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When a firearm is sent to an FFL, is that not a 'transfer' of the physical item that would essentially mean that the FFL at that point is now the owner?
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This is a yes and no kind of thing, because of the way the laws are written. Yes, in the physical possession sense, and no in the legal ownership sense.
Words matter. Between the seller (owner) and the buyer, it's a sale. But through the FFL it's a transfer, both ways. And like everything else it seems, the words sale and transfer have definitions in law that may not be exactly the same as those used in daily conversation.
The buyer doesn't pay the FFL, the price of the gun. He pays the seller (owner) of the gun.
The FFL gets paid for performing the transfer. Who pays the FFL is between the buyer and seller, but somebody pays the FFL dealer's fee for the use of his license and time. The law requires it, so the FFL dealers fee is part of the cost, along with paying the shipping company.
Like a warehouse, the FFL is responsible for the gun while it is in his possession, but doesn't own the gun in the legal sense. If there was a fire, and the gun was destroyed, the insurance wouldn't pay the FFL for that gun, because he didn't own it. They would pay the owner.
There's a significant difference between "ownership by possession" and legal ownership (legal title to the property). Which of these and their attendant regulations is applied, and in what degree is dependent on the circumstances of the specific situation.
Next time you're in a shop that does the transfers, ask them about their roles and responsibilities. I'm sure they'll explain the best they can.