imported post
this is what I have learned from my personal research into the subject. the only reason that AR pistols aren't considered SBRs is the fact that the factory didn't design them to be fired from the shoulder. according to §5845., a rifle is classified as:
The term “rifle” means a weapon designed or redesigned, made or remade, and intended to be fired from the shoulder and designed or redesigned and made or remade to use the energy of the explosive in a fixed cartridge to fire only a single projectile through a rifled bore for each single pull of the trigger, and shall include any such weapon which may be readily restored to fire a fixed cartridge.
Basically, if it was classified as a rifle by the factory, no matter what you do to it, it's still a rifle.
now since a pistol isn't covered by teh NFA, except as an exemption( but never fear, teh GCA and other federal laws still exist to infringe upon our rights), then exactly what is a pistol is a little cloudier. since an AR pistol wasn't designed from teh factory to be shoulder fired, it is neither a rifle, an AOW, or a "firearm" in the NFA sense of teh word.
the catch .22 is taht If you were to put a stock on it, or the forward pistol grip thet LEO mentioned, then according to teh cited law, it has been re-designed as a rifle, and therefore subject to the SBR laws.
basically, a rifle can't be converted into a pistol ( without feeding the IRS) but a pistol can easily be converted into a rifle.
btw Springerxd, unless I'm mistaken, AR pistols aren't classified as AOWs since they have a rifled bore ( therefore not a sbs) and they weren't designed to fire from teh shoulder, therefore not an SBR. theweapons posted are considered AOWs because they have a smooth bore. now as mentioned earlier, the forward pistol grip would make them an AOW because it is a rifle accessory.
got a headache yet? I get one every time I have to read through the god-forsaken thing.