>This wouldn’t mean that you could fabricate a whole bunch of suppressor bodies and internal components to experiment with,
How about one body with a bunch of internal components to experiment with?
That'ss kind of a gray area.
"Silencer" is defined in statute as any part intended for use in a suppressor, so even the act of making baffles alone is making a "suppressor."
Trying to read ATF's mind is always dangerous, but if you assemble your "suppressor," and then make new baffles/parts, disassemble the can, and rebuild it using the new parts, I would bet my house that ATF would consider that to be making a new suppressor, requiring an additional registration/tax.
What you do, and what ATF knows about, are of course, two different things.
I believe you may be able to replace damaged parts, excluding the serial numbered portion (usually the tube/body), provided the old parts are destroyed first.
ATF has recently amended/clarified its rules on suppressor repair/replacement, so diligent research would be advisable.
Danger.
Whatever the ATF regards as 'suppressor components' is a bad thing without an approved Form 1 if you're making your own suppressor. *With* an approved Form 1, they'll also call that constructive possession if you have more *useable* components than necessary to construct your one-off homebuilt can. You'd better be de-milling/destroying excess materials as you wind your way through your little project.
ATF Tech Branch recently produced an opinion letter which claimed that just having multiple 'quick detach' mounts for suppressors per Form 1 was a violation. This is the subject of very intense debate recently because it conflicts with countless other ATF Tech Branch opinion letters and I'd rather not discuss this further.
Even if ATF sent another opinion letter out retracting their previous opinion, that wouldn't satisfy me.