S&W M659 (1982)

[Idaho Spud]

Former Calif. resident, escaped to Idaho (8years), here. Want to give subj. gun (registered to me) to my son (Calif. resident). What's involved as far as mag capacity, and anything else to do a legal transfer that you can tell me, for that matter? I believe the original 13 rounders are OK but I see that 10 rounders are available at Midway, as we speak, so may keep the 13's and replace with 10's. This would be a gift from me to him. Can you help? IOW is this gonna be a royal pain.

[DBADRAT]

Has to go to him thru a FFL, transfer fee, Dros, or you could drive to him and do a PPT at a dealer. Hi capacity kits are good at this time in the state but 10 rounders would be nice. Good luck

[bwiese]

• The hicap mags are not transferrable to your son. The gun is transferrable (via CA dealer).
  
  Sending the hicap mags as parts is technically legal but can smell bad esp in a situation like
  this, and esp if your son assembles them back into hicaps.
  
  Now if for some reason your son legitimately happened to have some 659 hicap mags already,
  (perhaps you shared homes in the 1990s and left mags there, perhaps he got some at a gun
  show before 2000, etc) however, he could use them in a gun [i.e., after he legally acquired
  gun from you]. Anyone asking about provenance/ownership history of his such mags should
  be confronted with, "Call my lawyer."
  .
• Since you are an Idaho resident and your son is a CA resident, a CA FFL must be involed to
  keep the BATF/*Feds* happy. (Even though CA allows lineal intrafamily xfers, the Fed issues
  override given your ID residency status.)
  .
• While this S&W 659 is an older handgun that isn't "Rostered", it IS legally transferrable to your son.
  
  Send the gun down to a cooperative CA FFL in your CA son's region, without hicap mags. The
  gun should be accompanied by a 'gift letter' stating your name/address, your son's name/address,
  gun details, etc. - a bit of text something like this works:
  
  "To whom it may concern:
  
  I want my son Cleetus Spud to have my S&W 659 serial# 12345,
  and am using a California FFL dealer to transfer it to him legally.
  
  Signed, Idaho Spud."
  .
  
• The above letter will serve as 'backup' to allow the FFL to override safe handgun Roster in
  the transfer to your son. He'll keep it or a copy in his records in case of DOJ audit.
  .
• You may well have to send a photocopy of your ID with the gun depending on the FFL. They
  like to know who they're getting guns from.
  .
• The private-party transfer limit ($35) is not applicable here and the transfer fee can be anything
  the FFL wants. Shop for an FFL that does "interstate intrafamily transfers" - perhaps ask around
  here for your son's locale.
  .
• Your son needs to have a non-felony/non-violent misdemeanor, history, no domestic violence crimes,
  valid CA ID, and needs to possess or acquire a Handgun Safety Certificate (HSC) card. The latter
  costs $25 and requires a simple 15 question test. Stores have flyers that he can read/study quickly
  in the corner of the shop before he takes the test.

[Idaho Spud]

Thanks, bweise, a royal pain. I have to tell you guys, it's nice to live in a free state. What if the gun was gifted at my residence in Idaho, would that make a difference? Thanks.


edit: if you "need a life" get out of there and come to Idaho, bweise! Highly recommended.

[Idaho Spud]

Never mind fellas, I think I know the answer. Was hoping to transfer some of my collection to my kids prior to my demise; guess I'll just wait til I'm gone.