Hey guys, just had a question about the advantages or disadvantages of only owning NFA weapons? I’m talking SBR’s here vs 16"+ length. Cost of ownership aside…
I thought I had read something here posted by somebody who said that it wasn’t a good idea to only own SBRs. Can’t remember the reasoning, but I know that if I ever get into the NFA game, shooting a suppressed SBR would probably take the vast majority of my shooting over a longer barrel unless it was more of a precision role. This brings me to the question of WHY I would want a non-NFA upper?
I know traveling with a SBR (say to a training course) is a little more complicated than a non-NFA upper, but is there any other reason to have one over a SBR?
Hope this question isn’t too “muddy”, but just wanted to get some opinions on the matter…
Now that I think about it, I think it was the issue with traveling to/through states that weren’t NFA friendly that I read about. I probably won’t be doing that much, but who knows…just was wondering if there were any other things I might be overlooking?
You actually just need a 16"+ upper receiver. Any SBR is a Title 1 gun if it has an upper on it with a 16"+ barrel, for the duration that upper is mated to the lower.
There’s very little downside. I only have one lower so a 12.5" upper is the primary and I switch to a stainless 16" for shooting tiny groups (eventually at long distances).
Technically, even if you put a 16" upper on an SBRd lower, and are going to be traveling across state lines, you need to complete the applicable ATF paperwork to temporarily transport it, and you can’t bring it into the pinko-commie states.
Otherwise, the only other disadvantage is being able to let your friend borrow it, or maybe if something happens to you, it will be a little harder for wife / family to take possession of them.
If you’re thinking about running a bunch of uppers on an SBR, check out the A5 receiver extensions from VLTOR. You can switch between an SBR, 20" barrel and everything in between without having to worry about buffer weight and reliability.
If you decide at the last minute to visit family or friends for the weekend who happen to own enough land that you can shoot at. Unless: (A) They live in a state that accepts your NFA item; and (B) You had enough foresight to have a current ATF Form 5320 on file; your SOL.
I have a 14.7" with PA FH version of my favorite rifle just for such an occasion. Outside of the barrel length, everything is set up the same as my primary SBR. You can even get away with this if all you have is an non-NFA upper. According to a recent BATFE letter mating SBR lower to a non-SBR upper temporarilty renders it as a non-NFA item and does not require the same paperwork until you replace it with the NFA upper. NOTE: See the letters posted johnson above.
Yes, this is exactly what I planned on doing, having a “training” rig that is set up exactly or at least close to my “go-to” rig. Only thing that I wanted to avoid was having to pin a flash hider. I might just have to go with the 16" even though I would prefer a 14.5".
With the Form 5320, does that form give you permission to go out of state in general, or does it have to be a specific location for a specific period of time?
Remember you can also slap a non SBR,16" or greater upper on your SBR and you are good to go, as long as you do not possess the SBR upper when/while traveling.
I only want SBR’s myself too. I did just order a 16" dedicated .22 upper that I may get cut down to match my other guns. Not sure yet.
