This Canadian reporter, along with the great majority of his brothers and sisters, clearly is ignorant of the fact that a whole lot of civilian rifles are high-powered too.
A Chinese M-14 version:
One civilian rifle:
More here.
Update: Didn’t realize the Ruger was restricted. However this truly high-powered civilian rifle does not appear to be:
the bear
good point…I hunt with a 30-06 but have used a 303 and a 30/30 at various times. For the average guy like myself there is little difference.
But hey, they’re all high powered rifles…
HOT TIP:::HARPER IS ANNOUNCING NEW GUN LAW TOMORROW ALONG WITH ENDING THE LONG GUN REGISTRY. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/tories-to-pull-trigger-on-gun-registry-this-week/article2211957/
How does he feel about shotguns?
Another Albertan here that fired modified Lee Enfields in a basement (not of a school, but rather the Prince of Wales Armory in Edmonton, before the City took it over for archives…). H’mm…there seems to be a lot of us.
Long guns? Well, at least there’s no restrictions on my railgun…
Mafia like the shorty 22 peestola,
it’s quiet, lite, cheap, and it kill effectively at 1 to 2 inches from the head:-))))
Sharkson >
No problem, I did realize the “Canadian version” has the legal barrel length & supplied 5 rnd mag, simply not the one posted for the thread topic.
VancouverGuy >
It’s always great to hear military and police, past or present, engaging in public gun discussion forums!
Some great points, Cheers.
Just so we’re clear, none of these firearms are in any way restricted. Not the Ruger, not the M14. Bolt action rifles are not subject to restrictions on barrel length or magazine capacity.
“I remember the days when if a gun was needed for a school play you took your dads on the school bus, bare not in a case.: Scar @ 4:02.
Back in the seventies, in ‘toon town, bought a Remington 760 with a Bushnell 3×9 variable. Thought it pretty cool, so my bro-in-law and I marvelled at the optics as we surveyed the adjacent parking lots, apt bldgs, shopping centres…. from his apartment balcony.
Holy shite, if we did that now, ol’ snagglepuss would be one dead cat.
Any issues with getting short barrels/flash hiders on the Ruger in Canada are a US export issue and have nothing to do with Canadian law. See ITAR restrictions for more info.
The soccer moms have taken over. Guns are scary, hockey is too violent, bicycles riders have to wear helmets, kids in grade 2 have cell phones with their lawyers number on speed dial. It’s rough out there.
The rcmp are going around confiscating BB guns from retailers that look like AK 47’s because they may be converted to a real AK 47. Ya right that pot metal in those BB guns can standup to the pressures of modern ammunition.
The gun lobby isn’t going away any time soon. My guess is that when the federal long gun registry is abolished the matter will become a provincial matter and provinces like quebec and ontario will bring in a registry.
Tyler >
Hey, stupid me it looks like you are absolutely correct by the Firearms Program definition.
Restricted – “a semi-automatic, centre-fire rifle or shotgun with a barrel length less than 470 mm (18.5 inches) that is not prohibited”
It doesn’t say bolt action. Thanks for pointing that out, me bad, any bolt gun I own is at least +20” and couldn’t see a real use for one shorter anyway. Semi Auto’s on the other hand ok, a little handier with faster burning powder in small to midrange calibers.
Calibre preference is a pretty big gun topic, you need to pretty much be a gun affectionato to know the subtle differences between mid range .30 calibre cartridges. They all kill deer efficiently within their range limitations, which pretty much leaves the differences to finicky sharpshooter hunter types, bench rest, and hand loaders.
Anyway Hornady7th Edition: .30 cal 150gr (Max Loads) for reference –
30-30 Win – 2300 fps
303 Brit – 2600 fps (2700 w/ RL-15)
.308 Win – 2800 fps
30-06 Spr – 3000 fps
Limitations are of course the round nose f/ 30-30 lever actions, can now get Hornady flex tip’s to increase velocity, and the older potentially weaker (worn) actions in .303 Lee Enfield rifles.
It would be pretty hard for deer to tell the difference between these 150gr bullets, but from my personal experience the effect on deer is pretty immediate with anything traveling from the muzzle over 2800 fps inside 300 yards. The .308 & 30-06 have distinctive advantages for range +300 yards with a modern bolt action over the lever and older Enfield.
Uh oh, the media is talking about firearms again…such a same none of these reports have so much as picked up a firearm before.
Just for the record, an M-14 is a Battle Rifle and an M-16 is an Assault rifle, and neither of them are available in Canada in their original military form.
Functionally speaking, the versions of these weapons that we can buy in Canada are no different than a Ruger Mini-14 or Browning BAR or Remington 750, all common hunting rifles. The difference is they don’t look scary I guess.
Mmm, a classic safari rifle…I long for one in 416 Rigby. For now I am contented by the marginal stopping power of my 1886 in 50 Alaskan.
@ VancouverGuy:
While I agree that I would also like to know that when hunting in the bush, or walking around where conceal carry is legal that the other guy isn’t muzzle sweeping me or has his holster pointed at my back.
But at the end of the day, having worked in the Emerg where the results of said idiots often show up, it seems that idiots just will be idiots regardless of how many courses they take. In fact I have stopped asking why they “were fixing their roof with a blood alcohol level of 100” or “letting their kid eat aspirin and play in the backyard in a pool by himself” etc.
Dumb will dumb. Courses or no, in fact they seem to forget everything right away, as evidenced by the inappropriate tagging of his friend with the barrel of a loaded firearm.
@ VancouverGuy continued… I didn’t need said course to know that pointing a gun at someone was stupid, or that leaving a loaded gun on the shelf was dumb, or letting my 4 year old kid have access to a loaded gun was the height of dumb. Its just the kind of stuff that most of us either instinctially know or will never get.
When the long gun registry came out, most gun owners were threatened into submission. I didn’t comply then and won’t comply in the future if some federal government tries to tag or grab guns again.
The government could do less than distribute these to working citizens, instead of needles for addicts. To protect themselves from said criminals.
Just like Switzerland we ought to all have home defense.
I used to be a model citizen, raised by Trudeau liberals from southern Ontario in a small town. Volunteer, paperboy, housecat rescuer, “Safety patrol of the year” that lied about my “too young” age to start work at 8 years old. My older brother was killed when he was just 19 years old in the C.F. We come from a long line of fist fight stoppers and casserole makers/deliverers.
So I naturally complied with the gun registry and learned a very valuable lesson through my dealings with the Stasi that 180’d my world view.
“F” them BEFORE they “F” you!
I’m now a big hater of government and it’s cheerleaders and constantly trying to go as Galt as possible.
We need to leg scissor the STATE and hold a pillow over it’s giant deformed blind face for the good of everyone involved.
CBC poll –
Where do you stand on the Long Gun Registry?
http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2011/10/where-do-you-stand-on-gun-control.html
***We are lagging behind in todays poll.
Not for long, Knight99. Spread the word. Kate, can you set up another ‘poll gone wrong’ for this?
There are THREE polls at the CBC (at the link above)
At 6:40pm running about 75% against provinces having their own registry (which the provinces CANNOT do: doesn’t anyone in the lame-stream understand the Constitution?), about the same in favour of Harper pushing forward with abolishing the registry, AND together about 60% overall, in favour of either, no restrictions at all (15%), get rid of long gun registry and firearms possession permits (14%) and get rid of the long gun registry (30%). The first category is ‘Canadians should be free to own whatever guns they want’, which I take as including hand-guns.
Second amendment knowledge is infectious!
And voting on the CBC… infarcts and cranial explosions on Front Street!
Regarding rifles, it is clearly not the calibre nor power of the rifle. It is the ‘scary’ factor.
Some guns are just ‘too scary’ for us mere plebes. Anything the LOOKS like an AR15 is restricted or prohibited….
Recently we have seen Coalition troopers using high powered rifles for sniping, in Afghanistan. The long distance kill record was held for a while by a US serviceman, using a Barrett 82A1 .50 calibre. The record was then broken by a Canadian shooter using a McMillan Tac50 rifle.
Both of those are either bolt action, or semi-auto depending on the exact model. However, both of those are prohibited weapons. No-one is allowed to own a .50 calibre rifle. Why? We’re NOT sure…
The distance record was broken in 2009 by a British Army cavalry trooper, using an L115A3 rifle in .338 calibre.
NOT prohibited…..
All of the record shots were in excess of 2300 metres.
Takes my Envoy 30 cents worth of gas to drive that far!
But we proles cannot be trusted to own the weapon which we pay for and provide to our troops for single shot action…Too dangerous.
Time to get rid of all 140 pages of crud in the Criminal Code. No penalties except when the gun goes off or is used in furtherance of a another crime.
But of course, we have had a rash, an explosion, I tell you, of bank robberies where the robbers used a 50 calibre rifle. It’s true, I tell you…oh wait!….
“But of course, we have had a rash, an explosion, I tell you, of bank robberies where the robbers used a 50 calibre rifle. It’s true, I tell you…oh wait!….”
Yep. Barrett .50 caliber rifle has never been used in a crime, anywhere. Ever. Why? Because it weighs 30 freakin’ big heavy pounds empty, because it is large-by-huge in size, because it costs six THOUSAND dollars and up depending on the scope, and the ammo is five bucks a round. If you reload.
And yes, its banned here in Canada, whereas the .338 Lapua isn’t. Because why? Because none of these moron Liberal MPs and backroomers have seen a .338 Lapua in a Hollywood movie, that’s why.
Don’t we all feel so much safer knowing that the five foot long, thirty pound giant gun is off the market? Oh yeah. But you know, there’s this place in Buffalo that has a whole bunch of ’em, and the ATF has this Fast & Furious deal…
I’ve seen several .50 CAL BMG’s for sale here in Canada, I tried to post a link for “Dyspeptic Curmudgeon” but the spam filter seems to catch it.
Anyway for anyone interested go to Wolverine Supplies, then link on – tactical firearms, then Accuracy International and the AW50. Wolverine sells allot of good toys, but I’ve personally seen various 50 CAL rifles in a couple of different local stores.
I don’t pay them much attention, because as The Phantom pointed out they don’t make good deer rifles and ammo is ridiculously expensive (one dealer told me close to $10 bucks a round at his store).
Wendy Kooky-er.. She should be a restricted weapon. Great and informative thread by the way. Thanks folks.
@ Knight99: Yes some of these weapons are offered for sale in Canada. But we proles can only buy one if we ALREADY have a licence and have held that licence continuously since 1998 AND we owned a weapon of the same class AT THAT TIME. Plus of course a whack of other picky gotcha little conditions.
Otherwise, as set out by the RCMP:
***************
What do I need to do to maintain my grandfathered privileges?
To stay grandfathered for a particular category of prohibited firearm, you must continuously hold a valid registration certificate for a firearm in that category from December 1, 1998 onward. To be able to hold a registration certificate for a firearm, you need a valid licence allowing you to possess that class of firearm, so make sure you renew your licence before it expires.
All registration certificates issued under the former law (prior to December 1, 1998) expired on December 31, 2002 so it was important to have re-registered it under the Firearms Act before the old certificate expired. If you have not re-registered your prohibited firearms, please call 1 800 731-4000 to find out your options.
Can I acquire a prohibited firearm if I am not grandfathered?
No you cannot.
***************
Or you can just buy one in a bar….
I bought a Lee Enfield Jungle Carbine last year, stamped 1945. I’ve been looking for a good one for many years, and finally found one in very nice shape. It’s a tiny rifle, with a ten shot mag, and a very fast bolt action. Even after 65 years, it’s still a very formidable weapon. It isn’t restricted, though the ten shot mag might get you in trouble during hunting season.
I own a couple of tactical shotguns, that I carry when I work in the bush. Those things are a lot nastier looking, but would not stack up very well against that little 303, in a real gunfight. It’s really more about perception, than reality. Military style weapons seem to make a bad impression on non-gun types, unless they classify as antiques.
coach >
Nice picks.
I’m of the opinion the whole lefty gun grab has not a thing to do with the guns themselves or how they look. They do use any “ammo” they can find as an excuse, looks being one of them, but the whole irrational psychology of taking guns away from honest citizens runs much deeper than the gun itself.
In fact they want ALL guns out of the hands of private citizens, full stop. They know they can only succeed in increments and that is how they are approaching it, a little bit every other year.
That is why gun owners of all strips need to stand in solidarity, regardless of your personal tastes in what kind of firearm works for you. “We either stick together, or hang separately”.
Dyspeptic Curmudgeon >
Yup that sucks.
Another issue I’ve always wondered about is the whole mental health screening. Of course it’s a good thing, I can appreciate that people with serious mental disorders are excluded from purchasing a gun.
The problem arises as I see it for existing gun owners who age and possibly start having mental problems, but are now afraid to go seek help they probably should get for fear of losing their Licences. Maybe they should, but that doesn’t change the fact that they may forgo “help” from a doctor in fear of losing their prized possessions – just saying.
Knight 99 – for gun owners who have psychiatric problems, the most important thing is to go to the right doctor. Once in my career I’ve told a patient that I thought he should take the guns out of his house temporarily when he was manic. The guns went to his father in-laws for a few months (who had an FAC).
When someone is getting demented it would be a time also to move guns to somewhere else. Fortunately, once registration of rifles isn’t required it will be much simpler to just transfer them to one of the children. The last thing I would do in such a situation would be to contact the police.