Basic question- best way to sell?

Mopeychild

Newbie here, have a basic S&W revolver to sell and was wondering about the best way forward.  I assume a gun shop would buy low in order to make money, ditto at a show.  I assume the best price for me is likely an auction on this site?  I'm a veteran eBay user and the platform looks more or less the same.  It looks like I ship Fedex overnight to the buyer's choice of local FFL agent if I read the site correctly.  Do I have any other issues to work out first?

mark christian

Welcome to the Gun Broker forums. Your assumptions are, for the most part, correct. Dealers won't pay what a gun is actually worth. I am a dealer and unless I want the gun for myself, my goal is to get it at a rock bottom price so that I can turn it for a quick profit. This is business 101.

You'll get your best price using the Gun Broker auctions.

Only dealers and manufacturers are allowed to mail (use the Post office) handguns, so UPS or FedEx air are the only a ways that non FFL dealer can ship a handgun. 

One issue to keep in mind is that there are some FFL's who will not accept firearms shipments from non licensees. Federal regulations do not prohibit a non licensee from shipping firearms, but some dealers have an issue with it. We get stories of guns which were shipped to uncooperative dealers and stuck in limbo. In your listing, I advise that you state very clearly that the receiving FFL dealer must accept firearms from non licensees. 

More questions? Feel free to ask.

Mopeychild

Thanks for that info.  Does the receiving FFL dealer get a commission of some kind from the buyer or me?  Seems like a dodgy service to provide for free; I can see why some would be uncooperative.  Does the buyer arrange all that and simply tell me where to ship?  Kind of scary to have random people shipping guns to you, and other random people coming to your shop asking you to hand them over, sight unseen- is it really that simple?  I would probably do a little research on whatever shop/person my buyer instructed me to ship to.  

I bought my gun ~25 years ago, legally, but didn't keep any paperwork on it.  I don't have any issues but it doesn't look like I have to prove I'm a legitimate, legal owner in order to sell.  Fun stuff... maybe I should first buy my downsized replacement weapon in order to see how the process works.

rufe-snow

Nowadays with the Chinese crud and the election. It's a sellers market. If your Smith, is in at least very good condition? In a desirable caliber, like 38  or 357. You would have folks fighting to buy it, at a gunshow. By selling  to a dealer, at a show. You could make good money. And get a FFL's, Bill of Sale.

If your looking to buy a smaller handgun for EDC? You could get a even better trade deal, from one of the show dealers. Without the hassle of shipping to a out of state buyer. Through 2 different FFL's. 

mark christian

Mopeychild said:

 ...and other random people coming to your shop asking you to hand them over, sight unseen- is it really that simple?  

No, it is not. The dealer on the buyer's end worries about the paperwork and the background check. He also enters your information along with the make, model and serial number of the firearm into his records which are retained for 20 years, or longer if he chooses to do so.

As the seller, none of that concerns you. You will receive a copy of the dealer's FFL, or his FFL number which you can then run through the BATF  FFL EZ Check system. This will provide you with the document you need to ensure that the person you are shipping to holds a valid Federal Firearms License. 

The entire business of buying and selling guns, while fascinating- I've been doing it over 40 years, is beyond the scope of your original question.

Henry0Reilly

Basic S&W revolvers are bringing great prices on local online ads. If you have a good relationship with an FFL dealer, you might ask them how much they charge to MAIL a handgun to another FFL, it would likely be cheaper than overnight shipping that you would have to do as an individual (because of the UPS and FedEx rules, not the law) and thus get a higher bid price due to lower shipping cost.

chme

Briefly- You put your Smith up for auction.  I have winning bid.  I send you payment and the info on the FFL in my state I want to use to receive it.  You can verify their FFL on the ATF EZCheck system.  You ship gun to that FFL, along w/ copy your driver's license.  FFL notfies buyer, who comes to shop, completes 4473, dealer does background check. Buyer pays dealer his transfer fee (anywhere from $10 to $100 typically) takes gun, leaves.  
As said, only a Dealer or Manufacturer can MAIL a handgun in US Mail.  Private person must ship UPS or FedEx. THEY require next day air, which is pricy.  Some dealers will mail it to another FFL for you, for a fee YOU pay them.  
Another way of selling- give it to a Dealer to sell on consignment for you.  When gun sells, dealer keeps a percent for selling,  They do all the paperwork.  If gun does NOT sell, you need to do a 4473 and background check before they return it.  

Mopeychild

Thanks for a look at the playbook, that's what I wanted.  Yeah, it's a quite clean 19-5 .357 but this site doesn't let me quickly research past prices.  Hadn't thought of consigning; I'll check back with the store where I bought it once I have a handle on the market price.  And look into a partial trade from them, as suggested above, which makes a lot of sense for me.
Thank you for your time- I'll be sure to be more helpful on my main hobby website when the new guys show up.

nunn

If you are a member and logged on, you can view completed auctions.

tocamoha

Check out Gunbroker member Locust Fork.She's been selling on here for years and will get the best price for your gun for a very small commission.

scooterdriver

Very easy to see current market prices.  To the right of the search bar click on "Advanced" then "Completed Auctions"...you'll get an idea of what similar items have actually sold for.