Building my own barrel.....legality?

T

ThatM305Guy

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So I have ALWAYS wanted to try building and rifling a barrel from scratch. I'm a machinist by trade, but have never had the access to the appropriate equipment....that is until I stumbled onto some Chinese and Ukrainian rifling buttons on fleabay recently. Not that I have a gun drill, etc. But it's still possible to drill and ream something short and manageable.

I always assumed that as long as you weren't building receivers, or any otherwise regulated or prohibited devices (IE FA anything or suppressors etc.) That you could pretty much just go nuts.

However I was chatting with a buddy of mine today, and when I mentioned my desire to try something like this out, he sounded pretty skeptical and cautioned me to look into it before I got too crazy. This put some pangs of uncertainty and doubt into my mind....so.

Am I going to run into any legal issues? This is basically gonna just become a mantle/conversation piece, but you can never be too careful.
 
Have at it! Whatever the barrel screws onto is the controlled part. But, in some countries the barrel is a pressure-bearing part and controlled.
 
You can legally make any barrel you want to, except for an under 105mm handgun barrel.
With that single exception, barrels are unregulated.

If you are going to button rifle a barrel, you will probably need a hydraulic ram to pass the button through the barrel.
Cut rifling is an option worth considering.
 
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You can make a 1" barrel if you want. It is just a piece of pipe with grooves in it. If you cut threads on it so that it fits a certain receiver then it might qualify for a prohibited device. When I'm rebarreling a rifle I always cut a short chunk off each end of the blank and those throw away pieces aren't prohibited
 
Necro Monger said:
Couple thoughts. Call the RCMP and ask them. I’m sure they would be glad to help you.

My thoughts. If the barrel is over 18” you shouldn’t have any problems as it’s not restricted.
If you aren’t making a functional firearm and just for decoration. No problems at all as it’s not a firearm.
If your making it functional and under the barrel length then you definitely need to register it.
As far as I know you are allowed to make your own firearm. As long as your licensed and register it if need be.
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So much fail here...so much.
 
The only type of barrel with any law restricting possession or ownership is a sub-105mm handgun barrel. It's a prohibited device and individuals cannot get a license to possess a prohibited device, only grandfathered prohibited firearms. Other than that go nuts. If you attach a sub-470mm barrel to a semi-auto rifle, the rifle must be registered as a restricted. The detached barrel would not need any registration, not even a PAL.
 
tiriaq said:
You can legally make any barrel you want to, except for an under 105mm handgun barrel.
With that single exception, barrels are unregulated.
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This.

Go to town, as long as you don't make it too short it's just a piece of metal that anyone can possess and/or make.
 
Correct me if im wrong but a barrel under 105 mm is only prohibited if its attached to a frame. Only then does it become a prohibited firearm. Otherwise its a bare frame and a piece of pipe.
 
wos said:
Correct me if im wrong but a barrel under 105 mm is only prohibited if its attached to a frame. Only then does it become a prohibited firearm. Otherwise its a bare frame and a piece of pipe.
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No. The barrel itself is a prohibited device. Handgun barrels under 105mm are specifically mentioned in the regulations. (prohib regs not FA)
 
Been toying with this, sounds like fun, but there's more than meets the eye. First you need a deep hole drill set up to drill the barrel, Then it has to be reamed to the right size. Next you rifle it, followed by chambering and fitting to an action. I've seen Ron Smith's shop. :)

Grizz
 
Suther said:
No. The barrel itself is a prohibited device. Handgun barrels under 105mm are specifically mentioned in the regulations. (prohib regs not FA)
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Thats interesting i didn't know that so is my scrap bucket full of prohibited devices? (Yes im stirring the pot)
 
wos said:
Thats interesting i didn't know that so is my scrap bucket full of prohibited devices? (Yes im stirring the pot)
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Depends. Do you have a scrap bucket full of pistol barrels that are under 105mm? Seems to me it wouldn't be a barrel until one end is modified to make it compatible with a receiver? I would guess it doesn't need a chamber though, as barrel blanks aren't chambered for anything yet...?
 
wos said:
Thats interesting i didn't know that so is my scrap bucket full of prohibited devices? (Yes im stirring the pot)
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No. Pieces of pipe are not pistol barrels. Barrel offcuts are not pistol barrels. A pistol barrel is manufactured to fit a pistol. Try to wrap your head around it just this one time...
 
Just to clarify, I'm not even sure if I would even feel confident enough mounting my garage built barrel to anything, without fear of it blowing up...lol. Besides that, this crosses over into a completely new realm of now accurately cutting the chamber, which I've never done before. Not to mention that theres no way I could drill and ream a hole deeper than 7 or 8 inches and still maintain at least some reasonable level of concentricity. At least on the equipment I have, at this small of a diameter. (I was thinking maybe 9mm)

I suppose I could fit it to a 10/22 to avoid legal issues (I know Dlask makes 8.5" barrels for the 10/22) but again, we are in a whole new (albeit cool) realm. The weird thing is I actually dont own a .22 (yet)

In theory I could rig up a plate as the breach block, mount it to something solid, bolt it down, and then use a pin punch and hammer to set off the round, just for the sake of saying It works. But....then does my block of steel with a punch hole in it become a firearm? Do I have to send it to the lab? *brain explodes*
 
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if you are making a short barrel suitable for a handgun, you need to think about what cartridge you claim you will use in it. Keep in mind that all 25 cal handguns are prohibited. In the case of 32 caliber handguns, the prohibition is based on the head stamp of the cartridge and many 32 cartridges bullets are actually .308 - .311 diameter. On the other hand a wildcat cartridge using a 30 cal barrel is legal.
In terms of chambering, you can make a D bit reamer with an integral pilot; have the lathe turning slowly and clear the chips frequently as well as use lots of cutting fluid

cheers mooncoon
 
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