We are getting closer to Christmas and we want to provide our customers with our recommended shipping time frames for receiving delivery by Christmas.
We first want to say that the week before Christmas will be very busy for merchants and carriers. We do not recommend trusting the delivery time frame estimates provided by USPS, FedEx or UPS. We saw all three carriers missing delivery commitments the week following Black Friday weekend.
If you want guaranteed delivery before Christmas, we recommend using the following carriers / dates:
USPS First Class
Place order by December 17. First class is not guaranteed and often takes five to seven days for delivery. If there is a surge in shipping, it is likely that First Class mail will be lower priority compared to Priority Mail. Note that there is no guarantee with USPS and you are better off selecting UPS Ground or AIR for the most reliable delivery time frame.
USPS Priority Mail
Place order by December 18. USPS is generally two to three business days from our location to the east or west coasts but with the high volume of packages that the USPS will handle, those dates will likely not be accurate and an additional one or two days will be necessary. Note that there is no guarantee with USPS and you are better off selecting UPS Ground or AIR for the most reliable delivery time frame.
UPS Ground
Place order by December 18. UPS Ground normally takes four to five days from our location to the east and west coasts. UPS will see an increase in volume that could cause the time frames to be extended.
UPS 2nd Day Air
Place order by December 19. UPS generally guarantees 2nd Day Air but we don't recommend taking chances. If an order ships December 19 via 2nd Day Air, the earliest it will be delivered is December 24 because weekend days aren't considered in the transit time. UPS will have a massive volume of packages being delivered on Christmas Eve and if you need the package by a certain time of the day, order before December 19 or ship Next Day Air.
UPS Next Day Air
Place order by December 20. We will ship orders on December 23 but we highly doubt they will be delivered on December 24 even with Next Day Air.
Firearm Purchases
We recommend calling and verifying the orders of your receiving FFL if you are purchasing a firearm. Many close early and have extended vacations near Christmas and may not be open December 23 and 24. Also, with the carriers delivering later in the day (UPS delivers as late as 9PM), make sure your receiving dealer will be able to receive the shipment.
OCG Order Processing Time Frames
We try to offer the fastest order processing that we can. We normally require one business day to process and ship an order from the time the order is placed. This can be extended during high volume times. Also note that we cannot ship firearms unless we have the license for the receiving dealer on hand. If you are purchasing a firearm, ensure your receiving dealer can send his FFL to us promptly if we do not have it on file.
