4 ms·

> Technically you can even make your own machine guns legally if it is of your own design and manufacture and only really comes up against legal hurdles when yo

by gonzo 8y ago

> Technically you can even make your own machine guns legally if it is of your own design and manufacture and only really comes up against legal hurdles when you are producing them for the purpose of selling them to civilians (which you will of course be denied). This is really poor advice. The BATF considers just having the parts without the requisite Class III license (really a tax stamp) to be a felony. The Hughes Amendment to the Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986 prohibits civilians from owning any machine gun manufactured after May 1986. All the other 5 categories of Class III firearms (SBRs, SBSs, Silencers, AOWs and Destructive Devices) can still be made, even by an individual, if he/she first applies for and receives permission to do so. To do so, they must file an ATF Form 1 (maker form) and pay a $200 make tax fee. A civilian can still legally own any machinegun that was created PRIOR to May, 1986 as long as they get approval on an ATF form 4.

AngryData 8y ago
There are exceptions to the rules for producing prototype weapons, that is why you have to be made 100% of your own design for them, you can't copy another machine gun and claim it is a prototype. In order to register or sell a new machine gun design you need to have a working physical version already existing. You also need to make something that could reasonably be considered a prototype weapon you were making to legit sell to the government, some pipegun hardware store contraption obviously wasn't produced with the intention of being sold to the military or law enforcement and would not qualify as a prototype. Regardless, you should definitely speak to a lawyer before attempting anything like this, there are tons of local laws that you can break even if you are following state and federal law. And once you break a local law it becomes an illegal weapon and negates any legal standing you had with the state or federally.

by gonzo 8y ago

AngryData 8y ago

There are exceptions to the rules for producing prototype weapons, that is why you have to be made 100% of your own design for them, you can't copy another machine gun and claim it is a prototype. In order to register or sell a new machine gun design you need to have a working physical version already existing. You also need to make something that could reasonably be considered a prototype weapon you were making to legit sell to the government, some pipegun hardware store contraption obviously wasn't produced with the intention of being sold to the military or law enforcement and would not qualify as a prototype. Regardless, you should definitely speak to a lawyer before attempting anything like this, there are tons of local laws that you can break even if you are following state and federal law. And once you break a local law it becomes an illegal weapon and negates any legal standing you had with the state or federally.