The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Need help with how to surprise my daughter with her first rifle

Theohazard · February 11, 2014, 03:01 AM

Interesting. Thanks for citing that law. Apparently it's not so cut-and-dried as I thought.

What I can tell you is this: From my experience working in an LGS, different BATFE agents tend to interpret the laws in different ways. I've seen one agent tell us one thing, then seen another agent come by and interpret the law in a different way. What the OP is describing might not be technically illegal, but it could still be seen as borderline, and most smart LGS owners try to avoid stuff like that.

Also, how could someone prove the rifle had been on the wall for only a little while? All someone sees is a young lady coming into the shop, picking a rifle off the wall, and the clerk hands it to her and she walks out with no 4473 or anything? That seems like a TERRIBLE idea for all involved. So it might be technically legal, but it looks like the shop just sold her a rifle off the wall with no 4473 or background check. Suppose another customer sees that and calls the BATFE? BATFE audits are a pain in the you-know-what.

All I can tell you is that at our shop, every single firearm we had was either booked in or was an employee firearm, in which case it was labeled as such. Why invite problems by doing something as shady-looking as what the OP described?

February 11, 2014, 03:01 AM	#15
Theohazard Senior Member Join Date: April 19, 2012 Location: Western PA Posts: 3,829	Interesting. Thanks for citing that law. Apparently it's not so cut-and-dried as I thought. What I can tell you is this: From my experience working in an LGS, different BATFE agents tend to interpret the laws in different ways. I've seen one agent tell us one thing, then seen another agent come by and interpret the law in a different way. What the OP is describing might not be technically illegal, but it could still be seen as borderline, and most smart LGS owners try to avoid stuff like that. Also, how could someone prove the rifle had been on the wall for only a little while? All someone sees is a young lady coming into the shop, picking a rifle off the wall, and the clerk hands it to her and she walks out with no 4473 or anything? That seems like a TERRIBLE idea for all involved. So it might be technically legal, but it looks like the shop just sold her a rifle off the wall with no 4473 or background check. Suppose another customer sees that and calls the BATFE? BATFE audits are a pain in the you-know-what. All I can tell you is that at our shop, every single firearm we had was either booked in or was an employee firearm, in which case it was labeled as such. Why invite problems by doing something as shady-looking as what the OP described? __________________ 0331: "Accuracy by volume." Last edited by Theohazard; February 11, 2014 at 09:57 AM. Reason: typo