Quoted:
Just bought my first can from a local dealer.  He didn't have it in stock but showed me the form 3 paperwork which he sent in about a month ago.  Just double checking a few questions I had for him.

1. Since he sent in the form 3 paperwork and actually had a serial number for the suppressor, does that mean it was in stock at the manufacturer?  I have heard a few horror stories of people waiting months before the can hit the dealer shelf because the manufacturer did even have one made.  I was told a couple more weeks by the dealer and he would have it ready to go on the form 4.

2.  I paid in full for the can and he charged me my state sales tax.  I figured that made sense since technically my local dealer is the owner (after the form 3 clears) and since he was selling it to me I would have to pay sales tax like any other purchase.  Again, just making sure I am not being taken for a ride.

3.  On Monday I plan on calling in the serial number to the BATF to check on the status of the form 3.  Any problem doing that?

Thanks.

Quoted:
How did your dealer send form 3 in on a suppressor that he does not have in stock? The dealer sending the gun to your dealer would be the one to send it in.

Quoted:


It was my understanding that my dealer had to send in the form 3 to the ATF to get approved so the manufacturer could send the suppressor to him.  I am new to this so I could be misunderstanding how this process works.

Quoted:


The manufacturer would have filed the form 3 instead of the dealer, but most manufacturers will send a copy of the pending form 3 to the dealer, so he has a record of what is pending transfer to him.

And as mentioned earlier, you can't check the status of a transfer unless you are the transferor or the transferee,  Only the dealer and the manufacturer will be able to check the status.

And lastly, the sales tax is correct. You are buying the suppressor from the dealer, not the manufacturer, so you have to pay sales tax. The fact that he does not have the item in stock yet does not make it tax exempt.

ETA: If the manufacturer has submitted a form 3 to the ATF with a serial number, then yes, it's in stock. They cannot transfer an item that does not exist and/or isn't in their possession, so the fact that they have submitted a form 3 to transfer it to your dealer means that it is in stock and ready to ship once the form is approved.

Quoted:
Im not going to mention any names but I know of 3 major companies that have submitted form 3's before the suppressor was made.

Quoted:


I'm not trying to discredit you, but I have to wonder:
A: What evidence you have that this is being done, and
B: Why you won't name manufacturer's that are doing it.

I'm not sure exactly what the NFA handbook says regarding the issue, but I'm guessing the ATF would not be happy to find out that manufacturers are applying for transfers for NFA items that don't even exist. At the very least, it violates the spirit of the law, by applying for transfers before the item can legally be transferred.

And this would be something that affects distributors, dealers and end customers, so I don't see a reason to keep any secrets if you know someone is doing something unscrupulous.

Quoted:
Roger on the sales tax and checking the serial number.  Thanks for that info.

Regarding the form 3, I am now understanding how the process works.  I was backwards in my thinking.  I thougt the dealer submitted the form 3, not the manufacturer.  So yes, the manufacturer must have sent him a copy as he showed it to me.  

As far as manufacturers sending the form 3 before the suppressor was built, yeah, that would be pretty crappy.  The can I got is from silencerco and from everything I have heard the guys are awesome over there.  So hopefully they wouldn't pull something like that.

Quoted:



I'm not sure exactly what the NFA handbook says regarding the issue, but I'm guessing the ATF would not be happy to find out that manufacturers are applying for transfers for NFA items that don't even exist. At the very least, it violates the spirit of the law, by applying for transfers before the item can legally be transferred.

Quoted:


When a tube is made/threaded and an SN is put on it, it exists. It might still be a few weeks out from being finished, but it exists and the MFG files the F2. They can the file the F3.
 

Quoted:
I do own a sparrow and a Osprey and love both so you should be very happy with which ever one you ordered.

Quoted:
When a tube is made/threaded and an SN is put on it, it exists. It might still be a few weeks out from being finished, but it exists and the MFG files the F2. They can the file the F3.