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tc contender advice

j3081
hi,,,have owned this gun(pistol) for about 12 years,,,it is a tc contender super 16 in 35 remington (barrel actually measures 16 and 1/4"),,,i bought this in the pistol format and it is registered as a pistol,,,now,i have talked to the ATF years ago about putting a stock on it and they said as long as the barrel was 16" or over it was legal,if it was 15 and 15/16,10 years in jail and a $10,000 dollar fine,,,now,i'm thinking about selling it with both a stock and the original grips,,,should this be sold as a handgun or a rifle,,,i would think a handgun being that different size barrels can be installed,,,any help would be appreciated,,,thanks
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Comments

10 comments

Date Votes
  • grizzclaw
    I would sell it as a handgun. But that's just me. I don't know what the law thinks.
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  • Spider7115
    Once a handgun, always a handgun.
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  • j3081
    hi,,,i believe too once a handgun always a handgun,,,is it legal to put a handgun frame in a shouldered stock as long as it is over 16",,,thanks
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  • dcs shooters
    It's legal with a Contender as long as it was registered as a handgun first. I have switched one of mine between a super 14-223 and a rifle stock and 20" barrel.
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  • DEEREHART
    I am not trying to be argumentative but... with a contender does it really matter? The gun was made to have interchangable bbls. I have purchased individual frames never knowing how they were originaly configured. Should I be worried about using pistol bbls on unknown frames?
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  • rufe-snow
    quote:Originally posted by DEEREHART
    I am not trying to be argumentative but... with a contender does it really matter? The gun was made to have interchangable bbls. I have purchased individual frames never knowing how they were originaly configured. Should I be worried about using pistol bbls on unknown frames?


    I believe that their is a requirement that manufacturers have to keep record of the serial numbers of the firearms they have sold. Because TC has already been involved with the feds in litigation regarding this matter. My WAG is that the feds have access to the serial number(s) of the Contenders sold as stocked long guns. To make a long story short if you don't know specifically if the frame was originally sold as a rifle or pistol and T.C. can't or won't tell you? Assume that it was originally sold as a rifle to keep yourself out of potential trouble with the feds.
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  • dfletcher
    quote:Originally posted by Spider7115
    Once a handgun, always a handgun.


    That's not true - unless you meant to type "once a rifle, always a rifle"? It is of course perfectly legal to reconfigure a handgun as a rifle, so long as it remains in that configuration.

    I guess I'll be a bit lazy for now because I've posted the ATF letter here before, however once a handgun is configured as a long gun it can not be reconfigured as a handgun. The only exception is a firearm (US v T/C 1992) sold by the manufacturer as a kit which contains a single receiver and the parts required to assemble a legally configured handgun and a legally configured long gun.

    There's a practical aspect to this. If the OP configured his T/C handgun as a rifle then again as a handgun and no one was the wiser - if the only "documented" configuration was a handgun - I suppose no one will care or know if it's sold as a handgun. But I would sell it as either a handgun or a rifle only and include only those parts.
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  • tsr1965
    As dfletcher stated, the switching back and forth LEGALLY, only applies to the T/C Contender Carbine Kits that they sold. You can make a rifle out of a handgun frame, as long as the 16" or longer barrel is on the frame first, before you put the shoulder stock on. However, then it does in fact legally become a rifle, and to put a shorter than 16 inch barrel back on it, without the BATFE tax stamp for an SBR, would be a felony.

    Does a lot of people do it anyway, or not knowing?...sure they do.


    We have been thru this dance several times here on this forum. Use the search function, and look it up.

    Best
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  • dfletcher
    quote:Originally posted by tsr1965
    As dfletcher stated, the switching back and forth LEGALLY, only applies to the T/C Contender Carbine Kits that they sold. You can make a rifle out of a handgun frame, as long as the 16" or longer barrel is on the frame first, before you put the shoulder stock on. However, then it does in fact legally become a rifle, and to put a shorter than 16 inch barrel back on it, without the BATFE tax stamp for an SBR, would be a felony.

    Does a lot of people do itanyway, or not knowing?...sure they do.

    We have been thru this dance several times here on this forum. Use the search function, and look it up.

    Best


    Just a follow up. Since 1992 ATF's position was that only those kits sold by T/C way back when were OK for reconfiguration, however late last year ATF expanded that to any kit bought whole from a manufacturer. T/C could do a reissue and more interestingly, the same package could be offered for an AR 15 - although going back & forth would be more involved than the quick switch T/Cs.
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  • GuvamintCheese
    Thompson really messed with them making stocks and 2-1/2" barrel extensions for there pistolas.
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