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Can you buy a gun from another country?

bearcatterbearcatter Member Posts: 7 ✭
edited July 2022 in Ask the Experts

I have three Zastava M70 .32 ACP pistols that are imported surplus from Serbia (was Yugoslavia). The imports are from 1970-90, most are in near new condition. I bought mine on GB.

They are still in production and I'd like to buy a brand new 2022.

Zastava's U.S. branch, Zastava USA, is importing most every model but mine. No mags, no parts, nothing. Their email response is cut and dried, there are no current plans to import other models, sorry. No explanation. I love the pistols, but not their customer service. I've asked them, and the Serbian factory, about dating my serial numbers. Got zero response on that.

I think they don't think a .32 would sell here. It's also made in .380, which has never been imported here. There are several other models in 9mm, and Tokarev clones in 9 and 7.62. Of course, you can buy these from Zastava USA!

If I could get them to do so, could the factory in Serbia ship one to a U.S. FFL? Or to the company that imported the surplus ones?

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Comments

  • mark christianmark christian Member Posts: 24,443 ✭✭✭✭

    In theory you can file an ATF Form 6 and import the firearm as a private citizen., but you will still have to have the firearm import marked before US Customs will release it. Understand that todays import markings are nothing like the discrete marking found back in the old days.

    While it is possible, I highly doubt that the Zastava factory is interested in taking on single unit orders.

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  • bearcatterbearcatter Member Posts: 7 ✭
    edited July 2022

    Thanks! I kind of knew that already. Zastava USA could bring some in with the others, but their CS so far shows that probably won't ever happen. I don't think they are connected to the factory, just an independent importer looking at the green the Tokarev and AK clones make. It's pretty poor to export thousands of surplus pistols here, and not offer spare mags, grips, or other parts. I've found a very few parts, and actually bought my third gun as a parts gun. That gave me two more magazines too. Mags are running $75-100. The whole gun with two mags is only $225. Add ship and FFL it's same as three mags.

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  • chmechme Member Posts: 1,471 ✭✭✭✭

    You may also run into a problem if the handgun in question does not meet the import requirements (weight, size, etc)

    Example- pistol with barrel less than 3 inches will be blocked. Rather than get into the BATFE maze of being an importer, I would contact a company that does this for a living, and happily pay them for their knowledge.

    This is one of them that pretty well knows their stuff- and no, I have no relations to them.

    Firearm Imports (simpsonltd.com)

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