What milsurps down the road?

[alamo]

Just curious if anyone knows of anything that might be imported in the next few years. Anything new?

I missed out on AIM's No.1 Mk.3s last year. Hope some more show up.

The days of cheap milsurp collecting may be drawing to a close. When the N. Korean regime dies one day, that country could be a great source. Lord knows how long that will be though.

There was talk on the CMP forum of S. Korean Garands and M1 carbines that might be imported.

 

[Cosmoline]

You never know. Just a few years back they found that massive stockpile of colonial British rifles in Tibet's arsenals. But I don't think anything will ever equal the flood of arms in the 1990's after the fall of the USSR.

 

[Langenator]

Not sure if the Chinese are a packrat-ish as the Soviets were. Might be a future source of yet more Mosins and military grade SKSs. If you get the import restrictions removed or altered.

That being said, I don't know if I'd want to buy any. Giving money direct to the PLA and all that.

 

[ribbonstone]

There is at least one more great big stash of old out of date military rifles..many ysed beyond belife, but with a good number very lightly used (and most of those, the older ones).

Eventually (soon) Fidel will die and Cuba will join the world again...investors are already lining up for some of the potential bonanza. Not immediate, but figure in the nest 10years or elss, will see it opened. Can tell you, the beaches alone will make it one of the great tourist spots (like it was before) and proably with a good touch of Las Vegas as well....the lack of major industialization and massive tourist vistins have lest some of the best diving in North America.

 

[cracked butt]

There's probably a ton of svt-40s in former soviet that can't be imported at this time because of regulations. The future is probably going to me along the lines of parts kits for AKs and subguns.

 

[JoshM]

As long as nation state politics stays fluid, I think there will always be some opportunities for sales to the civilian market.

However, the increasing influence of the UN/IANSA and their protocols on small arms proliferation will become an increasing problem for future milsurp purchasers.

An example of this is the refusal of the New Zealand Police to allow the sale of their former service rifles, the .223 Remington M 7 Carbine. This is on the spurious basis, that they may be onsold to individuals in contravention of the UN protocol !

Somehow I can't see African warlords lining up to buy imported, 10 year old, rack grade bolt actions

Milsurp Opportunities ?

IIRC, The Indian military and police are still transitioning to their new service AR (the name of which escapes me !). Ultimately, this may allow for some of the current stocks (Ishapore Enfields and FALs) to be released for sale ?

Another possibility is that in a few years the currently forming Federal Iraqi Army might decide to leave behind its traditional combloc client status, and reequip with M4's or some other equivalent western kit - Probably not the L85A2 though - Iraq seems to be swimming in ordnance.

The Clinton administration loaned out a significant stock of M14 rifles to Latvia (or some other X Soviet Baltic state ? ) Considering the legal diffculties surrounding State Department end users certificates maybe they will come back ?

With the dissolution of the various South African "Homeland states" and their protection forces (armed w/"G3 like" rifles mainly), I expect the RSA government has acquired the keys to those arms stores.

 

[Langenator]

Josh, unless the 1986 Hughes Amendment is repealed, I don't think we're ever going to see any of those. (And I don't think I'd want any rifle that'd been in service in Africa for a good number of years, anyway)

The only possible exception would be the Brit L1A1 FAL versions-which were never full autos in the first place. But that would require getting Her Majesty's government to sell them, assuming they haven't melted them down already, and getting the Pres (not necessarily W) to rescind Daddy Bush's 'sporting use' EO.