Quote Originally Posted by ExecDirector View Post
Nope... The crux of "NFA trumps 922(r)" belief is the AK letter that I mentioned. That belief is incorrect. NFA does not trump. SBRs/SBSs absolutely are subject to 922(r) unless all you are doing is shortening the barrel.

Your take is missing a key element: "prohibited from importation under section 925(d)(3)" [emphasis added] "as not being particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes." If it fails the sporting purpose test, it cannot be imported and that is what 922(r) sought to prevent: foreign weapons that could not be imported under a silly jihad that Congress cooked up and foreign companies or persons making an end run by assembling such weapons here. Basically, a protectionist scheme that serves no real purpose.

ATF had to resolve a conflict between the fact that NFA weapons, which are not illegal under Federal law to own, could in fact be made, even though, by definition, doing so would render said weapon unimportable because it does not meet the sporting purpose test. Yet a base gun, such as an HK USC, certainly is importable! So... They will let you cut the barrel ("assembly by reduction?") and turn it into an SBR with no issue. If you swap out parts, you are afoul of 922(r).

And while there are 922(r) prosecutions and convictions, it is not a lead charge because it is nearly impossible to prove. It's a bolt on offense for folks that are doing a lot of other really bad stuff at the same time.
I appreciate your insight. I do not even like to get near the grey area of the law and all my guns are 922r compliant whether they are NFA or not. Thank you for explaining it in a simple way and I hope it helps other potentially stay out of any trouble.