So had a slowdown about starting last month? But as of ummm like beginning of 2nd week of March, started to get bombarded with FFL Transfers (my bread and butter) I dont sell really alot new inventory, i sell some used stuff i acquire here and there. But New stuff only if i can get it on some  sort of Deal.

One thing i just noticed recently is that im getting more and more gunbroker stuff. Its not that i recently registered as an approved or preferred FFL or whatever the hell they call it. But seems like people are hitting up gunbroker more
Whats everyones Take on the corona Sales?

Doing GREAT?
Doing SAME?

STFU OP, Biz Sucks

One thing for sure is, ALOT of shit is closing or getting highly regulated.
Im in the car business. They SHUT DOWN the industry as a whole.

NO Previewing Cars Day before Sale
NO Previewing PERIOD
NO Going inside to conduct counter business (pay for cars, pickup titles etc)  1 by 1 allowed inside.
NO Bidding in Person Either obviously

Everything just became a online/mobile bidding only.
The Workers who relied on their shitty temp jobs to drive cars thru lanes are suffering.
The Auctioneers are suffering as not as many needed as usual.
The lot personal who clean the cars, make keys, jump starts etc on or before auction day are hurting.

Oh Yeah. Im fuckin hurting too. Fuckin Ridiculous Shit.

I've been an FFL for 27 years.
For years, did mainly transfers, either of guns I ordered for people, or guns that they had shipped in. Your typical tabletop FFL level of operations.

When I started in the FFL gig there were a dozen tabletop guys like me in the county, along with more traditional brick and mortar retail options like Fays, Woolworths, Kmart, etc. A couple of brick and mortar gun stores have come and gone in that time.
Now I'm about the only tabletop guy left and there are no brick and mortar retail options now that Dicks and WalMart are out of the gun selling game.

In recent years, have gotten more into estate evaluations and disposing of those guns at the estates request.
The SAFE Act has brought more transfers in the door, but no associated revenue from those transfers.
I do stock more ammo than I traditionally did, simply because SAFE prevents them from ordering ammo to their doorstep..or so Cuomo still insists that it does, regardless of what people and companies choose to do.

My recurring customer base consist of roughly a third collectors, a third LEOs, and a third "everyone else"...your typical mish mash of gun owners.
New customers come in from referrals and people finding me on FFL search engines. I don't have a website or maintain any other sort of internet presence relating to my FFL.
Despite what the typical beliefs about NY'ers are on this site, there is a decent amount of gun ownership in my part of Upstate NYS.
Because of SAFE restricting what is commercially available, much of that is what many on this forum would define as "fudds", but they're still gun owners....
Many of my older long time customers left NYS after SAFE was passed; miss 'em every day and hope they're doing well in Free States....

As far as the current crisis...
Two weeks ago I noticed inventory at my vendors was starting to show higher than usual levels of out of stock status.
I sent out a warning email to my regulars, to give them a chance to put in orders before stuff completely went out of stock.
Some listened, some did not.
The ones who did not have been calling all week wanting to stop by and buy bulk quantities of 9 mm ball ammo.

After Sandy Hook I assumed that rimfire would be again the next in-demand caliber in any future panic. I'm well stocked in rimfire.
I never foresaw that somehow 9 mm ball would be the demand item this time around. I had a shipment arrive right after I saw inventories dropping. I should have bought more than I did.
My last boxes of 9 mm ball walked out the door yesterday.
Still stocked well enough in other 9 mm, and my next orders of 9 mm ball ammo wont be showing up for a week. And those are only 1000 bulk cases, but I assume that those will fly out the door, unless gun and ammo sales are halted completely...
Other calibers, still plenty of options. My shelf of .223 and 5.56 is nearly as full as it has been. The fact that ARs are practically banned in NYS means that most of the guys buying that caliber at any given time are LEOs.

What worries me now is a possible freeze on all gun sales and transfers.
We're already dealing with a de facto freeze on handgun transfers because the pistol permit division of the Sheriff's Office has a freeze on issuing purchase coupons to buyers until May 1st.
My safe is starting to fill up with handguns that I can't transfer. if they're guns I've ordered for people, the bills are going unpaid. if the customer bought them, they can't enjoy their lawfully purchased property

No change in Central South Dakota for home-based... though many of us already have the guns! We are also a pretty independent bunch and already spread out a lot so the craziness hasn't started here... yet. We will see!

If things keep going this direction though will be posting stuff on gunbroker in about a week probably!

We're down to the last 2x 9x19mm handguns.

Sales are nuts.

Massive upswing in business.

after i posted my email was full literally with FFL transfers. This is atleast something good.

NICS crashed this afternoon, but was still putting guns on layaway for 50%.  Hopefully up by morning.

@NoloContendre - what is this nonsense about "business days" meaning the Brady release date isn't til mid-April?

I'm more and more frustrated by the folks who are now a couple of weeks into this thing and are just now calling me with very specific weapons requests as to what kind of weapon they want. For example, guy calls me at 10; PM last night...wants "a cheap tactical shotgun with a short barrel "( not SBS, which isn't an option ). I mean, large or small FFL,the options are limited at this point. The wholesalers sites are picked clean of anything other than single shot shotguns and higher priced sporting shotguns. And a cheap single shot shotgun is what I ordered him, because that's all that is left...

And the people who ignored my mass email two weeks ago and are now calling asking for hundreds of rounds of specific types of ammo....day late, dollar short, people......

Brady disposition date is dependent on federal or state offices being open. If they ain't open, those days don't count as business days.

https://www.atf.gov/file/61086/download

I do not have any pending delays, but Texas Offices were open this past week and so far no announced plans for them to close next week. Everything is day to day so pay attention to announcements from Abbott.

Two of my transfers on March 19th were given a disposition date of April 15th.

I am not sure how that is legally binding/correct if state offices are open next week.

Did they explain why not next Wednesday as per the law?

Transfers for me have been up 70% or more the last 5 weeks.  Ammunition sales even more.  I match online (Midway , SG etc..) prices for ammo so as not to be known as a gouger. Brisk sales I would say for a small local FFL.  My main objective is to get my local customers what they need and can't get retail as best I can.

Community support is important in times like these.  Ya, I like to make a few extra bucks but I also want my locals to know I got their back.

I did the Echeck because the NICS phone was out of service....no one to ask.

.........

I’ve never done the nics check by phone. Since the beginning I’ve done it thru the computer.

Any advantage using the phone ? Is it shorter Info or something ?


Man transfers have shot thru the roof. Then I got these morons who order online  and ofcourse the retailer is behind and hasn’t even shipped but these retards call and talk my ear off for something I don’t even have yet let alone hasn’t even processed for shipping on the retailers end.


Whatver I had in stock (handguns and few AR15s) I even sold a few of my own personal shit that’s been sitting a while.

Good time to dump personal stuff right now

Had a 7.5” el cheapo parts kit my FIL didn't want, took it in yesterday, took it from the builder's hands to a kid that just turned 21.  NICS was working, and I had to log the gun in as a consignment so I could get him out the door.  $600, and sent him off w/ 2 or 3 mags and 1 box of XM193.

Huh?

I read this as: "I brought a parts kit to work, the gunsmith built it into a firearm, and I sold it to a 21 yo."

making a firearm from a parts kit is MFG, and requires a 07 license. You would also have to engrave your MFG inf on it.

it is not a consignment, in any way shape or form.

It was not assembled by an employee of the shop.

Business for me is booming, 5-10 transfers a week min. Add in the insane ammo sales (I am just charging whatever Midway charged + a few $) and I am loving it as a HB dealer. I also enjoy the new liberal customers who I badger relentlessly but yet still buy.

Denying someone who is a commie is satisfying when you can because of the political climate yet not hurting your business.... It's great.

Fuck the communist voters.  They need to feel the anxiety of not being able to protect themselves when they have advocated just that for so many years.

At some point you need to do it...even if it means a few $ less for you.

It's the fucking principle.

NICS will take care of a random number of liberal gun owners.  They'll feel the pain, particularly w/ these mid-April Brady release dates.

Can someone give me a current assessment on the status of NICS checks.
During the first week or so of this panic I only had an occasional transfer, and the main issue was being on hold for a prolonged period of time before anyone at the other end would pick up
.
That's about to change, as people who were ordering stuff on-line and facing a prolonged delivery time will be seeing their guns getting delivered to me.
Handgun transfers are not going to happen, as counties aren't releasing purchase coupons. Long guns are another matter, and I know of several that are en route to me.
From reading recent posts, it sounds like many ( most? ) checks are running into an extended delay period now. Is that an entirely accurate assessment? Are no or few checks coming back with an immediate clearance?
Just trying to figure out what advice is best to pass along to the people who will be stopping in over the coming days

Friday afternoon NICS crashed entirely.

Saturday NICS returned several instant approvals.  Completely random.

My transfers have jumped significantly. Getting in 5-6 new transfers/day. That said, I have had no issues with e check. All instant proceeds.

Had several instant transfers yesterday.  We have 3 pages of delays.

The pernicious thing is since the Brady dates are almost a month out, there's only a 2 day window for the customer to pick up the gun before thw check expires and we have to start over.

I just got off the phone with fucking rude ass NICS employee....it only took three emails to get them to respond to my questions as to why there are only three business days between March 19th and April 15th (the NICS disposition date currently being given for delays in Texas).

NICS Jerk: "Because that's the date Texas told us during the state of emergency"
Me: "What Texas state offices are closed?"
NICS Jerk: "The ones Texas told us were closed"

I'm going to email Danny Goeb since he's fighting for our gun rights. I'll also ask about that $5,000 raise I was promised.