Shotgun parts from the USA.

[51/50]

I'm about to buy a few upgrade parts from a company in Texas by the name of 'Performance Shooting H.Q.' & have them shipped over here,i've been emailing them back & forth over the past few days & it's just a matter of doing the deal now,i'm just wondering if any member of this forum has ever had any dealings with this company & can give me any feedback?,they seem fine enough but the last thing i need right now is to be ripped off or messed around.I'm also a bit cloudy about import duties etc but to the best of my knowledge Royal Mail will only want an £8 handling fee & 20% import VAT so long as the value of the shipment does not exceed £135,can anyone clarify that?,i'll be placing a few seperate orders over the course of a few weeks so the shipment value doesn't exceed £135.

This is all new to me,i've never had parts shipped from abroad before but the parts i want are unobtainable in the UK,any advice will be greatly appreciated,thanks.

[impala59]

As I understand it, at present, all gun parts are subject to homeland security scrutiny and may be vetoed. I have ordered “accessories “ that were shipped (although not from the company you named). At a recent gun show in Florida I spoke to a number of dealers, most of whom said it wasn’t worth their while to try to circumvent the authorities. A couple said they would put stuff in the post , but not pressure parts. I have been hit by large customs and “service “ charges as US suppliers will put the full disclosure and value on the paperwork. I now wait until travelling there (as and when it resumes) and will bring my stuff back in checked baggage. Good luck with your purchases, I hope it goes well for you.

[Newbie to this]

Just a thought can you not get what you want on Brownells UK?

Or try someone like blackrifles.co.uk, on their website it says they will try and source things from the US, not on their website.

And as they already have a import method it could make things a lot easier with no hidden costs.

I don't know the legalities of importing gun parts from the US, so don't know if what you want to do will be a problem or not.

Good luck either way

Edited April 15, 2020 by Newbie to this

[51/50]

13 hours ago, impala59 said:

As I understand it, at present, all gun parts are subject to homeland security scrutiny and may be vetoed. I have ordered “accessories “ that were shipped (although not from the company you named). At a recent gun show in Florida I spoke to a number of dealers, most of whom said it wasn’t worth their while to try to circumvent the authorities. A couple said they would put stuff in the post , but not pressure parts. I have been hit by large customs and “service “ charges as US suppliers will put the full disclosure and value on the paperwork. I now wait until travelling there (as and when it resumes) and will bring my stuff back in checked baggage. Good luck with your purchases, I hope it goes well for you.

Thanks for the reply,the parts are for a semi-auto,one of the parts is a 'Sure Cycle' magazine upgrade kit (spring,follower & plug),the company did not have this kit in stock but said they could get it & ship it to me after they had checked with their compliance officer & confirmed it didn't require an export licence,they mentioned nothing regarding homeland security scrutiny or possible vetoing,is this something i should question them about?,the only import charges they mentioned was an unavoidable Royal Mail delivery fee which they reckoned was around £13,i looked into that & according to the Royal Mail website the handling fee was only £8,i thought i had this all sussed,i'm not so sure now,so complicated!

The other part i'm after at the moment is a 'Briley' oversize bolt release button,they have them in stock & said there was no problem at all regarding shipping that.

 

Edit: it's just dawned on me,with the company checking with their compliance officer & having the shipping ok'd would that be them checking that the parts wouldn't be subject to homeland security scrutiny & possible vetoing??

Edited April 15, 2020 by 51/50

[51/50]

2 hours ago, Newbie to this said:

Just a thought can you not get what you want on Brownells UK?

Or try someone like blackrifles.co.uk, on their website it says they will try and source things from the US, not the website.

And as they already have a import method it could make things a lot easier with no hidden costs.

I don't know the legalities of importing gun parts from the US, so don't know if what you want to do will be a problem or not.

Good luck either way

Thanks,i contacted Brownells a month ago regarding the parts i was after,they could only supply one part,a Briley' bolt release button but they'd need to ship it over from Brownells USA,i looked into it at the time & drew the conclusion i could get it cheaper by sourcing & importing it myself,now i wondering should i just pay the extra to Brownells & do away with the worries about getting stung by import duties,this is doing me in 😕

[Newbie to this]

54 minutes ago, 51/50 said:

Thanks,i contacted Brownells a month ago regarding the parts i was after,they could only supply one part,a Briley' bolt release button but they'd need to ship it over from Brownells USA,i looked into it at the time & drew the conclusion i could get it cheaper by sourcing & importing it myself,now i wondering should i just pay the extra to Brownells & do away with the worries about getting stung by import duties,this is doing me in 😕

I remember being on another US website and they had links to companies that would export parts. I'll have a browse and see if I can find it and post a link.

[JohnfromUK]

IF (and I think it is a very big IF) it doesn't need an Export Permit - and is not subject to arms restrictions - you may be OK. 

Personally (and I have worked for a USA based defence contractor and underwent various courses on licensing/shipping, ITAR) - I think that there would be sufficient doubt about it not requiring a licence (there are rather broad definitions) ........ and if they had to ask it firstly takes ages, and can be costly for the potential exporter, and secondly, for small 'one off' type orders simply gets turned down as 'not worth the risk of getting it wrong'.  IF any USA defence agency has used that part (for whatever purpose), then it may have a military part number allocated - and that will flag it up as a military part on thier database - and so it will potentially be subject to export control under ITAR.

I have found Brownells (USA) very good to deal with.  What you get charged in the UK seems to be a lottery; I had two identical items (non shooting workshop items shipped on different dates) and one got a completely different treatment to the other by UK customs and cost a lot more!

[51/50]

Thanks guys,i'll catch up on this later tonight,i've been summoned to get the GF's bike out of the hibernation shed & give it a check over,it's in for an MOT on Friday.

 

Before anyone bites my head off she's a key worker & therefor can use her bike to travel to work!

[impala59]

Examples of the difficulties (possibly) involved;

I tried to order 2 shotgun recoil pads from Connecticut Shotgun, they would not ship to the UK. Another company would not ship part finished stocks and fore-ends (basically just lumps of wood)

So getting function parts could be somewhat difficult and possibly explains the hiked prices from Brownells etc

[Newbie to this]

1 hour ago, Newbie to this said:

I remember being on another US website and they had links to companies that would export parts. I'll have a browse and see if I can find it and post a link.

Couldn't find the website again, but managed to find a screenshot of the page, that I sent to a friend looking to import some trigger springs. I think it worked out too dear to import the springs, but may be more economical for dearer parts.

[NoBodyImportant]

I email the ATF about the legality of shipping parts out of the US but they haven’t got back to me.  The ATF wait times on approvals have quadrupled in the last to months.  So I’m guessing they aren’t working to full capacity.  

[51/50]

Thanks again everybody,your input & advice is very much appreciated.

 

What do i say...my head's in knots with this,i've been looking into this for sometime now,emailing various companies in the UK & USA ,countless hours surfing the net,i thought i had it sussed but again i'm fraught with uncertainty,thanks to this chinese bio warfare situation my finances have taken a big hit & i'm in no position to take any chances of being stung with extortionate import duties,i was about to go ahead with the deal with P.S.H.Q as mentioned in my original post but reading over their messages yet again there's nothing they've said that's 100% positive relating to duties,what would they care,as soon as i've purchased & they've shipped it's out of their hands,so...after going through the replies & advice on here i've decided to just bite the bullet & try & get the Briley release button via Brownells UK,it's pricey BUT i know if i get it from them i'm safe from any hidden charges & it would be easier to deal with any product problems should any arise,i'd been in touch with them previously regarding a Sure Cycle mag upgrade kit which they said they couldn't supply,i then asked about a Nordic Components low drag follower on their website & was advised that they would not fit my magazine tube,i gave up with Brownells at that point,however,i've been on their website again & am now enquiring about a 'Phase 5' low drag high viz follower they stock,if that'll fit my mag then i'll buy one,i've also found the 'Phase 5' American website & emailed them regarding fitment,i can't find info anywhere about fitment or non-fitment of my gun,i don't really need a new/uprated mag spring or plug,the only reason i want a replacement follower is purely for safety,higher visibilty in low light situations etc,the reason i want an oversized bolt release button is because i have a health condition that plays absolute havoc with the dexterity of my hands in low temperature situations,i've already had a bespoke oversized bolt handle made for that reason.

Thanks again for the feedback folks,i hope that lot ^^ makes sense & i shall keep you informed on any progress,cheers!

[51/50]

Just received a reply from Phase 5 in America & surprise surprise... 'We do not believe our follower will fit your Beretta magazine'! AAAARRGGHH back to the drawing board AGAIN 🤬🤬!!!

 

This is driving me insane!,perhaps i should go get one CNC'd for me which will likely cost a small fortune,i'd need to get it anodised aswell.

Edited April 16, 2020 by 51/50

[impala59]

Hi vis low friction follower, get some dayglo round stickers and stick on your existing. Experiment until you find the colour that works.  Polish it if you can remove it (you won’t be able to if it’s S2 though) Extended bolt release, get a local gunsmith to fabricate for you or make it yourself. All my Remington 1187 accessories are home made, from the gate release to the charging handle to the mag extension. Don’t mess with the pressure areas, all.else can be modified 

Edited April 16, 2020 by impala59

[51/50]

Thanks Impala59,i had previously considered dayglo tape but the surface of the follower is slightly domed,trying to adhere tape would be a bit awkward & the thought of the tape ever coming off & getting jammed anywhere put me off that idea,the follower is stainless & has been polished to death,i've now completely given up on a replacement hi-viz follower,it's fried my head for too long,resigned to defeat!,as for the oversized bolt release button i did actually have the option of getting a bespoke one made by the same fella that CNC'd me a bolt handle but it would have meant posting my OEM button & mechanism to him so he could get dimensions of the mechanism then machine one along with a button,the button would be simple enough to make,the mechanism wouldn't be quite so straight forward & if it wasn't 100% it would have meant stripping the gun & sending it back to him to modify,way too much hassle,i have now bitten the bullet & purchased a Briley button & a couple of other bits n bobs from Brownells UK,very costly but hey ho,buying from them also eliminates a lot of grief should the wrong part be sent or is faulty,perhaps i should have just done this ages ago.....i'm often my own worst enemy,years of having 'one-off' parts made for various bikes has taught me this,when i get something in my head it consumes me & has to get done at any cost,fixing things that ain't broke,it's a man thing! 🙄

[harkom]

Beware Royal Mail charges...these are levied on relatively low value stuff. RM depot in Cambridge told me that all...ALL...packages from US with value > 15£ or $ (sorry can't recall) were actively checked at entry at LHR....That was before Corona!

I was screwed for £8 tax on a product of < $15 value...!!

[Walker570]

The last items I had shipped from the USA cost me $240 for an export license. That was mid 90s before that the export license was $50. Back in the 80s I fairly regularly brought irems back from the USA with not problems either end as long as I had my UK Licenses.  9/11 stopped all that.

[telf]

I recently tried to get some stock drop spacers for my mossberg 500 , tried loads of places in the USA and was told they are classed as gun parts and all were unable to ship , brownells and viking arms were unable to get them , have since made my own

[oldypigeonpopper]

2 minutes ago, telf said:

I recently tried to get some stock drop spacers for my mossberg 500 , tried loads of places in the USA and was told they are classed as gun parts and all were unable to ship , brownells and viking arms were unable to get them , have since made my own

hello, could stock spacers be made by a 3 D printer ?

Edited April 20, 2020 by oldypigeonpopper

[telf]

2 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

hello, could stock spacers be made by a 3 D printer ?

Be good if they could but not sure if they would be to brittle when you tighten the stock back on , dont really know alot about the strengths of 3d printed stuff

[oldypigeonpopper]

2 hours ago, telf said:

Be good if they could but not sure if they would be to brittle when you tighten the stock back on , dont really know alot about the strengths of 3d printed stuff

hello, MAD 1 and his son Conner have been making head masks, the band on a 3 D printer and it bends to suite size head so maybe it might work,

[scouser]

Could you not get the existing parts powder coated in a bright colour.

[telf]

5 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

hello, MAD 1 and his son Conner have been making head masks, the band on a 3 D printer and it bends to suite size head so maybe it might work,

Cheers, will drop him a pm and see what he thinks if i need any more as they are a bit of a faff on to do 

[oldypigeonpopper]

3 minutes ago, telf said:

Cheers, will drop him a pm and see what he thinks if i need any more as they are a bit of a faff on to do 

hello, let us know if this works, cheers

[51/50]

On 20/04/2020 at 16:15, scouser said:

Could you not get the existing parts powder coated in a bright colour.

Not an option really,also previously considered,the face to be coated would need to be shot/sand or vapour blasted before coating,for obvious reasons the rest of the follower would need to be masked off,i wouldn't risk it.

 

Edit: kinda off-topic but can anybody tell me what the criteria is on this forum for posting in the 'Wanted' section?,i'm looking for a few shooting related items but i'm unable to post an add,i can't find anything related to this in the T&C's,do you need a certain post count or is it time related perhaps?

Edited April 22, 2020 by 51/50