The ATF poo-poos SB-15 again, still
Another letter, over at arfcom. I’m not sure I follow, exactly. Seems they’re saying that you can make one but shouldering it modifies it to an SBR. They spell out that an AFG added to a pistol does not modify the pistol.
Seems to me that, logically, adding an AFG to a thing with a brace on it would pretty strongly show an intent to shoulder it.
But, it’s ATF and making sense is not required.
December 26th, 2014 at 7:08 pm
What if you only shouldered it with one hand?
How long before shouldering the bare buffer tube changes the design of the gun?
December 26th, 2014 at 9:10 pm
So padded shooting shirt + AR-15 pistol = SBR then?
December 26th, 2014 at 10:25 pm
logic, feds and sense are rarely in the same sentence when discussing government.
December 27th, 2014 at 4:13 pm
As I understand it, this is the progression:
1) Sig released their arm brace. ATF ruled that adding it does not turn a pistol into an SBR.
2) A cop named Sgt Bradley wrote to ATF and asked “If I put the arm brace on my shoulder and fire it, do I have an SBR?” ATF wrote back and said that they can’t ever suggest you do something with a product not suggested by the manufacturer, but that no, it does not create an SBR.
3) 8 months later, the exact same ATF official wrote another individual and stated that if you put a sig brace on your pistol, no SBR (no change). But, if you shoulder and fire the pistol with the sig brace, the individual has an ATF. I.E. they completely reversed themselves.
Realize that these letters have no value for anyone other than who they are addressed to. ATF can also change the content of the letter at any time for any reason. If anything they show the “pulse” of the agency and how they feel on a subject on a given day.
I personally think this is giving some of the lawsuits against NFA some ammo for being arbitrary and capricious. Between this and Sig’s suppressor carbine, they are struggling to even meet “Rational Basis” level review for a lot of their opinions and rulings.
December 28th, 2014 at 10:33 am
Reading something about this on a another site, Point 3 would be better explained as “Another individual wrote to the ATF and asked it he could build an SBR using a SIG brace, and they said no. Go figure.”
If your *intent* is to build a pistol, the SIG brace is cool with the ATF.
If your *intent* is to build an SBR (and you let the ATF know this), they’re not cool with that.