So what exactly does the 3rd circuits decision mean?

NJ & Federal Gun Laws and Activism
1

I know we can now purchase unpinned mags but what does it mean as far as the “assault weapon” rules
Can I convert my SKS to take a 20 round mag? Even with it’s bayonet lug (which holds a bipod)

What are the odds of us putting $$ back into our guns only to have NJ find a way to weasel around it and make us change back ??

2

That’s what I’ve been a bit worried about, so I haven’t unpinned my stock and swapped over to a threaded barrel, but I stocked up on mags- I’ll hand them over to a buddy in PA if some fuckery occurs. Hoping we get to keep them like Cali did years ago

3

They can’t make you change it back. At this point, the primary risk is if they can attach a cost to you keeping it that way (and effectively also force you into a registration scheme to avoid violating the law).

They will not be able to simply say you need to pay $1000 a gun to register it. The third circuit considered such concepts and said that’s a ban. Which means worst case if they passed such a ruling, we’d get an injunction from the 3rd after being told no at lower levels. This would be fairly rapid.

The question is what is the threshold for it not being categorized as such. Well it currently tolerates the FID costs and the carry permit costs. There is no history in the state even of costs per gun being imposed and assumed OK beyond the cost of a pistol purchase permit. And even that is being challenged. If they abuse a permitting system, that just increases the chance they lose the permitting system entirely.

For NJ, this is really their first taste of the notion that their two choices are between “we can do whatever we want” or “we can do whatever we want, but with extra steps”. So we’ll see how much they take that to heart.

Regardless, I think the question, at worst, will be how many hoops will you tolerate and how much money will you spend on it rather than will there be a way to keep it.