laws on shipping firearms?

[Frankr]

I was wondering if anyone new the law on shipping firearms for repair's.
like i want to send my rifle off to a gunsmith to have a new barrel installed.
It used to be you were allowed to ship..ups long guns to a smith for repair??

 

[CatShooter]

You still can. You can send a long gun by postal service for repair (and modification), and they can return it by postal service.

 

[Frankr]

Ok thanks , im boxed up and ready to ship her off tomorrow.

 

[CatShooter]

If you go via USPS (Post office) you can go to any one of them. If you go via UPS (United Parcel Service), the local offices ("Mail boxes Etc") will NOT take it - you MUST to go to the real UPS depot, which, if you are rural, might be a "fur piece" away.

The post office is the best bet (and probably cheaper).

 

[radshooter]

In my experience, FEDEX is the best shipper and is not "freaked out" with the concept of shpping firearms. I have had issues with UPS even at main offices. That may be a local thing. Also something to consider, someone who once worked at UPS said they are not that careful handling packages in their warehouses as FEDEX....some food for thought before anyone ships a prized rifle

 

[5spd]

I have shipped no less than 7 long guns via USPS, not one sigle problem, I double box & pack them very good.
They do not want the box marked gun/firearm etc. Just the from & to names. Make sure you also put that info inside the box & insure it and go with signature confirmation as the carrier scans that info into a scanner which is also taking a picture of the signature, time & date delivered.
I have a gunshop on my mail route and deliver to him long boxes 1-4x a month. I have yet to see a damaged one through the USPS.

 

[Larryh128]

We ship a bunch of packages by all the carriers. The big difference between Fed Ex & UPS is their conveyor systems. All the packages are off loaded onto a main belt with the shipping label up. They pass thru a scanner & when the package scans at the appropriate side belt, it is diverted onto that belt & it's loaded into the correct truck. The difference is that when the package is diverted in UPS, it makes a 3-4 ft drop. Fed Ex has no drops.

 

[mikecr]

It is a often local experience, good or bad.
Thing is, most people have only vague notions about firearms shipping requirements. Incompetent locals, having power over your shipment, might give you a hard time..
Hopefully not

I run into UPS issues several times, until figuring out that I could 'order the shipment' online, without questions. They come to the door and pick it up.
For a while, FEDEX -here, wouldn't ship firearms.
I thought I was going to be arrested the first time I tried shipping USPS, and me & the postmaster went at regulation sparring -until I won. The only reason I won was that I had preprinted the applicable sections of her postmaster manual as downloaded online. I made her find the damn book & look it up..
Never had a problem from that post office again

 

[Taildrag15X]

We ship a bunch of packages by all the carriers. The big difference between Fed Ex & UPS is their conveyor systems. All the packages are off loaded onto a main belt with the shipping label up. They pass thru a scanner & when the package scans at the appropriate side belt, it is diverted onto that belt & it's loaded into the correct truck. The difference is that when the package is diverted in UPS, it makes a 3-4 ft drop. Fed Ex has no drops.

This is somewhat true, however at the UPS Sort Center that my company maintains any package over 36" in length or 40 lbs. is THROWN onto a drop chute and falls 36" to the floor, unless there is a sort cart under it, then it only falls 24" for the hand sorting to begin. If it's going out for delivery local it's thrown on the local sort belt by hand to be loaded in the little brown truck, if it's going anywhere else in the world via ground it's thown in a long haul for a trip to Syracuse to go through another tossing around and abuse.

FedEx's local Sort Center uses us also for it's conveyor maintance, with the equipment almost the same less the paint color, drops to the floor from the end of a chute is 36" unless a human is there to catch the package to load into a long haul truck, local packages make the truck without a drop to the floor, but it's the trip there that gets you.

I've never worked on any USPS equipment in a Post Office Sort Center as they have there own and don't out sorce, I've seen it at auctions, and in a scrap yard, the package belts looks like any other conveyor system I've ever maintained and not sure how you would change elevation on one with out the package going down a chute with a drop. Any firearm in a full stock configeration is going to be to long to fit through any USPS mail automatic system and will be hand sorted.

http://www.sjf.com/sortation_conveyor.html

Imagine the above system in the link X 50, that's 16 in doors and 34 out doors at UPS, not counting the ones the local trucks use.

Every day a couple of hundred pounds of remnants from the 19 miles of belt that is in the local sort center is collected and shipped to Memphis to be figured out "Who does it belong to?"

I like USPS myself, even though the other guys pay me.

 

[Rustystud]

You may want your gunsmith to fax or e-mail you a copy of his valid ffl. It included his business name and shipping address. Having this in hand while at the USPS, UPS, or Fedex depot some times gets the ball rolling. Another thing is the insurance that Fedex and UPS is not insurance and not regulated by the local or state insurance commissioner's office if you have a claim and dispute. I can not over emphasize how important it is to properly pack your firearm. I also recomend you document the packing process and materials used in case you have a loss or damages. Be sure to use adult signature required and package tracking. The US Postal service will not start looking for a missing firearm until it has gone missing 30 days. The only advantage with the postal service is you have two government agencies (Postal Inspectors and BATF) who will look for your missing firearm. UPS and fedex hate when local lawenforcement and the BATF gets involved.
Both UPS and Fedex are very slow at paying claims and will use any and all excuse they can to delay or deny a claim. I have had to take then to small claims court twice and they finally paid just before the hearing.

Nat Lambeth