Since this is coming up a lot, I want to give some insight into the regulation of fully-automatic firearms in the United States.
Show this thread
-
In practice, while there are several hundred thousand legally-registered fully-automatic firearms in the US, they're very hard to obtain.
Show this thread
Beyond the registration process, which can take up to 9 months to complete, the price of fully-automatic firearms is extremely high.
-
-
The low end of the fully-automatic firearm market is around 5 figures per gun. I've seen fully-automatic firearms in the $300,00+ range.
Show this thread -
A fully-automatic rifle that might have only cost $500 to produce sells for $20,000-$30,000 on the civilian market now because of the 86 ban
Show this thread -
There are also regulations on how you can transport legally-registered fully-automatic firearms across state lines.
Show this thread -
Civilians must apply for permission from the ATF to take their fully-automatic firearms across state lines. This tends to take months.
Show this thread -
Here is more on transporting NFA items across state lines:https://youtu.be/5ebNq8g87XE
Show this thread -
Of course, if you have the necessary knowledge, you can illegally modify semi-automatic firearms to be capable of automatic fire.
Show this thread -
The criminals in the North Hollywood Shootout used illegally-modified fully-automatic rifles as they robbed a Bank of America branch.
Show this thread -
Local law enforcement and the ATF have not yet announced details on the firearms used by the shooter in Las Vegas.
Show this thread -
As of April 2017, the ATF has 630,019 fully-automatic firearms in its NFA registry. You can download their pdf here: https://www.atf.gov/resource-center/docs/undefined/firearms-commerce-united-states-annual-statistical-update-2017/download …
Show this thread -
The Small Arms Survey estimates there are more than 300 million civilian-owned firearms in the US. Makes full-autos about .2% of the total.
Show this thread -
Note on the ATF report: the ATF labels all fully-automatic firearms as machineguns. They don't make distinctions between classes of guns.
Show this thread -
Also, as I understand it, the ATF numbers on registered machineguns include those owned by licensed manufacturers.
Show this thread -
Licensed manufacturers are still allowed to make & possess post-86 machineguns but can't sell them to non-licensees. https://www.atf.gov/firearms/qa/may-private-citizen-register-firearm-not-previously-registered-national-firearms …
Show this thread
End of conversation
New conversation -
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.