On a positive note, these cartridges are already legal in pistols.
When this bill didn't pass, it got me to look into just what an AR pistol amounted to.
And not long after that I ordered my AR pistol lower. Only killed one with it but I can confirm that the 450 Bushmaster is my new favorite cartridge.
Legal firearms: Centerfire revolvers or centerfire single-shot handguns of .30 caliber or larger with a minimum barrel length of 4 inches.
Legal ammunition: For handguns, a bottleneck centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger with a case length not exceeding 1.4 inches, or a straight-walled centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger, both of which must be available as a factory load with the published ballistic tables of the manufacturer showing a capability of at least 500 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. Note: There is no case length limit for straight-walled cartridges.
For an AR pistol to be legal for deer hunting in IL, you must abide by the following:
1) Make it a single shot. Easy, buy or make a zero capacity magazine and hand load round into chamber.
Kind of a pain, but again if you only fire 1 shot, does it matter?
2) The lower has to be a pistol lower. Meaning sold as a pistol lower and not as a rifle lower or bought as a rifle. Federal law says you can't turn a rifle into a pistol.
3) Do not put a rifle buttstock on your pistol lower. Apparently this crosses a line. It is legal to turn a pistol into a rifle. But we don't want to do that to hunt with an AR pistol in IL.
And that is about it. The rest of the regs are posted above. A pistol stabilizing brace is legal as well. The lower I bought came with one.
Believe me, I researched all of this before I bought my lower. I went through a local FFL who has a law enforcement day job. He & I'm sure many others, sell what I'm using.
I already had the upper. And my barrel length exceeds the minimum, easily.
Fun gun. A very good way to go if you ask me. But I have been ready to use something besides a shotgun or muzzleloader in this state for a looooong time.
Mr. KRINK85 (real name omitted):
Using that cartridge in an AR pistol is legal for taking deer during the firearm seasons as long as the weapon is set up as a single-shot only. This can be accomplished by the use of a magazine with a single-shot follower installed or a sled. This particular follower does not allow any rounds to be seated within the magazine. It simply acts as a “sled” to hold the round until chambering.
Another way to do this is to use a lower specifically machined as a single-shot receiver. This part will have no provision for inserting a magazine. Most hunters will not elect to use this method simply because it’s too single-use and permanent.
If you’ve modified the AR in one of the ways described above (to make it a true single shot), you do not have to remove or modify the gas tube in order for it to be used for deer hunting in IL. The law states that semi autos are illegal to use but that only pertains to loading. Automatic ejection of the spent cartridge makes no difference.
Note that you cannot legally use the AR pistol if all that you do is remove the gas tube. Even though removing the gas tube would render the pistol a single-shot, using the magazine to hold additional rounds is actually illegal. AR and bolt-action pistols must be set up as single-shots incapable of holding additional rounds in any on-board magazine. Internal or external box magazines are not legal for any pistols used in IL to hunt deer.
Thanks for your interest in Illinois deer hunting.
Paul Shelton, Manager
Wildlife Programs Section
IDNR
I guess it makes some sense for the state to say anything that takes a magazine needs to have that advantage, and potential for a large ammo capacity, eliminated. So single shot only and zero capacity magazines.
A revolver can never have more than 6 (7 maybe) loaded but something magazine fed could.
The Federal rounds I use out of the Savage have a 260 grain slug at 1900 fps.
My AR pistol is in 450 Bushmaster. The rounds it likes have 250 grain bullets at 2200 fps. I've bought these as cheap as $20 per box of 20, but $25-$27 is probably average.
So I moved up in knock down power & down in cost per round.
And the difference between an AR pistol and an AR rifle really isn't all that much. If actually interested in hunting with an AR Pistol, look into. An AR pistol isn't for everybody and that is totally fine.
I do really like mine though and do enjoy being able to hunt deer with a much less expensive center fire cartridge. Especially since there is no logical reason that cartridges like this shouldn't be legal to use in a rifle and I am more than ready to move on from the only legal long guns to hunt deer with being shotguns or muzzleloaders.
And I'm not advocating for all centerfire cartridges to be allowed in Illinois, but why not allow ones that are similar to the slugs & bullets being fired out of the shotguns & muzzleloaders in use now?
