A gun barrel is an important part of a firearm, to be sure. Yet, while Congress could have decided the barrel was to be the regulated part of a firearm, they chose the receiver to be the key item. That's good, because upgrading barrels--or even just replacing them for other reasons--happens for a variety of reasons.
But in Colorado, they seem to think you should have to get a background check for a metal tube.
After all, the state Senate just passed a bill that would require you to go to a licensed gun store to get a barrel for your firearm, then go through the whole process of buying a gun just to get a replacement part.
A bill requiring gun barrel purchases in Colorado to be made in-person at a firearm dealer passed the state Senate on Monday.
The legislation is now going to the House for consideration.
Senate Bill 26-043 would additionally ban individuals from possessing barrels “with the intent to sell or transfer." The bill adds criminal penalties for violators and would require firearm dealers to track sales.
SB 26-043 passed 19-16 on third reading, with four Democrats joining the Republican minority in voting against it.
Of course, anti-gun Democrats in the state Senate talk about the changing industry or whatever, but the truth of it is that this will accomplish absolutely nothing.
First, let's keep in mind that barrels aren't serialized parts. As a result, enforcement of this is going to be impossible. When you arrest someone for having a privately made firearm that they shouldn't have, you won't have any way of knowing how they got the barrel. Did they get it from out-of-state? Did they get it lawfully somehow? Did they machine it themselves?
They'll never definitively know.
Sure, they can set up stings to catch people buying or selling barrels, but since they're so readily available in other states--states that aren't interested in following Colorado's so-called lead--even that is going to be difficult at best.
Meanwhile, barrels may be long-wearing, but they're still consumable parts. If you shoot enough, you may need to replace it because the rifling is gone. You might want one that promises greater accuracy--that's a good thing for good guys with guns, by the way--or any of a thousand other reasons. It doesn't really matter why, but the truth is that replacing a barrel might not just be a choice, but a necessity of you want the weapon to operate safely.
Only now, in Colorado, assuming this bill goes all the way, you can't just order it and have it shipped to your house anymore. It's got to go to your FFL first, which means you've got to take time during the day when he or she is open, go in, and go through pretty much the same process you would if you were buying a gun, just to get a part for the gun you already underwent a background check for.
Meanwhile, the gang bangers out there are getting their cousin in Alabama to get the barrel, then mailing it to them along with some of grandma's chocolate chip cookies.
Congratulations, you gun-grabbing jackwads. You've accomplished absolutely nothing, again, to reduce crime. You have, though, made it far more annoying to be a lawful, responsible gun owner.
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
Honestly, it's like they've never even heard of P.A. Luty and how he built a submachine gun with parts from the hardware store. That included the barrel, after all.
Of course, they probably haven't, which is a shame, because they're never going to put the genie back in the bottle when it comes to so-called ghost guns, even trying to regulate the parts. We live in a world where we can make just about anything we want. Desktop CNC machines are a thing, as are metal lathes for home use, among many other items. You're not stopping people from learning and building guns if they so desire.
You're just making it harder for the people who were never going to be a problem in the first place.
