Legal Transfer of Shotgun to my Wife?

[trickg]

So here's possibly a dumb question. I just ordered a shotgun for my wife. Because of stipulations for how things are ordered when it comes to firearms, when the gun comes in to the shop and we go to pick it up, the only person who can pick it up is the person who placed the order - me.

I want this gun to legally be my wife's - not mine.

It used to be that you simply handed the gun over, said, "Here - this is yours!" - and that was it, or at least that's my rudimentary understanding of it.

I'm not sure what the process is now, but it's important to me that this gun becomes hers legally.

This gun is a gift for her so that we can shoot trap together, and she has a gun that fits her appropriately. We got her a BT-99 Micro with Adjustable LOP - her arms are just too short to use anything bigger, and that gun adjusts down fairly small, but it also dials out to 14.5" - I could feasibly use it if she ever tires of shooting trap. (Not likely - she's all in and pretty enthused about it.)

I've never done this before - but it seems to me that I'm going to have to take it to an FFL, do the transfer paperwork, and pay the fees, just like I would have to if it was someone else.

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

trickg, that is awesome that she wants to shoot skeet, all in.

I am sure that the answer is forthcoming on the legalities. I remember being in Annapolis about 4 years ago testifying and also another night when legislation was being voted on. The worst of it is that MGA is never finished and putting hurdles in the road for law abiding folks to stumble over or just give up.

 

[Melnic]

If she is not prohibited then you can do a gun Bill of Sale for $0
"LEGALLY" you don't need any paperwork to move from within the family for a longun or regular shotgun as I understand the current laws
IANAL

 

[Sage954]

When you pick the gun up have her do the 4473 and transfer in her name. doesn’t matter who ordered or paid.

 

[RRomig]

When you pick the gun up have her do the 4473 and transfer in her name. doesn’t matter who ordered or paid.

Yep

 

[trickg]

When you pick the gun up have her do the 4473 and transfer in her name. doesn’t matter who ordered or paid.

I was told when I did the order over the phone that it had to be me picking the gun up. I ordered the gun through Bass Pro because frankly, that's where I got the best price. I was able to stack a 10% club member discount with a 5% military discount.

I tried to have the gun shipped to Delaware in the hopes that I could also avoid 6% sales tax on a $1500 gun, but I was told that we couldn't get there with this equipment, and that it HAD to go to a store in my state of residency. I found that interesting because the verbiage on the website actually says that long guns can be shipped to any state regardless provided it's legal for the person to purchase/own in both states, but this sale was a couple of days in the making due to a glitch with that one particular shotgun - it was restricted for both MD and DE.

This gal I worked with over the phone wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, and I figured that although I could save about $90 dollars, it would be easier to drive the 10 minutes from my place to Bass Pro at Arundel Mills than to drive to Newark, Delaware.

When it comes in we'll see if we can simply have the gun put in her name. She'd like that a lot.

 

[teratos]

In my house, we consider the guns communal property.

 

[chilipeppermaniac]

In my house, we consider the guns communal property.

Hell I regretfully sold a cool long gun to what amounted to an acquaince from church back around 1999. That fella got a good deal on a Winchester Commemorative Model 94, Canadian Centennial 30-30. I sold it for something like $165. Since he didn't care to entertain selling it back to me, I am pretty sure it now resides in Montana with him.

Other than him not having any blood in my lineage/household, I still think of him as a brother and the gun was sold for cash in my living room to be appreciated by a fine young man.

I believe in 2A for trickg, and he is within the law to want to gift a shotgun to Mrs G, and in this, his wife will lawfully and within her rights, enjoy her new shotgun. God bless America where we were founded to ensure Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Be happy Mrs G.

 

[Bountied]

Can't you just give it to her? Does there have to be a record. My dad has given me long guns in the past. I consider them mine legally since I am in possession of it. I don't think I've ever seen anyone look up who a shotgun is registered to since they don't need to be registered. IDK I've given up trying to figure out MD gun laws.

 

[cantstop]

That's a nice Valentine's Day present.

 

[trickg]

Can't you just give it to her? Does there have to be a record. My dad has given me long guns in the past. I consider them mine legally since I am in possession of it. I don't think I've ever seen anyone look up who a shotgun is registered to since they don't need to be registered. IDK I've given up trying to figure out MD gun laws.

To date my wife has never been into shooting at all. I'm not altogether sure why because we've been married almost 32 years and guns have always been a part of my life. Possibly it's because she's retired from her job as a public school teacher and she's going out of her comfort zone on some things, and finding that she actually enjoys shooting. She shot an AR for the first time this last summer and LOVED it!

In any case, all of the guns have always been "mine" both technically and legally. She wants this one to be hers. I know - it's a matter of semantics, but this will be the first gun that is specifically hers, and with that in mind, I think she wants to fill out the requisite paperwork (never mind that in a perfect world we wouldn't need it at all) so that she can fully make that claim.

That's a nice Valentine's Day present.

Last year was kind of a rough year for us, so I feel like she deserves this one.

 

[jef955]

In Maryland, If you're legally married, living together, and neither person is prohibited, property is considered mutual in a marrige, including firearms. Change any of those conditions, and things change. Hope she enjoys the new shotgun !

 

[trickg]

In Maryland, If you're legally married, living together, and neither person is prohibited, property is considered mutual in a marriage, including firearms. Change any of those conditions, and things change. Hope she enjoys the new shotgun !

Yep - I'm right there with you. Like I said, this is something that really shouldn't matter technically/legally, but I know that she wants this shotgun to be "hers" - her first firearm.

Dang - what a gun to have as a first - a Browning BT-99!?

 

[jef955]

Yep - I'm right there with you. Like I said, this is something that really shouldn't matter technically/legally, but I know that she wants this shotgun to be "hers" - her first firearm.

Dang - what a gun to have as a first - a Browning BT

A great start I would agree ! It's ok though, take a deep breath and remember, from now on it's "her" gun.

Your annual gun budget had just quadroupled, if you're lucky.. I give my wife crap all the time, since she has the most expensive damn gun in the household. Not a bad problem to have though

 

[Bountied]

Yep - I'm right there with you. Like I said, this is something that really shouldn't matter technically/legally, but I know that she wants this shotgun to be "hers" - her first firearm.

Dang - what a gun to have as a first - a Browning BT-99!?

I guess when you go to Bass Pro to pick it up get her to fill out the paper work. I don't think the girl on the phone knew what she was talking about. Good luck.

 

[trickg]

A great start I would agree ! It's ok though, take a deep breath and remember, from now on it's "her" gun.

Your annual gun budget had just quadroupled, if you're lucky.. I give my wife crap all the time, since she has the most expensive damn gun in the household. Not a bad problem to have though

HA! Now that's funny! LOL!

 

[jef955]

HA! Now that's funny! LOL!

LOL, yeah the $1500 Sig P320, but she can shoot it and do everything by herself with it, it's money well spent as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Uncle Duke]

There's nothing like a first gun. It's more than mere semantics. I don't care who you are, it's something you always remember.

 

[trickg]

There's nothing like a first gun. It's more than mere semantics. I don't care who you are, it's something you always remember.

My first real gun is a Remington 870 youth model 20 ga - the first iteration of it that Remington came out with in the early 1980s. It's SO small, but unless I have a grandkid at some point that wants it, I'll never get rid of it.

 

[Bountied]

My first real gun is a Remington 870 youth model 20 ga - the first iteration of it that Remington came out with in the early 1980s. It's SO small, but unless I have a grandkid at some point that wants it, I'll never get rid of it.

That was my first "real" gun as well. I broke the stock on it when I was 14 and my dad replaced it with an adult stock. I still have the short barrel but have acquired a 28" barrel for it as well so I can hunt with it if I was going to use a 20ga. I got it in about '88. My next gun was a 12ga 870 express with a 2 barrel set.