"...Heck, in a routine inspection, dispositions more than one year old are not examined in any way. They verify that there are guns present corresponding to each open bound book entry and skim through one years worth of 4473 forms. A closed entry older than a year might as well not exist. They sure dont take the time to match up paper FFL copies...."


Must depend on where the ATF Compliance Agents work out of.

This's how it went:
They always at the end of a Compliance check boldly draw a line in the book and signed and dated it. Signified the book was 'OK' I guess up to that point.
The next compl check took up where the last sign off was entered.
It could have been 3yrs ago,,or a yr ago.

Any open entrys (these can go back to the beginning of the book, not just the last sign off), the gun would have to be presented.
Verified by make, modl, ser# & cal.

Transactions since the last sign off:
Present the 4473 of the transaction
OR
The FFL copy where it went to.
The paper FFL copy had to be presented. Must have a valid date at the time of transaction of course. Legible, ect, ect.
A simple Name & FFL # of the disposition in the Log Book was never acceptable. Nor was a reference to an EZ Check at the time.

On at least one occasion, not so many yrs back, I could not come up with a copy of a certain customers FFL from my file at that moment.
The Agent told me to email him a copy of it if I did indeed find it within the next couple of days,,or,,if I did not to secure a new copy from the FFL (still in biz) and email that copy to him....AND I would not be in violation.

Other FFL's that I know and have known have had similar experience. Standard practice to keep the FFL copys to show at Compliance checks and most everyone misplaces one sometime if you're in business long enough.
Might just be a NY thing but that's how it was handled.

Closed entrys:
All were checked that 'closed' anytime after that last ATF Compliance check date. (4473 or FFL copy)
Those may be way earlier/ pages earlier in the book than that lined, signed and dated entry of course.
The gun may have been in the book earlier and disposed of now.
So they search back through the Log Book looking for Disposition dates.

'One year' in the Log Book means nothing with regard to Disposition Dates as those Disp Dates are entered on the same line as the orig entry.

An entry (Acquisition Date) runs as the calendar does.
But Disposition can occur any time there after,,even yrs after.
You have to search for the latter ,,and they did.

"Skim through 4473's" ??
It took both Agents at one check into a 10 minute serious discussion huddle along with a NYSP Captain (who was along for the Check to peak at the records under the guise of looking at my NYS Pistol Dealer book).
The issue?,,on one 4473 (from years earlier,,10yrs earlier IIRC)
I had started to write the gun mfg'r down (Smith & Wesson) and I didn't finish the Wesson part.
I had printed 'Wess'.
Distracted, I don't know. But this obvious serious violation caused a big challenge to crime fighting and 'I could be sited for it'.

But after the secret meeting was over it was decided that I would be allowed, in their presence to complete the entry. The 2 Agents would initial and date the fix-er-up on the elderly 4473.

...and don't ever have dyslexia and have an FFL. It's not hardly allowed. But that's another story.

(...The ATF bringing the NYSP along on compliance checks was challenged by the NRA and the practice stopped.)

So that's what I've experienced.
I gave up the FFL this past yr. Sent all the stuff to the big Warehouse down South somewhere.
Rules, Regs and practices change.

It was fun, kind of hated to give it up. But new laws and restrictions and other issues have dampened that.

Good luck with your FFL business. Have fun!
-Dazzle 'em with paper work-