What is an assault weapon?

[Zoogster]

A fake term that grows to encompass more.

In California it includes any typical semi auto handgun with a threaded barrel.

A handgun with a threaded barrel is an assault weapon.

In the future it may include any gun without microstamping or some other Orwellian measure imposed.

The antigun crowd is always emboldened to include more and more so even if you think you agree with some level of ban, know that each step means they are closer to banning other things.
All over the world they don't stop at scary rifles, it eventually is all semi autos, then all shotguns holding more than X number of rounds (3 is the current hunting restriction) and eventually you need a permit to own an airgun and they start restricting who can own those or how powerful it can be (12 foot pounds in england for a rifle and 6 for a handgun.)

Once they go after actions they don't like they go after power levels they don't like, overly concealable guns they don't like, etc

It also does not stop at guns, once a decent variety of guns are heavily restricted and require various licenses and red tape knives, swords, and other things become a bigger focus.

The UK, a place with a legal system very similar to our own, has banned things like inexpensive samurai swords and requires airsoft guns shooting plastic yellow pellets without enough energy to break skin to be transported in a locked container and the owner to have a 'license' in the form of being a member of an official club.

The only people that need these 'assault' weapons are every patrol officer in the country loaded and ready to go with multiple 30 round magazines, which is what most have. They are tasked with enforcing the whims of the politicians and need what is felt to be the best reasonable and affordable tool for the job. You can make do with a 1-2 shot shotgun with tracked ammunition that is stored unloaded, and you will be allowed a certain number of rounds a year. As long as you never voice the wrong thing, make any mistakes, jay walk or otherwise become prohibited under an increasing onslaught of prohibiting offenses designed to limit who even can legally have such a shotgun.

 

[slumlord44]

I see a lot of reference lately to "Assault type" weapons. This is actually a more accurate term as to what they want to ban or restrict since true assault rifles are capable of ful auto fire. I am wondering where my post ban Colt AR 15 stands. It was legal durring the last ban. Will it be ok under any new ban?

 

[barnbwt]

Depends on what the new ban says. Seems like most of the usual states are getting comfortable with forgoing 'grandfathering' for new restrictions, simply treating the objects as contraband after a short grace period (which is how they get around the Takings Clause, allegedly)

 

[barnbwt]

Has anyone started using the term to refer to manual repeaters, yet? Like bolt action 'sniper rifles' or pump shotguns, or revolvers? I guess the 'Street Sweepers' were banned, but under their trade name, which is way scarier than "assault weapon" (thank, Cobray). The only other "Assault Shotguns" were autoloaders, that I'm aware of.

 

[P5 Guy]

Politicians define 'assault weapon' as any weapon they fear to be in the hands of a citizen.

 

[GT1]

I am wondering where my post ban Colt AR 15 stands. It was legal durring the last ban. Will it be ok under any new ban?

Not a chance. As mentioned, they don't want any grandfathering either. If such legislation is passed it will need to be chopped up or turned in.

 

[JSH1]

I hear a lot about how politicians are expanding bans but little about the gun community’s role in those expansions. Take California.

They are clearly trying to ban the AR-15. They have tried multiple times. First it was banning guns by name. Gun manufacturers changed the name. Then it was a semi-auto with a pistol grip and number of features. Gun manufacturers removed the cosmetic features. Then it was any semi-auto with a pistol grip and removable magazine. Again, the gun industry has a work around with a “regular” stock and fast “disassembly” to change the magazine. The next ban will likely include the Mini 14 and well as grandpa’s surplus M1 Carbine.

Gun manufacturers refuse to stop poking the bear and admit that California doesn’t want them to sell the AR in California. Each round of ban sweeps up more guns that nobody was originally targeting.

 

[Zoogster]

That is partially true JSH1, but at the same time if there was no AR-15s there would just be less scary looking black rifles, but people would still commit high profile killings with other guns and the calls for change would continue.

Some of the mass shootings have used popular handguns like Glocks.
Shotguns are deadly at close range to those without body armor like all victims of mass shootings and often give 1 shot kills, it wouldn't be hard for people to get high body counts with them either even with standard tube fed capacity.
Once AR-15s are not the agenda something else will be.
Then they can more intently focus on things like enforcing the passed microstamping law and similar garbage.
Biometric guns that don't read your hand right half the time, don't work if wet or bloody or gripped wrong, and require a battery, add weight and complexity making failures more common.
California always focuses on banning something or reducing firearm access, and once they lose the primary focus they will gain a new primary focus.

In fact they already are, now you cannot order ammunition online, and a background checks start next year. Every time you buy a gun that costs you $35. If they start to also limit how many rounds you can buy but start charging for background checks, well that will be a significant cost increase you won't be able to offset with bulk purchases.

They are also constantly coming up with new reasons and ways to make people prohibited easier and easier both temporarily and permanently. And when they take guns, scratch them up and store them like crap, and charge you to get a background check to have them returned, its far from fair. Something multiple people I know with custody issues and other relationship problems have dealt with recently. They may have a judge promptly order them returned, and find any complaint unfounded but they take your stuff before you get due process, not after.
I can recall some issues where people that had custom firearms without markings were not even able to get them returned due to lack of markings to fill out the paperwork, while preventing them from adding markings to the gun in police custody. Sure you can hire an attorney and pay them more than the gun is worth to maybe get the issue resolved.

 

[JSH1]

How dare they, gun makers OBEYING THE LAW.

They are obeying the law and at the same time making an incredibly short sighted business decision that hurts gun owners in the long run.

 

[Zoogster]

You can usually tell if it is a garbage law they don't really believe when they exempt police officers.

Like that gun is good for nothing but killing large numbers of people, but police need it to do their job and are exempt. I mean they kill large numbers of people all the time right?

Or the approved handgun list is for your safety, but police are exempt, obviously they don't need to be safe right?

Or microstamping is reasonable, but you wouldn't want to be able to tell every cartridge that came from an officer's sidearm right? Or just maybe they know it is too burdensome, expensive, and unrealistic even for those with tax payer dollars helping out?

 

[JSH1]

You can usually tell if it is a garbage law they don't really believe when they exempt police officers.

Most people see guns as a tool required for police to do their job.

 

[JSH1]

And when they're the only ones who have that tool, it's called a POLICE STATE.

I guess I've visited a lot of nice "Police States" then.

 

[Sistema1927]

Don't feed the trolls.

 

[The Evangelist Cowboy]

The AR,AK, the 1911, the Glock, the .357 revolver, the Lever Action, the Bolt action, and more are nothing more than tools, I AM THE ASSAULT WEAPON.

 

[PabloJ]

Im seeing this term thrown around but no clear idea what defines it.

This bill in Oregon calls it a semi auto rifle with a magazine capable of holding more than 10 rounds.
https://www.statesmanjournal.com/st...s-require-owners-surrender-weapons/444530002/

I don’t understand that. Isn’t any rifle with a detachable magazine capable of potentially holding more than 10rounds? Is it possible at for a rifle with a detachable magazine not able to accept magazines over 10? Does that exist?

The definition evolves with history. There used to be front loaded wheel locks, flintlocks,.....single shot breech-loaded Spriengfields, to now modern assault rifles like M4, AKM,...... G17pistols, M&P pistols. I suppose it depended on time in history and what armies used at that time.

 

[buck460XVR]

Just got a new "2018 Shooting" catalog from Cabela's. They are advertising all their AR and similar type rifles as "Semi-Automatic Tactical rifles". Pretty obvious they are not targeting the "Modern Sporting Rifle" crowd.

 

[GEM]

I am closing this because the core issues are well discussed. Second, there was a series of highly inappropriate posts that I deleted. If your series of posts was one of those, be warned that it is under discussion by staff as to actions. We expect polite and reasoned discussion. Personal insults and rants are not appreciated.