Is this true?

[fuzzydice123]

The BATF has ruled against all foreign manufactured airsoft fake silencers as early as 1994. If they come apart readily or can be modified easily are 100% ILLEGAL. Any fake silencer ( for airsoft, toy or real weapons) having any void / cavity / open space on the inside where gas can accumulate it is 100% ILLEGAL in the USA. Any Airsoft Fake Silencer that has removable end caps is also 100% illegal to possess in the USA. Just possession of either an airsoft fake silencer tube or end cap (no matter the material of construction) is a felony which can land you in a Federal Penitentiary for up to 10 years.

So that basically says...that the silencer that comes with the TM SOCOM Pistol is Illegal, and other SOCOM Silencers?

Those are the only silencers I know of to be foam filled....and a few others... So that means that all those Police officers that play airsoft, and other law enforcers that play with replicas that have foam filled supressors, are breaking the law and risking losing their job?

Please correct me if im wrong. I may not have all my facts straight.

[Scarlet Army]

I don't think foam filled would be considered an open cavity... it is filled with something, that something being foam. And foam certainly wouldn't let gas accumulate.

Also, it seems like most, if not all, airsoft suppressors are a one piece product.

[fuzzydice123]

But on the Socom Silencers, there is like a..."outer barrel" that lines the inside rings of the foam...so the BB doesnt hit the foam, or something of the like.

[ebolavirus6]

i have a madbull halo silencer. its completely hallow. is it illegal then too?

[Scarlet Army]

But on the Socom Silencers, there is like a..."outer barrel" that lines the inside rings of the foam...so the BB doesnt hit the foam, or something of the like.

I don't think you are following the law. All suppressors in airsoft are barrel extenders. The BB can flow through on its own, or you can get a longer inner barrel and place it through the suppressor.

The law is making sure you can't take apart an airsoft suppressor shell, that has open space between the shell and the outer barrel... and then be able to modify it to serve as a home made suppressor for live weapons.

[Scarlet Army]

i have a madbull halo silencer. its completely hallow. is it illegal then too?

Is it a solid, one piece shell? As long as it cannot be taken apart, and then put back together again in one functional piece... then it wouldn't be a problem.

[fuzzydice123]

The silencer Im talkin about you can take it apart, and take all the foam out...and all that jazz...you can completely dissassemble it...

[Scarlet Army]

The silencer Im talkin about you can take it apart, and take all the foam out...and all that jazz...you can completely dissassemble it...

Then I guess you are going to jail. Make sure you write home.

Seriously, you wouldn't be able to buy it if it was illegal, and those silencers are still available right?

[yandle]

Airsoft suppressors that are filled with a sound suppressing material are illegal.

[fuzzydice123]

So why do people (like law enforcement) play with them, why do airsoft stores sell them...?

[yandle]

Because the BATF hasn't decided to crack down on them as they aren't a large potential threat.

[Scarlet Army]

Airsoft suppressors that are filled with a sound suppressing material are illegal.

That is not true. It has to be modifyable to be illegal. Otherwise, nearly all of the suppressors for airsoft would not be able for import into the country.

If you can not readily take it apart, modify it and put it back together... it is legal. Which should cover pretty much everything. Most airsoft suppressors are one solid piece, and if you disassembled it, it would not go back together in a serviceable form.

Really, the entire argument over the legality of anything airsoft starts with the ability to be modified to fire live ammunition.

[yandle]

M30) Are Paintball and/or Airgun Sound Suppressers NFA firearms?
The terms "firearm silencer" and "firearm muffler" mean any device for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencer or firearm muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

Numerous paintball and airgun silencers tested by ATF’s Firearms Technology Branch have been determined to be, by nature of their design and function, firearm silencers. Because silencers are NFA weapons, an individual wishing to manufacture or transfer such a silencer must receive prior approval from ATF and pay the required tax. See Questions M15 and 16 for application details.
If I have any further questions as to the classification of a paintball or airgun silencer, who should I contact?

Please send a written request to ATF’s Firearms Technology Branch.
[18 U.S.C. 921(a)(24), 26 U.S.C. 5845(a), 27 CFR 479.11]

[Scarlet Army]

M30) Are Paintball and/or Airgun Sound Suppressers NFA firearms?
The terms "firearm silencer" and "firearm muffler" mean any device for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencer or firearm muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

Numerous paintball and airgun silencers tested by ATF’s Firearms Technology Branch have been determined to be, by nature of their design and function, firearm silencers. Because silencers are NFA weapons, an individual wishing to manufacture or transfer such a silencer must receive prior approval from ATF and pay the required tax. See Questions M15 and 16 for application details.
If I have any further questions as to the classification of a paintball or airgun silencer, who should I contact?

Please send a written request to ATF’s Firearms Technology Branch.
[18 U.S.C. 921(a)(24), 26 U.S.C. 5845(a), 27 CFR 479.11]

I believe airgun, by this definition, is your pellet guns and those competitive air rifles. Rifles that are fired by the use of air or gas. Again, reading that, the KEY PART is that it has to be readily disassembled, modified and reassembled. There is no part of an airsoft suppressor that could be used in the assembly of a suppressor capable of firing live ammunition.

Lets just run through the key parts:

The terms "firearm silencer" and "firearm muffler" mean any device for silencing, muffling, or diminishing the report of a portable firearm.

Obviously, airsoft suppressor replicas can not do this. They don't have the necessary material and can not be attached to real steel weapons in their current form.

including any combination of parts, designed or redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a firearm silencer or firearm muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

No parts of the airsoft suppressors can be used, individually or combined, to make a suppressor capable of firing live ammunition.

[yandle]

"Rifles that are fired by the use of air or gas" under that definition, airsoft rifles would be an air gun. Most airsoft suppressors can be readily taken apart, but that still doesn't change the fact that if it can be screwed onto the front end of a firearm and change it's report by 1db it's still illegal to have without having it registered as a NFA item.