Cell phone gun? For real or not?

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True. As first reported in an ABC News article dated December 6, 2000 (from which the above text was clearly taken) and later by Time magazine, .22 caliber guns disguised as cell phones have been confiscated from smugglers in western Europe on more than one occasion in the past several years.

The guns, which are capable of firing four rounds in quick succession, are believed to have been manufactured in Yugoslavia or Croatia. The "antennae" of the gutted phones function as gun barrels and numbers 5 through 8 on the keypad as triggers.

The images at right, which show a cell phone gun being fired and disassembled to show the bullet chamber, are from a short video demonstration circulating as an attachment to the above email message. It appears to be authentic.

Security experts say the cell phone guns, as well as other "improvised explosive devices," can be detected by screening equipment now in use at airports internationally. Though they have been the subject of security alerts in the U.S. as recently as December 2003, none have yet been sighted in North America.

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I believe they would definately be subject to the NFA if you wanted one (don't think you'd be able to import one though), but not exactly "illegal". A muzzleloading cell phone gun wouldn't I think (because I know there are muzzleloading cane guns and pen guns and key guns and such, that are not subject to the NFA regulation).
 
The "antennae" of the gutted phones function as gun barrels and numbers 5 through 8 on the keypad as triggers.
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Well that portion isn't true. Rounds 2-4 would not go through the antenna just by looking at the video.
 
IIRC, BATFE has ruled that those and similar devices are in the "Any Other Weapon" category and come under the National Firearms Act. They must be registered with the Feds and there is a transfer tax. They could be smuggled in or brought in by the government, but I doubt that any commercial import would be permitted.

The first ones were not that elaborate, just a plastic shell that concealed a conventional .22 or .25 pistol, then there were some that worked a bit like the old Mossberg Brownie, with four barrels.

Jim
 
There wasn't enough there to see. But I too couldn't see how the other rounds would make it to the barrel or "Antenna"
 
In late '01 or '02 I remember getting this in my official Air Force email. It came with a message that we were not allowed to bring these back stateside as "they" would be watching for them when we landed on domestic soil.:rolleyes:
 
Hey, if you are going to shoot at me, then please do it with a .22LR, four-shot cellphone with no sights. If you can't do that, then use one of those single-shot pen guns that you have to fold origami style before you can shoot.
 
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