[kablam]

Two dewat Japanese machine guns sold at Julia today for about $2k each. They were missing just about all of the internal parts. I was wondering if you have an illegal MG, can you buy a gun like this an just "renumber" the serial on the illegal MG?

 

[GUNHEEP]

Hell no...but just take out the internal parts and use them in the registered gun

 

[kablam]

I guess I should have re-phrased that. More to the point, how would the ATF ever know and why would they care?

 

[bmg17a1]

You already know the answer to this......There are four individuals currently being prosecuted by ATF for a variation of this type of proposition: transferring serial numbers from registered weapons that were very cheap to newly made weapons that had much higher values. Transferring a registered serial number to an unregistered MG is "manufacturing" a 'new MG', which was prohibited by law on May 19, 1986. Not to mention the issue of removing a serial number, which is a felony, among other equally felonious issues.
ATF would have great difficulty discovering such a transposition, but with the help of Murphy, it is entirely within reasonable probabilities. The discovery of the activites of the four defendants attests to Murphy's expertise.

Bob Naess

 

[kablam]

I did not know about the four people, but I can imagine such a situation. And I assume it happens. I was thinking about the stens made in the 80's and guns that have side plates where there would be almost no way to tell or any real difference other than aesthetics. I did not know about the serial number issue being a felony. I've seen guns at gun shops that were purchased by them with the serial number removed and they stamped numbers on them.

I realize it's the ATF and it's a different world.