Buckle up for a long, over-written story.
I purchased an AR-15 modelled after the M16-A2 to familiarize myself with the platform before I ship to basic training at Paris Island. It's a used Colt upper on a Continental Machine & Tool lower. It's nothing fancy, but it's all I could afford. I work long, hard, hot days as a foreman on a local organic farm, and saving the nickels and dimes for the rifle was difficult. The fellow who sold it to me is from Lockport, IL. The rifle shipped last week, and arrived at my FFL today. The guy who has done the last couple transfers for me operates out of a homefront shop about 25-30 miles from my house and charges a modest fee to receive and transfer firearms. I swung by this evening to fill out the paperwork and take possession of my AR. I got about, oh, 30 yards from my mailbox before I received a phone call requesting that I come back to his house to return the rifle, because there is a problem. I get there, and he explains to me that the fellow who I bought the rifle from shipped it himself and not through an FFL, and that this is against FEDERAL law. He went on to say that shipping firearms as an individual to an FFL intrastate is permitted, while all non-licencees must go through an FFL to ship interstate. This all sounded goofy to me, and countered my understanding of the GCA and it's impact on firearms shipping/receiving regulations. IL., admittedly, may have some backasswards, obscure gun control law that prohibit individuals from shipping intrastate, or interstate, to FFLs, but this was not my guy's chief concern. He's supposed to call ATF tomorrow and sort it out, but in the mean time, I am unhappy that I wasted an hour and a half of my time, and $15.00 worth of gas only to have to do it all again tomorrow. Who's at fault here? Myself for failing to understand firearms law? My dealer for the same? The shipper for breaking the law? Everything I have read backs my position, but I wanted some feedback from some ODT folk. Thanks!
TGM
I purchased an AR-15 modelled after the M16-A2 to familiarize myself with the platform before I ship to basic training at Paris Island. It's a used Colt upper on a Continental Machine & Tool lower. It's nothing fancy, but it's all I could afford. I work long, hard, hot days as a foreman on a local organic farm, and saving the nickels and dimes for the rifle was difficult. The fellow who sold it to me is from Lockport, IL. The rifle shipped last week, and arrived at my FFL today. The guy who has done the last couple transfers for me operates out of a homefront shop about 25-30 miles from my house and charges a modest fee to receive and transfer firearms. I swung by this evening to fill out the paperwork and take possession of my AR. I got about, oh, 30 yards from my mailbox before I received a phone call requesting that I come back to his house to return the rifle, because there is a problem. I get there, and he explains to me that the fellow who I bought the rifle from shipped it himself and not through an FFL, and that this is against FEDERAL law. He went on to say that shipping firearms as an individual to an FFL intrastate is permitted, while all non-licencees must go through an FFL to ship interstate. This all sounded goofy to me, and countered my understanding of the GCA and it's impact on firearms shipping/receiving regulations. IL., admittedly, may have some backasswards, obscure gun control law that prohibit individuals from shipping intrastate, or interstate, to FFLs, but this was not my guy's chief concern. He's supposed to call ATF tomorrow and sort it out, but in the mean time, I am unhappy that I wasted an hour and a half of my time, and $15.00 worth of gas only to have to do it all again tomorrow. Who's at fault here? Myself for failing to understand firearms law? My dealer for the same? The shipper for breaking the law? Everything I have read backs my position, but I wanted some feedback from some ODT folk. Thanks!
TGM
