Suppressors out of the NFA

[HexHead]

Their use is encouraged even in mostly anti-gun Europe. How could we get it so wrong on these?

 

[Mike OTDP]

I think a better question might be "Is there a practical, executable way to get NFA reform?"

NFA-34 isn't going to get repealed outright. It is, however, challengable in court. And the 10+ month delay in processing forms is probably the most vulnerable, as you can make that case under the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause, not the 2nd Amendment.

Looking at the laws posted on the ATF website, the words of NFA-34 require the collection of a $200 tax. They do not require anything else. The entire process of fingerprints, photos, CLEO signoff, and obscene wait are laid down in regulations, not law.

Which means they are liable to change.

Confront the ATF with a choice...either process transfers in a timely manner (not to exceed 30 days), or face a lawsuit. The easiest way for ATF to comply is to move suppressors over to the NICS system.

Yes, we all want the $200 tax to go away. I agree that suppressors should be encouraged for all firearms, possibly required for some. But I think we would all be delighted to just see cans become 10-day-wait items, instead of 10-month-wait.

 

[Remington550-1]

You honestly expect to find anyone, HERE of all places, who thinks suppressors should be regulated items?

Talk about a loaded poll! Kind of like asking a bunch of kindergarteners if ice cream is GOOD!

I pretty much knew what the answers was going to be, but I still wanted to test the waters. One guy thought they should remain NFA!

 

[Sam1911]

Ha...must have misunderstood the question.

 

[coloradokevin]

In this day and age suppressors should absolutely be deregulated. They're really no different than mufflers on cars… they make loud noises quieter. It makes operating the gun safer for the user/bystander, and also reduces noise pollution.

In the close-in rural areas around here there is a lot of conflict between shooters (even on private land) and other local residents. People complain constantly about noise, and it makes a lot of folks hate shooting sports. Suppressors are a solution to that problem.

For my kind of shooting, I like to shoot steel plates at long distances. Suppressors reduce the need for hearing protection (to a degree), and make it easier to hear long distance hits on steel that would be hard to hear with 33db hearing protection.

Plus, they don't necessarily make a gun silent! You can definitely hear a suppressed .308 shooting full power ammo when it is fired. It definitely reduces the sound signature quite a bit though, which is good.

Regulating these items does nothing to prevent gun violence. It merely causes many people to avoid getting these very useful safety tools. (I'm waiting on a Form 4 to come back right now… months of waiting and a $200 bonus fee to the federal government - ridiculous). I really think suppressors make a ton of sense in a hunting environment, where hardly anyone wears ear pro, and that one very loud shot can certainly do some hearing damage. I intend to use my suppressor for hunting once I get it (which is legal out here).

 

[Ranger Roberts]

No, leave suppressors as an NFA item. 2 2.56%

I have to admit that I am pretty shocked that there are two votes to leave them on the registry.

 

[Midwest]

I have to admit that I am pretty shocked that there are two votes to leave them on the registry.

Maybe they aren't regular members to the forum....

 

[AlexanderA]

Yes, definitely take suppressors out of the NFA. I'm somewhat undecided on whether they should continue to be treated as "firearms" under Title I. They're accessories like scopes and night vision devices. Especially, night vision devices should be treated exactly like suppressors. Either deregulate suppressors entirely (as NVD are now), or make NVD "firearms." In any case all these devices (NVD and suppressors) should continue to be on the international Munitions List for ITAR purposes.

 

[jojo200517]

Ideally I'd say completely deregulate them. They are an accessory and no more dangerous than a railed forend or a buttstock and should be treated as such. Only under the NFA do they contradict the very definition of a firearm and what it does so as to include them.

Can we all just ge along on what to call them tho? Seriously, go argue about clips vs mags where there is some real difference, but call these items cans, mufflers, suppressor, silencer, acoustic attenuation muzzle device or whatever you please but lets just get along.

 

[ICE1210]

It'd be nice, but I think it's about as likely as a full repeal of the NFA.

 

[coloradokevin]

I have to admit that I am pretty shocked that there are two votes to leave them on the registry.

I'm not. There are plenty of card-carrying members of the NRA (and other gun rights groups) who claim to be pro-2nd Amendment, right up until you really start talking to them… at that time you'll find that these select individuals seem to believe that the 2nd Amendment is in existence to protect hunting rights, and they'd be perfectly fine with guns/magazines/accessories being banned just so long as it didn't affect their trusty shotgun or beloved deer rifle.

A guy I work with is a staunch conservative, claims to be very pro-constitution, and claims to be very pro-gun. When I told him that I was waiting for a suppressor the first thing he said was something along the lines of: "Oh, so I guess I need to start worrying about you going all 'book depository' on us now? Why in the world would you need one of those?"

That's the problem among a certain segment of gun owners… if they don't see a person use/need for an item, then they really don't care if those items are strictly regulated for everyone else.

But, again, there's no real worthwhile justification for suppressors being NFA items.

 

[Remington550-1]

Do any of you have any strategies as far as removing some or all of the regulation on suppressors? Would you bring up constitutional issues or go through legislation, do any of you have any nifty tricks up your sleeves?

 

[wally]

Would you bring up constitutional issues or go through legislation, do any of you have any nifty tricks up your sleeves?

There is an "American Suppressor Association" organization of suppressor manufactures and dealers that are starting to lobby for legislation.

http://americansilencerassociation.com/

 

[P226]

I believe suppressor's should never have been part of NFA , but I think we have a better chance at having SBR's removed then we do suppressor's.With Sig's new brace and all the rifle caliber pistols that have been made over the last 10 years the time is now to get SBR's out of NFA .

 

[Impureclient]

I have to admit that I am pretty shocked that there are two votes to leave them on the registry.

they'd be perfectly fine with guns/magazines/accessories being banned just so long as it didn't affect their trusty shotgun or beloved deer rifle.

^ That pretty much describes my signature line.

3 votes in favor so far....
How there could be anybody who is interested in firearms enough to go out of their way and come in here and actually believe in keeping suppressors regulated is bananas.
Just like what was mentioned, they are a accessory. All it does is make shooting more friendly to the shooter and those around him. Dumb crusty law needs to go away.
Of course our Gov't isn't going to just give up on $200 in taxes without grabbing the cash elsewhere. Something will suffer if they are removed from NFA.

 

[AlexanderA]

All it takes is a movie like "Where Eagles Dare" (which is a good movie, btw) to brand suppressors as tools of assassins in the public mind. This is what we're fighting against -- the power of Hollywood. Never mind that the portrayals of suppressors are not particularly accurate.

 

[Midwest]

I believe suppressor's should never have been part of NFA , but I think we have a better chance at having SBR's removed then we do suppressor's.With Sig's new brace and all the rifle caliber pistols that have been made over the last 10 years the time is now to get SBR's out of NFA .

Take SBR's out the NFA and reclassify it as a handgun. Take suppressors out of the NFA, because they are not a firearm. Suppressors are just accessories like a scope is a accessory. A scope improves visuals so one can hit the target better accuracy.

The best answer is to reclassify all NFA items as regular firearms. No more of this 10 month wait stuff when the background can be done under 5 minutes.
.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

England, France and Finland treat suppressors ("silencers" under the NFA) in a reasonable manner (primarily as hearing protection devices).

I read a post by one Britisher who said the local constabulary recommended that he get a silencer for his garden gun because they did not want to unnecessarily respond to neighbor reports of "shots fired" only to find it was someone shooting pests in their vegetable patch.

Our problem is that our gun laws are based on Congresspersons responding to creative fictions like Hollywood movies or yellow journalism rather than reality.

 

[AlexanderA]

Repeal of the NFA needs to be made into a mainstream issue (even if only on one side of the political spectrum) rather than a fringe issue. I don't like the fact that, in public appearances and pronouncements, the NRA tends to sweep this under the rug and pretend that it's a non-issue. For example, in congressional testimony, Wayne LaPierre said that machine guns were already illegal (while that may be technically true, because of the wording of 18 U.S.C. sec. 922(o), he was deliberately ignoring the grandfathering provision). The NRA, which should be strongly and publicly advocating for NFA-item owners, seems to be treating them as pariahs. What public backlash, exactly, is the NRA afraid of?

 

[P226]

All it takes is a movie like "Where Eagles Dare" (which is a good movie, btw) to brand suppressors as tools of assassins in the public mind. This is what we're fighting against -- the power of Hollywood. Never mind that the portrayals of suppressors are not particularly accurate.


This is why I think we have abetter chance at getting SBR's out of the NFA.
Suppressor's in the public's eye = assassin .