By Thomas Bostian Harris
I build, repair, and collect and sometimes sell firearms. Due to not wanting to handle all the atrocious paperwork the ATF requires and the related meddling, I do not have a personal Federal Firearms License and transact my trading quite legally through a friend's gun shop on his license when an FFL is required. He charges me a minor handling fee.
I had a hunt planned from Monday to this evening.
I had a rifle I had purchased a month ago from a person in Idaho I wanted to take on the hunt for my father to use.
It came in on Saturday to my friend's gun shop.
The gun shop is an hour each way in the wrong direction from where I was going hunting.
I get called that the gun is in and plan to load up on Sunday, drive in to town, get the rifle, then drive out to go hunting.
I go to pick up said rifle, fill out the 4473 form, NICS is called, they "delay me" and I can not receive the firearm until they approve it or Thursday if they don't deny it, whichever comes first. Two hours wasted.
I drive out to where I'm going hunting. The next day, while I'm taking a break to have lunch, I check my voice mail. Transaction approved, you can come get your firearm (three hours drive away in each direction).
Side note. Ten firearms transactions involving NICS (on Custer Drive because even their street name is a loser) this year. Three delays. One multiple firearm transaction day 3 weeks prior, involving a handgun even, where all were instantly approved. No particular pattern. Pretty much a normal year in my dealing with NICS as far as their performance.
Not even a speeding ticket or parking ticket this year or last (or many years before) for that matter on my part. Each time they have run the exact same Name (with a very odd middle name), Social Security number, Drivers License number, Address, Date, and Place of Birth. I can fill out the form in my sleep and I fill it out the same every time at the same gun shop.
Show me any other database where a simple search returns spurious results 3 out of 10 times when fed the exact same search.
Capricious.
I have other rifles, I still got my hogs, I went and picked up my rifle this evening, but they wasted two hours of my time and multiple dead dinosaurs in the truck for no reason at all.
If you google my name you will find one of the universities I attended and an amazon wishlist, if any Fibbers or BATFEces wish to contribute to purchasing any of those books they are quite welcome to do so.
I've had the same kinds of problems. My first gun was delayed a day because I forgot to put down my SSN... no biggie, my bad. My second gun (a handgun) went through instantly. My third gun was delayed past 3 days, but the store refused to sell it to me without an OK from NICS (store policy... never shopping there again.) Well, a month or two went by without a call from the store, so I stopped in one day, and apparently it had taken NICS about 2 weeks to give me the thumbs up. Of course, the store never called me, but I think the person at the gun counter hates guns, which makes absolutely no sense to me what-so-ever.
ReplyDeleteLet's get rid of the ATF and all this Federal NICS BS.
ReplyDeleteElect Ron Paul President.
They won't last a month.
http://ronpaul2008.com
I voted for Paul in his current job and I'll no doubt vote for him for president. I've been voting for Ron Paul for YEARS and he's been WINNING for years. Stranger things have happened.
ReplyDeleteSomething is very fishy about NICS calling two weeks later. If they don't call in three days the firearm has to be giving to the buyer. If NICS calls and puts the firearm in dispute then I believe there's an additional wait of two days on top of the three. After that if NICS doesn't call the firearm goes to the buyer.
ReplyDeleteSomething isn't right about this two weeks later call to the gun shop from NICS. The only call that can come is for ATF to demand that the gun store get the firearm back or ATF will.
The only way a 2 week later call seems likely is if it was wrongfully denied and a person protested the denial, rather than delayed. At least as far as the letter of the law. However, consistency doesn't seem to be a strong point of NICS.
ReplyDelete"However, consistency doesn't seem to be a strong point of NICS."
ReplyDeleteI consistently get a one week (full 7 days) delay every time I buy, so I always buy multiples.
UPDATE:
ReplyDeleteToday I got an immediate "proceed" on a handgun at the same gun shop as always. Guess they aren't vindictive about my little missive here.
Of course, now that I've said that, the next one will be a delay...