Traveling with Class III firearms

[Zundfolge]

I live in Colorado, and while I don't own any Class III firearms, I hope to someday (its legal here).

But lets say I want to take my Class III firearms with me to someplace like Knob Creek for a MG shoot. I'd have to drive across Kansas (which is a "no NFA for the serfs" state).

Is it legal for one to take their Class III firearms across state lines for the purpose of legaly using them when you get there? In states that don't allow its citizens to own them, are they trumped by any federal law that requires them to allow those who legaly own them to pass through their state unmolested?

 

[ACP230]

If your full auto firearms are Curio & Relic guns you can just take off and go to any state that allows FA for civilians.
If your guns are not C&Rs, you need to file a form with the ATF. I believe the number may be 5320. I understand that the form could be filed for Knob Creek and take in both spring and fall shoots. File early, and avoid having to beg the bureaucrats to fax the form to you.

Dealers may not have to file the form, but I am not sure about that.
Small Arms Review has covered this question. Info can also be found on the BATFE website. Bring a lunch, it's not the easiest site to move around on.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

You need to get prior approval from ATF to take NFA out of state prior to leaving, with the exception of suppressors and AOWs. No permission needed for them.

You can legally transport your NFA weapons from your residence to another location where it is also legal to possess the firearms. IIRC, it's the 1986 Protection Act that codifies this. Given that you will also be in possession of ATF forms stating it is legal to take your gun from one state to another state, you shouldn't have to worry too much about travelling through the non-NFA states.

 

[El Tejon]

Zun, yes to both.

 

[emc]

Zun, as a former Colo. resident, unless the laws have changed since I left, there are some municipalities that have ordinances on the books making possession of a selective fire weapon illegal. At that time, there were five or six communities, two of which were Bennett, and Johnstown. You might want to check out the current laws just to play it safe. Even if you don't live in one of those towns, life can be strange, and you may find yourself traveling through one of these communities while transporting.

FWIW,

emc

 

[Zundfolge]

emc, I live in El Paso county (Colorado Springs) ... one of those parts of Colorado where gun rights are respected so there are no additional restrictions on the local level (in fact a big todo was made in the local press when our local Sheriff said publicly that he had no problem approving suppressors for those who had sent in their NFA paperwork).

I didn't realise you have to have permission to leave the state with your MGs! Wow ... and the NFA type restrictions are what the antis want on ALL guns (at least to start with)!

 

[emc]

Good to hear from you, Zundfolge! My last address in Colorado was in Aurora. A friend and I had a bit of a scare one day, when he and I went out to do some "serious" shooting at a range near Watkins. On the way back, we stopped in Bennett, so that I could take some photos. (Nice fall day, and that sort of thing.) While I was doing this, the local town marshal comes rolling up to see what's going on. We have a nice chat, and I explain to him just why I thought the main grain elevator was photogenic, and then we started talking about just how rotten the Broncos were doing at that time. While I'm doing this my friend and I are sweating it out, since one of the guns we were shooting that day was his NFA registered MAC-10. It was sitting on the back seat of the car, underneath an old pillowcase. Needless to say, he and I were plenty nervous, since Bennett was one of those towns mentioned in my earlier post that (at that time at least) had made possession of selective fire weapons illegal. We hadn't stopped to consider where we were until that point. The marshal was a nice guy, but we were glad when we finished our chat with him and he drove off and we left the town limits behind.

Anyhow, that's my story on how we innocently ran afoul of local law, and "lived" to tell of it.

FWIW,

emc