Hear, hear. We live, and [just sometimes] we learn. Aptly put.
AC
The ATF has clarified the fact a lower does not meet the definition of an SBR so I’d agree there.
We are going to promote the fact we will build and register an SBR with a customer’s Noveske lower when they buy a short upper. We will probably have something up on the website early next year. Spread the word if you want, the paperwork is a bit of extra work but we decided to do this as a way to thank our customers and provide a service that is pretty rare but very cool.
Todd
That is great news and an excellent example of a business going the extra mile for their customers!
Thanks for the heads up.
Here is a new thread to spread the good word:
http://m4carbine.net/showthread.php?p=852070#post852070
Just want to point out I don’t own a Noveske or DD but they’re on my short list.
Sorry for bumping this thread but AC’s questions regarding the engraving of SBR barrels closely mirrors mine and thus saved me a ton of typing.
I would like to engrave the “other” information on either the barrel or upper receiver with the required trust name and location. I’ve seen it posted many times that if an individual were to engrave on the uppers, then any & all uppers would have to be engraved; not just the SBR uppers. Could someone clarify that for me? My thought would be that it would only need to be on the SBR uppers since, when that particular upper is removed, it no longer meets the requirements for an SBR rifle. Why then, would any uppers with 16"+ barrels also need to be engraved?
Also, for clarification, I have several ARs and some will be SBR’d on F1’s and others will not.
My goal is to keep the SBR lowers clean & free from engravings. (Why? Because that’s my preference.)
Short uppers only. It’s not an NFA weapon when it’s not configured that way.
That was my thought. Thanks for clarifying BigWaylon.
That’s purely my opinion, but I haven’t seen a statute that would lead me to believe otherwise.
ETA: to be clear, that’s “my opinion” in regards to the engraving question…ATF has clearly stated the gun can be reconfigured (for reselling, hunting, interstate transport, etc) and is not under the purview of the NFA regs, so that’s not in question
ATF states that on their NFA FAQ. If a weapon doesn’t have a barrel shorter than 16 inches, it is not under their purview regardless of how the receiver is “registered” with the NFA Branch. 16 + inch uppers would not need to be engraved.
SCOTUS states that too, so I think it is a safe bet.
Thanks for clarifying guys. I did read that in the NFA FAQ pages along with various NFA stickies here, which is where I got the idea to only engrave the uppers. My confusion came when reading this thread, more specifically AC’s post #20. Then I reread BigWaylon’s EForm sticky and his post about engraving. Towards the bottom it says:
“…That simply means if you choose to engrave on an AR upper or barrel, you’d have to engrave every upper/barrel you plan to use. That’s why most will engrave the lower receiver…”
I originally understood the above to mean only the SBR uppers need to be engraved, then AC’s post & a couple others made me start doubting my understanding.
So AC (rest his soul) was incorrect?
It makes me wonder why engraving uppers/barrels isn’t more popular? Not that I ever plan on selling a registered lower but it elevates the devaluing of the lower, along with hassles of shipping one to be engraved.
It’s incorrect, or poorly worded.
The reason you engrave a lower is that you only have to engrave once. If you ever decide to get out of the NFA game, you sell the (unmarked) uppers. Attach at least a 16" upper and you have a functioning AR that just happens to have your name engraved. If you ever decide to go the SBR route again, your lower is still registered and all you have to do is buy/build a new upper.
As cheap as lowers are, there’s not much demand for a used one, whether engraved or not.
Understandable.
In my case, I’m not a fan of swapping uppers so I’ll have an upper for each lower which means the amount of engraving will be the same either way.
Sure, right now they are. Post SH panic was bringing $3-4k for complete Colts. God forbid that happens again, but that just might be enough to entice me to off-load some guns. 
Ultimately, I just want a clear understanding of my options available to me. I see pro’s/con’s to both. Thanks.
All mine are dedicated builds as well. Only swapping I’ll do is to the two pistol lowers I keep handy just in case.
Tagged for following and tracking.
Most people don’t go throught uppers like water. At $32.00 for high quality engraving, it doesn’t really matter for me either way.