The 4473
Buying a Firearm
Buying a gun in person is simpler than most people expect. One form, one background check, and in most cases you walk out the same day. Here is exactly what happens when you buy from us.
The Process
Four steps to walking out
01
Pick the firearm
Handle it, ask questions, take your time. Nothing is filled out until you have decided.
02
Fill out the 4473
ATF Form 4473 is the federal transaction record. You fill it out here, in the shop, in person — it cannot be done in advance or from home. It asks for your name, address, and a series of yes/no eligibility questions.
Two things worth knowing. Answer honestly: knowingly lying on a 4473 is a federal felony, and it is the one part of this process that gets people in real trouble. And your address has to be current — the ID you hand over has to match what you write down.
03
We run the background check
We call it in to NICS, the FBI’s background check system. Most come back in minutes. There are three possible answers: proceed, delayed, or denied.
A delay is not a denial. It means the FBI wants a closer look, usually because your name is common.
Federal law allows a dealer to transfer a firearm if a delay has not resolved within three business days. Whether we do is our call, made case by case. We are not going to pretend that decision is a formula.
04
Take it home
Once you have a proceed, you pay and it is yours.
Before You Arrive
What to bring
Two things, and only one of them is required. Everything else is handled at the counter.
If your address is out of date
Bring a supplemental government-issued document showing the current one. We cannot work from a verbal correction.
A valid Georgia photo ID
It has to show your current address.
Your Georgia Weapons Carry License
If you have one. It changes how step three goes.
Worth Knowing
If you have a Georgia Weapons Carry License
Georgia is a point-of-contact exemption state: a valid GWCL can stand in for the NICS check at the counter. It does not skip the 4473 — you still fill that out — but it usually means no waiting on the phone.
That is the practical reason a lot of our customers get one even if they never intend to carry. Here is how you get one.
Our Policy
Two things we will not bend on
We do not sell to anyone under the federal minimum age for the firearm type.
We can decline a sale for any reason, at any point, including after a proceed. If something feels wrong, we stop. That is not personal.
Go To The Source
Read it from the agency, not from us
ATF — firearms, including Form 4473 and the transfer process
FBI — National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)