lemaymiami
Member
Noted that another thread on this topic was closed and thought that there might be a bit of info that ordinary shooters would like to know about that topic... Yes, there are a few firearms in general circulation that have the serial either removed or altered. All of them are prohibited and just possessing one is a criminal offense - both in federal and state law (my only state reference is Florida but I suspect that almost every state has similar laws on the books..). I'd be interested to hear if any particular state doesn't not have such a statute on the books.
Most (but not all... ) means of removing a serial number on a firearm can be defeated by a skilled forensic technician - and the original serial number can be restored (at least enough for a subsequent trace). I won't describe the one means of removing a serial number that is in fact permanent (at least not on a public thread...).
What I learned years ago was that the main reason that serial numbers were removed from a weapon was to conceal its origin and provide some cover for on-going weapon thefts. As already noted mere possession of a weapon with serial removed or altered gets the guy holding it a ticket to a prosecution - but that's not why the weapon had the serial removed in the first place generally... At least that's my take on it...
Most (but not all... ) means of removing a serial number on a firearm can be defeated by a skilled forensic technician - and the original serial number can be restored (at least enough for a subsequent trace). I won't describe the one means of removing a serial number that is in fact permanent (at least not on a public thread...).
What I learned years ago was that the main reason that serial numbers were removed from a weapon was to conceal its origin and provide some cover for on-going weapon thefts. As already noted mere possession of a weapon with serial removed or altered gets the guy holding it a ticket to a prosecution - but that's not why the weapon had the serial removed in the first place generally... At least that's my take on it...