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+--- Thread: BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts (/showthread.php?tid=13016)
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - explorecaves - 03-20-2017
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017/03/20/wipes-silencer-parts/
In a decision that could have broad implications throughout the silencer industry as well as with shooters/consumers, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (BATFE or ATF) has notified silencer manufacturer Dead Air Armament that the wipes used in their Ghost M silencer is a silencer part. News came to me from fellow blogger Nathan at ModernRifleman.net, who reported on an informational post on Dead Airs Facebook page stating the company will discontinue sales of the rubber insert immediately.
Historically, the ATF has viewed wipes made of rubber or other disposable materials not to be silencer parts, making them replaceable by the end user. Replacing actual silencer parts, no matter how small, can only be accomplished by an FFL/SOT.
At this point, it is unclear why the ATF has decided to reverse their opinion on a nearly 20 year old issue. Once used in a variety of now dated silencer designs, the wipe has seen a limited resurgence as of late in modular suppressors and small silencers that require the use of an ablative media (wet) for increased noise reduction.
FROM DEAD AIR VIA FACEBOOK:
Please read regarding Ghost 45M
Valued Dead Air customers, dealers and wholesalers,
Last week, we were notified by the BATFE that they consider the accessory aperture wipe on our Ghost 45M suppressor to be a silencer part. We presented them with the Bardwell ATF opinion letter (http://www.titleii.com/bardwell/atf_letter66.txt)* that is commonly used as justification for the use of wipes and replacement of wipes in silencers by their owners. This morning, we were informally notified that the BATFE FTB does not share the opinion of the Bardwell letter regarding wipes not being silencer parts, and asked that we take immediate corrective action. As such we are immediately discontinuing the sale of accessory wipes for that product. The aperture wipe for the Ghost has always been an optional use item. We have consciously decided NOT to pursue the issue with FTB, as the resulting opinion letter, based on the informal notification to us, may have a potential negative impact on ALL owners of suppressors that utilize wipes in the design.
Moving forward we are conducting research on a wipe constructed of a more durable material, that will be included with the Ghost 45M. Extra or additional wipes will not be available for sale. Other options and clarifications are being sought as well.
Dead Air has developed and will release a new linear compensator product for handguns and submachineguns that will lead to cross compatibility with some Ghost accessories, including pistons, fixed mounts and caliber specific caps.
We appreciate the support of our customer, dealers and wholesalers, and will continue to bring innovative, quality products to the market. If there are any questions regarding this issue or any questions about our products, please contact us at info@deadairsilencers.com,
Thank You
Gary Hughes
Director of Sales
Dead Air Silencers
ATF 1999 BARDWELL LETTER REGARDING WIPES
In regard to the two parts in your cited example, we consider a
baffle to be a silencer, but a wipe, which is usually nothing more
than a rubber or plastic disc with a hole in it, is generally not
considered to be a silencer. Thus an individual owner could
replace a wipe.
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - Sticks - 03-21-2017
Anyone still think that the Noise Reduction Act is still gonna' happen?
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - LRRPF52 - 03-21-2017
I know a place in the Federal budget where we can shave a clean $1.2 billion annually.
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - Red Dawn - 03-21-2017
Absolutely ridiculous. So it's legal to sell solvent traps with non ported baffle inserts but you can't sell a rubber wipe to clean your approved suppressor with I'm confused.
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - VASCAR2 - 03-22-2017
Fat bloated government run amuck in a sea of waste and miss management.
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - barnbwt - 03-22-2017
If the rubber wipes were similarly incomplete (i.e. no hole, and Dead Air wasn't also selling complete cans) there would be no issue. The ATF is basically opting to treat disposable baffles (which is what wipes are) as nondisposable baffles after two decades to the contrary. Previously, they'd recognized that the NFA process led to a ridiculous result if these wipes were considered silencer parts, to the point that the common wipe-based tech of the day was essentially forbidden (a dozen shots every 6-8 months at best), so they exercised their regulatory discretion in a way that made more sense for a product to be marketable; only the 'permanent' parts of the can were regulated.
I suspect this move was to 'head off' future polymer baffle tech that rivals metallic designs, so a 3D printed or cast-silicone monocore stack could not be claimed as a 'wipe,' or possibly even the notorious oil-filter setups (I know the filter itself is treated as the can at this time, but it could be argued in court that its durability is poor enough to be counted as a wipe, especially considering you first shoot through the thing to activate it, exactly like a solid wipe). The effect is to force those few companies employing wipes, or ablatives/meshes more generally, into the unpleasant position of selling products made unmarketable by regulation.
Thankfully the industry is not nearly so reliant on this technology as it was in the 80's, so the impact won't be quite as painful for the consumer or home builder.
TCB
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - davidj - 03-22-2017
LRRPF52 Wrote:I know a place in the Federal budget where we can shave a clean $1.2 billion annually.
+1
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - The Profit Joseph Sith - 03-23-2017
LRRPF52 Wrote:I know a place in the Federal budget where we can shave a clean $1.2 billion annually.
Precisely what i was thinking... +2
BREAKING: ATF Decides Dead Air Wipes Are Silencer Parts - mongoosesnipe - 03-24-2017
i have "not" heard stainless steel fender washers make fantastic baffles