Now do it with this, sent by Len Savage under the subject heading "NFA Absurdity in One Photo":
Actually, none of them are "the same." Per Len:
Three break action double barrel firearms that fire shotgun ammunition.
- One of them is just a firearm under the GCA and can be sold over counter at any FFL.
- One of them is an "Any Other Weapon" that has a $5 transfer tax and is an NFA firearm.
- One of them is a "Short Barreled Shotgun" that has a $200 transfer tax and is an NFA firearm.
6 comments:
I mostly understand the two tax stamp firearms, but what makes the over the counter firearm not subject to the other rules? Without a measurement scale I can't make the distinction.
My 14yo put it succinctly "How does that make any sense?" My question is which is which and why?
As explained to me: Top originally made with shoulder stock. Middle made with hand grip. Bottom has slight rifling inside barrel.
OK, but (aside from the BATFE being possibly the most capricious agency in any government ever) why are they treated so differently?
To Anon @ 4:24 PM. You need to explain to your offspring that expecting anything done by any government to "make sense" is setting one's self up for disappointment. I concluded that the primary reason for any government functionary to do pretty much anything is "because they can". I've never seen any compelling evidence of another motivation; although sometimes it appears they might also wish to demonstrate who is the boss and who is the peed-on.
[My 14yo put it succinctly "How does that make any sense?"]
I have never found logic in government or regulatory schemes. One must view the situation through the prism of bureaucratic logic.
Part of the issue is not ATF but the NFA itself. It was written in response to media hype of the day (1934)....Movies, Movies about gangsters. It is the epitome of hoplophobic nonsense.
Three different firearms that function identically hold a maximum of two rounds, all regulated three differing ways...Just how this keeps us all safer is not known. Possess the wrong one without proper federal papers and you are looking at 10 years in prison and $250,000 fine.....Don't you feel safer now? (sarcasm)
Now let's look through the bureaucratic prism and explain each firearm and why it is regulated the way it is:
Top firearm: This began life as a full sized shotgun (Stoeger Coach Gun) and the barrels were cut down to 10 1/4" and the butt stock removed and pistol grip made and installed. Because it is a weapon made from a shotgun that has a barrel length less than 18" it is regulated under the NFA.
Middle firearm: This was made by Ithica Firearms Company in 1924 and is called the "Auto & Burglar Gun". Made specifically to be used to protect yourself in an automobile. It was never a shotgun (since shotguns must be designed to be fired from the shoulder) and it has a smooth bore. Smooth bore pistols are regulated under the NFA as "Any Other Weapon" (AOW).
Bottom Firearm: This is a Pedersoli remake of the Auto & Burglar called the "Howdah". It is slightly rifled (1 twist in 48") and fires .410 shot shells or .45 colt pistol cartridges. Because it is not smooth bore, and never had a shoulder stock it is just a pistol.
A great majority of the NFA serves no legitimate purpose in protecting citizens. Regulating short barreled shotguns, AOW's, Short barreled rifles, and suppressors under the NFA is ridiculous and they should be regulated under the Gun Control Act (GCA) like any other firearm you can purchase over the counter.
Len Savage
Historic Arms LLC
Bad Cyborg,
To my understanding, however flawed it might be.
Say you open a shotgun factory. The first receiver off the line gets a shoulder stock put on it. For the rest of it's life that receiver is a shotgun. The same would apply to a rifle, a receiver that gets a rifle stock is always a rifle.
The second receiver gets a pistol grip put on it and has an overall length within certain parameters (I am a bit fuzzy on this), That makes it an AOW and it needs the $5 tax stamp.
If you put a pistol grip on the receiver and put a barrel with some degree of rifling in it, that makes the firearm a pistol.
When you buy a rifled firearm, it is registered as a pistol or a rifle. A rifle is always a rifle and if you put a short barrel on it you have to pay a tax to the ATF. A pistol can be converted to a rifle and back without the tax, just be careful you don't have a short pistol barrel and a rifle stock on your pistol frame, that requires a tax as well. A long barrel without a stock is just another pistol. And don't put a vertical hand grip on the front of your pistol, that needs a tax stamp.
Note, I am not a lawyer and none of this is legal advice. Some of it might be a bit fuzzy, but it is fairly close. If you are going to do any home gunsmithing and make what could be classification changes, talk to the ATF or a 2nd Amendment lawyer before you even buy the parts.
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