what is the least expensive way to ship a hangun?

[robpete]

Getting ready to ship my Blackhawk off to New Hampshire for refinishing. Figured i'd starta new thread for shipping input.

Thanks in advance

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

mail ...

[DougGuy]

Cannot ship any firearm through USPS. No matter if you have an ffl or not. If your revolver is going back to Ruger in Newport, I think you have to ship it UPS. If you can get Ruger to issue an RMA, they will email you a next day air UPS label that you print and tape on the box, you can take it to a UPS store or go online and request a UPS pickup, but call customer service and see what they say.

[Horace]

I believe you as the owner can/must send the pistol next day air. Let me know if things have changed.

Horace

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

......

[NoZombies]

Cannot ship any firearm through USPS. No matter if you have an ffl or not.

The only type of FFL that CANT mail a handgun is C&R. Long guns can be mailed BY anyone, as long as they're going to a person legal to receive them. (such as an FFL dealer)

[robpete]

Couldn't i just say it was "gun parts" and ship it ups ground?

[gefiltephish]

Don't say gun parts, say machine parts or tools, precision instrument etc.

[Lizard333]

Don't say gun parts, say machine parts or tools, precision instrument etc.

Second this one. They are " MACHINED PARTS". Now if it turns up missing, you might have a hard time explaining this.....

Btw, my ffl gets pistols shipped through the USPS all the time.

[kevindtimm]

What's interesting to me is that you can't bring a firearm onto the premises of a Postal Facility. Obviously, that doesn't mean it can't be shipped from another location, but I'm not sure I want to stick it in the box in the shopping center :)

[Foto Joe]

DO NOT attempt to mislead the USPS by stating that the box contains "machined parts" etc. The frame of the gun IS the gun according to their rules. Should something happen and the box is damaged and the contents are revealed you have violated an extremely important federal law and your life will become miserable in a hurry. Lying to the USPS can get you in a lot more trouble than lying to the IRS. Should you get caught you could very well give up your right to even own a gun let alone ship one.

Walk into your local post office (without the gun) and ask how to ship it, they'll be more than happy to help you out. I've sent numerous guns back and forth for repair or replacement and even received them via USPS personally from the manufacturer with no hassles. I've even shipped them to myself in different locations when traveling (like through Canada) so when I got back into the country I could have my carry gun.

[Ben Dover]

If I was going to use USPS I would have their regs in hand. Call the Postmaster and arrange to have him/her meet you to handle the process. When it is already legal to return a firearm for maintenance I see no reason to mis-label it as machine parts. As mentioned if you ever had to report a it missing you would be within legal bounds.

[Tatume]

Cannot ship any firearm through USPS. No matter if you have an ffl or not. If your revolver is going back to Ruger in Newport, I think you have to ship it UPS. If you can get Ruger to issue an RMA, they will email you a next day air UPS label that you print and tape on the box, you can take it to a UPS store or go online and request a UPS pickup, but call customer service and see what they say.

Exhibit 432.1 Mailability Requirements for Firearms
Handguns — e.g., pistols, revolvers, and other firearms capable of being concealed on the person — are nonmailable UNLESS mailed by a licensed manufacturer of firearms, or a licensed dealer of firearms, ...

http://pe.usps.com/text/pub52/pub52c4_009.htm#ep308518

[RobS]

A FFL dealer can send out USPS.

[robpete]

A dealer charges a fee though....which would make the cost the same as shipping UPS next day. That's why i was thinking of shipping "machine parts" ups ground

[mikeyjones]

It's been said a few times already but a non ffl cannot ship a handgun any other way than overnight via fedex/ups. If you have a local ffl that you're friendly with, they might not charge you extra to ship it.

[Tatume]

A dealer charges a fee though....which would make the cost the same as shipping UPS next day. That's why i was thinking of shipping "machine parts" ups ground

My local dealer appreciates my business. He does not charge a fee to ship for me. It costs about $8 - $12 to ship a handgun.

[Stonecrusher]

Even if dealer charges a reasonable fee it's cheaper than Fed-Ex/UPS. Last one I shipped by Fed-Ex was just under $90.00.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

route!

[375RUGER]

If you care about the gun ship it overnight or 2-day, long gun or handgun. Shipping ground gives it too much time to hang around so that someone can notice it or just get lost. I think handguns have to be shipped overnight, I remember reading this on the Fedex and UPS websites, IIRC.
2-day is the longest that anything spends in transit.
Remember plain packaging and insurance. I have an account with both carriers so I can use the online shipping and the label is easy to fix so it doesn't say what is in it only that it is insured.
Ruger sends longguns back via ground as default. I provide them with the account number and request that it ship via 2 day. The main reason is that when they ship it, it is obvious what it is since the box says Ruger all over it.