is it legal to make a gun?

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Hawken50

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just curious. it you had access to the proper tools (cnc lathe and such) and the knowlege, and if final product would be legal if purchased from a manufacturer (i.e. legal barrel length, legal capacity, etc.) is it legal to do so? would not having a serial number be a problem? could you assign your own serial number? i'm automaticly assuming it would be illegal to do so with a handgun even if you had a licence to carry and posses. but what about with a rifle?
 
so which part is it you'd need a licence to make? barrel? action? the reason i ask i saw a bolt 22-250 ackley on gunbroker that looked like everything but the bolt was machined out of a solid block (it weighed 40 lbs) then i got to thinking, "if i had a cnc and some learnin' i could cook up something like that" :evil:
 
Under federal law it is legal to make your own firearms as long it is for you own use, not for sale.

However state and local laws apply.

-Bill
 
I think WHM1974 got it right....

Just to be safe, though, if you're talking 1911, for example, you can buy frames & slides and all the parts you need. This'd be completely legal, although I think the frame has to come from an FFL (4473 & all that).

It's also common to buy a junker rifle (usually bolt-action) and replace almost everything. 4473's would probably still apply, but there are no rules that say you can't swap a barrel, stock, etc.

Regards,
 
Since the supreme court is going to hear it, you can bet any precedent wont just apply to the 9th circuit.

As long as you make the receiver, you can make guns for personal use. Perfectly legal. There are AK47 receiver folding jigs you can buy for a few hundred bucks. They make the rounds on the various gun trading boards from time to time.
 
At the federal level it is totaly legal to make your own gun of any type long as the gun would be otherwise legal and it is for your own use. You can not sell the gun ever.

There are places were you can buy 80% frames and receivers. So all you have to do is the final machining. The 1911 frames only need to have the groves for the slide cut and final finishing. You do not need to put a serial number on the gun but it is recommended that you do. The 80% frame is not an FFL part and is not considered a gun until you complete the work. You can get many different 60% and 80% receivers and frames here http://www.tanneryshop.com/
 
As I understand it, it is legal to make a gun for your own personal use. And you can sell it too, as long as you did not manufacture it with intent to sell it right away. Apparently you are not required to mark the gun with a serial number unless you eventually transfer it to someone else.

There is a fascinating thread on the Beretta forum right now about a guy that just built his own fully functional 92 frame. This guy's web site has links to some build it yourself forums and places where you can buy 80% frames. Very interesting stuff.

Here's the thread:

http://www.berettaforum.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=6;t=008098
 
That is true... you can sell it eventually after you use it, but you have to mark it according to ATF regulations. You can't make enough of them so that it looks like you're making them to offer for sale. What that number is, no one knows.

Personally, I'll never sell one of my home builds. I don't have nearly as deep of pockets as the big gun makers, so I wouldn't survive a suit if someone would ever shoot someone with my homebuild or if something went wrong and the gun went KaBoom.
 
Yes under Federal Law you can make your own gun. In PA and most other States it is also legal.

The easiest way is to buy a serialized finished frame and install the parts. To get one of these frames requires transfer through an FFL, although in those states that allow private party sales, that should be legal as well. Basically a serialized frame is conisdered a firearm. These can also be sold basically just like a regular firearm, as it was considered a firearm when originally purchased. I would be careful about doing too much selling of these the BATFE might consider that to be some sort of manufacturing without a license, of course it wouldn't be all that easy for them to find out, anyways.

As has been stated you can buy "80%" or less frames. These are frames that require enough machining that the BATFE doesn't consider them to be a firearm. These frames usually do not have a serial number, according to Federal law you don't need to put one on it. Of course State laws may vary. These home-built firearms are allowed to be built for personal use, they can eventually be sold, but selling more than a few could get you in trouble. And yes they do need to be serialized when sold.

The last two ways to legally manufacture your own firearm is to machine a known reciever from scratch - possible patent issues with this. Or design and machine your own design.

I have a couple dozen 1911's that have been home-built using both of the first two methods.

As a side note on this topic. The silly laws related to building your own guns and especially NFA weapons has led to less developement and ingenuity. Just imagine if John Moses Browning couldn't have legally designed and built the BAR without jumping through the modern hoops and red tape.
 
Falling block actions are relatively easy to make and plans are widely available. Home Shop Machinist (I think) had a set of plans spread over a couple of issues a few years ago.
 
IANAL but I don't think buying a receiver, barrel, slide and parts kit is classified as "manufacturing" a firearm. That's just assembling parts. The receiver is already a firearm under BATFE regulations.

"Manufacturing" means buying a block of steel and firing up your bandsaw, lathe and milling machine to make the parts. I suppose the 80% frames would fall under this category, since the BATFE doesn't require a serial number on an 80% frame.
 
http://www.atf.treas.gov/forms/pdfs/f53201.pdf

There is the link to the Form 1, which you can use to register a firearm you have made. I believe that the "intent to sell" applies to fitting parts to completed receivers as well. If you are engaged in the business of fitting parts and selling weapons (gunsmithing!), the ATF will want you to have an FFL to do it. I believe (MGDB) I read that in the 70s they were busting people left and right for selling off personal collections and that many people got an FFLs out of fear of being busted for selling privately.

(This is for an NFA item, I should have specified, since not everyone was talking about them)
 
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Yes, only one per tax stamp. And if you have the parts made, that constitutes intent, and is illegal as well.
 
Yup. $200 to make ONE NFA item (suppressor, short barreled rifle/shotgun, etc.). License to make unlimited number works out to a few thousand $$$.
 
You can make as many unserialed title I (non NFA) firearms for personal use as you want. I would argue that gifts would fall under this as it is not a commercial activity.

Marking (serial #) requirements apply only to license holders. You do not need to serialize the firearms if you ever decide to sell them or gift them.

Some gunsmiths will not accept a firearm to work on unless it has a serial number. They have record keeping requirements and probably dont want any heat for working on 'untraceable' guns.

Read the gun control act and the Federal Code of Regulations on firearms. FCRs only apply to FFLs.

-M
 
I love how you ask a question here, and every post has a different answer.

I'd write a letter to the BATF.
 
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