Shipping a gun to the manufacturer

[Katygunnut]

Simple question (I think)

I have a Taurus and a Kel-Tec that both need to go back to the manufacturer. I spoke with the Taurus customer service rep and described the problem (failure to feed). She told me to send the gun in, and to include a letter with certain info, etc. She also said that I needed to ship it UPS or Fed Ex OVERNIGHT, and that I would need to eat the cost of shipping. Not to be cheap, but this is a gun that I paid $379 for new, and the overnight shipping rate is about $60 for both UPS and Fed Ex, while 2nd day air is around $20. I can't figure out how Taurus could possibly care which delivery method I use to ship the gun to them as long as they get it. Does anyone know if there is some other restriction that requires me to ship the gun overnight? Could this be a UPS / Fed Ex requirement on shipping firearms?

For the Kel-Tec, I keep getting disconnected when I push the extension for their service department, but their warranty says that you can just ship them the gun (doesn't specify how) and tells you the info to include with the shipment. The Kel-Tec is having a full range of problems (FTE, FTF, Magazine dropping out of the gun while firing), so I'm sure it will need to go back regardless, and plan to just go ahead and ship it.

For the record, the Taurus warranty card also does not say that the gun needs to be sent overnight. I'm thinking I should just send both guns using 2nd day air, or maybe ground, delivery. I would appreciate thoughts from anyone that has experience in this area, and especially as it relates to dealing with Taurus in particular.

[terryg]

Simple question (I think)

I have a Taurus and a Kel-Tec that both need to go back to the manufacturer. I spoke with the Taurus customer service rep and described the problem (failure to feed). She told me to send the gun in, and to include a letter with certain info, etc. She also said that I needed to ship it UPS or Fed Ex OVERNIGHT, and that I would need to eat the cost of shipping. Not to be cheap, but this is a gun that I paid $379 for new, and the overnight shipping rate is about $60 for both UPS and Fed Ex, while 2nd day air is around $20. I can't figure out how Taurus could possibly care which delivery method I use to ship the gun to them as long as they get it. Does anyone know if there is some other restriction that requires me to ship the gun overnight? Could this be a UPS / Fed Ex requirement on shipping firearms?

For the Kel-Tec, I keep getting disconnected when I push the extension for their service department, but their warranty says that you can just ship them the gun (doesn't specify how) and tells you the info to include with the shipment. The Kel-Tec is having a full range of problems (FTE, FTF, Magazine dropping out of the gun while firing), so I'm sure it will need to go back regardless, and plan to just go ahead and ship it.

For the record, the Taurus warranty card also does not say that the gun needs to be sent overnight. I'm thinking I should just send both guns using 2nd day air, or maybe ground, delivery. I would appreciate thoughts from anyone that has experience in this area, and especially as it relates to dealing with Taurus in particular.

I was told, when shipping mine to Beretta, that regulations prevent ground shipping. Any air travel (overnight, second day, etc) should be just fine.

[Griffen]

I shipped my Taurus 22 mag back to them in Florida, and used the slow boat option. Since I'm paying for it, I decide how much I want to pay to ship. They didn't care how it got there, just that it did eventually. Since I wasn't in a hurry, I chose the cheap route. It cost about $10 UPS from Dallas.

Don't expect any correspondence from Taurus. They'll ship it back when they are done with it, but they won't tell you when or what they did to fix the problem.

Best of Luck!

[gwashorn]

Simple question (I think)

I have a Taurus and a Kel-Tec that both need to go back to the manufacturer. I spoke with the Taurus customer service rep and described the problem (failure to feed). She told me to send the gun in, and to include a letter with certain info, etc. She also said that I needed to ship it UPS or Fed Ex OVERNIGHT, and that I would need to eat the cost of shipping. Not to be cheap, but this is a gun that I paid $379 for new, and the overnight shipping rate is about $60 for both UPS and Fed Ex, while 2nd day air is around $20. I can't figure out how Taurus could possibly care which delivery method I use to ship the gun to them as long as they get it. Does anyone know if there is some other restriction that requires me to ship the gun overnight? Could this be a UPS / Fed Ex requirement on shipping firearms?

For the Kel-Tec, I keep getting disconnected when I push the extension for their service department, but their warranty says that you can just ship them the gun (doesn't specify how) and tells you the info to include with the shipment. The Kel-Tec is having a full range of problems (FTE, FTF, Magazine dropping out of the gun while firing), so I'm sure it will need to go back regardless, and plan to just go ahead and ship it.

For the record, the Taurus warranty card also does not say that the gun needs to be sent overnight. I'm thinking I should just send both guns using 2nd day air, or maybe ground, delivery. I would appreciate thoughts from anyone that has experience in this area, and especially as it relates to dealing with Taurus in particular.

I was told, when shipping mine to Beretta, that regulations prevent ground shipping. Any air travel (overnight, second day, etc) should be just fine.

When I sent mine back to Beretta, UPS required it to be sent air over night. cost more but it was how it was done. Beretta BTW was great on their service.

Gary

[Katygunnut]

When I sent mine back to Beretta, UPS required it to be sent air over night. cost more but it was how it was done. Beretta BTW was great on their service.

Gary

I'm thinking that it might be a UPS requirement as I'm not sure why Taurus would care. Then again, I'm also not sure why UPS would necessarily care, either, unless they can better track the overnight shipments and are paranoid about losing a gun. I'll likely stop by either UPS or Fed Ex tomorrow, and will see how it goes.

Hard to believe that it actually costs manufacturers and others this much to ship a gun. Then again, there are probably different rules for FFL's, etc.

[O6nop]

Not sure, but some companies have contracts with carriers and the contract is what controls their decision. Kahr said if I sent it ground, they would have to tack on up to an extra $40 and it would take longer to receive. I think because, as I said, the contract is set up so that the ground deliveries don't normally go to the company or to the particular building and they charge the company to make the delivery.
I have worked in shipping/receiving and the delivery companies come up with all kinds of weird rules. Keep in mind, the government is at the bottom of all this and they have some pretty stiff requirements for firearms.

When shipping, don't use one of those all-in-one postal type stores, they tack on a big service fee. Go directly to a UPS or FedEx center if you can.

[puma guy]

When I sent mine back to Beretta, UPS required it to be sent air over night. cost more but it was how it was done. Beretta BTW was great on their service.

Gary

I'm thinking that it might be a UPS requirement as I'm not sure why Taurus would care. Then again, I'm also not sure why UPS would necessarily care, either, unless they can better track the overnight shipments and are paranoid about losing a gun. I'll likely stop by either UPS or Fed Ex tomorrow, and will see how it goes.

Hard to believe that it actually costs manufacturers and others this much to ship a gun. Then again, there are probably different rules for FFL's, etc.

UPS (and FedEx I'm sure) require verbal notification for shipment of handguns and will only ship overnight. They also have special requirements for which type of shipment center you ship from. See the UPS website. I ran into this myself. There are some people that ignore their rules and requirements I know becuase I had a private seller ship a pistol to my FFL and he only charged 25 bucks. I really didn't pay attention to it because it was the first time I'd done it. The next time I bought a handgun the seller had the 60 dollar fee noted in his shipping and informed me why it was that much.

[gigag04]

I'm about to send my recently acquired Kimber in. It will go overnight Fed Ex. We'll see how that goes.

[Griffen]

When I sent my gun to Taurus, I used one of those Neighborhood shipping shops. They didn't ask what I was shipping, nor did I volunteer it was a handgun. Perhaps thats why it only cost $10 to ship without any fees, etc.

[bigred90gt]

I would expect Taurus and Kel-tec to pick up the shipping cost for warranty work, anything less, and I would take it as high up the food chain as I could until I got a satisfactory answer.

Fed-ex and UPS both require verbal notification that you are shipping a handgun, and will only ship handguns via overnight shipping. Not sure about long guns. When I had to return my Diamondback, they emailed me a return label and I just had to box it up and drop it off. You will most likely have to explain to Fed-ex (not sure how UPS policy is actually worded), a couple of times (I did anyways), that you are sending it to the manufacturer. They tried to tell me I couldn't send it because their policy states "the shipper OR the recipient must be a licensed dealer or licensed manufacturer". They tried explaining that since I was not a licensed dealer that I could not ship it. I had to explain that the word "or" indicated that only one of us had to be a licensed dealer or manufacturer, and since it was going to the manufacturer, I didn't need to be a licensed dealer. After telling her this a few times, and giving a brief lesson on reading comprehension, she understood and shipped it.

The firearm must also be disassembled prior to shipment, and the packaging can in no way indicate that there is a firearm inside.

http://www.thegunzone.com/ship-guns.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[cougartex]

US Mail: An unlicensed person can ship a rifle or shotgun by US Mail. Unlicensed persons cannot ship a handgun by US Mail. Postal regulations allow the Post Office to open your package for inspection. Ammunition cannot be shipped by US Mail. You can search the US Post Office Postal Explorer site for specific USPS regulations regarding firearms and ammunition.

FedEx: FedEx will only ship handguns via their Priority Overnight service. Ammunition must be shipped as dangerous goods.

FedEx Ground: FedEx Ground will transport and deliver firearms (excluding handguns) as defined by the United States Gun Control Act of 1968, between areas served in the U.S. Ammunition must be shipped as dangerous goods.

UPS: UPS will accept handgun shipments by Next Day Air only. Rifles and shotguns can be shipped by UPS ground service. UPS will accept shipments of ammunition.

[dcphoto]

Taurus will pay for shipping if the gun is less than a year old. If you've had it for more than a year you have to foot the bill.

There is no law or rule saying how quickly you must ship a firearm, but UPS and FedEX policy requires you to ship overnight. There is, however, a requirement that you notify the carrier that you are shipping a firearm. The same law says the carrier CANNOT mark the package in any way that indicates it contains a firearm.

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/unlicen ... ms-carrier" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Embalmo]

UPS online-Their website doesn't ask you what's inside.

[dcphoto]

UPS online-Their website doesn't ask you what's inside.

You have to inform the driver, or the person at the drop off point. You can only send them from a distribution center (not UPS store) or by arranging a pickup. Not informing the carrier is a violation of federal law, and if they x-ray your package and discover an undeclared gun they WILL report it to the ATF/FBI. I don't remember the specific penalties, but I do know that it allows for more than a year in prison, which will permanently prohibit you from possessing firearms.

Do what you want, it's your life, but I think I'll follow these rules.