State Legality Matrix / Assault Weapon Feature Bans / California
Statute-cited, last verified 2026-07-10
Yes. One-feature test plus a named-model list; registered pre-ban assault weapons are grandfathered, and new sale, transfer, or manufacture is banned. Effective 2000-01-01.
Controlling law: Cal. Penal Code § 30515 (features test) & § 30600 et seq.
Triggering features: pistol grip, thumbhole stock, folding stock, telescoping stock, flash suppressor, grenade launcher, forward grip, threaded barrel.
Roberti-Roos AWB. A semi-auto centerfire rifle with a fixed magazine over 10 rounds, or an overall length under 30 inches, is also an assault weapon. The bullet-button registration path closed in 2017; unregistered banned configurations are prohibited to possess. A detachable-magazine rifle triggers on any one listed feature, which is why featureless builds exist.
There has been no federal assault weapons ban since the 1994 ban expired in 2004; no feature restrictions apply federally to semi-automatic rifles or pistols. The 2023 ATF pistol-brace rule was vacated by the Fifth Circuit and is not enforced, so braced pistols are not SBRs under federal law. Cargill v. Garland (2024) made bump stocks federally legal. Feature bans are entirely a matter of state law.
Scope: State laws restricting semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns by configuration features: threaded barrels, pistol grips, folding or telescoping stocks, flash suppressors, forward grips, and similar. Magazine capacity limits are tracked as a separate class.
Yes. One-feature test plus a named-model list; registered pre-ban assault weapons are grandfathered, and new sale, transfer, or manufacture is banned. Effective 2000-01-01. Controlling law: Cal. Penal Code § 30515 (features test) & § 30600 et seq..
The controlling law is Cal. Penal Code § 30515 (features test) & § 30600 et seq.. One-feature test plus a named-model list; registered pre-ban assault weapons are grandfathered, and new sale, transfer, or manufacture is banned.
California's rule took effect 2000-01-01. Roberti-Roos AWB. A semi-auto centerfire rifle with a fixed magazine over 10 rounds, or an overall length under 30 inches, is also an assault weapon. The bullet-button registration path closed in 2017; unregistered banned configurations are prohibited to possess. A detachable-magazine rifle triggers on any one listed feature, which is why featureless builds exist.
There has been no federal assault weapons ban since the 1994 ban expired in 2004; no feature restrictions apply federally to semi-automatic rifles or pistols. The 2023 ATF pistol-brace rule was vacated by the Fifth Circuit and is not enforced, so braced pistols are not SBRs under federal law. Cargill v. Garland (2024) made bump stocks federally legal. Feature bans are entirely a matter of state law.
In a feature-ban state, swapping the pistol grip for a featureless grip is the cheapest path to a compliant rifle that keeps its detachable magazine. These grips are purpose-built for that test.
Wider fin-style featureless grip with a fuller palm shelf for shooters who want more support than the Simple grip.
Fin-style featureless grip that replaces the protruding pistol grip on a feature-restricted AR-15 build.
Billet aluminum featureless grip for California AR-15 builds that keeps a standard magazine release.
Affiliate links (?)
Full picks and fitment notes: Featureless AR Build Guide