Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Converting Revolver to Rifle?

Does anyone know if it would be legal to convert a revolver into a rifle? The resulting product would have a 16.5" barrel and a stock semi-permenantly attached, perhaps on the order of a Thompson Center product. I scanned the BATFE website without luck.

It is not.

I dont see why it wouldnt be ok as long as it has the required barrel length and overall length.

Good luck though on not getting kissed by the flame coming out of the front of the cylnder everytime you shoot it.

Yes, it is legal......at least as far as the feds are concerned......state laws may vary. Overall length with the stock attached would need to be at least 26".....under 26" and it falls under the National Firearms Act "short barreled rifle" rules.

+1 on both.

One day at the range I was hit very close to my eye (wearing proper eye protection) because of the side-splatter from someone shooting a revolver in the next station; enough force to draw blood.

Its possible the lower frame, under the cylinder, would offer enough protection when shooting carbine-style, and there's no problem shooting revolver-style, ie. keeping the weak hand behind the cylinder, under the grip/trigger guard. The "pistol-grip" aiding shoulder and cheek welds, and retaining the EZ ability to fire single-handedly. Folding stock would be nice.

Saw this:

http://www.uberti.com/firearms/revolver_carbine_and_buntline.php

and this:

http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2011/02/17/izhmash-%D0%BA%D1%80-22-nagant-revolver-carbine-in-22-lr/

really like the looks of this:

http://www.gunblast.com/Taurus-CircuitJudge.htm

Just recently saw a post in another thread w/ photos of a factory-cut-down, lever-action "pistol" from Rossi:

http://www.rossiusa.com/product-list.cfm?category=17

Be sure to put on the longer barrel before you put on the stock.

The Feds went berserk over the issue regarding Thompson Center Contender and Contender firearms being convertable back and forth between long and handgun. But the courts ruled that the fact that they could be converted back and forth between Handgun and long gun did not violate any laws and was upheld. In PA where I live the way to go forward is to buy the firearm as a handgun( more restrictive in terms of law) and then get the goods to convert to a long gun. Your state may vary.

As stated above, I would be concerned about the gas leaking from the gap. I ruined a shooting rest bag the other with two shots from a .30 Carbine Ruger Blackhawk. Try shooting a revolver with your hand holding the ejector shroud if you want a potentially painful demonstration of what might happen if you were to convert a revolver to a rifle. I am not sure how Taurus gets around the problem with their revolving rifle.

Start with a Nagant and avoid burned wrists.

No, it doesn't - according to a response letter from BATF on the subject.

Here's a NAA Mini Bicycle Rifle, a fella over on RFC built:



Legally, there no difference between a non-folding rifle and a folding rifle - they're both rifles, perfectly legal as long as they meet the current Federal requirement of a 16" barrel length and a 26" OAL with any folding stock extended.

It's perfectly legal to convert a handgun to a rifle for one's own use, as opposed to converting for sale - No NFA status, no fees, no permits, no nothing.

What's NOT legal, w/o BATF permits/licences/tax/etc, is to either:

Convert a firearm originally manufactured as a rifle into a handgun
- or -
reconvert back to a handgun, a handgun that has previously been converted into a rifle.

BTW - There's no regulated minimum or "maximum" handgun barrel lengths.

It's not a rifle until a rifle buttstock, or the fitting(s) for the rifle buttstock, are installed on the handgun frame.

After a handgun's been converted into a rifle, it's no longer legally a handgun, even with the folding stock taken off for maintainence or repair - any more than (say) a Remington 700 would be with it's stock removed.



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44--Good post.

as for the escaping gas burning your arm, the rossi circuit judge long gun version seems to have solved that problem. it is seen in the sept 2011 edition of the american rifleman magazine.

Too bad he is wrong!!

You assume WAY too much here......your first mistake is to assume that I don't know what I'm talking about.....I can assure you, I have been playing this game for a LONG time.

1. I never said anything about a folding stock......however, a handgun with a stock attached and with an overall length of less than 26" is, by definition, a short barreled rifle. In the case of a folding or collapsible stock, overall length is measured with the stock in the firing position.





A handgun with a shoulder stock attached meets the legal definition of a rifle. If the barrel of said handgun is less than 16" in length, and/or the overall length of said handgun with stock attached is less than 26", it meets the legal definition of an NFA Regulated Short Barreled Rifle. PERIOD!

2. Yes, it is perfectly legal (under FEDERAL law) to convert a handgun into rifle configuration as long as the barrel is at least 16" long and the overall length is at least 26". However, state laws vary. You are correct, there is no federal minimum or maximum length for handgun barrels (except in the case of importation, then there is a minimum), however, don't forget, state laws can, and sometimes are MORE restrictive than Federal laws.

3. It is also legal to convert a handgun into rifle configuration and then convert it back to handgun configuration......at least that is the BATF interpretation as of July 25, 2011!

http://www.atf.gov/regulations-rulings/rulings/atf-rulings/atf-ruling-2011-4.pdf

Good post.

I asked and went through looking into this and got the opposite answers being given now, goes to show...

How did they solve the problem?

They built in a deflector, Notropis.

[You assume WAY too much here......your first mistake is to assume that I don't know what I'm talking about.]

You oughta take a chill pill, Gonhuntin - You've gone and got yer panties all twisted up WAAAAAY too tight.


[I can assure you, I have been playing this game for a LONG time]

oh, wow..... I've only been playing since 1959

.

Nice to see BATFE finally applied the Thompson/Center ruling to all firearms.

Maybe you ought to get your facts straight before telling people they are wrong!


So, you have been playing the NFA firearms game since 1959?? Prove it! Post a copy of one of your form 4s approved in 1959!