When Colt decided to sell a semiauto-only civilian version of its AR-15 rifle, it had to make a number of changes to the design of the lower receiver to prevent full-auto fire control parts from being used. These changes would make a semiauto AR receiver legally distinct form a full-auto one, and thus not a machine gun in the eyes of the law. Among the changes Colt made was to remove the auto sear, along with its pin and mounting holes.
Now, at this time (and still today) the possession of full-auto fire control parts was not regulated. Owning an unregistered machine gun receiver was illegal, but the internal parts were not machine guns by themselves. The DIAS, or drop-in auto sear, is a small device that was invented to duplicate the function of the original auto sear without needing a mounting pin. It could simply be "dropped in" to a semiauto AR receiver and if used in combination with some of the full auto fire control parts it would result in a fully automatic rifle.
When the DIAS was first invented, it fell into the category of other fire control parts - it was not regulated in any way. They were very simple and cheap to make, and were widely sold by mail order. It was illegal to put one into a semiauto rifle, but not illegal to own one. This changed in 1981 when ATF realized what the DIAS really was, and by administrative decree the DIAS was redefined as a machine gun by itself, thus illegal to own. However, examples manufactured before the ruling were grandfathered in - not that there was actually any way to prove when a DIAS had been made.
In 1986, the Firearm Owners' Protection Act (best known for its Hughes Amendment which closed the machine gun registry) was passed. It did many things - some of them actually good - but it also legally redefined the DIAS as a machine gun in and of itself. This set the old ATF ruling as actual law instead of administrative whim, and also overrode the original grandfathering. Ever since, possession of an unregistered DIAS has been a crime.
However, until the Hughes Amendment closed the registry, it was perfectly legal to register a DIAS, thus making it a LEGAL machine gun. Many of these registered DIAS remain on the registry today, where their value has climbed to nearly that of an actual registered M16 by virtue of the legal paperwork. By weight, a registered DIAS today is worth ten times more than gold...
Shop
About Forgotten Weapons
At Forgotten Weapons I think the most interesting guns out there are the most obscure ones. I try to search out experimental and prototype weapons and show you how they work.
Recommended videos
Why does this site paywalls 1080p? Not even pornhbub does that anymore wtf. Anyways, thanks for the video, Gun Jesus. I was considering migrating to this site, but the paywall kinda wished away all of my goodwill. Of course I'll come back if you make something youtube wouldn't like, but damn it we really need a good, viable alternative to them. Cheers, mate.
Born too late to own a drop-in auto sear, born too early to own a phased plasma rifle in the 40 watt range, born just in time to get jailed for owning a pistol brace.
This platform's ads appear to be goated. I got a classic Pokemon for GBA ad!
Great video Ian. I got my first AR-15 in 1976 and it only cost $225 brand new in-the-box from Colt. I was never particularly interested in owning a 'drop-in-auto-sear' myself as I had already joined the military and got all the full-auto jollies I needed to last a lifetime... including cleaning up an M-16 after using full auto (and M60 and M2.) With all those rulings and legislation piled on over the years it got to be a problem when buying parts to build AR-15s. One had to specify that the parts MUST be AR-15 and NOT M-16 otherwise the supplier might send you M-16 parts. This could be a problem when at the range. Sometimes law enforcement wanted to have a look inside my rifle to make sure I didn't have any "machine gun parts" in it.
One essential part you didn't mention was the bolt carrier. In order for the auto-sear to work one needed an M-16 trigger, sear, hammer and file off the nub on the receiver so the safety-selector could rotate to full auto. One also needed the bolt carrier from an M16 as they had a different lower cutout between of the firing pin and the buffer. Without the correct bolt carrier it would jam the rifle and not trip the auto-sear.
Interesting and very weird set of circumstances to end up as of today
So the state of California is in open violation of the Firearms Owners Protection Act, and the NRA is not trumpeting this fact in the courts right now? No wonder their membership is dropping. This seems to be a slam dunk case that even the 9th CC would have to accept.
And Europeans/Canadians think they have it bad lol. Canada explicitly allows the ownership of select firearms that California would ruin lives over.
“You are technically correct. The best kind of correct.”
Futurama: Hermes talking with his superior, I think?
Yup! #001 replying to Hermes!
Behold, the power of paperwork!
One has to appreciate how much of an underdog hero the AFT truly is.
When youre too bougie for the coathanger...
Ian I must disagree with you! Every time the scumbags in congress pass a new law, no matter what it encompasses, every Citizen of the Country is getting dry fucked up the ASS! Everyone involved with the feral gubmint is the ENEMY and should be treated accordingly!
I think Ian actually agrees with you.
55 going on 56k views in less than 24hours. This platform may actually gain some steam in 2023. Great video!
Interesting history of these things, I never really understood the whole history of the 1986 ban.
Who needs full auto when you have commercials from LITERALLY 1999. I love this app. I've had Power Rangers, Pok'e'mon, and Lego Island commercials on Utreon. Actually, full auto is cool. Most of us are good law abiding Americans. Even the Europeans area abiding Americans. Think about this for a second. What the hell is the difference. We're all humans, we all hate each other to varying degrees, and the biggest problem we have is that we all love each other. Which, actually, is not a problem. I have a magazine from the 1960's that teaches you how to make a pipe bomb. WTF? Good lord, random dudes with wrenches and bad teeth created the Lockheed-Martin MKV! Unhinged Utreon comments section is the new heavy metal. Rock on you crazy humans. I have to go change a radiator out of my neighbors Jeep.
Was this type of auto sear the ones that the ATF was looking for when they assaulted the Branch Davidians in Waco? As I remember the ATF claimed Koresh had 5 illegal auto sears.
Very interesting
There's an SP1 colt AR HBAR at local gun store that's pre 94 and legal to sell here in MA as a pre ban assault weapon, the receiver has a sear pin hole and a pin with a block held by the pin and deeply stamped with the word "Colt" not sure how this particular rifle is not getting caught up in the whimsically defined rules of the current ATF
1986: Now you have to register it.
Also 1986: You can't register it.
How would they even stop us from building machine guns. Lathes and milling machines are a thing and you can do it with a dermal and a drill. Or just a saws all blade and a lil can do additude. Criminals don’t care about laws anyways.
are you a criminal?
By who’s definition? I’m just a regular guy with a job and 3 kids and a bad ass wife My point was if someone wants something bad enough they will make it happen and how could the government possibly know. They make all these laws to keep us safe. But the criminals don’t follow those rules. So who are they keeping safe.
F*** YouTube.
Aloha Ian 🤙🏽 I never knew this platform existed. Thanks
Very interesting discussion. You did not mention the illegal black market that has sprung up so that criminals may get a DIAS for there ar15 or glock or other gun. Many crimes now committed with submachine gun pistols that were semi-automatic before changing a little part.
They need to allow full screen on your phone on here. It’s annoying having a little video.
Download the app
Thanks for finally posting this. I have a transferrable auto sear in a 4 position burst pack for the HK roller delayed series of guns. I never knew about that '81 ruling but that explains those suspicious Shotgun News ads.
For reference I got my sear and pack for about $10k in 2009, and it's worth over $30k now (some approaching $40k at auctions) which is absolutely ridiculous. I wish the registry reopened so I could get a sear for each of my HK hosts instead of having to swap out ejectors and grip housings each time.
hi
Very interesting. Thank you
👍
My CAR 15 came close to buzzing off the front of my Baja Bug, I had it full of M16 parts and it did nothing to change it other than the 'cool' factor. I did not want to mess with an auto sear which at the time were twenty bucks in SHOTGUN NEWS. We found out that the reloads my buddy was using had been loaded using pistol primers. We assumed that is what caused the partial mag dump. Perhaps the hammer following the bolt for some reason. I put the AR parts back in it, about a month or so later I loaned it to my Brother who was on the Corona California P.D.. He had it with him during the Norco Bank Robbery. He had no opportunity to engage the idiots with it, much to our disappointment.
My CAR 15 came close to buzzing off the front of my Baja Bug, I had it full of M16 parts and it did nothing to change it other than the 'cool' factor. I did not want to mess with an auto sear which at the time were twenty bucks in SHOTGUN NEWS. We found out that the reloads my buddy was using had been loaded using pistol primers. We assumed that is what caused the partial mag dump. Perhaps the hammer following the bolt for some reason. I put the AR parts back in it, about a month or so later I loaned it to my Brother who was on the Corona California P.D.. He had it with him during the Norco Bank Robbery. He had no opportunity to engage the idiots with it, much to our disappointment.
It really books my blood that the corrupt fat cays in Washington stole my Second Amendment rights from me before I was even born.
I've been a tax paying law abiding citizen for well over a decade and unless this unconstitutional law is overturned I'll never be able to afford an automatic rifle or pistol.
Do I need one? Probably not. Do I have an absolute undisputed right to it? Yes. Is that right being illegally violated? Yes. Does that suggest to a lawful member of society that it makes sense to remain law abiding when the government isn't? No.
We have the right to check our military might for a very good reason. When one of the governments employees can slaughter 50 protestors i n the streets of Iran. When thousands of Ukrainians are fighting for their right to live. When you have organ replacement scheduling months in advanced in China (how do they know when someone is dying that far out?). You need to ask yourself are you comfortable trusting any government with such unchecked force?
Ah yes, the typical "muh rights" word salad.
To maybe entertain the realm of things that will never happen, it'd be a lot better for those like myself who are purely hobby gun owners/collectors that the second amendment be repealed so that it becomes constitutional for there to be (quite sensibly) limits on who may purchase a firearm to a much greater extent than present, (ex. licensing, training, etc.).
Do that and it weeds out most of the wack jobs who might shoot up a public venue, and would leave collectors' interests free to namely purchase automatic firearms. Ian has already done some videos on Malta's gun laws for example (funny how several European countries have automatic weapons legal for collectors without any kind of enshrined right to gun ownership whatsoever isn't it?).
That has to be one of the most ill thought out, illogical and thoroughly ridiculous statements that I have had the misfortune to behold in recent history.
You sir may go straight to hell
You sound like real genius.
It's an American thing, you wouldn't understand.
All Animals are equal but some are more equal than others! You are Swine, go eat shit follow it with a pint of hot piss and stumble in front of a high speed train, not a soul on the planet will miss yout sorry ASS!
This was the video that finally got he to get on Utreon
Oh yeah, if you can convince other guntubers to start posting here we can hopefully have a real community here
Defund the atf , fjb
Thank God you have a Utreon for things like this. Ya need to get Kentucky Ballistics and Brandon Herrera talked into coming over to this sight.
Thanks 🇺🇸
Bu Biii You TUUBE
Out of curiosity, can one of the auto sears be dropped/fitted into any AR platform weapon? Including an AR-10 or an AR 12 gauge...?