Selling a gun online...who has done it, advice?

[Republicrat]

I have a couple of guns I'm considering selling online (probably gunbroker).

I'm just wondering for those who have gone this route, was it easy to ship these to an FFL in the buyer's state?

Any issues I should be aware of?

I've read numerous FAQs on this, but I'm interested in feedback from those who have done it before or any other tips.

Thanks!

[ruggerio]

i have sold one long gun that i had to ship. it was a bolt action rifle so with the bolt removed it was easy to ship.

i found it easiest and most practical to ship in a plastic rifle case. i used a cheapo and added duct tape to ensure it would not open up.

payment came and i walked up the street to my post office in philly. no prob at all. really i think packaging was THE only part of it that was at all challenging.

my challenge was, what to wrap it in that would hold up? i found some TYVEK in my shop and it worked great.

i have purchased a couple on line and found the ffl part to be easy at my LGS.

why not post here at PAFOA classified first?

my sale was an in state sale so i did not have to uses an FFL. we used the bill of sale found here at PAFOA

[Xringshooter]

It's really not that difficult.

When you sell on line, when the deal is done, the buyer will tell you who to send the gun to. That FFL should send you what is needed (copy of his license) to get the gun sent to them so that they can transfer it to the buyer.

You then have to find out if the FFL will accept a shipment from a non-FFL. If they will then you can ship it via common carrier (UPS, FedEx, etc.), if it is a handgun. If it is a longarm, you can ship it via USPS. If they don't accept shipments from a non-FFL then you will have to find an FFL to ship it for you. In some cases, this may be cheaper than you shipping it yourself, even with what the FFL charges because if it is a handgun, the shipping FFL can send it via USPS.

I typically ask for payment in the form of a recognized money order (USPS being my first choice, then others like Western Union, etc.). Keep in mind that cashiers checks can be faked just like any other check. If I accept payment by anthing other than cash or money order, the gun does not get shipped until the check completely clears, which can take up to two weeks.

I've sold and bought on line for several years now with no problems. If you tell someone that they can pay by check but the gun won't ship until the check clears and they raise a big fuss or whine about it, I would have severe doubts about the transaction. Same if they send you a check larger than the selling price and then say "oops, just cash it and send the overage amount back to me" - that is a classic scam, you can be pretty confident that the check will ultimately bounce.

Just use common sense. If it just doesn't sound/feel right, then it probably isn't.

[SauerGrapes]

To my way of thinking, selling is less stressful than buying. I know the gun isn't going anywhere until I have the money.

I bought a shotgun earlier this year from a privste seller, which worked out ok, but it was very slow getting to me. Had me twitching a little bit on that one.

One piece of advice, if you intend to use gunbroker, {and probably other sites} go through the short process of getting your address verified. Myself and a lot of other people will not buy from an individual that has no record of transactions or feedback and their location is not verified.