question about legality of AR-15 parts

[nightrunner]

say that i have a 16" ar-15 rifle in 5.56mm. i also have a ar-15 7" pistol in 5.56mm. is it legal for me to buy a 10.5" upper for my pistol? my concern is that technically i could just as well put that 10.5" upper on my rifle and have an illegal SBR. but for that matter i could take the 7'' upper off my pistol and put it on the rifle.

basically what im asking is can you own an ar pistol and an ar rifle at the same time? and if you can, can you own multiple uppers for your pistol to use on the same pistol lower?

[Guest crotalus01]

You could also put the stock from the rifle on the pistol and have a illegal SBR that way. Constructive intent is a real bitch. Personally I wouldnt risk it, although I would guess the odds of it biting you are really slim...

[nightrunner]

i thought i heard once that you couldnt have the parts to "readily assemble" an SBR until you got your tax stamp back. basically you couldnt get your upper til you got your stamp. but i dont want a SBR, too much trouble for what its worth IMO.

[Guest crotalus01]

Really its not that much trouble, I have 3 tax stamps (2 silencers, 1 MG) - its just some paperwork, a $200 tax and a long wait. But you are correct, constructive intent is having the parts to be able to readily assemble an illegal weapon - HOW exactly they decide who and when to prosecute seeems to be a mystery to everyone.

Edit to add yes you must have the approved Form 1 before you can legally possess both the SBR upper and any lower that it can go onto. Hoping someone here will chime in about the OP as I am curious about it as well.

[nightrunner]

oh i definetely plan to get some stamps in the future for sound suppressors and possibly a MG if i ever could afford a quality one. but not worth it for a SBR IMO

[Reservoir Dog]

basically what im asking is can you own an ar pistol and an ar rifle at the same time?

Yes, you can own both.

...and if you can, can you own multiple uppers for your pistol to use on the same pistol lower?

Yes. The question you need to ask yourself is: Do I have a legal reason to possess the short-barreled upper? If the answer is yes, then you are fine. There is no law prohibiting owning multiple uppers for your AR pistol.

One caveat: If you do have multiple short-barreled uppers, I would make sure the you have a legal upper in place for all of your non-SBR rifle lowers. I am not sure if that is legally required, but it would be prudent in order to avoid any kind of constructive possession issues.

[Guest abailey362]

i'd probably also have 2 safes where these can be stored, and not sure if i'd taken em to the range at the same time. never know when someone might call the atf on ya at the range if they think yer pistol is a sbr. then you'd have some explainin to do