I think that might be some older news. I had other word that Crenshaw had been promoted and moved to Washington DC in the last couple months as was reported on one of the ATF whistleblower sites where they say Crenshaw was unfairly promoted.

The WE Tech M4, if you have ever handled one, is pretty amazing, and I hate to say, might be doable if you replace the entire upper and then remove the entire trigger pack, and then construct a new lower receiver filler piece (the Taiwan trigger pack requires a very thin wall lower, and is similar in construction to a G3 trigger pack), then re-drill everything to fit regular M16 fire control parts. Another option is a custom built variant of the McCormick trigger pack, which would involve a custom built trigger pack which puts the hammer in the right position to strike the firing pin on a regular M16 bolt carrier group. The thing is, the Taiwan lower is a bit "further along" than say, some of the 80% lowers you see on the market but as will be argued, while you may not be doing as much "cutting" to make it work with regular components, you do need to do a bunch of "filling in" to get the stuff to fit right, and even then it may not be any better than what could be made from scratch for less money, as it has a non-spec but usable buffer and stock system already attached. What I am not sure of is whether or not a regular M16 mag will lock into place on the WE tech M4, as the magwells might be different enough that things do line up with some versions of mags, or say, a 9mm magwell adapter that was modified, but not just slapping on a regular upper and then locking in regular M16 mags.

Then you have to look at some other cost issues. The We-Tech M4 and CQBR is just under $400 most places, which is well above the cost of an 80% lower, and well above what most people would spend on an unpapered "gray market" 100% lower from a private party seller, even in restricted states like California, where black market lowers tend to stick in the $250 range unless it is a rich guy who just wants one right away, then maybe $400, and that is for something that is plug and play, not something that has to be gutted and rebuilt like the WE tech M4.

The thing about converting Airsoft guns to fire live ammo is where you get into that gray area of when you have or have not actually constructed a live gun. A whole lot of airsoft rifles can be gutted out and then have a .22 rifle housed in what is left over. You can also see videos about that sort of thing on Youtube featuring Ruger 10/22 actions put inside Marui P90 and G36 rifles.

The thing about Crenshaw's statements about how "someone having this is gonna git trouble" is telling, and very similar to some threats given to me at a gun show by some Portland cops when I was selling some high grade airsoft guns for use as training tools (I also had live guns there). These guys think it is cool to pick on people who they figure they can have an excuse to make a problem for, but would lack the ability to actually shoot back. Sort of reminds me of a martial arts club in Lebanon (Oregon) a while back where they were practicing disarm and retention moves with CLEAR PLASTIC airsoft guns on a hot day in the alley behind the building, still on private property (not a commonly traveled alley, and still technically part of the mini-mall property). Cops rolled up and drew down on the people, claiming that it was a "gang fight". We are not talking about a "hood" type of place either, as it was nearly all white family people there, ages 12 to 50.

My guess is the guy is going to win his merchandise back in court, but the BATF will continue attacking the store because it is seen as a center for defacto militia training in the area.