Laws on Private Gun Sales in Virginia

[alby]

According to the State Police website, a private sale between two people who are both
residents of Virginia is perfectly legal without needing a FFL to be a transfer middleman.
Now is this true or am I seeing things?

http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms.shtm

What are the laws concerning the private sale of a handgun?
To privately sell a firearm, it is recommended that you safeguard information pertaining to the transaction such as the date the firearm was sold, the complete name and address of the buyer, and the make, model, and serial number of the firearm. The seller and buyer of a handgun must be a resident of the state in which the transfer occurs. Additionally, Virginia’s handgun purchase limitation applies in private transactions. Refer to http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms_Mul ... chase.shtm for additional information on multiple handgun purchases. Should the firearm ever be located at a crime scene, trace of the firearm will determine the licensed dealer who last sold the firearm and will identify the last buyer of the firearm. To have your name removed from this process, you may consider placing your firearm on consignment with a licensed dealer. This will also ensure that the firearm is transferred only to a lawfully eligible individual.




With that said, can I manufacture a bunch of AR-15s in my home, buy a table at a Gun Show,
and start selling without getting a Federal Firearms License?

[allingeneral]

You can sell a firearm in a private sale - there is one condition that must be met. You cannot transfer a firearm to someone who you know to be a felon or is otherwise ineligible to own a firearm.

It would be in your best interest to record the sale in case the firearm is ever used in a crime and they come looking for the trail, you have a signed piece of paper that indicates to whom you transferred the firearm, but this is not required.

You cannot get a table and sell at a gun show without an FFL. By purchasing a table, you would be then selling as a business, not an individual, which requires an FFL.

[OakRidgeStars]

You cannot get a table and sell at a gun show without an FFL. By purchasing a table, you would be then selling as a business, not an individual, which requires an FFL.

That's a very interesting point, and one I had never considered before.

[allingeneral]

You cannot get a table and sell at a gun show without an FFL. By purchasing a table, you would be then selling as a business, not an individual, which requires an FFL.

Your points may all very well be valid. I do not have a cite to back up my point. However, you made a statement about "Bending the rules", and I am of the opinion that buying a table at a gun show and offering your wares for sale is bending the rules too much and I would never suggest that anyone try it.

[alby]

Your points may all very well be valid. I do not have a cite to back up my point. However, you made a statement about "Bending the rules", and I am of the opinion that buying a table at a gun show and offering your wares for sale is bending the rules too much and I would never suggest that anyone try it.

It would appear that selling your guns at a gun show table, assuming the promoter has no FFL requirements on getting
a table, is legal, but is pushing the law to the limits. If you do it once in a while, its likely not a problem. But if you
begin selling at gun show after gun show, its likely to raise the eyebrows of the State Police and/or BATF. Who is likely
undercover at gun shows keeping tabs on merchants. And if they see, John Doe at show after show and run a check to see
if he's got a FFL, when it comes back that Mr. Doe doesn't have a FFL, its likely the the Feds will be able to show in court
that the frequency of your gun show sales amounted to more of a business operation than an occasional private sale.

To make a long story short, it seems as though you can likely do it and get away with it for a period of time.
Eventually judgment day will find you and you'll have to explain to leftist jury how your actions differed between an
occasional private sale and a business.

[Moccasin]

Think about this, if you have 1 or 2 guns to sell and you walk around a gun show with them then you are considered a private seller. If you get a table, regardless of how many guns you have to sell, you then become one of the "unlicensed dealers that do not do background checks at gun shows" the media and anti's are always going on about. IMO getting a table for private sales of firearms, assuming the promoter allows it, is a bad idea. It plays right into the anti's hands and gives them the proof they want to close the "gun show loophole." We'd just be giving them ammunition.

[zephyp]

We'd just be giving them ammunition.

Great point, Gary. We suffer an ammo shortage - lets put them in the same boat.

[Moccasin]

We'd just be giving them ammunition.

Great point, Gary. We suffer an ammo shortage - lets put them in the same boat.

Even if we had plenty of ammunition we still need keep ammunition from them. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy.

[06bolton5pt3]

You cannot get a table and sell at a gun show without an FFL. By purchasing a table, you would be then selling as a business, not an individual, which requires an FFL.

well spoken

[zephyp]

We'd just be giving them ammunition.

Great point, Gary. We suffer an ammo shortage - lets put them in the same boat.

Even if we had plenty of ammunition we still need keep ammunition from them. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy.

I stand corrected, sir.

[ProShooter]

Renting a table does not make you a dealer and you are not required to do a background check if you do not have an FFL.

Also, a private seller can sell to someone who is 18+, as long as they are not a prohibited person.