay his $25 transfer fee.
If I'm selling a gun to an out-of-state buyer, it's with the understanding that the buyer's FFL dealer can accept for a non-FFL seller, otherwise there's no deal.
 
Thiokol said:
Not withstanding what the ATF says, states can enact a law that is more restrictive. So the ATFs position is not necessarily legal in all 50 states. California is a perfect example as all private party transfers must be conducted through an FFL holder.
Click to expand...

UPS makes their own rules, and it doesn't matter about the federal laws.
UPS would not let me ship intrastate person to person, and made me ship to a ffl.
 
jimmyj said:
Dumb Question:
If the weapon is being shipped from Point A to Point B within the same State--Do you have to go though an FFL? or can you just ship UPS or Fed-X regular shipment?
Click to expand...

UPS will only allow point A to point B through an ffl. At least at the customer center I used.
Also it must go next day air.
 
The two times I have had to send guns back to the factory, I just called their customer service and told them the problem and they sent me a UPS Call Tag. UPS came with the tag the next day, put it on the box and into the truck...no cost to me. One was under warranty, one was not. Not S&W, but another USA reputable company.
 
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