If it takes them that long every time, the shop is doing things wrong. I picked up a pistol in June (2016) and the response for the NH check was maybe 10 minutes (if that).
Actually you don't know what you are talking about!
The shop doing things wrong?
You clearly don't know the process , other wise you wouldn't have made that uneducated statement.
Some education for you:
New Hampshire is a “partial point of contact” state for NICS. New Hampshire law authorizes, but does not require, the New Hampshire Department of Safety (“DOS”) to act as a point of contact for NICS.[SUP]
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DOS has chosen to act as a point of contact for handgun sales, but not long gun sales. This means that, in New Hampshire, firearms dealers selling handguns must initiate the background check required by federal law by contacting DOS, but firearm dealers selling long guns must initiate the background check required by federal law by contacting the FBI directly.[SUP]
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When the 4473 is completed, (for a pistol) the information is either called in or fax into the NH DOS for a background check to be performed. The time it takes to get a call back with a "Approval, Delayed or Denied is totally dependent on the number of NH DOS people on duty to perform the background checks. If there is a gun show going on at the time, or just the sheer volume of requests be submitted to the DOS, the time to receive an answer can be anywhere from 10 minutes to over an hour!
The time it takes to process a background check is totally up to the volume and efficiency (or lack there of) of the NH DOS processing the requested checks. Other than submitting the info, the LGS has no control as to how short or long it will take to get a reply from the NH DOS.
You got yours in 10 minutes, that's great! However just because you got lucky doesn't mean your experience is the norm.