The serial number must be placed in a manner not susceptible of being readily obliterated, altered, or removed, and must not duplicate any serial number placed by you on any other firearm.

By engraving, casting, stamping (impressing), or otherwise conspicuously placing or causing to be engraved, cast, stamped (impressed) or placed on the frame or receiver thereof an individual serial number. legibly identify each firearm manufactured or imported as follows: The dimensions of the serial number and other identifying details were codified in 2002 in section 27, part 478.92 of the Code of Federal Regulations: In the US, manufacturers and importers are required to place identifiers on firearms. Techniques for marking the serial number and other identifying details on the gun include:

'lthough markings are not required on firearms manufactured for personal use (excluding NFA firearms) owners are recommended to conspicuously place or engrave a serial number and/ or other marks of identification to aid in investigation or recovery by State or local law enforcement officials in the event of a theft or loss of the privately owned firearm.' Methods of marking Homemade firearms in the United States are not legally required to have a serial number. Sales of firearms that are required to be reported have a similar requirement. In most jurisdictions, an application for firearm registration requires a recitation of a particular weapon's serial number. law to maintain records for their inventory of serial numbers of all firearms and to report both the guns' serial numbers and the purchasers' names. 'Factory-produced firearms bear serial numbers.' So factory producers and federally licensed gun dealers are required by U.S. Thus, for example, an importer is expressly forbidden from recycling numbers. The basic point of such legislation is that the weapon will plainly have a unique identifier. Dodd and met with fierce opposition on the floor but the bills also paved the way for the creation of the Gun Control Act of 1968. Precursors of the passage of the Gun Control Act were Senate Bill 1975 in 1963, 'A Bill to Regulate the Interstate Shipment of Firearms,' and Senate Bill 1592 in 1965, 'A Bill to Amend the Federal Firearms Act of 1938.' Both were introduced by Senator Thomas J.

Congressional hearings followed and a ban on mail-order gun sales was discussed, but no law was passed until 1968. In the United States, the Gun Control Act of 1968 was prompted by the assassination of U.S. Other manufacturers maintain similar databases. But perhaps these pages can help you somewhat in your research. But the fact remains there is no original, single, totally accurate database of serial numbers from 1866 forward that we are aware of. There is probably some kernel of truth to all of them.

Records misplaced between ownership transitions.

Inadvertent destruction (during office cleaning).

There are many 'legends' about why the historic serial number records for Winchester rifles and shotguns are not complete or why they are not always verifiable. An example is the Winchester Repeating Arms Company their records may not be complete. At least for some manufacturers, a serial number can unlock myriad details about the weapon. Such numbers can be used to ascertain the name of the manufacture, place and date of manufacture. Most individual manufacturers habitually put serial numbers on the weapons they produce. There are forensic techniques for recovering serial numbers after they have been removed. Firearms with removed serial numbers are generally illegal. įirearms without a serial number are commonly called unmarked firearms. Another form of serial number is microstamping, where the firing pin and breach face are engraved to create unique markings on the ejected cartridge this is a legal requirement for handguns in the state of California.

In the US, federal law requires registered gun dealers to maintain records of gun serial numbers and then to report them when they are sold but federal law also prohibits creation of a national register. Gun serial numbers are used in gun registration and are usually linked to an owner who is usually required to hold a firearms license. The legal requirement for affixing a serial number to firearms is a relatively recent requirement, and usually applies to firearms manufactured domestically or which are imported. Besides a widespread numerical base, they may contain letters and other typographical symbols, or may consist entirely of a character string positioning and form of such identifiers is idiosyncratic. There is no international uniformity in gun serial numbers. The bolt of an Arisaka military rifle, which carries identifiers matching the main serial number which is on the receiver.Ī gun serial number is a unique identifier assigned to a singular firearm.

High standard serial number dates