As of October 9, 2026, buying a suppressor works like buying a handgun — one Form 4473, one background check, and if it clears you take it home that day. No Form 4. No $200 stamp. No waiting months for an approval. We also handle short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and NFA transfers in.
We handle the full range of NFA items — not just suppressors. Suppressors are now a straightforward over-the-counter purchase. SBRs and SBSs are in transition. Whatever you're researching, we'll tell you honestly where it stands today.
Also called silencers or cans. Reduces the noise signature of your firearm. As of October 9, 2026 these transfer on a Form 4473 with a NICS check — same as a handgun. Rimfire to heavy-caliber rifle.
SBRs — rifles with a barrel under 16 inches or an overall length under 26 inches. Popular for home defense, truck guns, and pistol-caliber carbines. Named in the same ATF guidance as suppressors, but the dealer transfer path is not settled yet — call us for exactly where it stands this week.
SBSs — shotguns with a barrel under 18 inches or an overall length under 26 inches. Less common than SBRs, and in the same unsettled position — we'll walk you through the current process when you come in.
Building your own SBR via Form 1? You'll need ATF-compliant engraving on the lower — we handle that in our machine shop. See our gunsmithing services for engraving and pricing.
Suppressors have been regulated under the National Firearms Act since 1934. For ninety-one years, buying one meant an ATF Form 4, a $200 tax, and a wait for approval before you could take possession.
Two things dismantled that. Congress eliminated the making and transfer tax on suppressors effective January 1, 2026, which dropped that $200 to nothing. Then a federal court in Texas held that certain NFA provisions were unenforceable, the Department of Justice chose not to appeal, and the Attorney General extended the outcome nationally as enforcement policy.
The practical result: ATF will not enforce the requirement to apply for and receive approval before transferring a suppressor, and will not enforce the registration requirement. ATF's own guidance tells licensed dealers to process these like any other firearm under the Gun Control Act. That is exactly what we're doing, starting now.
What did not change. A suppressor is still a firearm under federal law. You still fill out a Form 4473, you still pass a NICS check, you must still be 21 or older, and if you're a prohibited person you still cannot possess one. State and local law still governs and this guidance does not touch it — Tennessee is suppressor-friendly, but the law that applies to you is the law where you're standing. And machine guns and destructive devices are completely unaffected: the $200 tax and the full registration process still apply to those. If anyone tells you the NFA is gone, they've read a headline and not the letter.
The big names, plus anything we can pull from our distributor network. If we don't have it in the case today, we can almost always get it.
Between our in-store inventory and our distributor network, we can usually cover every major brand and caliber. Come in and tell us what you're after — we'll find it.
Two paths, depending on where you buy. Both are Form 4473 transactions — the same process you've been through for every firearm you've ever bought from a dealer.
Transferring in an SBR or SBS instead? Those are still on the old Form 4 path and the NFA transfer fee is $125. See our FFL transfer page or call the shop.
For most suppressor buyers, no — the reasons people set up NFA trusts were tied to registration, and registration is no longer required. Here's the honest breakdown.
If you already have a trust, keep it — it costs you nothing to leave in place and it still covers your registered items. If you were about to set one up solely to buy a can, you probably don't need to anymore. Come talk to us before you spend money on paperwork you may not need. We don't sell trusts, so we've got no reason to push you toward one.
The federal tax stamp for suppressors went to $0 on January 1, 2026. The approval requirement went away on October 9, 2026. What's left is the price of the can and the background check.
Buying the suppressor from us? There's no transfer fee at all — it's a counter sale, priced like any other firearm in the case.
Figure 15 to 30 minutes at the counter. That's the Form 4473, the background check, and payment. On a proceed, you leave with the suppressor the same visit.
We'd rather set the expectation honestly than have you plan your afternoon around it: NICS usually answers in minutes, but it doesn't always. A delay can hold a transfer up to three business days, and it happens to people with nothing in their past. If yours delays, we hold the can and call you the moment it clears.
If you choose to register voluntarily, that filing is its own timeline and has nothing to do with taking the suppressor home. You don't wait on it.
SBRs and SBSs are different. Those are still on the Form 4 path with an approval wait, and ATF is still writing the rules on how dealers transfer them. Call us for where that stands the week you're buying.
Active-duty service members with PCS orders to Fort Campbell have dual Tennessee/Kentucky residency status. The same benefit that applies to regular firearm purchases applies here — you can buy a suppressor through our Clarksville location regardless of whether your off-post residence is in Tennessee or Kentucky.
The old PCS timing problem is mostly gone. It used to be that if you expected orders within 45 days you were better off waiting, because a pending Form 4 was tied to the address on your eForms account and moving mid-application caused real headaches. With suppressors now transferring over the counter, there's no pending application to strand. That caveat still applies to SBRs and SBSs, which remain on the Form 4 path, and to anyone who chooses to register voluntarily.
Military and law enforcement discount: we honor a 10% discount for active-duty and retired military, and for active or retired law enforcement — across the whole store. The one exception is NFA items: suppressor, SBR, and SBS margins are tight and don't leave room for the discount. Everything else in the shop — firearms, ammunition, optics, archery, accessories — is fair game. Bring your credentials to the counter.
This is the question that trips people up, and it has nothing to do with paperwork. A suppressor has to match your barrel's thread pitch, your mount has to match the can, and the can has to be rated for the cartridge you're putting through it. Get any one of those wrong and you've bought a very expensive paperweight.
We built a searchable guide for exactly this. Type in your rifle or pistol and it tells you the factory thread pitch. Look up a specific can and it tells you the mount system, the bore, the rated calibers, and the weight. It also covers the traps — left-hand threads, shotgun choke tubes, HUB-pattern adapters, and the barrel-length and twist-rate rules that decide whether a can is safe on a given host.
It will not guess. A firearm is only in there once its thread is confirmed against a manufacturer document or a major reference chart, because guessing is how a barrel shoulder gets ruined. If yours is not listed, bring it in and we'll gauge it at the counter, free, whether you buy from us or not.
They're the same thing. "Suppressor" is the technically accurate term used by the industry and the ATF. "Silencer" is the legal term used in the National Firearms Act — and is what most everyday shooters call them. "Can" is shop slang for the same device. All three refer to the muzzle device that reduces the noise signature of a firearm.
No — and as of October 9, 2026 you don't need to register it at all, which is what trusts were mostly for. A suppressor now transfers on a Form 4473 like a handgun. If you choose to register voluntarily, or you're buying an SBR or SBS, the individual-versus-trust question comes back and we'll talk it through with you. If you already have a trust, keep it; it still covers anything you have registered.
Not for a suppressor. As of October 9, 2026, ATF is not enforcing the requirement to apply for and receive approval before a suppressor transfer, and is not enforcing the registration requirement either. We process it on a Form 4473 with a background check, same as a handgun, and you take it home that visit. SBRs and SBSs are named in the same guidance but the dealer transfer path isn't settled — those are still on the Form 4 timeline for now.
No. Effective January 1, 2026, the federal tax stamp for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns went from $200 to zero. Then on October 9, 2026 the approval and registration requirements stopped being enforced for suppressors too — so for a can there's no stamp and no application. If you want one registered anyway, the federal tax is still zero; what we charge to file it depends on where the can came from — free on one you bought from us, $125 all in on a transfer-in. Machine guns and destructive devices still carry the $200 tax and the full registration process.
Yes. Active-duty service members with PCS orders to Fort Campbell have dual Tennessee/Kentucky residency status for firearm purchases. You can buy a suppressor from our Clarksville location whether your off-post residence is in TN or KY. You'll need to be 21 or older, same as a handgun.
For a suppressor, it no longer matters — there's no application to strand, because you walk out with it the same day. That caveat still applies to SBRs and SBSs, which are still on the Form 4 path, and to anyone who chooses to register voluntarily. In those cases it's usually better to wait and apply from your new duty station.
Yes. Your previous dealer, or the seller in a private sale, ships it to our FFL and we handle the rest — now as a Form 4473 transfer rather than a Form 4. The fee is our standard $30 transfer plus the $10 Tennessee background check, $40 total, exactly like any other firearm. If you want it registered on the way through, say so up front — a transfer-in with the voluntary Form 4 filed is $125 all in instead of the $40, covering the transfer, the 4473, fingerprinting, photos and the submission. SBR and SBS transfers remain $125.
Yes, but they're not on the same footing right now. Suppressors transfer on a Form 4473 as of October 9, 2026. SBRs and SBSs are named in the same ATF guidance, but the mechanism for dealers to transfer them isn't settled — ATF has said it's still writing the rules. We'd rather you heard that from us than found out at the counter. Call us and we'll tell you exactly where it stands that week.
No. Yours is registered, it stays registered, and you don't need to do anything. If you have a Form 4 pending right now, ATF has said it will continue processing applications already submitted — partly because some states require registration regardless of federal posture. If you're in the queue with us, come see us or call and we'll go through your specific situation.
That's your call, and we won't push you either way. The case for skipping it: the requirement isn't being enforced, the tax is zero, and the paperwork is a hassle. The case for doing it anyway comes down to travel — a registered suppressor has a federal paper trail that follows it across state lines, and ATF's own letter flags that it's unclear whether federal interstate transport protection covers unregistered items. Also worth weighing: this is enforcement policy, not repeal. Congress did not strike the National Firearms Act, and policy made this way can be revisited. The federal tax is still zero and ATF is still accepting the forms. What it costs you depends on where the can came from: if you bought it from us we file the Form 4 at no charge, and if you are transferring one in and want it registered that is $125 all in, which covers the transfer, the 4473, fingerprinting, photos and the submission. Come talk it through with us.
We stock and can order Dead Air, SilencerCo, Rugged Suppressors, Thunder Beast, Q, Sig SRD, Banish, Surefire, OSS / Huxwrx, YHM, and more. Between our in-store inventory and our distributor network, we can almost always get you the brand and model you want.
Come in with your ID. No appointment needed. If you already know what you want, you can fill out the 4473, pass the background check, and walk out with it the same visit. Call us at (931) 802-8912 or stop by Tuesday through Saturday, 10am–6pm — this is one of those purchases where ten minutes of talking to somebody saves you from buying the wrong mount.
Whether it's your first suppressor or you're adding to a collection, come talk to us. One 4473, one background check, and on a proceed you walk out with it the same visit. The thing that used to stop people is gone.