Texas Hunting Forum

Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do?

Posted By: tonyguitarguy

Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 08:38 PM

Buying a deer rifle from a friend. He bought it a year ago and asked me to take him hunting this past season but he never had a chance to go. He never sighted it in. Being that we will be dealing face to face, is there anything I must do in order to buy? Maybe issue a bill of sale, jot down the serial number?
Posted By: nyalubwe

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 08:43 PM

A bill of sale with make, model, and serial number and date of sale. Each of you sign it, each of you get a copy.....creates a viable paper trail.
Posted By: QuitShootinYoungBucks

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 08:52 PM

Originally Posted By: nyalubwe
A bill of sale with make, model, and serial number and date of sale. Each of you sign it, each of you get a copy.....creates a viable paper trail.


up
Posted By: scalebuster

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 08:56 PM

Hand him the cash and he hands you the gun. That's all there is to it. You don't have to jot down anything.
Posted By: bside

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 08:59 PM

Originally Posted By: scalebuster
Hand him the cash and he hands you the gun. That's all there is to it.


^ This. Welcome to Texas :-)
Posted By: okie44

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:01 PM

All that is required is for your friend to assume that you can legally own a firearm.
Posted By: chalet

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:06 PM

Nothing needed. Not sure how many guns I have bought and sold but but I don't see the need for a bill of sale, especially if I am the buyer. FFl required paperwork on new or out of state transactions yes, bill of sale of local private transaction no.
Posted By: SapperTitan

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:08 PM

Originally Posted By: nyalubwe
A bill of sale with make, model, and serial number and date of sale. Each of you sign it, each of you get a copy.....creates a viable paper trail.
the goal is to not create a paper trail
Posted By: Tactical Cowboy

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:13 PM

NO BILL OF SALE OR OTHER RECORDS REQUIRED. The info is on the ATF website. I don't know why people always get so bent out of shape about getting/supplying a bill of sale.
Posted By: YellowDog

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:28 PM

What happens when your out hunting and the Game Warden shows up and run's the serial number. Then gun comes back hot. Would a bill of sale help???????
Posted By: tonyguitarguy

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:31 PM

Originally Posted By: YellowDog
What happens when your out hunting and the Game Warden shows up and run's the serial number. Then gun comes back hot. Would a bill of sale help???????


That was my next question. I'm 98% sure its clean. Lol
Posted By: Buzzsaw

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:35 PM

do what you want.


ms. Clinton loves a mail trail
Posted By: QuitShootinYoungBucks

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/10/16 09:42 PM

Originally Posted By: chalet
Nothing needed. Not sure how many guns I have bought and sold but but I don't see the need for a bill of sale, especially if I am the buyer. FFl required paperwork on new or out of state transactions yes, bill of sale of local private transaction no.


while 99.9999% of the transactions are probably fine, I would personally want one more as a buyer than as a seller. What if you roll a stop sign on the way home, cop pulls you over, sees the gun and it turns out the gun was used in a crime? 'Oh, I just bought it' is not gonna fly.
Posted By: The Dude Abides

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 01:59 AM

Originally Posted By: bside
Originally Posted By: scalebuster
Hand him the cash and he hands you the gun. That's all there is to it.


^ This. Welcome to Texas :-)


+1...BOS is NOT required!
Posted By: poisonivie

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 02:09 AM

Just pay him and move along. Nothing else necessary. The goal IS not to leave a paper trail.
Posted By: RiverRider

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 02:13 AM

I'd rather there be no paper trail myself. If someone wants to see ID, I'm more than happy to show it. A CHL should make anyone who's up on things comfortable. I ALWAYS talk to a guy during a transaction, mostly just because I like to yack. If I get uncomfortable I'll walk away---at least that's my policy, but I've never needed to do that. Never met anyone on THF yet who I thought was of questionable character and I've done a ton of deals.
Posted By: Pitchfork Predator

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 03:33 AM

Originally Posted By: YellowDog
What happens when your out hunting and the Game Warden shows up and run's the serial number. Then gun comes back hot. Would a bill of sale help???????


No it will not, that's why it is a waste of time to get one. If it's hot they are confiscating it whether you have a bill of sale or not. You just keep the contact info of who you bought it from and try to buy it from a public forum like this one if you don't know the person your buying from.
Posted By: patriot07

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 04:08 AM

No paper trail required. If you get stopped on the way home from hunting, all you have to do is explain that you bought it. Even if you have a BOS, it's unlikely you're going to travel with it. So you won't be able to show proof to the cop anyway.

I've been stopped with guns and never had a cop run serial numbers. That's a pretty far-fetched scenario anyway, and the BOS wouldn't even help unless you had it with you, which you won't.

There's just very little realistic need for a BOS honestly. Yes, you can think up a situation where it might be helpful. But the odds of that happening are .00000001%.
Posted By: dogdown23

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 04:11 AM

You should take a selfie with everyone you have any gun buying/selling transactions with.. bang
Posted By: Toxarch

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 07:38 AM

Originally Posted By: YellowDog
What happens when your out hunting and the Game Warden shows up and run's the serial number. Then gun comes back hot. Would a bill of sale help???????


If you are worried about a gun being hot, then just look up the serial number on one of numerous free websites before you buy it.
www.hotgunz.com/
Posted By: JCB

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 05:53 PM

Originally Posted By: YellowDog
What happens when your out hunting and the Game Warden shows up and run's the serial number. Then gun comes back hot. Would a bill of sale help???????


Been checked by GW's more times than I can count. Been pulled over few times by police while in the obvious possession of firearms as well. NEVER have had them run a serial number and only once had one handle my firearm and that was to make sure it had a plug in it.
Posted By: bigjoe8565

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 06:11 PM

Beat him down on the price and give him the money.
Posted By: twicebit

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/11/16 11:06 PM

Was thinking same thing jcb, I been hunting for over 40 yrs. never had a game warden run # s on a gun. I have signed bill of sales to put other persons mind at ease. But in Texas we don't have registration. On new guns at gunshow and Walmart you have to fill out paperwork.
Posted By: J.G.

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/12/16 12:44 AM

Buying a firearm in Texas is no different than buying a plow, trailer, horse, herd of cattle, or tractor. Pay the man, shake hands, go about your business.
Posted By: charlesb

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/12/16 11:09 AM

On a transaction like that, it is only successful if both of you walk away grinning, feeling kinda of bad about what you had just done to your buddy.
Posted By: thorn4570

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/12/16 12:31 PM

Originally Posted By: bigjoe8565
Beat him down on the price and give him the money.



My dad was a car salesman so that quote made me laugh. Ima Texan and is Texas its hand him the cash and get the gun. It's my right. I do a lot of gun deals. It's easy to tell by looking at me I am old enough. If the seller or buyer wants a copy of my license or right down my DL number I walk away.

Your answer is give him the cash and take the gun. There is no register firearms in Texas or put the gun in your name stuff.
Posted By: Cast

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/12/16 12:49 PM

I'm with Charlie on this one.
Posted By: bigjoe8565

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/12/16 04:46 PM

Originally Posted By: thorn4570
Originally Posted By: bigjoe8565
Beat him down on the price and give him the money.



My dad was a car salesman so that quote made me laugh. Ima Texan and is Texas its hand him the cash and get the gun. It's my right. I do a lot of gun deals. It's easy to tell by looking at me I am old enough. If the seller or buyer wants a copy of my license or right down my DL number I walk away.

Your answer is give him the cash and take the gun. There is no register firearms in Texas or put the gun in your name stuff.


I don't let people write down my DL or CHL, but willing to show someone I have my CHL.
Posted By: 7mag

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/13/16 01:41 AM

All the above answers are mostly true and correct. Texas is a firearm loving state. With that here are my own personal points on firearms sales, granted from my take on working firearms cases..............

1) Not all people are bad and legitimate sales are out there
2) Some people are bad and sale hot/stolen firearms. Some on a regular basis.
3) Firearms traces reveal the original owner and sometime he/she offers an insight on who they sold it to or they didn't have the serial number and it is stolen etc, though not entered TCIC/NCIC
4) I have seized numerous firearms from individuals, felons, pawn shops etc. Sometimes that name they were able to give me saved them in the long run. Money, jail time etc.

I sure don't have a "definitive answer" just use what you think is good knowledge. As stated above no paper work etc is needed. But I have seen good, honest people get in a jam over firearms. I haven't bought a firearm in a while and my last one was new so I did have to do the 4473. Best of luck.
Posted By: Shooter5645

Re: Buying rifle from a friend. What do I need to do? - 06/14/16 02:51 AM

Originally Posted By: 7mag
All the above answers are mostly true and correct. Texas is a firearm loving state. With that here are my own personal points on firearms sales, granted from my take on working firearms cases..............

1) Not all people are bad and legitimate sales are out there
2) Some people are bad and sale hot/stolen firearms. Some on a regular basis.
3) Firearms traces reveal the original owner and sometime he/she offers an insight on who they sold it to or they didn't have the serial number and it is stolen etc, though not entered TCIC/NCIC
4) I have seized numerous firearms from individuals, felons, pawn shops etc. Sometimes that name they were able to give me saved them in the long run. Money, jail time etc.

I sure don't have a "definitive answer" just use what you think is good knowledge. As stated above no paper work etc is needed. But I have seen good, honest people get in a jam over firearms. I haven't bought a firearm in a while and my last one was new so I did have to do the 4473. Best of luck.


Absolutely 1000% correct......been there done that too......
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