I was reading a post here where the OP was talking about 'registering' a gun that was found after a family member passed.

I didn't think there was any firearm registration in the States?

There are a few states. I live in the peoples republic of NY and their among the worse.

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14 S&W Revs none with locks!

A national registration, not really> I do though wonder what happens to the information with the instant background checks that are called in at time of purchase?
Yes, some states and until recently the county I reside in do require handgun owners to register them.

I would think titled weapons qualify as registered.

I seriously doubt that what ever we are told/promised/or implied about instant background once they have the info it is there forever!, If you know the secret hand shake or high enough & know how to work a computer nothing is gone.

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14 S&W Revs none with locks!

Other than for items covered by the National Firearms Act, there is no Federal firearms registration.

After that, it's purely state, and occasionally local.

Ohio has no state registration, either of guns or owners. Cleveland has at various times tried to impose registration of firearms, and recently, firearms transfers. But there's state preemption of gun laws, so anything they do is completely unenforceable, and so far, they haven't found anybody willing to get sued and lose their homes to enforce a totally imaginary "law".

Michigan has a requirement to send in a form for all pistol sales, acting as a de facto registry.

The instant check. There are two different ways it is done. Some states go through NICS, and it's Federal. Some states, like Florida, do it in-house. Our call-in goes to the FDLE.

I have stood there and LISTENED to the call-in. For a while I stood behind the counter and MADE the call-in. There is no information given that would help for registration.

We'd tell them "John Smith, white male, US citizen, does not wish to give his SSN", and then they would ask "Handgun or long gun".

We'd say HANDGUN. We would not say SMITH AND WESSON MODEL 36, and we certainly would not say SMITH AND WESSON MODEL 36, SERIAL NUMBER 12345. Just HANDGUN. If you were buying two pistols, or ten pistols, we still just said HANDGUN. There was another form that had to be filled out, but we never told FDLE it was a multiple purchase. If you were buying thirty rifles, we just said LONG GUN, and there was not even an extra form for that.

I have no experience with a call-in to NICS. Do they tell them what make and model and serial number the gun is? Do they tell them how many guns you are buying?

Because, if not, all they know is that John Smith bought a pistol. So even if they DON'T erase the info, like they are legally required to do, they don't have enough to do anything.

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I always take precautions

I'm very glad I live in Kentucky and not New York and other states that require jumping through flaming hoops to buy or carry a handgun.

That's not gloating--I really sympathize with you folks.

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Oh well, what the hell.

The last time I bought a firearm, NICS was only told long gun or hand gun. I can't remember if they were just told name and SSN, or if it included address and state of birth.

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Common sense isn't so common.

The call-in federal NICS only relays the information on the front page of the #4473 form and whether it is a long gun or handgun. And if it is a sale or a pawn redemption. The gun identifing info is on the second part of the #4473 which is retained by the FFL for as long as they are in business (or 20 years?) at which time all the forms are picked up by the BATF.

The state of residence and the state of birth are submitted but not the buyers current address.

Note that 4473 forms do not apply to black powder or antiques. You can also build your own non NFA weapons for personal use and not even put a serial number on them. The ATF is also, last I knew, specifically prohibited from using any appropriated funds to establish a central registration.

Given the little information available in Florida it would be nearly impossible for the state to construct a picture of the state of anyone’s armory here.

Not only relative to new guns but used ones, since no record is required of person to person purchases or trades.

That is why the demand for the so called “Universal Background Check” is so misleading. In order to inforce such a requirement big.gov would have to know where all of the firearms are located and their serial numbers. I don’t know how the Feds could obtain that information without a nationwide house to house search.

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Ipsis Rebus Dictantitbus

Michigan .. if you move into the state you have 30 days to register your pistols and to buy a pistol you have to get a permit before you can buy and then its only good for a 30 day time period .. if you don't buy with in that time you have to go get another one !!

Think that would cause a lot of unregistered guns.

I thought here in Illinois it was bad ..

As far as I remember, NCIS checks do not include the serial-number. It is type of firearm, such as handgun, rifle or shot-gun. Name, SSN, and such of purchaser are given.

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GA Carry member
Vietnam Vet

WA has a registry for all hand guns.

OR has a registry for all guns now.

The feds don't have a registry other than the books the FFL is required to keep. If it wasn't for federal law they would have a database registry. NRA put a stop to it awhile back. They were heading down that road if legislation hadn't been passed to derail it.

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That's just somebody talkin.

Aloha,

ALL guns are registered in Hawaii.

NICS background checks only create a list of names and type of firearm. The actual gun is not given them, it goes on the form and the dealers record book. Some states do have some type of registration as, I believe, our Canadian neighbors are stuck with. Many people think that guns are registered and in many cases we can probably blame the fanciful tv crime shows. Many people believe that stuff is real and I constantly get questions about how to handle gun registration. Ohio doesn't do that.

As far as NICS is concerned, if they keep the records longer than they are supposed to do all they have is a list of names. They would have to cross reference that with other systems to get such things as addresses and still would have to access the dealers records to determine actual guns and serial number records.