SB Tactical Brace

Nov 26, 2012

Alex Bosco is the inventor
SB = Grant Shaw & Alex Bosco
Nov 26, 2012 – ATF approval letter
January 2013 exclusive agreements with SIG SAUER & Century Arms
SB15 AR brace (sig)
SB47 AK brace (century)
May 2013 first Pistol Stabilizing Braces were delivered
March 2014 ATF issued a second letter
– firing pistol from the shoulder would not cause reclassified as an SBR
2014 – SBX iteroduced
– braces for HK firearms
– braces for CZ firearms
January 2015 ATF issued a third letter
– use as a shoulder stock constitutes a ‘redesign’ of the device
December 2015 ATF letter
– enabled adjustable tech in Pistol Stabilizing Braces
2015 exclusive agreements with SIG SAUER and Century Arms expired
2016 side-folding braces for B&T, HK and CZ Scorpion pistols
2017 ATF letter
– clarifying firing from the shoulder does not constitute a “redesign”
– in its original, approved condition

SB Tactical
Bradenton, Fla

(941) 748-2270

Home

SB15 – 2013
SOB
SOB47
SB5K
Vector PSB
SBPDW
MPX PSB
SBM4
SBT5
SBTEVO
Galil PSB
SBX
SB47
SBV
SBX-K
SB5
Scorpion PSB
Uzi PSB
SBM47
SBT
SBT5K

About the SB Tactical Brace

The pistol stabilizing brace was invented by Alex Bosco, founder of SB Tactical in Bradenton, Florida, as a way for shooters with disabilities or limited strength to fire a heavy pistol with one hand by strapping the brace to the forearm. After the ATF approved the design in November 2012, braces were sold for AR- and AK-pattern pistols and later for HK, CZ, B&T and other platforms, and the category grew into one of the most popular accessories in the firearms market. A series of ATF letters between 2014 and 2017 shifted the agency’s position on shouldering a brace several times.

The brace became a major Second Amendment fight in 2023, when an ATF final rule on “factoring criteria” threatened to reclassify many braced pistols as short-barreled rifles subject to the National Firearms Act. SB Tactical led one of the court challenges, and the rule was struck down: Judge Reed O’Connor vacated it in Mock v. Garland in June 2024, the Eighth Circuit ruled against it in August 2024, and in 2025 the Justice Department dropped its appeal, ending the rule. Separately, the $200 federal NFA tax on short-barreled rifles was repealed effective January 1, 2026.

Key Facts

November 26, 2012: ATF approval letter for the original brace design
2023: ATF final rule on braced pistols took effect
June 13, 2024: Rule vacated in Mock v. Garland (Judge Reed O’Connor)
August 2024: Eighth Circuit panel ruled against the rule in the SB Tactical-led case
2025: Justice Department dropped its appeal, ending the brace rule
January 1, 2026: $200 NFA tax on short-barreled rifles repealed

Learn More

Firearms Policy Coalition

Sources

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