Collecting New Rifle in the Morning :D

It wasn't me!

Thought I might do up a short, informative piece for anyone considering importing from the UK, with my experiences, in light of everything that's happened and now that I have a complete time-frame to detail. One or two people have been curious about it as well, so I thought this might be helpful for anyone who hasn't asked.

I found the rifle first on guntrader.co.uk. It was with Steve Beaty of Ivythorn Sporting in Somerset. Steve's a gent and I'd thoroughly advise anyone considering it to do business with him. I talked to Steve and paid a £200 deposit by cheque back in June.

We discussed the options with regard to sending it by courier and settled on sending it to the north. This worked out considerably cheaper than it would have been to send it direct. It cost £45 to ship with TNT to Tannyoky Guns in Poyntzpass, who charged £50 for the handling of it. This was against about £200 to ship direct, and a wait of at least six months for a blanket exportation licence to be acquired by Steve, so a good saving. The guys in Tannyoky have been really nice to deal with. They're very familiar with guys south of the border and the procedure and helped with advice and answered any queries along the way. For the record, when going this route, get as wide a window on the Article 7 licence as possible. I was advised to get six months so it couldn't expire before it was approved in England and returned to them. Mine only took a month, however, and it can take less. For a dealer, if your friendly dealer in the republic is importing it for you, and a lot of them will, it'll take about a week to clear, apparently. Also worth noting is to check what ammunition they have and to have it placed on your Article 7 with the rifle. I got a hundred rounds added to mine. Won't use it all, as I can't afford that (:p) but it's nice to have the luxury.

To collect the rifle, I'll need my updated Europass (collecting it this evening) and the approved Article 7. No visitor's permit or PSNI licence required, which is very handy. The Article 7 didn't take long. What I found worthwhile was to have the numbers for the Super's office, to keep him in the loop, and the district office clerk, as they'll do the stamping and sending. They helped with accelerating both the Article 7 and the Europass, and cleared up a few details for me as well on the procedure.

In terms of timing, I put the first deposit on the gun in June. I was then told to wait to apply until the new system was out, so as soon as I ran out of patience waiting for the commissioner's guidelines, I filled out the form and applied on the 12th of August. I never got a letter to confirm receipt of the applications, and after one or two phone calls to the local station and the district office, I received the licence a day short of three months from the submission of the application, on the 11th November. I was busy at the time and didn't get a chance for a while to chase up the Article 7 and Europass applications, which I put in immediately, but when they didn't come quickly, I started making regular phone calls to check progress, and they came pretty promptly after that. Sent off the article 7 about the 14th of December by fax, and it was sent to England two days later for approval by Tannyoky. It's back now, I've got the new Europass and will be able to collect in the morning.

As usual, the problems and delays were at local level. I don't know how many times I heard "Sure, boss, I'll have that up to the district office in the morning and we'll be in touch in a few days." It just doesn't happen here. Really need to go up the chain and keep trying to get the work done for you. Takes patience and knowing who to call, but it can be done a good bit quicker if you have that information and can chase things up.

Personally, I'd happily buy this way again, as there are some cracking savings to be had, but not if I were constrained by time. I'll get very little of the deer season in now, but will hopefully get a chance to get out and do some shooting anyway. I'd thoroughly recommend Steve Beaty in Somerset and Cecil in Tannyoky as top notch guys to deal with and would happily deal with either again. I'll be taking up a decent wad of cash to make it worth Tannyoky's time tomorrow as well.

Hibrion

Glad to hear it IWM!
Looks like you might be putting a bit of venison on the table after all. Looking forward to hearing how the 25-06 shoots.

Sparks

It wasn't me! wrote: »

No visitor's permit or PSNI licence required, which is very handy.

IWM, you sure about that one? I kept getting told by people that you do need a visitor's permit to collect a firearm from NI.

Kramer

Congrats on the new rifle
Just a couple of points regarding your import though:

It wasn't me! wrote: »

We discussed the options with regard to sending it by courier and settled on sending it to the north. This worked out considerably cheaper than it would have been to send it direct...................This was against about £200 to ship direct

It's impossible to now ship directly into the Republic from the UK. The only option is through NI.

It wasn't me! wrote: »

To collect the rifle, I'll need my updated Europass (collecting it this evening) and the approved Article 7. No visitor's permit or PSNI licence required, which is very handy.

Correct assuming you're meeting at the border.
If collecting from the shop however, you'll need a PSNI visitor's permit for the firearm. The Europass isn't enough if you're stopped in possession across the border.
Best of luck with it. Steve's a sound guy as are Gavin & Cecil in Tanyoky.

It wasn't me!

It's still possible unless something's changed in the last few months. Requires a different sort of export licence on the seller's end though, and not many have it.

I've had it stated from the sources on both sides of the border that no licence is required to collect beyond the import licence, no visitor's permit involved. That's from our own boys and those up there.

jwshooter

thank fook for that.

i was starting to feel sorry for you .il bring you for a shot before the season ends in tipp for a fallow.

It wasn't me!

jwshooter wrote: »

thank fook for that.

i was starting to feel sorry for you .il bring you for a shot before the season ends in tipp for a fallow.

Thanks very much jw, I really appreciate that. Will hopefully have my zeroing and ammo testing done by sunday evening anyway.

jwshooter

It wasn't me! wrote: »

Thanks very much jw, I really appreciate that. Will hopefully have my zeroing and ammo testing done by sunday evening anyway.

welcome to a hole new way of life.
the training is just done on my woman but is has taken 9 years.

she does not even give out at 5am any more when the light comes on ,feeds the dogs when im away .

considering the meal of venison she has just put away its a good compromise

It wasn't me!

jwshooter wrote: »

welcome to a hole new way of life.
the training is just done on my woman but is has taken 9 years.

she does not even give out at 5am any more when the light comes on ,feeds the dogs when im away .

considering the meal of venison she has just put away its a good compromise

To be honest I'm just sorry I've missed the rest of the season. As soon as it warms up again, I'll be spending the time waiting to feel the winds turn cold again.

It wasn't me!

Quick update lads: The rear base arrived in the post, got it set up this evening, scope mounted and levelled (Poxy nightmare when the rest is a Harris swivel model) and will hopefully be down to boresight and zero in Midlands on sunday, so might see some of you there then.

clivej

It wasn't me! wrote: »

Quick update lads: The rear base arrived in the post, got it set up this evening, scope mounted and levelled (Poxy nightmare when the rest is a Harris swivel model) and will hopefully be down to boresight and zero in Midlands on sunday, so might see some of you there then.

Answer to your nightmare, lock nut/lever for the Harris Bipod




https://t-nuts.com/index.php?cPath=73

jwshooter

It wasn't me! wrote: »

Quick update lads: The rear base arrived in the post, got it set up this evening, scope mounted and levelled (Poxy nightmare when the rest is a Harris swivel model) and will hopefully be down to boresight and zero in Midlands on sunday, so might see some of you there then.

DID U EVER THINK OF GOLF .

It wasn't me!

jwshooter wrote: »

DID U EVER THINK OF GOLF .

Yeah, as a waste of land that could be used to make a perfectly good range.