09-15-2015, 11:51 PM
ztirffritz wrote:
[quote=Paul F.]Oh, and a legal tip - silencers for air guns that are the same diameter/caliber as firearm calibers are a legally "grey" area, particularly if you OWN a firearm of the same caliber (ie; a .22 cal air gun and a .22 caliber rifle). The ATF has prosecuted people on the assumption that they COULD have violated the law by attaching the silencer to a firearm, even though in other rulings by the technical department they have expressly said "air gun moderators don't count".
(Caveat: the case I recall COULD very well have been a "firearm design" moderator and the defendant was trying to "get away with it" by saying it was for an air rifle... )
This is drifting way off-topic, but when I researched this, the concern of the ATF was if the silencer could be used on a firearm. If you show that the airgun silencer has features intentionally designed to interfere with installation on firearms, then you're good. So reverse threads, non-standard thread pitch, building baffles that only work in a specific assembly, etc. are enough to satisfy the ATF. Local ordinances might trump the ATF stance though. New Jersistan for example has some particularly draconian rules.
With an air rifle, I have seen them "permanently" attached from the factory. That should get you off the hook. Just saying. You don't get the debris/lead build up like with a powder firearm.