Transfer prices went through the roof?

Flashpoint

Flashpoint

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Mods please move this to a more appropriate place if there is one.

So I went to the FFL i typically use to pick up an order from PSA. Last one I did there was Jan 8 and it was $25. Today they tell me it's $52, and that many other stores are even higher now. So has something recently happened to cause this? As soon as I left the store I called and cancelled another order (hadn't shipped yet thank God) that I had coming to them. Just wondering if there was some event I missed. Who do my Pittsboro or Alamance Co folks use that charge a reasonable $20 - $25 fee?
 
Nowadays even the kitchen tables near me are charging at least $30. Welcome to the Weimar Republic. Next year it'll be $40 minimum.
 
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Same thing, and if anyone has intel on why shops I do transfers with are charging $50(+) for psa transfers, please do tell.

My usual ffl raised all transfers to $35, which I begrudgingly understand, but $50 for psa specifically escapes me.
 
The PPP repeal probably has a lot to with it. I'm glad they're gone but it does add another step to the transfer process if you don't have a CHP. It's been more than a decade since I've had a NICS check ran so I have no idea how long it takes, but whatever it is it's another step for the FFL.
 
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Ṡalinnis said:
Same thing, and if anyone has intel on why shops I do transfers with are charging $50(+) for psa transfers, please do tell.

My usual ffl raised all transfers to $35, which I begrudgingly understand, but $50 for psa specifically escapes me.
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PSA has been blowing a lot of stuff out recently well below wholesale. Might be why they raised PSA transfer prices.
 
I just look at the one I normally use and theyre now $35. I remember $25 and a $5 discount if you had a CHP because that acted as the NICS check. Also they did additional firearms the fell on the same 4473 for $5 each. I do know a small FFL and he will not do FFL transfers for the general public because of being a cottage industry FFL (his main area is not acting as a dealer) and the problems associated with receiving shipments along with unknowns coming in. The paperwork upkeep and additional attention small FFLs are getting from the ATF isn’t helping either. He’s done favors for people he knows but he doesn’t want the headaches … but if prices are getting this high he might think twice.
 
cubrock said:
PSA has been blowing a lot of stuff out recently well below wholesale. Might be why they raised PSA transfer prices.
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Thanks, That was my thought but wasn't sure, the counter guy either didn't want to say, or genuinely didn't know why, as he stated.

I still shop in house, occasionally, but I've stopped transferring with them for another store that doesn't charge extra for psa.
 
my local went up to $30. I'm not pleased, but it's convenient and still cheaper than almost everybody else in town
 
Tim said:
A gun shop can’t compete w online prices. Charging a $50/transaction fee keeps their lights on.
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He's pricing himself into obscurity.
My Gawd. I'd have more respect if they just up & said the quiet part out loud; you suck and we hate you.

Milking the cow once is a terrible business plan.

The idea of the xfer fee is not to pay the light bill, it's to get people into the store. Wal Mart's #1 rule is get them into the store. It's not really a novel idea, it's pretty much been that way for every store in the history of forever.
If you have to charge that much for a transfer fee, then something else is wrong with the business.
 
Flashpoint said:
Mods please move this to a more appropriate place if there is one.

So I went to the FFL i typically use to pick up an order from PSA. Last one I did there was Jan 8 and it was $25. Today they tell me it's $52, and that many other stores are even higher now. So has something recently happened to cause this? As soon as I left the store I called and cancelled another order (hadn't shipped yet thank God) that I had coming to them. Just wondering if there was some event I missed. Who do my Pittsboro or Alamance Co folks use that charge a reasonable $20 - $25 fee?
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It's the price you pay when you buy outside of the stores inventory.

If I did transfers with my FFL I would charge $75 a hit

Or you can buy a gun from me.

I never understood why people think it's ok to use a ffl as their A&D book keeper.
 
Tim said:
Buy your guns from the store and avoid fees altogether.

A gun shop can’t compete w online prices. Charging a $50/transaction fee keeps their lights on.
Click to expand...

I quit doing business with a LGS because they raised their transfer fee dramatically AFTER they went online and became a big seller on GunBroker. That was apparently the "thank you" to longtime customers whose transfer fees had helped keep the shop open during the pandemic and while the owners shifted to being a GunBroker seller.

Now I do $20 transfers through a pawn shop.
 
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Flashpoint said:
Mods please move this to a more appropriate place if there is one.

So I went to the FFL i typically use to pick up an order from PSA. Last one I did there was Jan 8 and it was $25. Today they tell me it's $52, and that many other stores are even higher now. So has something recently happened to cause this? As soon as I left the store I called and cancelled another order (hadn't shipped yet thank God) that I had coming to them. Just wondering if there was some event I missed. Who do my Pittsboro or Alamance Co folks use that charge a reasonable $20 - $25 fee?
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I had my Sub2K transfer at Academy in Mooresville, I wanna say $50. Few months later went to pick up a Dagger, fee was $100.

Thankfully the PSA in Denver started doing their own transfers a few months later.
 
Friday said:
He's pricing himself into obscurity.
My Gawd. I'd have more respect if they just up & said the quiet part out loud; you suck and we hate you.

Milking the cow once is a terrible business plan.

The idea of the xfer fee is not to pay the light bill, it's to get people into the store. Wal Mart's #1 rule is get them into the store. It's not really a novel idea, it's pretty much been that way for every store in the history of forever.
If you have to charge that much for a transfer fee, then something else is wrong with the business.
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That's a great point, used to be on top of regular visits, I'd buy something to go with my transfer visit(mags/ammo/parts) just to support how I can. The first time I go hit with the $50 psa-transfer fee, they got nearly all the cash I had in my pocket and left me with not enough on me to buy their cheapest mag or box of ammo to go with the gun.

Made an extra $15 but lost $30 in inventory sales, albeit chump change to them, and a convenience fee of net profit, it leads to a loss of many future sales to me. I don't really see the logic in "psa is pushing items cheaper than we do, so you will be punished for shopping with them if you want to send it here".

Yet, they have psa items on inventory for a mark up that exceeds shipping, tax, and a regular $35 transfer fee, and if you read deep enough in to the item, many of them are labled on the box "blem" with no sort of blem discount in sight.

Punishing the customer for their choice to use a service they provide, isn't really the best look. Especially when you don't have a monopoly in the local market.
 
Flashpoint said:
Mods please move this to a more appropriate place if there is one.

So I went to the FFL i typically use to pick up an order from PSA. Last one I did there was Jan 8 and it was $25. Today they tell me it's $52, and that many other stores are even higher now. So has something recently happened to cause this? As soon as I left the store I called and cancelled another order (hadn't shipped yet thank God) that I had coming to them. Just wondering if there was some event I missed. Who do my Pittsboro or Alamance Co folks use that charge a reasonable $20 - $25 fee?
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Some of you are really cheap. We live in the hay day of gun stores. I remember in the dark days of Clinton how many LGS's closed. Your using their service to get your gun, if your deciding factor on LGS is how much they charge for a transfer then you probably don't spend that much there to begin with. Business have to pay bills, if you haven't noticed crap is really expensive lately. Support your local gun shop.
 
I kind of have a hard time believing that a gun store charging $50+ for a transfer is doing anything other than gouging, and if they’re gonna gouge you on a transfer then they are almost certainly gonna gouge you on anything you buy from them. They can obviously charge whatever they want but I have a tough time framing it like this is some noble fight for the little guy.
 
Tim said:
Buy your guns from the store and avoid fees altogether.

A gun shop can’t compete w online prices. Charging a $50/transaction fee keeps their lights on.
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Why would I want to pay MSRP plus $200 for something?
 
Variable said:
Some of you are really cheap. We live in the hay day of gun stores. I remember in the dark days of Clinton how many LGS's closed. Your using their service to get your gun, if your deciding factor on LGS is how much they charge for a transfer then you probably don't spend that much there to begin with. Business have to pay bills, if you haven't noticed crap is really expensive lately. Support your local gun shop.
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Yes, i am cheap. I also have bills to pay, and the crap I need to survive is really expensive too.

Embarking on a business endeavor is a personal undertaking the likes of the service and hospitality industry. You are only as strong as your customers opinion of you. If you feel that you do need each customer that walks in the door to keep your lights on, you probably shouldn't gouge any of them for HOW they bring you buisness.

It's also not the customers responsibility to keep the LGS lights on, the buisness practices will determine if the lights are kept on. If a lgs is going out of business, you wouldn't raise the prices of everything to go out with a bang, and you could avoid the need to go out at all, by providing customers an experience and prices that will bring you back in the store.
 
Variable said:
Some of you are really cheap. We live in the hay day of gun stores. I remember in the dark days of Clinton how many LGS's closed. Your using their service to get your gun, if your deciding factor on LGS is how much they charge for a transfer then you probably don't spend that much there to begin with. Business have to pay bills, if you haven't noticed crap is really expensive lately. Support your local gun shop.
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I am cheap, no doubt about it. Kel-Tec, Taurus, BCA, etc.

I would like to support my LGS, but often the prices are DOUBLE if not more. The one I was just in had a Sub2K on the wall for $650.

I can buy an item off Amazon maybe 20% cheaper than from a brick and mortar store, but with guns the difference is far greater. Why is that?

Mostly I like to buy used in the BST here.
 
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Quick question…

When you do your grocery shopping, open your utility bill, fill up with fuel and manage your household budgets, have you noticed an increase over the last few years?

Guess what?

Businesses are dealing with increased costs, as well and if you do nothing to offset those additional expenses, you are going to have a difficult time remaining profitable and pretty soon, there will be no business.

A business has a budget to manage, just like a household and just like the rest of us, they’re not exempt from a bad economy and/or inflation. They are having to take a bite outta the s**t sandwich, too. Thing is, if the business does not take the steps necessary to remain profitable, in many cases, it doesn’t only affect the business, but the individual households of those employed by that business.
 
Dale Gribble said:
Quick question…

When you do your grocery shopping, open your utility bill, fill up with fuel and manage your household budgets, have you noticed an increase over the last few years?

Guess what?

Businesses are dealing with increased costs, as well and if you do nothing to offset those additional expenses, you are going to have a difficult time remaining profitable and pretty soon, there will be no business.

A business has a budget to manage, just like a household and just like the rest of us, they’re not exempt from a bad economy and/or inflation. They are having to take a bite outta the s**t sandwich, too. Thing is, if the business does not take the steps necessary to remain profitable, in many cases, it doesn’t only affect the business, but the individual households of those employed by that business.
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Things change with time. One thing that is not changing is the fact that people will still need FFLs to take ownership of new firearms. Maybe start a business that does nothing but transfers and shipments for a good price and forget about stocking guns.
 
Flashpoint said:
Things change with time. One thing that is not changing is the fact that people will still need FFLs to take ownership of new firearms. Maybe start a business that does nothing but transfers and shipments for a good price and forget about stocking guns.
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That's exactly what the guy I use does.
 
Again, I have no pot to piss in for the raise on standard transfer fees to $35, it sucks but it is an indication of the times.

In tandem, charging $50 for transfers from psa that costs the LGS no extra to transfer out to me, makes 0 logical sense and indicates a personal problem that I don't care to be involved with, nor punished for.
 
The easy fix to this being the discussion turned to PSA

Dealers should stop doing PSA transfers all together because all you people that know nothing about business are crying like 2 year olds.

PSA is a crap anyways.
 
Mr.Gadget said:
The easy fix to this being the discussion turned to PSA

Dealers should stop doing PSA transfers all together because all you people that know nothing about business are crying like 2 year olds.

PSA is a crap anyways.
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you know who does seem to know something about business?

PSA
 
Guess I’m spoiled and lucky … one of my goto LGS (Fuquay Gun) pretty much makes buying online not worth it to mess with a transfer unless it is something they don’t stock or can get fairly easily. Clay has had that part of his business model since he was it that first little strip shopping center. When I do on the occasion find a revolver or lever gun that isn’t a regular item FGG I think now is $30. Thinking about the handling of receiving the package, entering it in their book and then the 4473 paperwork when I pick it up the time spent by the people doing those tasks seems fairly justified. I don’t know what point it becomes too much … that’s up to the parties involved but customers remember and owners who don’t see the responses of customers might be in trouble … and Clay & FGG is a prime example of how a LGS builds a loyal following by treating customers fair in EVERY aspect from their pricing in crazy times to the service and selection at great prices in regular times.

I am not sure about the level of FGG’s transfer numbers but I’m willing to bet if a newer customer does a transfer thru FGG once they make it in the store and are treated like FGG does many will think twice before buying online again. The long game is important and fair pricing can keep ‘em in it.
 
NCFubar said:
Guess I’m spoiled and lucky … one of my goto LGS (Fuquay Gun) pretty much makes buying online not worth it to mess with a transfer unless it is something they don’t stock or can get fairly easily. Clay has had that part of his business model since he was it that first little strip shopping center. When I do on the occasion find a revolver or lever gun that isn’t a regular item FGG I think now is $30. Thinking about the handling of receiving the package, entering it in their book and then the 4473 paperwork when I pick it up the time spent by the people doing those tasks seems fairly justified. I don’t know what point it becomes too much … that’s up to the parties involved but customers remember and owners who don’t see the responses of customers might be in trouble … and Clay & FGG is a prime example of how a LGS builds a loyal following by treating customers fair in EVERY aspect from their pricing in crazy times to the service and selection at great prices in regular times.

I am not sure about the level of FGG’s transfer numbers but I’m willing to bet if a newer customer does a transfer thru FGG once they make it in the store and are treated like FGG does many will think twice before buying online again. The long game is important and fair pricing can keep ‘em in it.
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Never transferred to FGG but for that same reason, i never needed to. Have spent my share shopping exclusively in store, even though it's a bit off the path to go by there, but prime example of a store that provides:
Ṡalinnis said:
customers an experience and prices that will bring you back in the store.
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363medic said:
you know who does seem to know something about business?

PSA
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If they knew something about business they would include transfer and set up something like silencershop.com
Not focused on undercutting the dealer that they ask to sell their junk. When you sell at one price to dealers and have sales undercutting the dealer.... the dealer will respond, they raise there fee.
 
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Dale Gribble said:
Quick question…

When you do your grocery shopping, open your utility bill, fill up with fuel and manage your household budgets, have you noticed an increase over the last few years?

Guess what?

Businesses are dealing with increased costs, as well and if you do nothing to offset those additional expenses, you are going to have a difficult time remaining profitable and pretty soon, there will be no business.

A business has a budget to manage, just like a household and just like the rest of us, they’re not exempt from a bad economy and/or inflation. They are having to take a bite outta the s**t sandwich, too. Thing is, if the business does not take the steps necessary to remain profitable, in many cases, it doesn’t only affect the business, but the individual households of those employed by that business.
Click to expand...

The grocery store requires massive amounts of electricity and an army of workers to unpack, move, stock, and rotate out product that every social/economic class requires to live. Gasoline is required to move our superior infrastructure with a limited shelf life. Guns can sit in warehouses for decades with no negative effects.

The gun shop moans about having to do 5 minutes worth of gubmint paperwork with a CCH and that dang internet as he sells $700 Glocks and $400 Maverick 88s. He howls as he has to call NICS for the non-CCH crowd because Ronnie is telling him about the 12-pointer he saw back in his Momma's garden. His veins pulse on the side of his neck because you don't want him to order that new gun instead of saving $150 buying from an online retailer. He shuffles to the counter, crosses out the $25 transfer fee, writes down $50, and then talks about TRANSFERS ARE KILLING MUH BUSINESS.

Gun shops that thrive are always competitive with pricing, have great customer service, and says no problemo when you say you want to transfer in a firearm because the price was unbeatable. 10 cheap transfers a day will always trump selling 1 overpriced firearm because you have 10 people that will come back to your shop instead of a single alienated customer once he finds out how much he overpaid.
 
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Slimer said:
The grocery store requires massive amounts of electricity and an army of workers to unpack, move, stock, and rotate out product that every social/economic class requires to live. Gasoline is required to move our superior infrastructure with a limited shelf life. Guns can sit in warehouses for decades with no negative effects.

The gun shop moans about having to do 5 minutes worth of gubmint paperwork with a CCH and that dang internet as he sells $700 Glocks and $400 Maverick 88s. He howls as he has to call NICS for the non-CCH crowd because Ronnie is telling him about the 12-pointer he saw back in his Momma's garden. His veins pulse on the side of his neck because you don't want him to order that new gun instead of saving $150 buying from an online retailer. He shuffles to the counter, crosses out the $25 transfer fee, writes down $50, and then talks about TRANSFERS ARE KILLING MUH BUSINESS.

Gun shops that thrive are always competitive with pricing, have great customer service, and says no problemo when you say you want to transfer in a firearm because the price was unbeatable. 10 cheap transfers a day will always trump selling 1 overpriced firearm because you have 10 people that will come back to your shop instead of a single alienated customer once he finds out how much he overpaid.
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I have never called. If you get a login you can do it online. I can never match psa but I look at it as an opportunity to sell you ammo or an easy $20
 
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My old shop in Atlanta did free Transfers. They kept a stack of pmags next to the register for $10 out the door. Half of the people were cheapskate and would just come in and do a free transfer and Holler "see you next week" but the other half would pick up 1-4 mags as a thank you for the free transfer.
 
Flashpoint said:
So any suggestions for a reasonable transfer fee in Alamance or Chatham county?
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From a list of FFLs on GunBroker; it may not be up-to-date, but it is a starting point.

Alamance County - Burlington: within 25 miles of zip code 27216
$15 Quarter Horse Arms, 3059 Spanish Oak Hill Rd, Snow Camp
$20 Wingate Gun Company, 1942 Rankin Mill Rd, Greensboro
$25 Davis Public Safety, 2466 CORPORATION PKWY, BURLINGTON
$25 Sartin Arms, 304 North Gurney Street, Burlington
$25 RAD INDUSTRIES LLC, 1746 Jim Barnwell Rd, Burlington
$25 Rack It Back Armory, 202 East Washington Street, Mebane
$25 Knuts Outdoors LLC, 4525 S NC 49, Burlington
$25 H&S Firearms, 7576 Walking Stick Ln, Liberty
$25 Advance Arsenal, 5103 Prudencia Dr., McLeansville
$25 Pony Express Guns and Ammo LLC, 5304 Coble Church rd, Julian

Chatham County - Pittsboro: within 25 miles of zip code 27312
$18.50 Blackout Solutions, 7685 Old US 1 Hwy, New Hill
$20 Old North State Arms, 38 Diana del Silva Ct., Chapel Hill
$20 FMC Society LLC, 5730 Silk Hope Gum Springs Rd, Siler City
$20 Grey Wolf Firearms Training N.C., 150 Will Be Ln., Siler City
$20 Apex Revolver & Pistol LLC, 1613 Patterson Grove RD, Apex
$25 Templar Custom, 104 Buttermilk Way, Apex
$25 James McLeod, 701E Williams St, Apex
$25 Big Mac Defense, Morrisville
$25 Rogue Custom Kote LLC, 1614 Hawkins Ave., Sanford
$25 NF Manufacturing, LLC, 751 S Church St, Goldston
 
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