Page 46 - FAT 105 4.17 MOODLE

• Any Other Weapon (AOW) – Any
Other Weapons (AOW) are firearms
that do not meet the criteria of stan-
dard firearms. AOWs include items
that were never designed as firearms but
were modified to fire metallic cartridges.
AOWs are defined by the NFA in the
following 26 U.S.C. § 5845(E):

› Any weapon or device capable of
being concealed on the person from
which a shot can be discharged
through the energy of an explosive;

› A pistol or revolver having a barrel
with a smooth bore designed or rede-
signed to fire a fixed shotgun shell; Figure 16: An AOW.

› Weapons with combination shotgun
and rifle barrels 12" or more, less than
18" in length, from which only a sin-
is a generic term for a suppressor, as it
gle discharge can be made from either
does not completely silence the sound of
barrel without manual reloading; and
the cartridge being fired. Suppressors are
› Any such weapon which may be defined by the NFA in the following 26
readily restored to fire. U.S.C. § 5845(a)(7):

› Such term shall not include a pistol › For the purposes of the National
or a revolver having a rifled bore, or Firearms Act the term Silencer is
rifled bores, or weapons designed, defined in 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(24).
made, or intended to be fired from
› The term “Firearm Silencer” or
the shoulder and not capable of firing
“Firearm Muffler” means any device
fixed ammunition.
for silencing, muffling, or diminishing
AOWs include weapons like smoothbore pis- the report of a portable firearm,
tols that fire shotgun cartridges, specific lengths including any combination of parts,
of combination and drilling guns, and weapons designed or redesigned, and intended
such as pen/knife/cane guns. Placing a vertical for the use in assembling or fabricating
grip on a pistol converts it into an AOW and a firearm silencer or firearm muffler,
requires further NFA regulation. Like machine any part intended only for use in such
guns and SBRs/SBSs, AOWs are transferred assembly or fabrication.
with an ATF Form 4, or can be manufactured
Any device that reduces the report of a firearm
using Form 1. The transfer fee is much less at
one decibel (dB) for one shot is considered a
$5 instead of $200.
suppressor. Most suppressors reduce the sound
• Silencer/Suppressor – Silencers/sup- of the cartridge's discharge 20 – 30dB and bring
pressors are devices that reduce the re- the noise to a safe hearing level (typically below
port of the cartridge’s discharge. Silencer 130dB). Most suppressors are capable of being

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