A Few Newbie Questions

[JDH]

My wife and I just bought handguns at the National Gun Show in Dulles last weekend. I have a few questions:

1) We both filled out the multi-page Federal Background Check during the purchase, but neither of us read it beyond the parts we had to fill out. In retrospect, did the dealer have to list the gun we were buying by make, model and serial number (i.e. are these guns technically registered to us now)? Having them registered isn't a problem; I'd just like to know.

2. If the answer above is yes, does that mean I can't carry my wife's gun using my CCW permit? I bought a Glock 27; she bought a Ruger LCP. Sometimes depending on the clothes I wear, her smaller handgun might make more sense to carry. However, if the guns are registered to individuals, I'd hate to run a foul of the law if stopped for some reason.

Appreciate any info...

J.D.

[ProShooter]

My wife and I just bought handguns at the National Gun Show in Dulles last weekend. I have a few questions:

1) We both filled out the multi-page Federal Background Check during the purchase, but neither of us read it beyond the parts we had to fill out. In retrospect, did the dealer have to list the gun we were buying by make, model and serial number (i.e. are these guns technically registered to us now)? Having them registered isn't a problem; I'd just like to know.

There is no handgun registration in Virginia. The dealer may very well have inventory records linking the gun to you, but there is no official registry.

2. If the answer above is yes, does that mean I can't carry my wife's gun using my CCW permit? I bought a Glock 27; she bought a Ruger LCP. Sometimes depending on the clothes I wear, her smaller handgun might make more sense to carry. However, if the guns are registered to individuals, I'd hate to run a foul of the law if stopped for some reason.

You can carry any handgun you want. You can carry 3 guns. You can carry a gun you bought 10 minutes ago in a parking lot. No worries.

[clayinva]

Also, having them registered WOULD be a problem, as that is the first step governments inevitably take toward taking away gun rights. That is where it started in Britain, and now they are completely defenseless. If you take a shotgun out of your closet to defend your home there, you are committing a crime.

In Britain, you have to register all long guns (handguns are banned completely), get a permit (for a specific caliber) before you buy one, provide a reason for needing one and belong to a gun club, subject yourself to surprise inspections of your home to make sure the guns and ammo are locked up and stored separately in accordance with the law, and register the amount of ammunition you wish to keep on hand, whch is subject to a regulatory maximum number of rounds. And it all started with registration.

Not trying to jump on you, and sorry if it comes off that way, my wife and I were in the same place a few years ago when we bought our first handguns at a gun show in Richmond. But, be very wary when politicians start talking about 'common sense gun regulation'.

[derek141]

My wife and I just bought handguns at the National Gun Show in Dulles last weekend. I have a few questions:

1) We both filled out the multi-page Federal Background Check during the purchase, but neither of us read it beyond the parts we had to fill out. In retrospect, did the dealer have to list the gun we were buying by make, model and serial number (i.e. are these guns technically registered to us now)? Having them registered isn't a problem; I'd just like to know.

2. If the answer above is yes, does that mean I can't carry my wife's gun using my CCW permit? I bought a Glock 27; she bought a Ruger LCP. Sometimes depending on the clothes I wear, her smaller handgun might make more sense to carry. However, if the guns are registered to individuals, I'd hate to run a foul of the law if stopped for some reason.

Appreciate any info...

J.D.

Congratulations and welcome to free America. As has already been stated, registration is for gun grabbers. It is, however, not a bad idea to keep a written record of serial numbers some place safe should a theft occur- especially if you're like a lot of us who forgot how many we own.

As for your carry choices, I encourage you to try a wide variety of shooting guns: the cute and cuddly guns that look great for concealment are harder to shoot well compared to their larger cousins. Let's be real here: usually the size differences are somewhere in the half-inch range, so the impact to carrying probably isn't what you expect. For years I was just a carrier, and a small gun worked great. Then I became a shooter, and as a result of that experience a larger gun now rides just about wherever I go. Just my $0.02. YMMV.

[jrswanson1]

I can manage my Keltec PF9 quite well. It's not a target gun, it's meant for shooting the idiot robbing you from less than 10' away. That said, I can still shoot a group smaller than my hand from 7 yards. I will, at some point, try point shooting with it on a target 3 yards away. It shouldn't be a problem.

[derek141]

I can manage my Keltec PF9 quite well. It's not a target gun, it's meant for shooting the idiot robbing you from less than 10' away. That said, I can still shoot a group smaller than my hand from 7 yards. I will, at some point, try point shooting with it on a target 3 yards away. It shouldn't be a problem.

If this was directed at my post- I am sure that you can manage your Keltec quite well. I'm not saying folks can't get proficient with small guns. I am quite partial to several similarly sized heaters.

My point to a new shooter was, most people starting out don't realize that a bigger gun of the same caliber can be shot more easily to effect. If your strategy is to center your entire carry mindset and training around the sole threat possibility of a single adversary inside ten feet, I hope that works for you. In order to protect my earning capacity to my family, as well as my family, from an unknown threat, I take every advantage I can get. That includes a "full size" gun, extra mags, a second gun (I could use the Keltec for that), and simple, verbal commands to warn that an adversary should not get that close.

[punchie]

The selling dealer will have a record of who he sold xxx gun to. This info can/will
be provided to BATFE upon receipt of a written trace request, ie:gun found/connected to a crime scene. Also, if the FFL holder gives up his license, his Bound Book containing all of the info is turned in to the BATFE. Gee, I wonder if this info is then listed in a data base?

While the is no gun registration per se, there is a paper trail in most cases. Unfortunately, ALL my guns were lost in a tragic boating accident on the Chesapeake Bay !

[derek141]

The selling dealer will have a record of who he sold xxx gun to. This info can/will
be provided to BATFE upon receipt of a written trace request, ie:gun found/connected to a crime scene. Also, if the FFL holder gives up his license, his Bound Book containing all of the info is turned in to the BATFE. Gee, I wonder if this info is then listed in a data base?

While the is no gun registration per se, there is a paper trail in most cases. Unfortunately, ALL my guns were lost in a tragic boating accident on the Chesapeake Bay !

Correct. And what a coincidence- I was telling a dealer the same horrible fate of my guns this morning.