How do I sell my gun?

[Guest confidence]

I've never sold a gun before. What is the best way? Are there laws about selling across state lines? Do Craigslist and eBay not allow selling firearms? Are there free websites for this purpose that you can recommend? Is there any way that during the process of selling it I can have the serial number no longer associated with my name? How do I take care of making sure the gun is not associated with me if a crime is committed with it? Will a hand written bill of sale do?

 

 

 

NOTE: I'm pretty sure I can't sell a gun here on TGO without paying $ to be a Benefactor. For that reason, I will not be disclosing the type of firearm I am trying to sell in this thread or through a PM. I did NOT start this thread as a way to sell my firearm through TGO without paying up so please don't misunderstand. Maybe someday I can be a Benefactor, but I can't right now.

[RobertNashville]

It's generally pretty easy.

 

In Tennessee you can sell to any private party with, essentially a handshake (although I recommend you do a standard transfer form, available on the internet so you have a record of what happened to the firearm).  If you want to go through a dealer and do a formal background check, etc you can do so but it's not required.  I generally just deal with people that have an HCP.

 

When transferring to a seller out of state you need to process the sale through a dealer...you would usually arrange to ship the firearm to a FFL of the buyer's choosing (after getting payment of course) and the FFL handles it from there.

 

Gunbroker.com is a great way to sell online (it works much like eBay).  Armslist.com is another site and it's free but personally I feel much better using Gunbroker.  No specific reason for that...just feel that way.  There are also TN Groups on Facebook that lists firearms for sale too but for me, Facebook doesn't really lend itself to that kind of purpose.

 

Of course, if you are a TGO Benefactor you can list your firearm for sale on TGO.

Edited July 19, 2013 by RobertNashville

[Guest drv2fst]

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice.  But here is what I know as a "average joe".

 

You can sell it in a face to face transaction within your own state to other residents of the same state.  Check their Drivers License for proof of residence.  It's eve better to check to make sure they have their Handgun Carry Permit.  That gives further assurances that they are legally eligible to own a gun.  But all that is required is proof of residence, as far as I know.

 

I don't think either Craigslist of eBay allow selling guns.  I don't know of any FREE websites that allow selling guns either.

 

There are MANY websites that allow posting ads for free if you are a member of that website like here on TGO.  I have bought, traded, and sold many here on TGO and can highly recommend it.

 

There are MANY websites like GunBroker.com and others that will allow you to post your gun for sale for a fee.  I've never sold or bought a gun on one of those sites so I can't recommend one over another.

 

Many people use a Bill of Sale.  There is a sample of one posted here on TGO somewhere but I can't remember where.

[Guest confidence]

Really great advice in this thread so far. I really appreciate it.

 

 

In Tennessee you can sell to any private party with, essentially a handshake (although I recommend you do a standard transfer form, available on the internet so you have a record of what happened to the firearm).

 

@Robert: Are either of these the form you are referring to?:

 

http://www.atf.gov/files/forms/download/atf-f-4473-1.pdf

http://www.beararms.com/PDF/FTUP.pdf

[RobertNashville]

...

Did you get a new Porsche or is that one just a memory?

[RobertNashville]

Really great advice in this thread so far. I really appreciate it.

 

 

 

@Robert: Are either of these the form you are referring to?:

 

http://www.atf.gov/files/forms/download/atf-f-4473-1.pdf

http://www.beararms.com/PDF/FTUP.pdf

The "beararms.com" one is the one I use...no real need to get overly complicated.

 

As my friend drv2fst noted, you do need to try and verify the state of residence so you know you are doing an in-state transfer, a TN DL or an HCP handles that nicely and the HCP gives more assurance that you aren't selling to a felon, some other prohibited person. :)

[Patton]

I highly recommend saving the emails from your transactions, write down the persons license plate, and possibly even record the conversation with you phone or other device. Send the recording to your own email and let it sit. All of this will help ease your concerns along with a BOS. In my experience the cheaper the gun the more flaky the potential buyers.

[Guest 6.8 AR]

Get a benefactor membership here and sell it on here. That would be a start. Like Robert said.

[mikegideon]

Get a benefactor membership here and sell it on here. That would be a start. Like Robert said.

 

Or sell it at a gun show. Either way, you'll have to pony up a few bucks to get it done.

[c.a.willard]

step 1 get benefactor membership

step 2 post here for reasonable price

step 3 wait-how long it sits will depend on how fair the price is

 

you can request a BOS to cover yourself if you really want to, but there are some that don't like to do that  and you get the same amount of protection from printing out the emails/PM's and recording the persons name and contact info on it.

 

Armslist is free to post on to, but to me the benefit of posting here is that i dont have to deal with some of the people that use armslist.  It just feels safer and more comfortable.  

 

Meetings for buy sale or trade for me that were done through this site always went extremely well and made me feel like i was meeting a member of a community rather than a stranger.

[monkeylizard]

Requirements

You can sell to any resident of your state in a face-to-face transaction so long as you do not have knowledge of them being prohibited from owning a firearm. You can sell to a non-prohibited resident of any state if the firearm passes through an FFL in their state (and that state doesn't prohibit that particular firearm).

 

Practical Matters

You don't have to use an FFL for same-state transfers, but you can. If you want to do that, make that clear in your listing and say who will pay the transfer and TICS fees.

If you sell to an out of state buyer, some FFLs will only accept shipments from another FFL. That means you have to involve a dealer here to do the shipment to your buyer's FFL. Not a big deal, but it adds cost. You can hand-deliver the firearm to the buyer's FFL if the FFL will allow that.

No bill of sale (BOS) is necessary. If you feel like you need one, then make that clear up front. Some buyers won't do a purchase with them. Others won't do a purchase without them. Others don't care.

If you meet face to face, be careful. Choose a well lit and populated place if you're dealing with someone you don't know. If possible, bring an armed friend who knows how to watch over a deal.

Some sellers only sell to HCP holders for face-to-face deals. If you want that, say so in your listing. If an FFL is involved, who cares.

California's laws are screwy. Some sellers won't sell to a CA buyer. By their laws, the seller can be guilty of a crime and have never stepped foot in the state.

 

How to find a buyer

Become a TGO Benefactor and list it in the TGO Trading Post

Gunbroker.com

Armslist.com

Become a TGO Benefactor and list it in the TGO Trading Post

Go to a gun show and sell it there

 

Craigslist and eBay do not allow firearms, but you'll still find them sometimes on CL, if you're fast, before a moderator kills the listing.

 

 

Personal Opinion - Worth what you paid for it.

I only buy/sell with someone I know personally or with a real TGO member or at a gun show with plenty of witnesses who aren't scared by seeing a gun sale. In my opinion, it's perfectly reasonable to state who you will/won't deal with in your ad, but be clear about it. It's your gun and it's your safety involved. It wouldn't be unreasonable in my opinion to state that you'll only sell to TGOers who have been members for X months or more, or who have Y number of iTrader positives, or have Z number of posts or more. This is an open Internet forum. Having a TGO account doesn't mean a lot to me. Being a long standing member, being an active member, or having positive reviews from other active/long standing members goes a long way with me. If a buyer doesn't meet those requirements, then it can go through an FFL of their choice. After the Nashville West incident, it's just not worth it to me to not have some good idea of who I'm dealing with. I'll pay the transfer fee to an FFL before I'll meet someone I don't know at some random parking lot who just joined TGO and has 1 post saying "I'll take it".

 

A phone call to set up the meet can tell you a lot more than PMs, texts, and e-mails. Sometimes it just doesn't "feel" right.

Edited July 19, 2013 by monkeylizard