I'm looking into shipping my gear to my outfitter rather than checking everything on the plane, this includes my rifle. What I am reading from UPS and FedEx is that only FFL holders can ship and receive firearms. I'm sure this is the case but I have to ask, is this true?

Yep they are anti 2nd amendment companies.

I think it is against the law to ship to your outfitter unless he has an FFL. Now if he has a lodge and you are staying there maybe you can ship it to yourself at the lodge I’m not sure but I am 99% sure it is illegal to ship to him unless he has a FFL.

Legally you don’t need a FFL to ship to a FFL holder. Ups and fedex may prohibit it but that is their policy not a law.

I shipped a gun via UPS this spring. I had to go to a hub which is only open about 2-3 hours each day but they took it and knew exactly what was in the box.

The key to shipping to an outfitter is you don't ship it to the outfitter because he isn't an FFL...you ship it to yourself. You can ship your own gun to yourself with no problems.

the above is a mix of correct and incorrect.

Yes UPS and Fedex WILL ship guns. But UPS store and Fedex office may not depending on location. SO you need to take to a hub.

It is NOT legal to ship a gun to a NON FFL. Even if your outfitter was and FFL they cannot transfer the gun to you with an out of state residence.

So basically unless someone else filled out a 4473 at an FFL in the state you are hunting in and loaned it to you and then sent it back to an FFL in TX and you transferred it back that is your only option.

You can ship it to yourself but you have to get the timing right and some shippers want to see the FFL so you could run into a snag on one end or the other.

^^^ speaking of incorrect information...you DO NOT have to do a 4473 for your own weapon in another state. That is false. There is no transfer, you already own the weapon being shipped.

Edit - Nevermind the above...you could do the above. Which in essencse is selling it to someone out of state and then buying it back upon your return. Waste of time and effort, you just don't need to do all of that. As I said above, ship it to yourself the ATF allows that and you can see it below.

Here is ATF proof of such: https://www.atf.gov/firearms/qa/may...her-use-hunting-or-other-lawful-activity

Which reads

Yeah, I didn't really want to go look it up earlier on the ATF site but will when challenged.

To yourself confuses me but I trust Judd to be correct.

You can ship any long gun, rifle or shotgun, to anyone you want within your own State, no FFL required.
For out of State you must ship to an FFL but you don’t have to have another FFL do it. If it is to be returned the FFL must ship it to the return address on the original package.

Handguns are FFL to FFL, no matter where….period.

Ditto...I've known Judd many of years and have handled many of firearms transaction for him. He knows what he's talking about.

If the UPS or FedEx employee knows their company policy you can’t ship anything through them to a non licensee or yourself. Doesn’t matter hub or not, they aren’t supposed to do it. Telling them it’s something other than a firearm is an offense also. Sometimes one gets through but don’t plan on it.

It’s all right here:

UPS accepts packages containing firearms (as defined by Title 18, Chapter 44, and Title 26, Chapter 53 of the United States Code) and firearm parts that do not constitute firearms as defined by federal law (together, “Firearm Products”) for shipment only as a contractual service and only from Shippers who are licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, licensed dealers, or licensed collectors (as defined in Title 18, Chapter 44 of the United States Code) to authorized recipients, as outlined in the approved UPS agreement for the transportation of Firearm Products.

https://www.ups.com/us/en/support/s...ted-items/prohibited-items/firearms.page

Only customers holding a Federal Firearms License (FFL) and federal, state, or local government agencies may ship firearms with FedEx. Customers holding an FFL must enter into an approved FedEx Firearms Shipping Compliance Agreement before shipping any firearms with FedEx. Also, you must be an approved firearm shipper with a signed contract on file with FedEx. For more information, contact your FedEx account executive.

https://www.fedex.com/en-us/shipping/how-to-ship-firearms.html

Ship all your gear carry rifle on plane.
Must be in locked hard sided gun case and unloaded. EZ to do.

my advice is don't trust anyone here and do your own research. What is legal and what a shipper or FFL is willing to do are different things

Judd even looked it up for you and that is your stance?

Good grief can we make this anymore complicated? Last week I went to my local UPS store and asked them for directions on what I needed to do to ship a rifle. Their quote "UPS is no longer shipping any firearms of any type". They suggested I contact FedEx or DHL. Today I call UPS Customer Service in the end I was instructed to go to my local police station and get the "proper form" from them and take it to my UPS store and then I could ship my rifle. I called BS on the guy but he was very insistent that the police would know what I was talking about. Like a fool I contacted the Flower Mound PD and we all had a good laugh, obviously no form exist, at least not in Flower Mound.

I'm probably going to end up doing this very thing. I just don't trust the airlines.

I know for a fact a nonlicensee can’t ship a handgun to anyone even a FFL via the usps but the usps allows individuals to ship a rifle to a FFL.

While fed-ex and ups seem to longer allow individuals to ship firearms period I don’t think it is illegal to ship a handgun to a FFL. I’ve done it multiple times including a few times for warranty work as instructed by the manufacturer. I think they even gave me a prepaid shipping label.

The change in fed ex and ups policy regarding individuals shipping firearms is fairly recent like in the last year or so. They used to allow it but now don’t. Many shipping centers don’t know or don’t care. Again this is their policy not a law. If you violate it I am not sure what happens. You get banned from shipping with them?

The United States Postal Service will ship a rifle or shotgun for an individual from their home state to another state for the purpose of hunting. They clearly call it out in their guideline and what needs to be followed to do it. You don't need to ship it to a FFL dealer. My outfitter told me she uses the USPS to ship her rifles rather than putting them on a plane.

A rifle or shotgun owned by a non-FFL may be mailed outside the owner‘s state of residence by the owner to himself or herself, in care of another person in the other state where he or she intends to hunt or engage in any other lawful activity.
These mailpieces must:
Be addressed to the owner.
Include the “in the care of” endorsement immediately preceding the name of the applicable temporary custodian.
Be opened by the rifle or shotgun owner only.
Be mailed using a class of mail, product, or Extra Service that provides tracking and signature capture at delivery.

Why?

I’ve flown domestically a number of times with checked long-guns and handguns. Never a problem but typically on direct flights.

Sounds like a good business to get into, shipping firearms.

Really? Do you know how many flights have been cancelled (daily) and luggage backed up, lost and stollen? There is no eff'n way I would check anything on a flight anywhere right now.

I fly regularly. It's not that bad. The only disruption I had in the past 6 months was weather related.




A checked firearm doesn't just pop out on the baggage claim. It comes out the special delivery area. You have to show ID to claim it. If you are flying direct from DFW to a destination, and arrive at the airport with plenty of time, your checked bag will go with you.

They want to be this picky, and yet there was a bolt action and bolt in a box, just sitting on my driveway a few years ago. No way could they have put it in the mail box or the 48" steel container labeled "packages".

Had it been stolen, I would have had to notify the ATF and their next call would have been to FedEx.

I tried to get set up to ship ammunition. ORM-D they come and pick it up. That worm hole in their website says "cannot locate your address".

Really? You deliver to this address every week!

I am VERY knowledgeable with the process but thanks for your input. I still would not trust any airline right now.

$35.00 to ship from a dealer to a dealer

Easy and hassle free

of course, if it gets "lost" by the carrier

My dealer will receive all day long for $20 but they won't ship. They say it is too big of a pain in the butt. Customers can't bring them a sealed up box and say ship it. The dealer has to inspect it and package it. They don't want any responsibility if it gets damaged and it easily gets pinned on them if they are the ones that box it up.