Posted: 2/27/2008 5:36:05 PM EDT
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If you have a T/C Encore 4473'd as a long gun, can you add a pistol barrel, and pistol grip? Do the minimum length rule apply to Encore's? What if I had an Encore registered as a pistol, and threw a rifle stock, and barrel would I be in violation of a pistol having a buttstock? |
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Hi James, I am not a lawyer and this isn't legal advice, but I think you'll find it correct & rational: 
No - "Once a rifle (by declaration) always a rifle".... Unless you can SBR it thru Feds and not offend the locals (impossible here in CA), you're stuck as a long gun only: 26" min OAL, 16" min bbl length. [I am unsure if an Encore rifle receiver with pistol grip and a rifle bbl would make it to 26" OAL so you probably can't put a pistol stock on even if you still had the rifle barrel affixed.] [For folding stock rifles, Feds allow OAL measured w/stock folded or closed - while CA, due to the Rooney decision, requires OAL to be measured with stock open or unfolded.] (Ignoring separate CA AW laws for a second), this is why you can't make an AR pistol from an AR rifle, or a receiver that was first assembled into a rifle, either. If you want an AR pistol you need to 4473 a 'virgin' lower or pistol lower. You should NOT even POSSESS an Encore pistol bbl if you *only* have an Encore rifle, as that can be regarded as illegal 'constructive possession' of an SBR under both Federal and California laws -- and this applies even if the bbl is miles away in your office or 3000 mi away in your vacation home. Ownership & control is what counts, not physical proximity.
If you indeed have a legit Encore pistol, and have BOTH a matching riflestock *AND* barrel, then you can indeed assemble it into a rifle, use it as a rifle, and then later revert back to a pistol configuration. If you have *just* an Encore pistol, you should not just own a rifle stock alone but also an Encore rifle barrel: a pistol can't have a buttstock, and 'constructive possession' of an SBR could occur by possessing an Encore pistol with just a rifle stock but no rifle bbl. To be 100% safe, when reassembling a legit Encore pistol into rifle configuration, the rifle bbl should be installed FIRST, then the rifle stock affixed AFTERWARD, so as to avoid any even momentary, temporary transition thru an illegal SBR status before becoming a legal rifle. If you possess BOTH a similar Encore rifle receiver AND a legit Encore pistol receiver, you can't mix & match parts in certain directions, but you then CAN indeed possess collections of separated rifle & pistol parts without 'constructive possession' worries. You could have a box of Encore rifle and pistol bbls, and rifle and pistol stock(s). Owning both legit pistol & rifle Encore receivers, you then could turn the Encore *pistol& into a *rifle* (using care in assembly sequence to avoid the temporary SBR issue I mentioned in prior paragraph), use it as a rifle for awhile, and then revert to a pistol. (When diassembling the pistol-rifle, remove the rifle stock from the Encore pistol receiver FIRST, then the barrel AFTERWARD so you don't have an SBR even for a moment). However, the reverse diredtion is a no-no: you still could NOT take the Encore *rifle* receiver and convert it to a pistol, as that'd be an illegal SBR --- but because you owned an Encore *pistol*, you'd at least be allowed to own pistol bbls without worry of 'constructively possessing' an SBR. While the above sounds complex, what you just need to remember is (generally speaking) that you need 'legitimate outlet' for parts you possess. If you possess a set of parts that can only be assembled into an illegal configuration, you're in the wrong. If you have a collection of parts that can also be assembled into legal configurations, then you're OK. Bill Wiese San Jose CA |
Detailed, and understandable as always. Thanks Bill. |