There were more gun background checks run in 2012 than any other year on record, both in Colorado and nationwide. And the margin is huge.

Nationwide, the surge in gun-buying — fueled by high-profile mass shootings and blanket coverage of national outcries for greater gun control — has doubled the number of checks for gun sales conducted by federal officials from 10 years ago.

There were 414,838 checks processed by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) in Colorado last year, according to FBI data.

That is an increase of 78,542, or 23 percent, from 2011. That is also 114,018, or 38 percent, more than were processed 2010, according to data.

As a nation, there were 19.6 million checks processed, which is 3.1 million, or 19 percent, more than in 2011, according to data.

Colorado ranks 19th among the nation for most checks processed in 2012, according to data.

The greatest number of Colorado checks run last year were in December with 53,453. That is 7,261 more than the second highest monthly amount in 2012, according to data.

December was so crushing for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation — the agency that processes checks in Colorado — the wait time was more than a week as staff could not keep up with the inundation of submittals. By contrast, the usual wait time for a gun purchase background check is minutes, no more than half a day.

CBI runs all gun background checks through NICS, along with other local agencies, including Colorado courts, said Susan Medina, CBI spokesperson.

As of Monday, 9,848 checks were in the queue, according to the CBI Twitter account. That number had been above 10,000 for weeks. In fact, on Jan. 2, 11,420 checks were in the queue with a wait time of more than nine days, according to CBI.

The weekend after the Dec. 14 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting set a record for all single-day background check submittals in Colorado for potential gun purchases, according to CBI officials.

A total of 4,154 background checks were submitted on Dec. 15, Medina said. Those figures topped the previous greatest number of background checks on Black Friday in 2012, when 4,028 were processed

Brad Lightner, general manager of the Firing Line, the self-proclaimed largest gun shop in Colorado, said he was not surprised by the numbers.

“We are very busy and the manufactures and distributors don’t have squat to replace me,” Lightner said.

Immediately following the Sandy Hook shooting, all guns were in high demand, especially assault-style rifles and ammunition , Lightner said.

“Those are unobtainable at this point,” he said.

Tuesday, a task force headed by Vice President Joe Biden is expected to offer numerous proposals to President Barack Obama on gun control matters. Lightner said he is expecting that news to make for another busy day.

“I expect a big run on magazines,” he said. “Otherwise, these are uncharted waters for us, so it’s hard to say what will happen from here on out.”

Ryan Parker: 303-954-2409, rparker@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ryanparkerdp

414,838

Background checks by the FBI in Colorado last year, an increase of 78,542 from 2011

19th

Where Colorado ranks nationally in gun checks