Dirty Bob
Member
Good evening,
I'm wondering if anyone here has seen any cases, ATF letters, or anything that might indicate that a homemade brace for a pistol is legal.
Here's the background:
I want to use a Ruger Charger .22LR (non-takedown) as a general purpose .22, and I was considering a PMACA chassis, paracord wrapped buffer tube, and a riflescope as the setup. However, I would really prefer a collapsible wire stock, like was used on the French MAT-49, the US M3 Greasegun, and the Vietnamese K-50M. I'm thinking about how it would be fun to make my own chassis -- just an aluminum channel made from sheet metal about 2mm or 3mm thick, with a solid piece of aluminum at the back, like a trunnion in an AK. I'd probably do an AK-style pistol grip, too. The wire brace would give me a compact and very inexpensive way to steady the gun.
The collapsible brace can be made with a very narrow "butt" -- just a folded piece of wire -- which should make it easier to use the brace with a strap on my forearm. If this looks too much like a stock, the "butt" could be eliminated or reduced to just an inch or two on the end of the sliding "extension." Alternatively, I could modify the end of the collapsible wire to allow use of something like a Tailhook brace, which does have an ATF letter associated with it.
I haven't seen any homemade braces, but is that something that I'd need an ATF letter to do? I'm hoping for something fairly tangible, like an ATF opinion or letter.
I don't want to create an SBR accidentally. The cord-wrapped tube is acceptalbe, but a sliding wire brace just seems like a better solution for me.
All my best,
Dirty Bob
I'm wondering if anyone here has seen any cases, ATF letters, or anything that might indicate that a homemade brace for a pistol is legal.
Here's the background:
I want to use a Ruger Charger .22LR (non-takedown) as a general purpose .22, and I was considering a PMACA chassis, paracord wrapped buffer tube, and a riflescope as the setup. However, I would really prefer a collapsible wire stock, like was used on the French MAT-49, the US M3 Greasegun, and the Vietnamese K-50M. I'm thinking about how it would be fun to make my own chassis -- just an aluminum channel made from sheet metal about 2mm or 3mm thick, with a solid piece of aluminum at the back, like a trunnion in an AK. I'd probably do an AK-style pistol grip, too. The wire brace would give me a compact and very inexpensive way to steady the gun.
The collapsible brace can be made with a very narrow "butt" -- just a folded piece of wire -- which should make it easier to use the brace with a strap on my forearm. If this looks too much like a stock, the "butt" could be eliminated or reduced to just an inch or two on the end of the sliding "extension." Alternatively, I could modify the end of the collapsible wire to allow use of something like a Tailhook brace, which does have an ATF letter associated with it.
I haven't seen any homemade braces, but is that something that I'd need an ATF letter to do? I'm hoping for something fairly tangible, like an ATF opinion or letter.
I don't want to create an SBR accidentally. The cord-wrapped tube is acceptalbe, but a sliding wire brace just seems like a better solution for me.
All my best,
Dirty Bob
