Full auto parts

i am fairly new to the ar15 world and i was just wondering the parts that are all differnet between the semi auto version vs the full auto version and the price range for each

Firstly, be VERY CAREFUL - you can get in serious legal trouble putting some full-auto "M16" parts in a semi-auto "AR15" unless you have the proper Federal paperwork.

The parts that are different between an M16 and an AR15 are: trigger, disconnector, auto-sear and pin (absent in the AR15), hammer, selector and bolt carrier. Part prices are similar between M16 and AR15 parts, and in fact many of the M16 parts can be converted to be legal in an AR15.

Minimum price for parts is about $8k + $200 tax stamp. Very cheap if you like breaking laws and risking your freedom.

8K!? i never wouldve thought thats how much it would be...what about just buying an m16 and sbring it? any distinguished difference between the two and i dont plan on breaking the law thats y i came on here im not gonna touch it in the nfa or full auto sense til i know what im doing

Congress passed a law effective May 19, 1986 that said all machine guns were illegal for civilian ownership, but allowed that if you could prove it was made and registered prior to that date, it would be an affirmative defense against prosecution.

So today, the only MGs which civilians can own are those which were both made and registered prior to that date in 1986.

In the 24 years since the law passed, the number of available transferable MGs has shrunk ... and demand has gone through the roof, largely due to word spread on the internet.

A transferable example starts with ARs that were converted for the ban, now selling for $8k minimum, right on up through NIB factory Colt M16A1s which sell for $20k+.

A police agency can buy brand new Colt M4's for $800. You can't. Thank your Congressman.

so essentially the govt just made it so that the lower with full auto capability (for the most part identical) illegal or extremely expensive

They didn't make it expensive on its own, they just made it illegal to make any more full autos that can be transfered to civvies. So because people can't make any new ones, there is a set number of them out there, so that drove up the price of what is out there. But the price being driven up wasn't done by the .gov per say.

k so what is the process of obtaining the parts? is it treated like an sbr where i have i have to apply and wait... or can it be bought just like anything else? except it is really expensive

Well you are missing the point. You cannot machine your receiver and put in the new parts without a time machine going back 25 years. You have to find someone that is willing to sell a registered receiver or drop in auto sear that was registered before May 19, 1986. Drop in auto sears are not drop in. They have to be timed and lowers will require some machining.

The process is similar to buying a factory SBR. You apply and wait. Much more expensive though. A cheap registered receiver will run $8000 and an RDIAS will run $10,000+.

You are just not getting it. You cannot buy anything that was not registered before May 19, 1986. You cannot machine out your receiver and put a full auto trigger group in without spending 10 years in a Federal penitentiary.

Regardless of whether you buy the parts, you cannot legally install them in a non registered full auto. The parts are available for repair of existing, registered FA's.
You can buy an M16 registered lower or DIAS. That's it.

so lets say i want to do everything legally...u rnt getting the point im not trying to do this illegally thats y i came on here...i know i have to get the rr or rdias or maybe even a lightning link i would probably get a rr or rdias bcuz the lightning link (as i understand it) limits u to full auto...so i have to find a guy willing to sell his rrv or rdias which is y the prices are ramped up so much...and once i get him to agree to a sale i have to get the proper paperwork, wait for approval, and once i get approved buy the internal parts and i have a full auto ar15? correct

First things being first...this is just a heads up, not trying to attack you here so I hope that I don't come across as being harsh. It is generally preferred in the technical forums that you stay away from using text messaging shorthand. We try to conduct ourselves professionally and attempt to project a good "image" (especially in the class 3 forums). There are a great group of guys here with an unbelievable knowledge base but the tone set when someone comes in with very few posts and is "texting" the question can lead to questions about how genuine the poster really is. Again I'm not faulting you, just letting you know that it can help you get some better, more complete answers in my opinion.
Having said all of that, yes you have it about right.
Find someone who wants to sell you a gun that you are interested in.
Have it transferred to you legally by submitting the proper paperwork, fingerprints, photos, cash, etc to the federal government
Take possession of your new gun and go have fun at the range...(the internal parts will likely come with any registered receiver gun that you buy.)

Close.

If you buy a registered receiver, you don't have to buy any internal parts –– almost every registered receiver has been built up into either a complete lower, or a complete gun.

If you buy an RDIAS, then yes, once you have it in hand, you probably will need to buy the other full-auto internals to make it function in your host AR.

But your take on the process is correct: Find one for sale, negotiate a price, pay for it, then start the ATF transfer paperwork (a Form 4). Once ATF approves the Form 4, you can then take possession of the registered receiver/RDIAS.

that list is missing one thing. the lower receiver.

as for prices, all are about the same as AR15 parts except the receiver (that is the expensive part)

that list is missing one thing. the lower receiver.

as for prices, all are about the same as AR15 parts except the receiver (that is the expensive part)

i understand the process now and i see what u mean by my limited posts and such but i did only join a couple months ago and i spend most of my time reading the posts instead of putting in my own knowledge cuz honestly compared to some people i know nothing so thank u for letting me know the correct process

I bought a M16 RR received last year. The RR was over $8k, but the internal parts were less than $300 for brand new Colt parts. The parts to make the rifle full auto are relatively cheap and are about the same price is a normal AR15. The expensive part is getting a Legal Receiver to put the parts into.

The other thing you are missing is that semi-auto AR-15s are designed not to accept the full auto trigger group. M-16 receivers have a third hole and internal clearance for that trigger group. AR-15 receivers do not.

Umm you are incorrect! The full auto selector, Trigger, Disconnector, and Hammer, will fit into most all semi AR15s, as long as the pin size are the same which most are. The only clearance that is usually not done on almost every semi auto AR15 is for the Sear, hence as they say, people used to Form 1 and mill and drill their sear hole/area. The RDIAS doesn't require this milled out clearance, it requires a low shelf lower which about 40% of semi Auto ar15's are, and it also requires the auto FCG parts alread mentioned.

i just thought of another question...once i have everything done the right way and all that...can i switch uppers? to different barrel lengths and calibers (i understand it would have to be on the 5.56 platform no 308s or anything) but is that a hells ya or no go

If you buy a RR you can use any upper lnegth or caliber that you want. I have 3 different uppers for mine.

I've got 11 uppers at the moment for mine, in 5.56 and 9mm, and in five different barrel lengths.

so wait do u have to have a rr to have a lightning link? cuz if u put it in a normal one wouldnt it be illegal? and what do u do to get so many damn uppers?!

Under federal law, a machine gun can be either (a) a lower receiver, or (b) a part of set parts to convert a host semi receiver into a full-auto. So a lightning link, or drop-in-autosear, is a machine gun by itself, and must have been registered prior to '86 to be legal. It can be used in any semi host, because once it is removed, the host again fires only in semi.

As far as what I do to get so damn many uppers ... I just keep breathing, and that's about it. I bought my first AR in 1969, but have been playing with MGs since the 1960's, when they were actually worth less than their semi counterparts (because you could freely buy and sell semis, but MGs required the $200 tax and a long wait for approval). Plus, back then, you could not legally buy ammo by mail, and ammo in many MG calibers just wasn't available at the hardware store.

well i am only eighteen so i guess i shouldnt expect much of a collection of my own anytime soon...so would the lightning link work in a lr308? i think a full auto 308 would be rockin...and what about weapons outside of the ar15 world? how do u get aks and in my case a saiga 12 in full auto

ATF sez a registered "conversion kit" like an RLL or RDIAS must be used in the gun it was designed for, and the .308 version has a different receiver so no-go ... but market value now on a Beretta BM59 is about $7.5k, and that's a full-auto .308.

AKs, like all MGs, had to be converted prior to May 19, 1986. Saiga 12s had not yet been invented. In theory, I guess, you could buy a transferable AK (about $13-15k) and see if you can find a gunsmith to convert it to 12-ga using the AK's receiver –– it depends on if or how much the receiver would need to be modified. When you start modifying MG receivers, you need to get ATF's blessing, and more often than not, their answer is "No!"

ah ok so any full auto saiga 12s i have seen on youtube have been manufacturer firearms (i understand they can make them as they please) this damn law is pissing me off

Welcome to the club, you're in good company here...

haha i need a time machine with a compartment made exclusively to hold these lowers and go on a shopping spree

I tend to forget becasue it doesn't affect me, but is the age limit for NFA 18 or 21?

From a dealer: 21
Private sales or Form 1: 18

ya its the same way with handguns, 21 from an FFL but 18 from ur older cousin, plus you dont have to register it...for handguns its a no brainer but as i understand it you still have to register the NFA in your name if you buy it?

Your understanding of handguns is correct for some states - not all. Some still regulate that. Federally, you're spot on IIRC.

All NFA items are registered.

Not to mention that it's technically Unconstitutional and always has been. That is if you're literate and understand the meaning of "Shall not be infringed." But as we all know, the average literacy rate for Congress (and most other politicians for that matter) is -1.5%.

No one has brought up a legal challenge to the law, because in order for a court to hear it, you'd have to be sitting in a cell for the next 10 years due to an NFA violation and most of the people that ARE there for said reason are... well... the less than desirable type citizen.

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