Form 1 (SBR) Engraving Requirements

[Ryno12]

That's purely my opinion, but I haven't seen a statute that would lead me to believe otherwise.

ETA: to be clear, that's "my opinion" in regards to the engraving question...ATF has clearly stated the gun can be reconfigured (for reselling, hunting, interstate transport, etc) and is not under the purview of the NFA regs, so that's not in question

ATF states that on their NFA FAQ. If a weapon doesn't have a barrel shorter than 16 inches, it is not under their purview regardless of how the receiver is "registered" with the NFA Branch. 16 + inch uppers would not need to be engraved.

SCOTUS states that too, so I think it is a safe bet.

Thanks for clarifying guys. I did read that in the NFA FAQ pages along with various NFA stickies here, which is where I got the idea to only engrave the uppers. My confusion came when reading this thread, more specifically AC's post #20. Then I reread BigWaylon's EForm sticky and his post about engraving. Towards the bottom it says:


"...That simply means if you choose to engrave on an AR upper or barrel, you'd have to engrave every upper/barrel you plan to use. That's why most will engrave the lower receiver..."

I originally understood the above to mean only the SBR uppers need to be engraved, then AC's post & a couple others made me start doubting my understanding.
So AC (rest his soul) was incorrect?

It makes me wonder why engraving uppers/barrels isn't more popular? Not that I ever plan on selling a registered lower but it elevates the devaluing of the lower, along with hassles of shipping one to be engraved.

[BigWaylon]

...more specifically AC's post #20.

I originally understood the above to mean only the SBR uppers need to be engraved, then AC's post & a couple others made me start doubting my understanding.
So AC (rest his soul) was incorrect?

It makes me wonder why engraving uppers/barrels isn't more popular? Not that I ever plan on selling a registered lower but it elevates the devaluing of the lower, along with hassles of shipping one to be engraved.

It's incorrect, or poorly worded.

The reason you engrave a lower is that you only have to engrave once. If you ever decide to get out of the NFA game, you sell the (unmarked) uppers. Attach at least a 16" upper and you have a functioning AR that just happens to have your name engraved. If you ever decide to go the SBR route again, your lower is still registered and all you have to do is buy/build a new upper.

As cheap as lowers are, there's not much demand for a used one, whether engraved or not.

[Ryno12]

It's incorrect, or poorly worded.

The reason you engrave a lower is that you only have to engrave once. If you ever decide to get out of the NFA game, you sell the (unmarked) uppers. Attach at least a 16" upper and you have a functioning AR that just happens to have your name engraved. If you ever decide to go the SBR route again, your lower is still registered and all you have to do is buy/build a new upper.

Understandable.
In my case, I'm not a fan of swapping uppers so I'll have an upper for each lower which means the amount of engraving will be the same either way.

As cheap as lowers are, there's not much demand for a used one, whether engraved or not.

Sure, right now they are. Post SH panic was bringing $3-4k for complete Colts. God forbid that happens again, but that just might be enough to entice me to off-load some guns.

Ultimately, I just want a clear understanding of my options available to me. I see pro's/con's to both. Thanks.

[BigWaylon]

All mine are dedicated builds as well. Only swapping I'll do is to the two pistol lowers I keep handy just in case.

[hotrodder636]

Tagged for following and tracking.

[Jupiter]

Most people don't go throught uppers like water. At $32.00 for high quality engraving, it doesn't really matter for me either way.