Sending weapon to manufacturer, is FFL needed for return?

[wgoforth]

NEVER had them to inspect the package. I am sent a label from the manufacturer, stick it on and hand it to the employee.

I have never seen them inspect the package but when I sent my LC9 to Ruger the shipping instructions were to not seal the box.
Informing the carrier is a must do according to the ATF:
http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/unlicen ... ms-carrier" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Q: May a nonlicensee ship a firearm by common or contract carrier?
A nonlicensee may ship a firearm by a common or contract carrier to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. In addition, Federal law requires that the carrier be notified that the shipment contains a firearm and prohibits common or contract carriers from requiring or causing any label to be placed on any package indicating that it contains a firearm.

[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(2)(A), 922(a) (3), 922(a)(5) and 922(e), 27 CFR 478.31 and 478.30]

Oh sure, I inform them. Just my box is always sealed and they never say a word. No biggie, just never heard that. I have probably shipped off a dozen guns over the years, always sealed and never anything about unsealed. Odd.

[RSJ]

Recently had a handgun function issue. Manufacturer sent a prepaid box. Put firearm in, went to Fedex (*HUB LOCATION*) declared a firearm. She asked about it being loaded, I said "no mam". They sent it off. A few weeks it was sent directly to my door. I was required to show ID (and I think sign?). Hope this helps.

[JJVP]

DocV, have you done this work yourself or just knowledgeable on the subject?
I ask, as I was pre-warned when I bought the pistol to "not try to take it apart yourself, or you will be bringing it back to us for re-assembly", they specifically called it a "gun in a bag".

Now, I am not the most technical person in the world, but think I should be able to do so, especially with some of the Youtube video's out there, but are there any pitfalls I should be aware of.

Also, I did buy 2 new magazines this past weekend, they are hard to find!
And I have looked for magazine springs, but cant seem to find those either.

Yes, I did it all myself. Not a problem at all. Whomever told you not to take apart your pistol did you a great disservice. You should be able to do a basic field strip using the instructions in the owners manual. Work slow.

The major pitfall is thinking you can't do it. Go slow and be confident. In addition to MidwayUSA You can also find springs and parts on shopruger.com. Also put http://www.gunpartscorp.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; into your bookmarks.

Mark III 22/25 mags are tough to find but cdnninvestments usually has some: http://www.cdnninvestments.com/rumk222210ma.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Taking a gun apart and doing a field strip are not necessarily the same thing. Most anyone can and should do a field strip. However, you should not completely dissassemble a firearm unless you know what you are doing. Reassembling it wrong could be very dangerous.

[Teamless]

Volquartsen extractor

I just ordered it from Midway,
Are there any other modifications that could be reasonable (in ability and cost), which you would suggest, that should be done while I have it disassembled?

Thanks

[LTUME1978]

I have the same pistol and had the same issues. I called Ruger and was told that the pistol (feed ramp) was designed to shoot CCI ammo (and will shoot 1.25 inch group at 25 yards with that - their standard). He said anything else may have feeding issues. I had been trying to shoot some cheap Aguila ammo I had on hand and eeding issues almost 100% of the time on the first two rounds out of the magazine. After that, not many issues. I looked at the shape of the bullets and there is a difference between the Aguila and the CCI. I tried some CCI and had absolutely no issues. What I do now is put 8 rounds of Aguila in the magazine then top it off with either 2 rounds of CCI or Winchester. That has worked fairly well. Still have an ocassional feed issue with the Aguila but not often enough that I won't use up what I have. After that, I will not buy any more Aguila and will stick with either the CCI or the Winchester. Hope that works for you.

[rentz]

I have the same pistol and had the same issues. I called Ruger and was told that the pistol (feed ramp) was designed to shoot CCI ammo (and will shoot 1.25 inch group at 25 yards with that - their standard). He said anything else may have feeding issues. I had been trying to shoot some cheap Aguila ammo I had on hand and eeding issues almost 100% of the time on the first two rounds out of the magazine. After that, not many issues. I looked at the shape of the bullets and there is a difference between the Aguila and the CCI. I tried some CCI and had absolutely no issues. What I do now is put 8 rounds of Aguila in the magazine then top it off with either 2 rounds of CCI or Winchester. That has worked fairly well. Still have an ocassional feed issue with the Aguila but not often enough that I won't use up what I have. After that, I will not buy any more Aguila and will stick with either the CCI or the Winchester. Hope that works for you.

so they wont fix a problem unless you are using cci?
I'm using federal, no issues in my 10/22 but the mk3 22/45 hates it

[DocV]

Volquartsen extractor

I just ordered it from Midway,
Are there any other modifications that could be reasonable (in ability and cost), which you would suggest, that should be done while I have it disassembled?

Thanks

Hi Teamless.

The extractor is the only new part you really need. Other than that part I keep my two Mark parts as they shipped from factory. Oh, well, it will not hurt to replace the old magazine spring with a new one.

I have modified the magazine lips on a couple of my magazines that had feed problems. The page, http://www.1bad69.com/ruger/stovepipe.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; , has a description of the procedure that consists of smoothing off the edge of the magazine lips. My modification is much more conservative than shown in that page. Instead of using a file to create a new profile, I use a stone to polish off any jagged edges. Then I test and repeat my stoning if needed. I slowly make incremental changes in order to prevent totally messing things up

Once you are able to field strip your pistol you will find cleaning your pistol frequently will do wonders for its reliability. I use a good bore brush, an old toothbrush along with some inexpensive Universal Cleaning sticks from County Comm
http://www.countycomm.com/ucs.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

As to other tools, you need a paper-clip and a small plastic mallet. I find chop sticks to be useful cleaning tools too.

BTW, remember to watch the youtube videos on replacing your extractor. They really mean it when they say you need to capture the spring loaded plunger when you remove the old extractor. Don't ask me how I know.

[Teamless]

Don't ask me how I know

i won't ask, and hopefully I won't have to 'learn' how you know!,

Thanks for all the insights, i have already ordered the extractor, so maybe in a weekend or 2, me and my B-I-L, NordicTexan will have to do some gun smithing! (Oh yea, if you are reading this NT, we have work do to!)

[CleverNickname]

NEVER had them to inspect the package. I am sent a label from the manufacturer, stick it on and hand it to the employee.

I have never seen them inspect the package but when I sent my LC9 to Ruger the shipping instructions were to not seal the box.
Informing the carrier is a must do according to the ATF:
http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/unlicen ... ms-carrier" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Q: May a nonlicensee ship a firearm by common or contract carrier?
A nonlicensee may ship a firearm by a common or contract carrier to a resident of his or her own State or to a licensee in any State. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. In addition, Federal law requires that the carrier be notified that the shipment contains a firearm and prohibits common or contract carriers from requiring or causing any label to be placed on any package indicating that it contains a firearm.

[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(2)(A), 922(a) (3), 922(a)(5) and 922(e), 27 CFR 478.31 and 478.30]

If you read the law, it says that notification is only required when the recipient is not an FFL.

18 USC 922(e):
It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly to deliver or cause to be delivered to any common or contract carrier for transportation or shipment in interstate or foreign commerce, to persons other than licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, licensed dealers, or licensed collectors, any package or other container in which there is any firearm or ammunition without written notice to the carrier that such firearm or ammunition is being transported or shipped; except that any passenger who owns or legally possesses a firearm or ammunition being transported aboard any common or contract carrier for movement with the passenger in interstate or foreign commerce may deliver said firearm or ammunition into the custody of the pilot, captain, conductor or operator of such common or contract carrier for the duration of the trip without violating any of the provisions of this chapter. No common or contract carrier shall require or cause any label, tag, or other written notice to be placed on the outside of any package, luggage, or other container that such package, luggage, or other container contains a firearm.

When I ship a gun, I don't see an upside to me telling the carrier that a package contains a gun, so if I don't have to tell, I don't.

[Teamless]

hopefully I won't have to 'learn' how you know!

Well, NordicTexan and I did change the extractor out, and had to learn LOL. Luckily, we found all 3 pieces!

The extractor installation (other than the comment above) was actually quite simple.
The extractor works good, but I don't believe it is any different than the issue was before, and only with new magazines is it actually working properly.

Thanks for the help and encouragement above, it is much appreciated.