Overview
Building a short barreled rifle is a great way to enter the
highly popular market of NFA (National Firearms Act) firearms. It allows
you to save some money and in some cases get a more custom firearm in the end
that is exactly what you want. A popular process is to start off with a
pistol, such as an AR pistol, and make it into a short barreled rifle.
You will be able to keep and use your pistol in the current configuration while
you await your tax stamp. Part of the requirement of making a firearm on
an ATF Form 1, Application to Make and Register a Firearm, you will need to
mark the firearm with the manufacturer information, which in this case is you
or your trust if applicable. As a side note, when setting up your trust,
keep this in mind, as a lot of attorney's will not and will name your trust a
very long name (John William Smith and Samuel Charles Smith Revocable Firearms
Trust...) and that will need to be engraved on EVERY NFA gun you make.
NFA Engraving
Requirements
Your firearm will need to be engraved with your name or your
trust name, and your city and state. The
form 1 will allow you to use the current model and serial number, but your
information must be on it before you assemble it to be legal. The current engraving physical requirements
are not specified, so we generally engrave to the same requirement that are
required for the serial number which is no smaller than 1/16", and a depth
of .003". The marking must be done
on the frame of the firearm and we have the capability to mark steel, alloy,
aluminum, polymer, titanium, and most other frame materials. Since we use a laser engraving machine, we do
not generally have to clamp firearms down which can leave scuffs or marks, and
with most finishes leaves a cleaner engraving that can be paint filled for a
more "factory" looking finished engraving. Our process is also better for anodizing as
it will not chip like a diamond drag engraver.
Options
We are a full service custom shop with many capabilities. We are able to engrave logos, images,
designs, and other text on firearms while we have them. We also offer competitive cerakoting &
anodizing services that can be done
before or after engraving depending on how you want the final product to
look. A common option is to color fill
the engraving to make it blend in with the factory finish. Please read about our graphic requirements here.
Details
We ask that you strip the firearm as much as possible to
help save on shipping costs and disassembly/reassembly time. Depending on what we are engraving and where
you want it done, make sure that all parts blocking the area you want engraved
are removed. For AR's please remove the
takedown and pivot pin if possible. If
you have very specific requests please mark them with masking tape on the
receiver and notate in a letter or the order notes. We can use different fonts if they are
available, please specify in advance if you want a specific font. Additional charges may apply for firearms
that require additional disassembly or are larger than standard and require
additional shipping charges. We are an
FFL dealer so we can accept firearm shipments, and in most cases all firearms
you ship to us can be shipped directly back to you after engraving.
