C & R licensee question: Case of rifle

[jtb1967]

Quote:
find a beat up old milsurp in really rough shape, and pick it up for next to nothing. Take the time to clean it up, and replace to worn parts, and then refinish it. It now looks almost new. You shoot it for a bit, but get bored, so you sell it for a decent profit and buy a few more beaters.
This is perfectly acceptable. Some people will say there is a time limit that you must hold onto the gun for but I've never seen any such thing in BATFE writing.

I just renewed my license renewal form and wrote "15" purchases and "5" sales. No one showed up at my door. I suspect if I wrote "19" purchases and "19" sales no one would still show up at my door. They might, but I could always tell them I decided to liquidate my collection. And there is nothing wrong with doing that.

The thing about buying a case of guns and selling the rest is a bit of a gray area, IMHO. Chances of the BATFE ever finding out or deciding you were trying to be a dealer are slim. If I were interested in Mosin's and had the cash to buy a crate, I might. But I don't have either. But you need to make your own decisions as to what you are going to do, I'm no lawyer.

The real problem with the BATFE is that you get a lot of opinions from different agents and there is a tremendous amount of discretion in how they enforce what. I guess it is just like any policing agency.

Personally, I would like to hear of a C&R holder that EVER got an audit from the BATFE...

Very true. I know C&R holders that set up and sell on a regular basis at gunshows. Although it's wrong, I'm know several of them are ordering firearms for the sole purpose of turning a buck. They'll probably never get caught, but then they could end up in trouble if they ever are.