Definitive short barrel/pistol grip thread

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Once we get some answers here can we please sticky this?

So, I've tried using the search and I've seen references in various threads but we still do not seem to have any definitive answer on this subject.

What is the legal status of taking an 8.5", 12", 14" etc. barrelled shotgun, removing the stock, and adding a pistol grip?

Most people are finding it hard to swallow that such a firearm would remain non-restricted; I am one of them. However I recall reading a post from CanAm stating that the CFC's own website states that adding a pistol grip is NOT considered "any other alteration" when referencing the regulations about reducing the overall length of a firearm. While we all know to take anything they say with a pound of salt, it is reasonable to conclude they would not publish such information without some measure of weight behind it. If nothing else it seems like good defense claiming the government themselves advised you it was okay. So...where exactly is this webpage???

I also recall reading that the Dlask-receivered 8.5" guns were reclassified to restricted, while pistol-gripped 8.5" Remington 870s that Dlask had rebarrelled themselves remained NON-restricted. Exactly the same gun with different provenances. I'm starting to see a trend here.

I would appreciate it if a knowledgable authority would weigh in on this supposition: A factory-built shotgun with an OAL under 26" is restricted. If an owner takes a factory built shotgun with an OAL over 26" and adds a pistol grip that reduces the OAL to under 26", it remains non-restricted as it does not involve sawing, cutting, or "any other alteration" by the government's definition. Yes?
 
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sorry to say there is mo answer to the question as there has not been a court case . the best advice is to leave the full stock on and save yourself a ton of grief .have you ever fired a light pistol grip shotgun .put a few heavy loads in it then you will be putting the stock back on.
 
I had a sheet from the frt disk that verifiers use. It was posted here once upon a time. It was under 870 pump type shotguns. Of course I can't find it now, but I also asked the technicians when I was getting something else verified. The gist of it was that The RCMP had decided that any pump shotgun with a factory barrel 16 inches or less combined with a pistol grip and an overall length less than 26 inches (or whatever that is in millimeters) would be considered a pistol and therefore restricted. They also told me that since it is considered a pistol that if you registered it as restricted that you couldn't change it back ever.(you can de restrict rifles but not pistols). Enforcement is another matter altogether. This has been flogged to death for years and as has been said it will take a court case to clear it up. I haven't heard of anybody being charged and if it was a gunnutz we would definately heard all about it. The general concensus lately has been that most people consider them restricted or are unwilling to take the chance. And like it or not, the average cop would take one look at it and arrest you on the spot and clear it up at your time and expense. And in grizzly country it may not get a second glance. Bottom line, you have to decide if it's worth the risk:nest:
 
Hmm. This is all sorta contrary to what CanAm was alluding to. How can we get them to weigh in on this?
 
from the FRT for reminngton 870

- this firearm is normally Non-Restricted unless affected by the following conditions:
1) by combining a barrel from a licensed firearms manufacture that is less than 406mm (16.0") in length and a receiver/frame fitted with a pistol grip only, this
firearm may be deemed a "handgun" and therefore "RESTRICTED" under the definition of "restricted firearm" in Part III/Firearms and Other Weapons of Section 84
(1) (a) of the Criminal Code of Canada.
- "handgun" means a firearm that is designed, altered or intended to be aimed and fired by the action of one hand, whether or not it has been designed or
subsequently altered to be aimed and fired by the action of both hands.
2) "a firearm that is designed or adapted to be fired when reduced to a length of less than 660 mm by folding, telescoping or otherwise" and therefore "Restricted"
under the definition of "restricted firearm" in Part III/Firearms and Other Weapons of Section 84 (1) (c) of the Criminal Code of Canada.
3) by combining a barrel that has been altered to less than 457mm (18.0") in length by a non-licensed firearms manufacturer (cottage industry, individual or
gunsmith) regardless of whether the shotgun has a pistol grip or conventional stock, this firearm is "PROHIBITED" and subject to the definition of a "prohibited
firearm" in Part III/Firearms and Other Weapons of Section 84 of the Criminal Code of Canada.
- "prohibited firearm" means a firearm that is adapted from a rifle or shotgun, whether by sawing, cutting or any other alteration, and that, as so adapted,
(i) is less than 660 mm in length, or
(ii) is 660mm or greater in length and has a barrel less than 457 mm in length.
 
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