When i purchased my handgun, my name was right next to the serial number on on my receipt. What does that exactly mean? Does someone somewhere keep track of who buys what? And what is that paper that the clerks made me sign before i purchased my gun? They said something about a phone call? Are they telling the government that i just purchased a handgun along with the serial numbers?

I'm assuming you bought from a FFL (dealer).

They do a phone call, basically a background check to make sure you can legally possess the firearm.

You filled out a form 4473, copies are kept at the store indefintely and then sent to the BATF.

Otherwise there is no further registration, unless your STATE requires such.

The store probably did that so they could tell who the original owner was in case of the need for warrantee claims on that gun.

So do serial numbers show when and/or where a gun was purchased?

In recent times, firearms and their orginal owners can be tracked down by the form 4473. Showing who bought it, date of purchase, place of purchase along with all the buyers information.

Of course as the gun is eventually sold through private transactions, it get's lost and the system fails.

That's at the federal level (licesnsed gun dealers). There is of course state registration which some states take part in and others don't.

I just found out about this site and I like it. I've spent the last couple of days going through the threads and found alot of info. and alot of good advice to help out the less knowlegdable (like myself). I've got a question for you fellas here. My question is while purchasing a handgun through a private party is there anywhere you could go to find out if the handgun is stolen?

Well let's assume the state you purchased your firearm in had mandatory registration.

- A telephone call to whatever state office which handles such registration would probabaly take care of matters.

- Or the local police department in the jurdisdiction of the seller.

* If the seller never registered the firearm then that could make things diffacult.

* If the firearm was brought in from out of state and never went through a ffl (dealer).

If the state has no mandatory registration.

- A telephone call to the local authorities might point you in the right direction.

- A telephone call to the local BATF field office would be my next step.

If you really don't trust the individual you are purchasing from, demand that he fills out a bill of sale. Stating his vitals (drivers lic#, name, addy, etc.), description and serial number of firearm, signed and dated, two copies one for you and one for him. Of course he'll probabaly want your information as well.

Therefore, if you pop someone with the gun and drop it at the sceene. He's free from liability or if he reports the gun stolden you are free of liability.