Friend just returned from Perry and he told me that none of the suppliers on "commercial row" would sell only a lower unit for the AR15?? Reason given that ATF rules that just the lower can be built into a pistol configuration and must be sold only as a complete rifle, upper and lower.
I knew that one could not put a "pistol" upper on a lower legally unless it was purchased as a pistol in the beginning, but had not heard of such a restriction?? If such a restriction has been in place for sometime, not buying a lower separately, it is news to me and perhaps I am just behind the info curve. Just curious if anyone was aware of such a policy in existence.

Doesn't sound correct to me... Gander Mtn, has 2 lowers on the shelf. ANY lower can be made into a pistol (legalities aside). Same with any Contender or Encore. You'll go to prison but Lowers have always been for sale. Search for Lower at MidwayUSA and you'll find 2 pages of them...

You are correct, doesn't sound correct to me either and local dealer friend of mine has lower, stripped, in stock and will most likely buy one this morning just in case. Over the years I can not recall how many lowers and uppers I have mated up for did fair amount of AR15 work for local Service Rifle Team and guess I would get in trouble if I were still doing that?? I will check out w/ legal source this AM and report what I am told.

I don't think you can have a pistol AR with out it being tax stamped as an SBR, short barreled rifle.

If it has a shoulder stock the barrel has to be 16" regardless of make, i.e. Contender, AR, etc.

Perry

My Engineer (and an FFL) just built an FAL Pistol. The lower HAS to leave the factory as a pistol. That way the SN is federally tracked. It can be done

quote:

Friend just returned from Perry and he told me that none of the suppliers on "commercial row" would sell only a lower unit for the AR15?? Reason given that ATF rules that just the lower can be built into a pistol configuration and must be sold only as a complete rifle, upper and lower.

You did not state as to whether these lowers were complete with internal parts and buttstocks. Still, it doesn't sound correct that the dealers would not sell just the lowers. I can walk into my local hardware store and buy a stripped done or a filled-up one with no buttstock, do the 4473, make the NICS call, pay the man and walk out with it. The laws where I live regarding lowers should be the same as yours. I do not live in any of the "Communist" states that make the legal ownership of a firearm a near-felony, in case you wondered.

I do not recall if there is any place on the 4473 asking for the length of the barrel. Any firearm with a barrel having a distance from the boltface to the muzzle of less than sixteen inches cannot have a shoulder stock on it without being licensed as a short-barreled rifle. You may have seen revolvers from the Old West with twelve and fourteen inch barrels, and a clip-on shoulder stock. Those have to be licensed or have the mounting disabled to be legal. The lower of an AR is the piece that has a serial number. It is the "gun" in the eyes of the feds-- you cannot assemble a functioning firearm without it. You can assemble a lower into any legal configuration you want, as long as it has either a stock for barrels of more than 16 inches or if it's a pistol, that it never have a stock and a barrel of less than 16 inches. Additionally, buying a short-barreled upper at a gunshow-- and NEVER, EVER putting it onto your lower is a crime. Even having the two in your possession is "intent" to assemble a restricted weapon in the bleary eyes and foggy mind of the ATF. If you want a lower, shop around to people and shops who better know the law than the sellers at Perry. Maybe the sellers were just covering their obamas, believing there might be ATF in the crowd looking to score an arrest of either a buyer or a seller, so they sold nothing..

It's probably precautionary measures against a possible sting op at Perry to try an nail a dealer. I have heard of dealers also refusing to sell an complete upper with an unfinished lower---similiar nonsense.

There is no restriction on selling bare receivers as rifles.

ChetNC

quote:

It's probably precautionary measures against a possible sting op at Perry to try and nail a dealer.

Exactly! The jack-boot thugs will do that at any opportunity..

As I mentioned earlier, have built fair share of 15's over the past 30 years or so and never ran into this before, but did go to local dealer and purchased stripped lower, Rock River. As to whether the lowers were stripped or complete at Perry, was told refused to sell either way?? Did contact Brownells this AM and had complete parts kit added to my account and by first of next week will have another lower in my collection. Brownells was not aware of any "new" rulling regarding stripped/comlete lowers other than the std. FFL requirements. Was suggested that ATF may have stated to mfg's, distributors that they not to offer for retail basic lowers, but that was only speculation on the fellow I spoke with this AM.
I'll speak with ATF either today or tomorrow and see what they say.

Now there is a special classification for stripped lowers on the 4473, because it cannot be determined at the time of sale whether or not the receiver will be made into a rifle or a pistol.

More than likely, the real reason that they wouldn't sell stripped lowers at Perry is because the dealers were from out of state and had to adhere to pistol sales rules for the lowers instead of the more lenient rifle sales rules. (Out-of-State & Adjacent state vs. In-state sales)