So whats the scoop on you huh? You live in texas and work in a gun shop of some sort that test's guns? I have a question and I kinda want to direct it to you since you are pretty much up to date with gun facts in general.
Anyone else can answer the question to.
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Do you need a dealers license to sell Pellet rifles at swapmeet?
If I wanted people to test the guns before they bought them could I set up a little shooting gallery?
Matthew,
Unless you;ve been doing some crazy mods to your airguns or a silencer/explosive payload is involved, the federal government generally does not care what you do with your airgun, provided you don't go nuts with it in public. That is, there is NO federal firearms license or anything like it needed to conduct an interstate transfer of airguns, NO license needed to buy or sell them, and NO license needed to buy or sell airgun ammunition. Were you to make your own airgun from scratch, if it is a .177 caliber without an integral silencer you would not need to contact the BATFE. The only things I have ever heard of happening with the BATFE (formerly known as the ATF) and air powered weapons has happened with regards to large bore devices, such as spud gun type things, or with silencers (NO silencer design has been passed by the ATF which has been submitted for airgun use. Annnnd the integral silencer thing WORKS for now, but all we need is for some idiot to machine one off and stick onto a firearm and BAM no more Talon SS without a permit). Sometimes the Feds will mandate special department of commerce markings for imported airguns (as can be seen on the new DROZD full auto .177 machine pistol, it is more yellow than black, or on airsoft guns or cap guns that have been imported) or will mandate that any replica manufacturer markings be erased unless royalties have been paid, but you generally do not have to worry about that unless you play LOTS of airsoft and are VERY high profile about it. And yes, unless you have a motion picture license, taking off the orange tip IS a felony crime now. No one I know of has been prosecuted, but hey...if you want a replica, buy a Dewatt gun from SGN, it's often cheaper than the airsoft one! The real kicker comes into play when you take into account your state, county, and city laws, as these quite often are far more strict than federal laws (witness california, new jersey, and maryland's often ridiculous firearms and magazine laws). So check up on those laws first, but for most places I would have to say that transfer of an airgun is scot free. I DO know that some places have restrictions on air pistols with a rifled barrel or airguns which are replicas of machine guns, but those places are few and far between. Also, to set up your own range (for pellet use, bb's tend to penetrate and richochet more and require special styrofoam traps):
Ideally you will want to have a pellet trap bought from a store. These are fail safe generally,a nd if you set one of these up and stick a thick blanket up behind it, you're straight. However, here are some things we have found that can easily stop pellets that are cost effective:
*Wet newspaper layered into a big cardboard box (we have actually had enough newspaper before stop a .45 caliber 230 grain Hydra Shock Hollow point, so long as it is damp and you have enough newspaper)
*Ballistic Gelatin (the recipe can be had almost anywhere online, or go to www.falfiles.com and post a request there on how to make ballistic gelatin). This is what companies use to test ammo, the cool part about this is that you can easily see how the bullet would perform in, say, small game because the gelatin is fairly transparent. Good for product demonstration!
*A gigantic block of styrofoam. This stuff is wayyyyy stronger than most people would believe!
If you are using an airgun which has the potential to break the magic 1k fps barrier, you may wnat to contact you neighbors and ask them, or if your neighbors are anti gun fuddy duddys contact the local police and see what they say. I say this because I know ive had the local sherrif knocking at my door asking why I was shooting in the backyard, when you hear the sonic crack, YOU and I know its not a gun but most people are gun stupid and cannot tell the difference, and all it takes is one idiot and poof! police record. So hey, be safe, man, and if you have ANY further questions PLEASE do not hesitate to ask, if i don't know I'm SURE someone on the falfiles will (for all your modding needs, check out any post made by Gary Jeter, the informal Mod KING of firearms). Happy shooting!
I myself do not hold a Federal Firearms license (the 4th amendment implications of this are far too much for me, and my form 4 transfers i've done already place that under jeopardy!), but I work with some people who do. Most of our stuff goes up on www.subguns.com or is sold through the shotgun news, the storefront is extremely small and quite frankly does not offer the security we would like. I am not even aware of any complete firearms we hold in stock regularly, most of our work goes into custom building FAL's (we used to do AK's but the whole Solstice Arms/Joeken/etc. scandals have made everyone rightfully wary of almost any custom AK builders). With the supply of Israeli Heavy Barrel FAL (our former bread and butter) parts kits shooting up in price we have started doing mostly Para FAL post ban conversions. Our prices tend to be on the steep side because we will not use any aluminum recievers or anything made by Hesse Arms, or work on any parts kits imported by CAI. This is for OUR safety in test firing the items. I got interested in airguns mainly due to the fact that they are a million times cheaper to shoot and, quite frankly, for indoor target shooting most people get alarmed when they hear that i use CB caps in a .22 pistol for that, so an airgun is a politically acceptable tool. If you need any parts or assistance, we generally tend towards FAL work, but we have extensive past experience with AK/SKS/M16/M1 carbine/HK weapons systems and I would be glad to offer any advice i can on those. If i don'know it, I can point you in the direction of someone who can. This is valuable i think, as a surprising amount of bolt on gun accessories fit onto airguns. I do not profess to have any capability as an air gunsmith (those things have so many parts and seals and checks i don't want to mess with it beyond simple work), but i do know my way around a dremel tool Keep us posted on the shooting gallery project, it is interesting when people reach out to the public like that.
CCI loads CB long caps, and I believe CB shorts as well. Aguila makes two lines of ammunition, the colibri and super colibri that also fit the same bill. Famed finnish gun columnist Gunwriter (run a google search for Gunwriter) had much data on "cat's sneeze" loads for a variety of rifle calibers, and I have recently seen 6.5x55mm gallery loads for sale at gun shows. Happy shooting!
Matt, are you selling personal guns or want to deal in guns?
June 16 2003, 6:53 PM
That will determine what license you will need.
There are no Federal laws on airguns but there are shipping laws and State laws.
Swap meets, flea markets you can sell some used stuff but if new guns and you are engaging in a business then will will more than likely need a State License, regular retail license is all you would probably need but State laws vary. You also cannot sell to a person under 18 in any case. You also can sell firearms but State Federal laws will apply to those and you cannot sell if you are engaging in business without an FFL.
Selling personal guns or a collection is OK without an FFL.
A little more info on what your intentions are would be helpful for a better response.
a license would also be needed to buy quantity and dealer prices on new guns from a distrubutor.
You can try but they do not sell well at airgun shows.
June 17 2003, 5:44 AM
You would have to charge over $50.00 to make a profit and they are about $50.00 new at K Mart. A lot of work and time with questionable sales. To add a bulk system would cost you about $50.00 and I do not think many would pay over $100.00 for these customized. It is not a quality gun with a wood stock unless you buy one with a wood stock and they are $100.00. Crosman does not sell just the wood stocks alone for them that I can find.
If a Crosman Dealer sells them for $25 I wonder what they paid for them?
Also compasseco used to give price breaks on lots of five rifles. Might check them as well.
Sounds like you are selling for the money so you may need a State retailers' license. State laws vary and I am no Lawer and NOT Giving Legal advice, that's a felony and get you more trouble than any crime I know of.
If you sell all the time that's one thing if you only sell a couple to check the waters so to speak you may get by without a license. States with Sales tax laws are usually pretty strict on Flea Markets and swapmeets. Do usually law allows for a few sales count it like a garage sale. Best would be check with Attorney General of your State, Just find it on the web and email him/her.
If it is a felony however and you get caught then you will never be able to own a firearm unless a judge OK's it 10 years later. But your 17 ? right, then at 18 records would be wiped clean and sealed so I don't know how that plays out as far as the Feds go. You may not even need one if under age, don't really know.
I didn't have to worry about those things when I was 17, a long long time ago.
Life is getting way to complicated just trying to have a little fun and make a little spending cash these days IMO.
Art
Keep us posted on the shooting gallery project, it is interesting when people reach out to the public like that.