I tried to buy a gun at Walmart once. I wanted to buy a 10/22 for my son the day after he was born, and they were the only store open during the time I could escape from the hospital. When they told me that the 4473/approval/review/review/review/review/etc process would take 45 minutes, I...
It is probably the brand. Universal has been making "M1 carbines" since the 1960s. I put it in quotes because they aren't the traditional M1 carbines that most people think of. My understanding is that Universal redesigned a few things.
In my experience, there is not a "correct" way to handle it. Every officer and every situation is different. If you are upfront about the weapon with some officers, you may end up with a warning instead of a ticket. In other cases, being upfront will result in you being asked out of the...