Form 4473

[Guest TNDixieGirl]

How long is a dealer legally required to keep your 4473 on file?

[molonlabetn]

For as long as they are in business... and then those records are sent to the BATFE.

[Guest GUTTERbOY]

It's been a while since I worked for an FFL, but IIRC it's twenty years.

[Guest TNDixieGirl]

Thanks!

[molonlabetn]

It's been a while since I worked for an FFL, but IIRC it's twenty years.

After some more research, 20 years is correct to keep the 4473 itself... It's the record of the transfer in the bound book which must be kept forever (with information from the 4473).

[Guest GUTTERbOY]

After some more research, 20 years is correct to keep the 4473 itself... It's the record of the transfer in the bound book which must be kept forever (with information from the 4473).

Ah, I forgot about the bound book...

[The Rabbi]

Five years for the stupid fingerprint card

Twenty years for the 4473

Forever for the A&D book.

[GLOCKMEISTER]

Five years for the stupid fingerprint card

Twenty years for the 4473

Forever for the A&D book.

you know those fingerprint cards are useless, I really mean they have no purpose at all and cost the tax payers lots of money.

[The Rabbi]

I dont know that they cost taxpayers a lot of money. How much does it cost to print and mail the stupid things?

I am bothered because it is so degrading to the customer to be fingerprinted like a criminal. And pointless.

[Guest GUTTERbOY]

Wait, what's this "fingerprint card" deal? Do you have to get fingerprinted every time you buy a gun in TN or something?

[GLOCKMEISTER]

yep... and its usless. Back when I was a Cop I couldnt never ever get prints right, the FBI aways kicked mine back... I had to resort to getting another officer to do it when one was available. And I went thru 6 TBI print classes over the years.

So this means since TBI has NVER sent any dealers to a print class, how are they supposed to do it right? Honestly I do them but dont worry about how good they are, becasue they will never ever be used anyway.

[Guest darkstar]

I think it's a county thing? ( one of the FFL's can answer for sure ) and here in Davidson county they print you. Thumbprint of each thumb. It does seem pointless. Maybe someone in the county government has a relative that sells ink pads or something.

[GLOCKMEISTER]

nope its state wide regulated and required by TBI

[The Rabbi]

nope its state wide regulated and required by TBI

Yuppers. State requirement. And yes, thumbs every time you do one. And no they aren't readable.

[Marswolf]

For some reason, I thought the fingerprint card was just one year.

Back to the research desk....

[Guest slothful1]

I heard 4473 mentioned just last night -- the movie Red Dawn was on one of the cable channels... the Cuban colonel of the invasion force uses them to identify gun owners.

[strickj]

Mars,thats what you get for doing your own thinking

[Guest ETS_Inc]

Mars is correct. According to TCA 39-17-1316, an FFL must keep the thumbprint form for one year.

"39-17-1316. Sales of dangerous weapons — Certification of purchaser — Exceptions — Licensing of dealers — Definitions. —

...

(6) The gun dealer may destroy the firearms transaction thumbprint form one (1) year after the completion of the firearms transaction thumbprint form."

http://www.michie.com/tennessee/lpext.dll?f=templates&fn=main-h.htm&cp=tncode

[jughead]

so it looks to me like every new firearm we buy is registered whether we like it or not. right or wrong.

[The Rabbi]

so it looks to me like every new firearm we buy is registered whether we like it or not. right or wrong.

Wrong.

There is no database and searching records of out of business gun dealers by hand would be expensive and take a long time.

[Guest ETS_Inc]

so it looks to me like every new firearm we buy is registered whether we like it or not. right or wrong.

Also, according to Federal law, TBI is required to destroy the information within 24 hours of recieving it from the dealer. Besides, there's nothing stopping you from buying a gun from an FFL, walking out of their shop, and selling the same gun to another person; and, you wouldn't have to report the sale to anyone, nor would you have to keep a record of the sale. The "de facto" registration that is a 4473 ends at the dealer's door. It simply reocrds the last time that particular gun was sold by an FFL, and the chain pretty much stops when the gun is sold by an FFL the first time.

If the cops know a make and serial number, they can find out from the manufacturer the name of the distributor who bought it. Then, they can find out which FFL bought it from the distributor. Then, they can figure out who bought it from that FFL. There's really no way to know if that person sold it subsequently, and to whom. If the cops track down the buyer, and he says he sold it to some guy at a gun show, that's the end of the line.

[Fallguy]

I was contacted by the Sheriff's Dept here a couple of years ago about a revolver I had bought at Wal-Mart over 20 years ago. Told them who I had sold it to. All they would tell me is they had in their possession but not how that came to be.

[Guest GLOCKGUY]

I was contacted by the Sheriff's Dept here a couple of years ago about a revolver I had bought at Wal-Mart over 20 years ago. Told them who I had sold it to. All they would tell me is they had in their possession but not how that came to be.

what would of happened if you did not remember who you sold it to

[Fallguy]

Nothing I don't think. The investigator who called was actually an old classmate. I think they were just trying to follow the trail to the last person who had it. No telling how many personal sales it went through over that time.