Unlike traditional triggers and binary triggers (sometimes commonly referred to as "FRT"), subject FRTs do not require shooters to pull the trigger and then release it to fire a second shot. Instead, these FRTs use the firing cycle to prevent the shooter from having to release the trigger before firing a second shot. Rare Breed Triggers, LLC, is an Orlando-based trigger manufacturer that makes the FRT-15 (Forced Reset Trigger) Drop-in. What makes the FRT-15 so unique is that the trigger is reset very quickly after a shot when the group of bolt carriers returns forward. This allows for extremely fast follow-up shots, but the trigger should always be pulled whenever a bullet is fired. In contrast, an automatic weapon continuously fires cartridges until the trigger is released. When the trigger of a fully automatic weapon is pulled and remains depressed, the gun continues to fire repeatedly until the trigger is released, the ammunition is gone, or the gun locks. www.atf.gov/firearms/docs/open-letter/all-ffls-mar-2022-open-letter-forced-reset-triggers-frts/download What you might risk if you currently have or want to buy a FRT-15 trigger: – All your rights under the 2nd Amendment – Your freedom – Criminal convictions on file – Pay a lot of money for a criminal defense attorney There are a few important things to keep in mind in the ATF letter. First, no actual model of FRT is given. Instead, it focuses on how the trigger works. This will likely prevent a company from stopping this decision by simply creating a different model of the same trigger.
It`s also important to make it clear that binary triggers such as the Franklin Armory Trigger are still legal throughout the country. A note on the Franklin Armoury trigger; it is illegal in the state of Florida. Florida`s bump stock ban states that binary triggers are also banned. Do you have any idea if something like this is legal in Florida after the bump stock ban? Any opinions on this type of device? This law would mean that binary triggers, tac-con triggers, and similar drop-in triggers designed to help you shoot faster would also be banned. The loose part is that most drop-in triggers allow you to shoot faster than a standard mil-spec trigger. I think only time will tell how the courts will rule on this issue in the future. Accordingly, the ATF considers that any FRT that allows a firearm to automatically fire more than one shot by pressing the trigger is a "machine gun" and is therefore subject to the GCA`s prohibitions on the possession, transfer and transport of machine guns under 18 U.S.C. § 922 (o) and 922 (a) (4). They are also subject to registration, transfer, taxation and ownership restrictions under the NFA.
See 26 U.S.C. §§ 5841, 5861; 27 CFR 479.101. The story begins last year when the ATF served Rare Breed Triggers with a cease and desist letter. The letter ordered them to stop making the FRT-15 trigger until the ATF could determine that it was a machine gun. Rare Breed answered "no" and resold the FRT-15. The ATF`s decision comes just two weeks after 20 U.S. senators called the agency to the mat for enforcing "secret policies" regarding force reset triggers. A March 11 letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and ATF acting director Marvin Richardson describes what senators see as an abuse of the ATF`s powers, accusing the agency of deliberately hiding internal "guidelines" documents from U.S. gun owners and the gun industry.
As we previously reported, Rare Breed`s FRT-15 trigger was considered completely legal until recently, when the ATF began investigating the triggers and the manufacturer. Yesterday, the ATF sent a letter to the Federal Firearms Licences. This clarified that "some" force reset (FRT) triggers are actually machine guns. Below are the relevant segments of the TAF letter. If you are in Arizona or Hawaii and already own or plan to purchase the FRT-15 rare breed trigger, I suggest you join our warrant attorney self-protection program in case the courts decide that the trigger is indeed illegal. The drama continued when Big Daddy Unlimited started selling its own force reset trigger. Rare Breed appealed and obtained an injunction against her. Meanwhile, the ATF attacked Big Daddy Unlimited. During this raid, they confiscated the supply of the EDR force reset trigger. From the beginning, Rare Breed Triggers has continued to sell and market its force reset trigger, the FRT-15. The ATF also states that if you think you have a now-illegal pattern of these force reset triggers, you should contact your local office for advice. However, there are only two FRT models that work the way the ATF describes.
The rare breed FRT-15 and the Big Daddy Unlimited are widely triggered. "For anyone currently in possession of any of these triggers, I have discussed the matter with ATF`s legal counsel. Their current position is that these triggers are fully automatic weapons and cannot be possessed without the correct credentials. Their recommendation is to completely destroy the trigger so that it is permanently inoperative. I recommend that you take a picture of the destroyed shutter release and keep it. The ATF also encourages people to convert it to ATF as another option. I am advised that the ATF will likely contact the people who purchased these triggers. Again, I recommend that you take no risks with your freedom. Do not talk to the ATF without a lawyer present. There is no doubt that this will end in litigation. Rare Breed Triggers is run by a lawyer who has already proven that he enjoys suing the government.
Unfortunately, litigation like this takes time, which means FRTs are machine guns until a court decides they are not. You can see the slow pace of the ongoing bump stock trial as an example of how long something like this takes. At the time of writing, Rare Breed has not made an official statement, but according to unofficial sources, its removal is not a machine gun according to its interpretation of the ATF`s letter on forced reset triggers. In fact, at the time of writing, the FRT-15 is still available on the Rare Breed website. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) wants Rare Breed Triggers to stop selling its FRT-15 trigger. In July 2021, ATF Rare Breed Triggers issued a cease and desist order and ordered the company to stop selling its popular FRT-15 trigger. Rare Breed Triggers refused to comply with ATF`s claims and filed a lawsuit against ATF in federal court. In my opinion, it is very prudent that you do NOT have a trigger for rare breeds in your possession. If you are considering buying an FRT-15 trigger, I do not think you should buy it until the courts decide whether that trigger is legal or not. When we talk about your freedom, I think you should make a conservative decision when it comes to things that could rob you of your independence. Officials at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) have now determined that some force reset triggers (FRTs) are considered machine guns under federal law.
What I can do is give you information about the FRT-15 trigger, the differences between a semi-automatic pistol and an automatic weapon, and my opinion on whether you should buy the FRT trigger. "RBT contradicts any conclusion suggesting that the FRT-15 can fire more than one shot with a single trigger function," Kevin Maxwell, general counsel for Rare Breed, wrote in an August letter to Tampa Field Division special agent Craig Saier. "It`s not just my opinion. Prior to the manufacture of the first FRT-15, the design was extensively reviewed by retired Special Constable Kevin McCann, Esquire, and former ATF Special Agent, Program Manager, and Chief Firearms Technology Instructor, Daniel G. O`Kelly. The conclusion of this review concluded that the FRT-15 is not a machine gun. Now, such an internal "guide", which states that some force reset triggers are machine guns, is no longer a "secret regulation", but a regulation that the ATF has published and intends to apply in the future. According to 26 USC 5845(b): "A machine gun is a weapon that automatically fires more than one shot by a single trigger function, is designed to fire, or can be easily recovered to automatically fire more than one shot without manual reloading. This term also includes the casing or breech box of such a weapon, any part exclusively and exclusively designed and intended, or any combination of parts designed and intended for the transformation of a weapon into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from which a machine gun may be assembled when such parts are in the possession or control of a person. I don`t know how this will play out in court, but I want you to understand that you`re certainly taking a risk if you already have a FRT-15 trigger or are considering buying it. Now, the courts could decide that the FRT-15 trigger could be completely legal, but if they decide that the FRT-15 trigger is indeed illegal, the ATF could arrest you and you could be charged with a crime in federal court.
In an initial order, the ATF claimed that the force reset triggers are machine guns. The ATF decided at its sole discretion that the FRT-15 was a machine gun. But Rare Breed Triggers claims that the FRT-15 is a completely legal semi-automatic trigger because the trigger has to be pulled for each bullet, so it`s still semi-automatic.
