Gettin an FFL is for business, basically you will loose your personal collection, buying things for your inventory that you feel your customers will buy and make you money to buy more personal guns with, what actually happens is you choose poorly and get in stuff that will never sell and now you have a bunch of guns in stock that eat away at your wallet and you wish you could even get what you paid for them out by selling them.

The fastest way to make a million dollars in the gun business is to start with 2 million

- You must be "in business" to get an FFL.  You can't just do occasional transfers for a few of your friends.

- You must have your operation located in a place that is zoned for Commercial use, or is on unzoned property.  If you are trying to get one out of your home, and that area is zoned Residential, you won't get it.

- You must have listed operating hours.  You can no longer get an FFL for "by appointment only".  ATF can inspect your place of business during operating hours at any time without a warrant.

- You must comply with ALL federal, state, and local laws, regs, and ordinances.  You must get whatever licenses are required in your area, and are subject to rules against being too close to a church or school, if those apply in your area.

- As an FFL, you are required to observe the laws in any state you are doing business with, even though those laws might not affect you.  For example, shipping mags above 15-round capacity to NJ isn't illegal (for the sender) if you're a civilian, but it is if you're an FFL.

- Finally, you must apply to ATF along with your application fee.  ATF will eventually do an interview and will probably come and inspect your place of business, along with checking with your city to ensure you have all the proper permits, etc.

-Troy

Quoted: - You must have your operation located in a place that is zoned for Commercial use, or is on unzoned property.  If you are trying to get one out of your home, and that area is zoned Residential, you won't get it.

Last I heard BATFE considers a website a store front., you may want to check on that.

Cavalry Arms' first FFL almost 5 years ago now was out of the owner's house in a residential area (we've since moved to an industrial complex, and later to a larger industrial complex where we are now)...if the city government does not have a problem with it, BATFE does not either.

- You must have listed operating hours.  You can no longer get an FFL for "by appointment only".  ATF can inspect your place of business during operating hours at any time without a warrant.

This is true if you get an 01 dealer FFL.  Not true if you have an 07 manufacturing FFL, 07s are not required to be open to the public nor are they required to have posted hours.  Many gunsmiths get 07 FFLs because what they do in building complete custom guns is considered "manufacturing" and the 07 allows them to pay federal excise tax.  07s can do everything than at 01 can do.  If you get an 07 and pay your $500 a year SOT you can manufacture as many machine guns as you wish for sale to law enforcement/government only....of course you are free to shoot and test them as much as you wish and make as many prototypes and inventory as you wish.

The downsides to 07s are increased liability insurance, and having to pay ITAR fees to the state department.

Getting an FFL is not that hard, you just have to be serious about doing it, devoting time and money to that purpose.