SVT 40 US import opportunity

[DanBlue]

Hello Everyone,
I may have an opportunity and the resources to purchase almost 1,000 Russian SVT 40 rifles that have been sitting in a European country since the mid 1990s and would like to examine the possibility of putting the wheels in motion for import into the US..


I know the SVT 40 is a touchy situation, but these have been parked for over 20 years in another country...these guns were manufactured in Russia, but the import permit will certainly list the Country of export origin as an entirely different country...All the providence matches to a tee...

I plan on discussing with my local BATF office this week time permitting..

Any qualified insight is much appreciated....could be a lucky situation...

Thank you all for any helpful input!

[Junk Yard Dog]

While we do have many gun sellers here on the board, I do not believe we have any importers that I am aware of. You need to speak with someone who knows the pitfalls of importation, and of course you would need to be a licensed importer. Lets see if anyone comes along who can help.

[OLD OUTLAW]

Well, they may not be in Russia right now. But if in one of their former States or in almost all of Europe, you will not be allowed. First you must get Department of State Approval. Then you may apply for import license. As I recall the fee to apply will be $2200. You will also have to have lawyers to handle a lot of this. Plus, does the exporter there have Approval in writing that he is approved on a US list? Oh, guns being imported come through a number of Countries ports. You of course must have arrangements there to legally handle your shipment. I know a number of importers here and they need a lot of help along the route. It would fall upon you to produce irrefutable proof of there origin and documents proving how long they were in that country. Costs are prohibitive to try. Why do you think our large importers here cannot get an SVT. In Canada the Russians are not banned, here they are. Same with the Russian SKS rifles.

But, put it this way. NO Russian Semi-Auto Military weapons are allowed knowingly into this Country.

Also, BATF has no say in the procedure nowadays. Start here with the FAQ from the ATF.
http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/imports ... ort-duties

I just bought recently a newly imported Mauser. He told me taxes, fees, license, and various Duties run a price through the roof. And if your shipment passes through any other country on the way here, well, you pay them also. Everyone that shipment goes through or even into port of.

[DanBlue]

Thank you for the responses...FLL type 8 is needed, register as an importer under the Arms Export Control Act (to import firearms into the US), apply for the permit for the specific shipment which is ATF Form 6 Part I..is this the item you believe is in the 2k range? I thought the fee was based on the declared value of the shipment..this will be part of my research obviously. We will need customs brokers and shippers obviously...There are logistics companies that arrange (or broker) these items..I'm still researching options....

This item from ATF website continues to be problematic as I read it..ATF is precluded from approving applications to import articles that were manufactured in, or being exported from a proscribed country.

The country these SVT-40s will be exported from is not proscribed for certain, but they were manufactured in Russia, and Russia is a proscribed country.

The one redeeming fact that certainly looks to be worth the fight is the fact that I can open my C&R booklet, and there it is...Russian Tokarev semiautomatic carbine model 1940..I can purchase this rifle, I can own this rifle, and I can sell this rifle if I wish to unload that rifle to make room for something else in my collection....all legal, no problem....

What I DO NOT see listed in my C& R booklet are the Chinese SKS or the Chinese Type 53...That strikes me as very. very odd because China is in fact a proscribed country, and I just recently purchased both a Chinese SKS AND the Chinese Type 53..shipped to my door after I submitted my C&R to the retail gun dealer....Everyone talks about these guns being exported from Albania...wow..it worked for them, so I'm pretty confident we can export from a country in central EU.

Thanks in advance for any responses!

[DanBlue]

Actually, What I need to do is locate the ATF office that approved the import permits for these recent "Albanian" Chinese SKS rifles, because their interpretation of what rifles can be imported from where offers a tremendous amount of "latitude"

[gurn]

Good point. Looking forward to seeing how this plays out. Good luck with the venture.

[DanBlue]

Thank you...we shall see...If we end up deciding to pull the trigger on this opportunity, I will certainly keep the board posted blow by blow...

Be well!

[Sonny]

Hope it works out for you.

I just purchased a svt a few days ago and they are a load of fun..

[Longcolt44]

I work for one of the largest firearms suppliers in the US and he gave up his import licence years ago due to the under the table money that everybody that touched his product. Everybody has their hand out with no guarantees. Good luck and please keep us informed.

[DanBlue]

Longcolt..you are brave and you are a gentleman...thank you for this response and thank you for calling it like it is...I do understand...me and my principal are very much aware of this component. Now I feel I can open up a bit...

I'm in the private aviation business. We manage executive aircraft on behalf of some very interesting guys that have the money and resources to own these type of assets and use them to fly around whenever they want..One of the aircraft we manage is based in Geneva Switzerland..interesting guys for sure.. Everyone and I mean everyone in our business tries to get their hands in the middle of things...As an example, When I sell a charter on our NY based aircraft to London from the NY area, that will cost someone about $60,000.00 +/-..that includes the plane picking them up, flying them to London, and dropping them off...it's another 60k to come back to NY...There are "brokers" out there that will try to find a client and sell that client on using our aircraft...so the client calls this "broker" who then calls me for a price..lets say I tell him 60k...that broker then sells the charter to the end user client at 70k..that broker just made a cool 10k off of our FAA approved and certified 135 flight operation...and this broker is not regulated by the FAA.....sometimes there are 2 brokers in the middle of a charter flight deal!!! these guys are usually ex stock brokers..you know, these type of slick guys...When it comes time for our principal to sell his aircraft (these jets can sell for 2mm-25mm), there are so many middle men that work their way into the middle of the deal it would make your head spin....

With all the above being stated, my principal has his hands in a lot of different stuff..He is a US citizen and hold passports from two other countries......I've been sharing my passion of milsurp rifles with him, and he has shown some interest, and has made some phone calls...that's all I'v got so far, but it is very real..that is a fact...Do I feel confident that we can navigate through the inevitable "payoff" or ""shakedown component of this deal?? Absolutely...we know what we're looking at..Do I feel confident that we can get the permits approved and the OK from the Fed?? Not sure..just not sure...I deal with FARs and CBP stuff all the time..we are very well aquatinted with the Fed paperwork..But I will keep you posted on the progress for certain to the largest extent I am able to without breaking any potential confidentiality..

Warm regards, and thanks again!

[WeldonHunter]

I work for one of the largest firearms suppliers in the US and he gave up his import licence years ago due to the under the table money that everybody that touched his product. Everybody has their hand out with no guarantees. Good luck and please keep us informed.

Ain't that the truth. A friend of mine is in Ukraine right now looking at his next possible purchase/shipment of ammo and he's told me some stories. Just like you said, every hand/country and/or port stuff goes through is looking for their cut. That is if you even see it again. Sometimes shipments just disappear or are claimed to have been confiscated with no explanation of why. He has a leg up though in that his business partner is Ukrainian. It's not for the faint of heart, but then if it was easy everyone would be doing it.

[racerguy00]

As far as I know all SVTs are banned from import no matter where they are. That's why none have come in from Canada.

[martin08]

If all goes through, will the responders of this thread get first handpicked dibs?

I offer no valuable advice for the import problem at hand, but I do dream big.

[DanBlue]

You better believe it Martin08! I've certainly got some due diligence ahead of me here..I might find by the end of the week that it just can't happen, but it's worth a shot under the circumstances..all they can say is no right?

The fact is I had been discussing Mosins and Mausers with my boss (who knows nothing about Military Surplus arms), then he calls me asking me about SVT 40s and if those rifles are of interest to collectors here in the US..crazy right! ...He's speaking to someone overseas that is clearly real..

BTW, anyone have any experience on Milsurps.com message board? I joined that board 2 days ago and posed the same question as I did here, and the guys on that board just tore me a new one...rude and ugly responses...The only thing I can think is that kids run that board...I was disappointed to see such ugliness..

Thanks again!

[soylentblue]

BTW, anyone have any experience on Milsurps.com message board? I joined that board 2 days ago and posed the same question as I did here, and the guys on that board just tore me a new one...rude and ugly responses...The only thing I can think is that kids run that board...I was disappointed to see such ugliness..

Mall Ninjas most of 'em

Do keep us posted if you have any success. I am interested in what the final price will be. I can dream it will approach what they pay in Canada.

[Junk Yard Dog]

I work for one of the largest firearms suppliers in the US and he gave up his import licence years ago due to the under the table money that everybody that touched his product. Everybody has their hand out with no guarantees. Good luck and please keep us informed.

Ain't that the truth. A friend of mine is in Ukraine right now looking at his next possible purchase/shipment of ammo and he's told me some stories. Just like you said, every hand/country and/or port stuff goes through is looking for their cut. That is if you even see it again. Sometimes shipments just disappear or are claimed to have been confiscated with no explanation of why. He has a leg up though in that his business partner is Ukrainian. It's not for the faint of heart, but then if it was easy everyone would be doing it.

You should try the scrap business, we have more shady characters involved in this than anyone wants to know about.

[Junk Yard Dog]

You better believe it Martin08! I've certainly got some due diligence ahead of me here..I might find by the end of the week that it just can't happen, but it's worth a shot under the circumstances..all they can say is no right?

The fact is I had been discussing Mosins and Mausers with my boss (who knows nothing about Military Surplus arms), then he calls me asking me about SVT 40s and if those rifles are of interest to collectors here in the US..crazy right! ...He's speaking to someone overseas that is clearly real..

BTW, anyone have any experience on Milsurps.com message board? I joined that board 2 days ago and posed the same question as I did here, and the guys on that board just tore me a new one...rude and ugly responses...The only thing I can think is that kids run that board...I was disappointed to see such ugliness..

Thanks again!

Just another of the thousands of small private boards on the net, many are club boards for a few people , I don't know that one in particular, but I know the type of place.

[DanBlue]

I think all industries have these shady charters....some have law degrees and wear suits, others are just pushy street guys....I've heard that "waste management" is a tough one as well....

[Junk Yard Dog]

I think all industries have these shady charters....some have law degrees and wear suits, others are just pushy street guys....I've heard that "waste management" is a tough one as well....

Yes it is, some of them would be at home in any corporate boardroom, others as extras on the Sopranos.

[DanBlue]

BTW, anyone have any experience on Milsurps.com message board? I joined that board 2 days ago and posed the same question as I did here, and the guys on that board just tore me a new one...rude and ugly responses...The only thing I can think is that kids run that board...I was disappointed to see such ugliness..

Mall Ninjas most of 'em

Do keep us posted if you have any success. I am interested in what the final price will be. I can dream it will approach what they pay in Canada.

Thats a good thought..lets discuss that..I've seen these on line listed in Canada in the $300.00 +/- range...so with the costs of permits, shipping, etc. etc. not to mention the actual cost of the gun, these Canadian importers must be paying $60-$80 bucks per gun maybe...assuming these move from importer/purchaser to distributer/wholesaler to retailer....that is interesting...perhaps just the 3 hands in the deal...