Harmon Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 I know there are no laws forbidding it in texas, but what does the ATF say about installing a M16 bolt carrier in an AR 15 rifle? someone told me the possession of merely 1 M16 part showed the intent to produce a machine gun and it was a federal offense. anyone know otherwise? harmon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan 45 Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Until around '05, ATF considered this intent to manufacture a machine gun. For whatever reason, they changed their position (because it was stupid). Search around on the net and you'll find copies of ATF letters that state it is not illegal to use a M16 bolt in AR15s. Some manufactures even ship factory AR15s with M16 bolts now, I believe Colt is one such manufacturer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Sweeney Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Short answer: no one knows, and few care. If you write the ATF, they'll send "the letter": They will acknowledge your question or questions, cut and paste the boilerplate of the law as to what makes a firearm a machine gun, and then wrap things up by advising you not to break the law. They won't say yes or no, and they won't give you a number of parts that is kosher. Why not? Simple, they are vastly out-numbered. If they give an official opinion that you can lawfully use (fill in the single M16 part) or can use no more than 1-2 etc M16 parts, they have committed themselves. The next day, 100,000 experimenters will set out to make a "legal machine gun" using just the approved parts. Of all the parts, the carrier is the most innocuous, but if someone wants to make trouble for you, it is enough. Most shooters don't sweat it, and few bother about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmon Posted September 29, 2009 Author Share Posted September 29, 2009 they gonna need a search warrant to get the takedown pins out of my rifle im gonna go with a 16 bolt for my ar15 build. Harmon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SA Friday Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Harmon, if it's an consolation the ATF offices I have been in have a quick reference board for auto parts and I didn't see a BCG on there. Side note: yes, I made fun of them for having to have a reference chart to keep this stuff straight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfwmiket Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Ehh......show them your badge and it'll all be good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caspian guy Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Out of curiosity why the heavy carrier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmon Posted September 29, 2009 Author Share Posted September 29, 2009 easier to get at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Bond Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 easier to get at this point. And that is a turn around. There were not at all available for several months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Bond Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 Until around '05, ATF considered this intent to manufacture a machine gun. For whatever reason, they changed their position (because it was stupid). Search around on the net and you'll find copies of ATF letters that state it is not illegal to use a M16 bolt in AR15s. Some manufactures even ship factory AR15s with M16 bolts now, I believe Colt is one such manufacturer. And this is correct of how the ATF currently views this per my understanding. As a side note you might want to consider that the "stupid opinion" was the Clinton administration and the enlightened one was the Bush administration. To date Obama has not showed his hand unless you want to consider that in the entire federal system, we are now down to one lady in Chicago who approves class three transfers. Go figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck223 Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 Out of curiosity why the heavy carrier? The AR-15/M-16 gas system relys on both gas pressure, time that that pressure is applied to the carrier, and the mass of the carrier. If one element is altered, the whole system get's irritable. Guns running 20 inch barrels seem to be able to cope with lighter bolt carriers. As the barrel get's shorter, the lighter bolt carrier seems to allow the bolt to open a bit too fast, and extraction problems tend to increase. Since most of you guys are limited to 16 inch barrels, odds are you don't need the heavier bolt carrier, but it never hurts. If you try to build a 14.5 or 11 inch upper without a heavy bolt, good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmon Posted September 30, 2009 Author Share Posted September 30, 2009 im running a 16 inch. the other side is when the gun get dirty the extra weight will help the bolt go "home" Harmon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
photog Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 ar15.com this question is stickyed lots of places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EkuJustice Posted December 25, 2009 Share Posted December 25, 2009 I Run a 10.5 inch with a regular AR15 bolt and have never had a problem at all. I did put the extra power spring and oring in the extractor. That gun will run with a standard carbine buffer( usually run a spikes tactical H2 which smooths it out some). Ammo wise it runs anything from Xm193 to wolf without a bit of trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jobob Posted December 25, 2009 Share Posted December 25, 2009 Out of curiosity why the heavy carrier? The AR-15/M-16 gas system relys on both gas pressure, time that that pressure is applied to the carrier, and the mass of the carrier. If one element is altered, the whole system get's irritable. Guns running 20 inch barrels seem to be able to cope with lighter bolt carriers. As the barrel get's shorter, the lighter bolt carrier seems to allow the bolt to open a bit too fast, and extraction problems tend to increase. Since most of you guys are limited to 16 inch barrels, odds are you don't need the heavier bolt carrier, but it never hurts. If you try to build a 14.5 or 11 inch upper without a heavy bolt, good luck. Actually, if using the carbine length gas system, the 16" would need the heavier carrier even more than the 14.5 or 11. The gas port is located the same distance ahead of the chamber, thus the pressure would be the same, and the pressure would be applied over a longer time period because of the extra 1.5" of barrel in front of the gas port. IF the 16" has the midlength gas system, well, that changes things. That said, lots of short ARs seem to run just fine with AR carriers and standard buffers. btw, +1 on the Spikes buffer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve mac Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Here is "the letter" that the ATF sends out in regards to this matter. ATF letter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shay1911 Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 (edited) Please excuse the ignorance, but is the M16 BCG really heavier than the AR15? This is the M16 BCG from Spike Tactical, looks very light to me. What am I missing? Edited: Never mind, found my answer: Edited December 29, 2009 by Shay1911 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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