"Remil" Restrictions?

Hi, I've recently purchased an Chieftain MK5 from the U.K. and would like to restore the gun as much as is legally permisable. The breech ring has been cut in half in accordance with ATF regulations and there's a big hole in the barrel. I'm more concerned about the breech ring as it provides the counter balance for the 120 mm gun.

I've been getting answers all over the spectrum from: "you can't do anything" to "it's OK to weld it all back together because it can't fire anyway". I tried contacting ATF a few times but I guess they ignore emails and phone calls if you're trying to stay legal.

Does anyone here actually KNOW what I can do and provide some documentation or other evidence to support that? Ideally, I'd love to weld it all back together, even if I had to leave some gaps to prove it's non-firing, but if I can't do that, I can fabricate something that will at least provide the counterbalance. Thanks!

You'll need to file a Form 1 for a destructive device and await it's approval for it to be functional/legal again. FWIW, I'm a FFL 07/ SOT 02.

OK, that's a possibility but what can I do if I don't want to recertify the gun? Presumably that would make it harder to sell some distant time in the future too.

Post pictures. With the hole in the barrel the gun could never be fired again because the holes are typically in the chamber area

quickfarms said:

Post pictures. With the hole in the barrel the gun could never be fired again because the holes are typically in the chamber area

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This has nothing to do with the law. You cannot reassemble the breech, even welded into a lump, without an approved Form 1. I have dealt with the BATF&E for 25 years on this topic, which has changed over the years.

B3.3T said:

This has nothing to do with the law. You cannot reassemble the breech, even welded into a lump, without an approved Form 1. I have dealt with the BATF&E for 25 years on this topic, which has changed over the years.

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So how does this explain the tens of thousands of "replica" guns that have been made from demilled parts? I'm sure the stens, sterlings, and such that are out there welded up on blank tubes didn't have form-1s filed. My conversation with the local branch agent a couple years back was summarized as 1) once a receiver is demilled by cutting in half, it is destroyed and has no different classification than any other lump of metal. 2) you can make a non-operational replica weapon as long as it can not be "easily" converted to a firing weapon (often incorrectly called 80% rules).
If you had a weapon that wasn't destroyed by cutting but was just welded up, I imagine you could be looking at very different rules.

I know this isn't the answer to your question but I wonder if you could just have a 'lump" of mild steel machined to look like the breach and weld that onto the back end of the gun tube? Wouldn't function but would look the part. Kind of like those solid MG34 machinegun dummy receivers that people build display guns on.

Matt

Going through the Form 1 process might be best. The breech ring is the controlled device, so if you decide to sell it later, and the new owner doesn't want the hassle, then the breech ring could be removed. If it were mine that would be the process I would take, and who knows, with some barrel work, you might be able to fire something in it one day just for fun.

Outside of that, you could like take a block of steel, machine it to receive the barrel, and reinstall that portion. There are plenty of solid receiver rebuilds in the US market that are non-firearms.

Make an appointment at the local ATF weapons office , get the skinny from the enforcement agency first and foremost !

Jericho said:

Make an appointment at the local ATF weapons office , get the skinny from the enforcement agency first and foremost !

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And any verbal statements are as binding as the paper they're printed on....

98G said:

And any verbal statements are as binding as the paper they're printed on....

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You won't get anything in writing from a IOI, unless he's writing up infractions or a report for you being charged with a crime.

As mentioned earlier the breech ring is what would be the item needing to be serialized and a manufacture (yourself) and the city/state you reside in. It will also need the caliber listed on it. As to the other "prop" gun questions. The ATF defines a Firearm/AOW/DD as having a receiver. You can own all the parts to just about any firearm (title 2) minus whatever has been deemed a receiver. Most prop/dummy guns have a "receiver" that isn't capable of accepting all the parts needed to become a firearm, or has blocking provisions made into it.

One other thing to consider. It takes months for Form 4's to transfer. If you sell it to someone out of state, then you'll need another FFL in that state to accept the transfer. This takes some time alone as well. And it's $200 on top of the $200 the buyer will have to pay in their state.