Originally Posted by
bronko22000
Jeff pointed out one thing I am not sure is accurate. If you ship your handgun to an FFL in AK I believe you only have to show proof of identity to reclaim it.
Technically, you don't even have to ship it to an FFL. There is no transfer when shipping a firearm to yourself.
I've shipped handguns to myself in the past, including to avoid the whole "driving through Canada" thing. You DO have to select a PERSON to receive the "in care of" for shipping, and they're not allowed to open it (legally considered a transfer). I generally try to talk the hotel manager where I'd be staying into receiving my packages, or a person could ship it to their outfitter's HQ.
When I couldn't get a hotel to receive it, I've had local gun shops take receipt - might as well have picked a name out of the phone book, in terms of legality - and I've never paid transfer fees, nor been required to fill out a 4473. Again, it's not a transfer if you're shipping to yourself.
Now, that's not to say that all gunshops are fully versed in the laws that govern them, so they might make you jump through hoops, but "by the book" there is no transfer from a person to themselves, so there's no need for any FFL involvement.