The Skinny On Federal Firearms License

Upon trying to acquire your Federal Firearms License, you'll undoubtedly run into an assortment of acronyms, definitions, and legal terms. At first glance, the chore of getting one can look insurmountable, only it's not. Don't let this be a handicap. While deep as these rules look, when you acquaint yourself with the language and basic themes behind them, gaining a license gets much easier. With that in mind, let's discuss the NFA and the kinds of arms addressed by it. While dealing with firearms, you'll often see the term NFA firearms or NFA weapons. It means the National Firearms Act and is a law that was enacted in 1934. Not merely does this law address mandatory registration of all Title 2 weapons, it mandates an excise tax on the manufacture and sale or transfer of these arms. Another significant aspect of this law is that it mandates that any transfer of Title 2 weapons across state lines is to be accounted to the Department of Justice. So what are Title 2 weapons? Well, in the eyes of the authorities, there are 2 types of weapons--Title I and Title II. Title I arms are principally rifles, shotguns, and handguns. Title II weapons are machine guns, mufflers, short barreled shotguns, short barreled rifles, and the any other weapon category. One usual misconception concerning Title 2 weapons are that they're ofttimes called class 3 weapons. This is incorrect; there's no class 3 weapon. Class 3 refers to the class 3 SOT, a certain class of permit that's required to become a trader of NFA firearms. Now that you know a bit about the NFA, and the 2 kinds of weapons, let's see a little closer at the Title 2 weapons that are addressed by the NFA.Machine gun--This is any gun with the power to fire more than one cartridge from a single trigger draw. Also admitted inside this class are the pieces that constitute a machine gun. Short barreled shotgun, (SBS)--This admits any smooth bore shotgun with a barrel of less than 18" or an overall length of less than 26". Short barreled rifle, (SBR)--Often like the Short barreled shotgun, the short barreled rifle is any rifled bore firearm that's an overall length of less than 26", or an overall barrel length of less than 16". Silencers--These admit any devices or pieces that are configured to hush, mute, or disguise the sound by whatsoever portable firearm. Destructive Device, (DD)--This class covers 2 separate classes. The 1st addresses grenades or volatile devices, poison gas weapons, or bombs and inflammatory devices. The 2nd class handles large bore, non-sporting firearms. By definition anything that's not applied for sporting with a caliber over 1/2" falls into this category. Any other Weapons (AOW)--This class is for weapons and pieces that don't fit former classes. It traverses whatever shoulder fired weapon with a barrel length between 12"-18". These might be either smooth or rifled bore. It similarly covers unrifled handguns, cane and pen guns. This is only a general overview and shouldn't be thought as definitive. Whenever you're in doubt or require particular resolves, correspond straightaway with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Their technology branch can definitively resolve any of your inquiries.