Magazine Capacity

[LGswift]

This thread deals with Canadian firearm laws relating to magazine capacities.

In Canada in general, the maximum magazine capacity for a semiautomatic centerfire weapon is 5 cartriges and 10 cartriges maximum for a handgun.

http://www.cfc-cafc.gc.ca/factsheets/visitin_e.asp

Some large-capacity magazines are prohibited even if the firearms to which the magazines are attached are allowed. As a general rule, the maximum capacity is:

five cartridges for most magazines designed for a centre fire semi-automatic long gun; and

ten cartridges for most handgun magazines.

There is no maximum magazine capacity for other types of long guns, including semi-automatics that discharge only rim-fire ammunition.

However in the criminal code of Canada, certain magazines are perscribed as prohibited. http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/showdoc/cs/C-46/bo-ga:l_III-gb:s_84//en#anchorbo-ga:l_III-gb:s_84

"prohibited device" means

(d) a cartridge magazine that is prescribed to be a prohibited device, or

As of yet I have been unable to find a list on the internet that has the magazines that have been perscribed as prohibited.

Marstar, a canadian firearms site sells RRA 10 round pistol magazines which are compatable as we all know with any AR styled rifle. Because the magazine was designed for a pistol it may hold a maximum of 10 cartriges.
http://www.marstar.ca/ac-AR-15/index.shtm

This is the loop-hole that allows 10 round AR magazines to be imported into Canada, and it is the same loop-hole that allows 10 round Beretta 92 9mm magazines to be imported into Canada to be used in the Beretta CX4 carbines

On Wikipedia, in Canadian gun politics,

The legal capacity of a specific magazine is determined by the firearm it was made for, not the firearm it is used in.

I know this is just wikipedia but this is the law in blunt terms, and I have yet to get a quote from the Criminal Code.

Finally to the point with all the legal background ingested and out of the way...

With this interpretation of Canada's Magazine Capacity laws, and at this moment not knowing the mysterious list of perscribed prohibited magazines, Would it be pushing too far to interpret that STANDAG magazines with capacities over 5 and 10 cartriges, designed for the Remington 7615 which is a manually opperated firearm (pump action) be legal for import into Canada? (with possible inention of using them in AR styled rifles)

By the way I thank anyone who takes the time to read this and post your opinion. I would be posting this on Canadian Gun Nutz.com however I can't register there because they block hotmail.com e-mail for spam reasons.

 

[LGswift]

Additional information

It appears that wikipedia did source its information:

http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/ShowFullDoc/cr/SOR-98-462///en

3. (1) Any cartridge magazine

(a) that is capable of containing more than five cartridges of the type for which the magazine was originally designed and that is designed or manufactured for use in

(i) a semi-automatic handgun that is not commonly available in Canada,

(ii) a semi-automatic firearm other than a semi-automatic handgun,

(iii) an automatic firearm whether or not it has been altered to discharge only one projectile with one pressure of the trigger,

(iv) the firearms of the designs commonly known as the Ingram M10 and M11 pistols, and any variants or modified versions of them, including the Cobray M10 and M11 pistols, the RPB M10, M11 and SM11 pistols and the SWD M10, M11, SM10 and SM11 pistols,

(v) the firearm of the design commonly known as the Partisan Avenger Auto Pistol, and any variant or modified version of it, or

(vi) the firearm of the design commonly known as the UZI pistol, and any variant or modified version of it, including the Micro-UZI pistol; or

(b) that is capable of containing more than 10 cartridges of the type for which the magazine was originally designed and that is designed or manufactured for use in a semi-automatic handgun that is commonly available in Canada.

 

[Prince Yamato]

I'm familiar with Canadian gun laws, but I have a question:

If you possess the Prohibited Class license, can you own (in addition to prohibited weapons, such as machine guns and pocket pistols) magazines that hold more than 10 rounds?

 

[LGswift]

Doing my best to answer your question

A prohibited license has several catagories for different weapons that are perscribed prohibited. The catagories include:

12.2 Full auto
12.3 Converted Auto
12.4 Small Class (Uzi, MAC, Sterling to name a few and bulpup stocks)
12.5 Large Class (Kalashnikov's FN's HK's to name a few, all rifles)
12.6 Prohibited Handguns (.25/.32 cal or a barrel shorter than 4.1 inches)

Magazines that hold more than 10 rounds that were designed for pistols or semiautomatic centerfire firearms are prohibited devices and to my knowledge there is no license you can get that allows you to own prohibited devices. Other prohibited devices include grenades, silencers, tasers and replica firearms.

So with that explination the short answer is no unless you are LE/Military and using them on duty.

 

[damien]

What's the penalty for having a prohibited magazine? It seems to me that there have to be some floating around up there.

 

[LGswift]

If charged and prosecuted fully, it is a 5 year maximum term for first offence. There is no doubt they are out there but no one brings them to the ranges, and usually leave them disassembled at home which seems to be another loop hole.

 

[Prince Yamato]

to my knowledge there is no license you can get that allows you to own prohibited devices.

If you owned a prohibited item before 1996/1997 you were grandfathered in. Hence you became a holder of a "prohibited class" license. I guess what I'm asking is, did people turn in their old mags or did they just keep them?

 

[LGswift]

You are grandfathered in on prohibited weapons, not devices which mags fall under. Magazines would be either kept illegally, turned in for destruction if undesired or altered permenantly by "pinning" them during an amnesty after the CFA 97 was passed. The term pinning is used because in some cases, owners would drill a hole through their magazine body and stick a bolt through and weld a nut on, thus giving a quick identification of a legal magazine at the time the law was passed.

 

[PAINTBALL GUY 3]

Hello, sorry to bring up such an old thread but I have a question that I cant seem to find the (straight) answer for.

If the firearm is a manually operated magazine feed firearm (bolt action, pump action, ect.), is the magazine capacity more then 5 round? (10 round?)

 

[cjl8651]

There aren't any magazine capacity restrictions for manually operated rifles and shotguns. So in theory you could have a 100 round drum attached to grandpa's old Springfield M1903 and that'd be perfectly legal.

 

[Extremely Pro Gun]

That sucks move to /Utah and buy some guns.