Licensing for manufacturing

[MattMaier]

A friend of mine and I are coming up with an idea for a business manufacturing replicas of firearms dating from the late medieval up through the civil war periods. Being that the Civil war does include the use of early repeating rifle designs, I want to make sure that all legal bases are covered. So what requires an FFL to manufacture and sell and what does not? I know that cartridge arms generally require FFL's but that "antiques", being defined of an original, or replica thereof, firearm that was built before 1898, I have also heard that firearms using a form of ammunition, such as pinfire, which is not produced on a commercial scale, are legal to manufacture and deal in without FFL's. So, where am I right, where am I wrong, who should I contact, etc.

 

[Jim K]

Basically, what you say is correct. There would be no problem with a firearm not using fixed ammunition. This usually means "muzzle loader", but would also include percussion revolvers and rifles like the percussion Sharps.

And you could make a reproduction of the Henry rifle if it were chambered for, and would fire, only the original .44 rimfire cartridge. The problem is that not many people would buy a rifle that they could not shoot, and if you make it for .44-40 or .44 Special, then you would need the license.

While a manufacturer's license is expensive, if there is any question of making, or planning to make, guns that could cross that line, you might well be better off to obtain the license anyway. Adding a few bucks to the cost of the gun could save you tons of trouble later on.

But I strongly recommend that you consult a knowledgeable attorney; no one should start up any kind of business today without having the services of an attorney. That would be especially true of any business involving guns, but if you own, let's say, a coffee shop, and someone chokes on a cuppa, or trips on your front steps, you would need a lawyer, and after the fact is no time to go shopping for one.

Jim