Introductory Disclaimer: I am not an attorney, and the following is not legal advice. I am just a reasonably knowledgeable individual. Be sure to consult an attorney licensed in your state before making any changes to you gun collection! – JWR
[1]A pair of consolidated court cases were recently appealed and a very strong and favorable Permanent Injunction was issued, nullifying a large portion of the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934, but only for the plaintiffs and for those in a “Protected Class” linking them to the plaintiffs. On August 5, 2026, a federal district court for the Northern District of Texas entered Final Judgment in favor of the plaintiffs in Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF [2], No. 6:25-CV-056, and Jensen v. ATF [3], 6:26-CV-277 by Judge James Wesley Hendrix. (For some background on these cases, see this from the NRA-ILA: Questions and Answers About the Texas NFA Case [4].) For the sake of brevity, I will hereinafter refer to these cases collectively as a just “Jensen”, except for where they differ. For those in the Plaintiff Protected Class, silencers (aka suppressors), short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSes) have been effectively been removed from NFA controls, although some Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA) rules still apply.
The origin of these cases came with an amendment to the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill, that dropped most NFA taxes to zero dollars. (Machineguns and Destructive Devices still have a $200 transfer tax.) But because the justification for passage of the NFA was Federal taxing power, for those items with a zeroed tax, that justification disappeared .
Only for those in the Plaintiff Protected Class, these NFA regulations no longer apply:
- 26 U.S.C. § 5812(a)–(b) (Transfers [5])
- 26 U.S.C. § 5822 (Making [6])
- 26 U.S.C. § 5841(a)–(c), (e) (Registration of firearms [7])
- 26 U.S.C. § 5842(b) (Identification of firearms [8])
- 26 U.S.C. § 5861(b)–(f), (i) (Prohibited acts [9])
- 27 C.F.R. § 479.62(a)–(d) (Application to make [10])
- 27 C.F.R. § 479.84(a)–(d) (Application to transfer [11])
So now, in effect, for those in a Plaintiff Protected Class under Jensen, a SBR, SBS, or suppressor (silencer”) is now treated as merely a “firearm” under Federal law, and any of their transfers from a licensed dealer are now handled with a Form 4473 and a NICS background check. And any individual in the Plaintiff Protected Class and living in a non-restrictive state may now privately manufacture or assemble them for their personal use (not for resale) with no paperwork whatsoever.
Interstate transfers of “firearms” between blood relatives are generally exempt under Federal law. Thus, transfers to and from parents and between spouses can go across state lines without going through a FFL and obviate the need for a Form 4473. But interstate transfers to nieces, nephews, aunts, or uncles would have to be treated just like any other GCA interstate firearm transfer. (That is, “To or through” an FFL.) Intrastate transfers are also subject to state law.
AN IMPORTANT PROVISO: STATE LAW REQUIREMENTS ARE NOT ENJOINED BY THE JENSEN DECISION AND REMAIN IN EFFECT. Please research the laws in your state. In at least 12 states, Silencers and/or SBRS/SBSes are banned unless they are federally NFA-registered. So, until those laws are revised you could be in violation of state law.
Also note:
- The Silencer Shop Foundation (SSF) case parties include B&T USA, Firearms Regulatory Accountability Coalition, Gun Owners Foundation, Gun Owners of America (GOA), Palmetto State Armory, Silencerco Weapons Research, Silencer Shop Foundation, the states of Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming, and several individuals. However, being a resident of one of those states does not automatically make you part of the Plaintiff Protected Class. The injunction also only includes “any other weapons” (AOWs) for the SSF parties.
- The Jensen case parties include the Texas State Rifle Association, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, the FPC Action Foundation, Hot Shots Custom, and several individuals. The injunction does not include “any other weapons” (AOWs) for those parties.
Get Yourself Exempt
Under the Jensen decision, it is only those Plaintiff Protected Class who enjoy protected/exempt status. For example, the court order exempts both current and future members of the Gun Owners of America (GOA). So, the easiest way to become part of the “Protected Class” as described in the Permanent Injunction is to join the GOA [12]. My advice is to at least get an automatically-renewing annual membership, but please prayerfully consider spending $1,000 for a GOA Life Membership.
Check on Your State Laws
Do not overlook the important step of checking your state and local laws. I recommend consulting an attorney licensed in your state.
Build Your Reference Binder
I strongly recommend that you assemble and regularly update a Non-NFA reference binder. Organize it in a self-explanatory manner with the assumption that it may be your spouse or eventual heirs who have to rely on it. You should use clear archival plastic page protectors and store that binder in your gun vault. That reference binder should include:
- Hard copies of the Jensen decision, the SSF decision and the August 5, 2026 Permanent Injunction.
- Hard copies of any applicable state or local laws.
- A scan or photocopy of your membership card (or membership confirmation e-mail) for a qualifying organization, certifying that you are in a Plaintiff Protected Class. Make extra copies to carry in your wallet and perhaps even to stow in a pistol grip compartment.
- Details on each of your “builds” and purchases, including serial numbers and dates of manufacture (or acquisition), the origin of component parts, dimensions, and costs. I recommend taking “before and after” photos, with gun resting atop a newspaper with a visible printed date.
- In the case of Form 4473 transfers, you should also record the contact details on the FFL dealer. Ask for a “File Copy” of their FFL.
- A signed, dated, and notarized hard copy of your Declaration of Intent and Legal Protection. This declaration (see this linked sample form [13], for you to customize and print) should protect you from prosecution if laws eventually change, or if the ATF issues “guidance” that varies even slightly from the wording of Judge James Wesley Hendrix’s Permanent Injunction. This document will firmly establish that you are relying on the specific wording of the Permanent Injunction and that any vague, hidden, obscure, transitory, confusing, nebulous, or contradictory “interpretations”, “directives” , “guidance”, “clarifications”, or “amplifications” are therefore null and void. It also establishes your Entrapment by Estoppel defense (per the Constitution’s Due Process Clause) in the event that you relied on any statement or document issued by any official that led you to believe that you were acting lawfully.
Carry Your Membership Card
Always carry a copy of a membership document that proves that you are a current member of a Protected Class in your wallet.
Order Parts and Raw Materials
Only after taking the aforementioned steps, and IF you are in a Plaintiff Protected Class and IF your State law allows it, then you may go ahead and order parts, raw materials, and tooling for your builds.
Drill, Baby, Drill!
[14]
[15]Finally, the fun begins! Welcome to the Wylie E. Coyote School of Gunsmithing (WECSOG). IF you are in a Plaintiff Protected Class and IF your State law allows it, then you may go ahead and start WECSOGing. For example, for your personal use (not for resale):
- You may replace any of your pistol arm braces with fixed, folding, or collapsible buttstocks.
- You may add fixed, folding, or collapsible buttstocks to any of your pistols.
- You may shorten rifle barrels to less than 16 inches and shotgun barrels to less than 18 inches. A gun’s overall length is also now also irrelevant.
- You may order and install short barrels for any of your existing rifles and shotguns.
- You may convert a flashlight, flash hider, blast forwarder, linear compensator [16], or muzzle brake into a suppressor or a suppressor adapter.
- You may construct suppressor thread adapters of all descriptions.
- You may construct suppressor spare parts and “wipes” for your personally-owned suppressors.
- You may machine an adapter to allow you to mount a sodapop bottle, oil filter, or fuel filter onto the muzzle of a gun, and centerline drill a filter, to match. (The combination of an adapter and a bottle or filter constitutes “manufacture” of a suppressor.)
- Only if you are a member in a Silencer Shop Foundation (SSF) case organization (such as GOA), You may also manufacture “any other weapons” (AOWs) such a pen guns, cane guns, umbrella guns, briefcase guns, wallet guns, cellphone guns, pistols with forward pistols grips, et cetera.
- You may transfer any SBRs, SBSes, and suppressors of your own construction — or those purchased on a Form 4473 — within your immediate family, even across state lines, without paperwork.
For some important machining details and safety tips, see the March, 2026 issue of the SurvivaBlog Old School (SOS) [17] newsletter. Also see my December 2025 article: Opportunity Knocks: Building and Registering Tax-Free Suppressors – Part 1 [18] and Part 2 [19].
Please note that if you use the facilities or the hands-on assistance of a Federally-licensed gun shop/gunsmith or of any machinist across a state line that you may be in violation of the GCA. (All Class 01 FFLs are required to maintain a Bound Book and completed Form 4473s.)
There are still a few legal clarifications not addressed in Jensen that still have to be firmly established. These include:
- The legality of transporting non-NFA suppressors across state lines.
- Maker and serial number engraving requirements, if any.
- How to handle and document “downstream” transfers from exempt (Protected Class) individuals, companies, and organizations.
- How many secondary sales of firearms (or what percentage of someone’s annual income) constitute being “Engaged in the Business”.
- Details on moving NFA-registered items into GCA channels, including paperwork.
- Destruction of NFA paperwork and electronic records for items that have left the NFA registry.
- Exactly what constitutes “making”. In this modern age of CNC machining, it is safe to presume that whoever presses the “start” button or issues the “start” command to a CNC machine lathe or mill is legally the “maker.”
Once again, it is important to fully document each of your individual builds, in a binder. This documentation could be very important is you are ever unconstitutionally charged with a violation.
Have fun, be safe, and stay legal. – JWR