UPDATE: The ATF held 3000 Form 1 Suppressor applications for further investigation. Out of those 3000, 850 were being built from “solvent trap” kits. Those 850 were denied. Furthermore the information was forwarded to the local field offices because those kits are unregistered suppressors in the eyes of the ATF. Owners might receive a visit!
TOPEKA, KANSAS –-(Ammoland.com)- AmmoLand News has received reports that many people waiting for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to approve their Form 1 tax stamp for their homebuilt suppressors received a rejection from the National Firearms Act (NFA) Division.
AmmoLand News has confirmed that the ATF rejected multiple people’s Form 1s en masse with the same language on the same day. Forms with the exact wording have been approved many times by the division.
The rejection notice says that any part ordered for the homebuilt suppressor would be considered a suppressor itself. Therefore, the builder would violate the NFA for the purchased components.
80% Silencers Banned?
One lawyer who reviewed the ATF’s rejection response commented off the record that it could make the iron ore itself a silencer if someone decides to make a suppressor using steel made from the iron.
If the rejections are legitimate and not a mistake by the ATF, it would be impossible to make a homemade suppressor.
The ATF just switched over to eForms. Some theorize that there is an error in the programming, generating false rejections. AmmoLand News reached out to the ATF to clarify if this was an error or not?
ATF replied:
“Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(24), 27 CFR 478.11, and 27 CFR 479.11, the terms “firearm silencer” and “firearm muffler” mean “any device for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencer or firearm muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.” A device or part that falls under the federal definition of “firearm silencer” and “firearm muffler” are each considered a “firearm” subject to the provisions of the Gun Control Act (GCA) and the National Firearms Act (NFA).
In general, a Form 1 shall not be approved if the making or possession would place the person in violation of the law. It is unlawful for a person to make a silencer from a device or part that falls under the federal definition of silencer and was transferred to the applicant without complying with the tax, transfer, and registration requirements of the NFA.
An approved Form 1 authorizes the maker to make the silencer identified on the Form 1 application, and approval of the Form 1 application registers the silencer to the maker in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR). The maker must certify on the Form 1 application under penalties of perjury that the maker is the person who will make the silencer. An approved Form 1 does not authorize any person to make or manufacture the silencer on behalf of the Form 1 maker. An approved Form 1 does not authorize the transfer of a device or part that falls under the federal definition of silencer to the Form 1 maker. An approved Form 1 does not legitimize a prior transfer of a device or part that falls under the federal definition of silencer that did not comply with the tax, transfer, and registration requirements of the NFA.
We direct you to the June 2021 FFL Newsletter for more information about Silencer Markings and Registration Requirements which includes this reminder:
If someone other than an FFL/SOT wants to acquire a silencer part, that part must be marked in accordance with regulations and registered by filing a Form 2… A Form 4 must be filed if the part is being acquired by an unlicensed person or FFL who is not qualified under the NFA.”
The ATF has cracked down on buying and selling “solvent traps” and fuel filters that gun owners have converted to homebuilt suppressors. Some of these items have been purchased on Chinese sites such as Wish and Aliexpress. The ATF has tracked the sale of the items from overseas. Others components have been purchased from American-based companies. The ATF says they do not regulate solvent traps, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.
Diversified Machine was one American Company that sold solvent traps. The ATF put the company out of business and seized its website. The ATF claims markings on the caps and refrigerator plugs (used as baffles) could be used as drill guides. The ATF considers this to be readily convertible.
Some buyers have had their items confiscated by the ATF. Even one YouTuber who works on diesel trucks got a visit by special agents demanding he turn over the “silencers” he purchased online. In this case, the YouTuber used the filters for their intended purposes.
Some other advocates worry that these rejections are a sign of things to come from an increasing out-of-control agency. New regulations surrounding unfinished frames and receivers are expected to be unveiled by the ATF this summer. These regulations also include homebuilt suppressors. If the rule goes into effect as written, it would be a de facto ban on the items.
One person AmmoLand News spoke to wondered if this is the ATF showing their hand about the new regulations early. Without the ATF directly addressing the concerns of home builders, it is hard to know. More and more people are reporting the rejection notice. This turn of events is concerning and developing.
If you have had a Form 1 approved by the ATF for a suppressor since March 1, please drop us a line and let us know to investigate further.
About John Crump
John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
Firearms are loud and can damage your hearing but the ATF cares less about you using proper personal protection equipment. They think everyone who has a suppressor for there firearm is a wanna be hitman.
dont say that to loud government will try banning guns for health reasons
No, they don’t. It isn’t about preventing crime. It is about controlling people by creating crime out of lawful behavior, thus to punish whosoever they desire.
Why would they want to deal with actual criminals. Those people are scary and have a a tendency to shoot at LEO’s. All they care about are hood arrest/conviction stats.
Yes, a common Hollywood theme.
batfe is claiming that anything intended to be used to build your form1 suppressor already is a suppressor. If you find a pipe of the size and diameter and proper steel or titanium design you want, it has suddenly become a silencer! If you see a round billet of aluminum that could be machined into a suppressor for a 22LR, it already is a suppressor! They are basically pricing the poor out of their right to own suppressors, as the agency will only allow form 1 builds using expensive cnc machines and lathes, using raw materials. An agent had the… Read more »
Notice that they say “intended to be used to build a suppressor”. Acquire piping and parts as part of a plumbing project or something. Then send in form one – not because you intend to make a suppressor, but because you are contemplating and want permission in case you decide in a year or so (roughly matching wait time). None of the parts were designed or modified to be suppressors and none of the parts were acquired with intent to make a suppressor. Thus you ARE complying. Would have to read the written regulations to check, but as it’s been… Read more »
cant use a oil filter that is a pre made silencer cant use the tube from an old grease gun .. no wait for it ..///a grease gun is a machine gun….they all need to be put in an insane asylum, to the last one
I am skeptical.
As you should be. The feds will still murder you for it and Abbott will do nothing to stop it.
What could Governor Abbott do to stop federal enforcement of any given federal statute?
He has control of the state guard and all state agencies including DPS, Game Wardens, TPW officers, etc. He could say Texas will uphold and defend the constitutional rights of its citizens and use any or all of those forces to defend Texans against the feds. Sheriffs could do the same in their counties. PDs could do the same in their cities. Unfortunately, we can’t get any of them to simply refuse to enforce arms laws much less actually come to the defense of citizens against those willing to violate rights.
So … Abbott should engage in a shooting war with the feds?!
The feds are more than happy to harass, extort, assault, kidnap, and engage in a shooting war with you in order to violate your rights. They’ve proven that time and again. Why is it unreasonable to want your local, county, and/or state officials to come to your defense? They have a “army” big enough to meet the challenge.
Yes the feds do all of that, but I don’t think that state government law enforcement will go to war with federal government law enforcement, any time soon.
Abbott and Paxton have found a way to challenge the constitutionality of the NFA in the S. Ct. Maybe the S. Ct will find the use of the commerce clause an invalid basis for the entire NFA.
Oh, I have no doubt that local and state governments will never defend their citizens from the feds. I also seriously doubt the SCOTUS will overturn any federal arms law. Our only real shot would be doing what Democrats do and shoving repeals into huge bills with fluffy names like The Saving Puppies and Kittens Act and then saying any Democrats who oppose it must hate puppies and kittens. Gotta pass it to see what’s in it, right? Unfortunately, that is a long shot as well considering how many times Republicans have had complete control of DC and have yet… Read more »
State/county/city/town enforcers continue to work with the BATFE and FBI to enforce gun control. They brag about it. The Department of Justice created a program centered around cooperation between federal agencies and local law enforcement and they promote it extensively: “This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community… Read more »
Woah, now wait just a minute! Haven’t you heard you’re not allowed to call the people who enforce arms laws “enforcers”?
I think that the S. Ct. has been looking, for some time, for a way to limit Congress’s over reach of the commerce power. Much depends on the next appointee.
I hope you’re right about that.
Abbott and Paxton were the only Gov. and AG smart enough to find a way around the NFA since 1934. They and the Texas legislature pass a statute that gets around Congress’s authority to regulate interstate commerce; and now, Abbott and Paxton have instituted a lawsuit to enjoin the BATFE. Where are all the other governors and attorneys general?
Well you could make something stamped “Made in Idaho” if you lived there and be within all of their laws as far as the state Idaho cares but the Feds do and will prosecute in federal court so the state has no say so in reality.
15 years ago a pipe bomb was used to blow up my mail box. The FBI got involved. My garage is my workshop and hardware store and welding shop in one. Since my garage was open as investigators did their thing agents zeroed in on my metal stocks and scrap bin. In a heartbeat their focus became me as the bomber. ATF got involved and it became instantly clear they would use anything found as a basis to hang somone, guilty or not. If my daughter had not been dating a Deputy Sheriff at the time who was in my… Read more »
If don’t like the ATF then ask your congressional representative to cosponsor H.R. 3960 and vote for it. What does H.R. 3960 do you ask, it abolishes the ATF within six months of passing.
Good intel. And now would be a good time because elections are right around the corner!
“Some other advocates worry that these rejections are a sign of things to come from an increasing out-of-control agency.”
There were people stuck for their whole lives in the Gulag the whole time thinking that they were there due to some colossal mistake.
The ATF (or as The Big Guy calls them, the AFT), is likely doing exactly as he wishes.
What gives with autocratic “leaders” named Joe?
Who couldn’t see this coming?? They were being advertised on fakebook as a ‘solvent trap’ when in fact it was just a trap.
bet the atf was selling them
https://chng.it/MVnXpzCfZx
Buncha’ in-the-closet, panty-wearin, peter–puffers.
I’m curious how the ATK knows the applicant was planning on using a solvent trap/parts. Form 1 only asks caliber and length of proposed suppressor, not where parts are sourced.
So from what I have been seeing on youtube, By BATFE reasoning, the dimples in baffles and caps that indicate where to drill is considered 80%+ which requires an NFA transfer to be shipped to the end user. They are not considered a solvent trap. We all know the writing is on the wall for building firearms and suppressors at home. ” Ghost Guns are one of Sleepy Joe’s pet peeves. The infringements will only intensify as the mid-terms come and go.
Reread AFT’s response to your inquiry. They basically said that if you had made a suppressor registered with form 1, that if you used parts meeting their criteria – they reserve the right to hunt you down and prosecute you. Having an approved form 1 does not absolve you for purchasing parts which are NOW forbidden. They will say Habeas Corpus does not protect you because you are being prosecuted under laws which existed at time you committed the “crime”. All they have done is reinterpret and redefine. While I can see lawyers and judges accepting that argument. However if… Read more »
This will likely be included in the arguments when the Texas lawsuit against the ATF regulation of silencers goes forward. It shows the insanity of the ATF position.
https://www.ammoland.com/2021/07/texas-challenge-to-the-national-firearms-act-might-succeed-with-hb957/#axzz7MBcEBi8d
Has anyone brought this to AG-Paxton’s attention? They may or may not be aware of all implications of latest insanity/rant from ATF.
When the government fails to serve its citizens it becomes irrelevant and our government is a failure under the ilegitiment clownshow Joe Biden. We the people need to reject the current administration and the illegal alphabet soup agency the BATF . We the people need to clean out DC and eliminate all the Swamp rats . Let’s go Brandon #FJB
If a political candidate is not Pro 2A to the extent je will support repealing NFA et al and abolishing BATFE, he will not get my vote. John Cornyn must go, and Gregg Abbott has outlived his usefulness.
I’ve been voting against both of those traitors for years. Unfortunately, they keep getting elected.
Voting against Abbott in primary was fine. Please don’t vote against him in November as the alternate is infinitely worse.
A B S O L U T E L Y! Just say “no” to Robert Francis O’Rourke come November!
I don’t vote for Democrats if that’s what you’re thinking.
I agree with everything that you have said except the part about Abbott. Why do you say that Abbott has outlived his usefulness?
An unconstitutional agency doing unconstitutional stuff? Shocking!
Do I need to pay a tax to wear ear protection? No. So why is protecting my hearing taxed just because it attaches to the firearm? In fact, why is the 2nd amendment taxed at all? SCOTUS banned the Jim Crow laws that the Democrats created to infringe on the Black voter rights. That ban should extend to the 2nd Amendment also. No NFA “taxes” and no fees for concealed carry permits. No taxes on the purchase of firearms and ammunition.