The law concerning the transfer of firearms from deceased individuals is murky at best. The fact that the firearms are not registered in your case makes it even more problematic. From the bits and pieces of information I've read and heard, it is illegal for a PR to take possession of firearms unless he/she has taken the firearms safety training course. The "qualified" PR, as transferor, can then transfer the firearms to an immediate family member provided the transferee also has an affidavit attesting to the the transferree's completion of the firearms safety training course. The PR must present his/her qualifications as the PR to HPD at the time the PR signs off on the transfer.
I applied for a pistol permit to take possession of a pistol in my father's possession last year. My father is the PR of his aunt who died packing. I filled out the permit application and noted on the application that the transferee was deceased but HPD didn't pick up that part of the application and approved of it. When I returned to HPD after the 14 day waiting period to pick up the permit, I was told by the attendant to have the current owner sign off on the transfer. I then told the clerk that she was dead and that my dad was the PR and would sign off on it. He seemed surprised and fumbled over his response before telling me to have my father appear with the letters testamentary establishing his appointment as the PR. I didn't have current letters so I let the permit expire. I have, since then, applied for a renewal of the letters testamentary and expect to receive the approved letters any day now. Upon my receipt of the same, I intend to re-apply for the permit and then show up with pops at HPD after the waiting period to transfer the firearm. Will it work? Who knows. If the clerks response was any indication of what the procedure is then I'm not so confident that it will be the same when I actually apply. Like Speedtek stated in an earlier post, I too was informed that the PR can transfer to an immediate family member, only, using the method I described. If that's the case, a number of us, including myself, mayl have a problem because deceased individuals often die without any surviving spouses or children as my aunt did.
The other alternative is to have the PR surrender the firearms to an FFL and have the FFL transfer the firearms registration to you.
In any event, I expect to go through this whole process again in a few weeks. I'll report back with my experience if and when it occurs.