New Air rifle laws?

  • Hey Guest, Early bird pricing on the Summer Moot (29th July - 10th August) available until April 6th, we'd love you to come. PLEASE CLICK HERE to early bird price and get more information.
"From 10th February 2011, owners will be liable for a fine of up to £1,000 if they do not take reasonable precautions to stop unauthorised access to their airgun by people under 18."
this means that the guns which i own and am allowed to own and use (but not to buy) at the age of 16 must be kept out of my reach by me unless i authorise myself to use my guns??

"You must be at least 18 years of age before you may purchase an airgun or airgun ammunition.

Under the age of 14 you may not own an airgun."


sorrry you cant own an airgun or be given one till your 18 or buy pellets or go in public with it with out a 21yr old supervising
you can use it unsupervised with permission on private land
 
Last edited:

Andy BB

Full Member
Apr 19, 2010
3,290
1
Hampshire
Unless kids under 18 have access to your house, you don't need to take any additional steps to secure your airguns in it. If they have, you do.

As far as licensing for sub-12ft/lb rifles or sub-6lb-ft pistols - why? Bows and cross-bows are infinitely more lethal - should all of those be licensed too? Catapults? Slings? Pieces of cloth that could be used as slings? Ropes that could be made into garottes or nooses? Sticks that can be given a point and used as spears, swords or deadfall traps? chains? Axes? Anything sharp or heavy? Screwdrivers? Chainsaws? Electric drills? Wire? Household bleach? Petrol/diesel/paraffin/meths/alcohol? Soapflakes? Cricket balls? Footballs? Rugby balls? Any contact sport? Climbing/sailing/canoing? Cars? Buses? Lorries? aircraft? condoms? clingfilm? Bicycles? motorbikes? kiddy scooters? Cookers? Frying pans? Saucepans? Cooking oil? Fire? The list is virtually endless. And all of the above list will have caused more deaths than a currently-legal non-licensed airgun has.
 

Mojoracinguk

Nomad
Apr 14, 2010
496
0
Hereford
Hi Scorpio

there is loads of talk about upping the limit before you get a licence... why?

Where did you here this...are you a member of an airgun forum?...I just ask
THe reason I mentioned an increase was to show how the gov could be a little more 'carrot' and a little less 'stick'
with the offer of an increase in the power you are granted if you licience your kit they may find less rifles/pistols end up 'dissapearing'. (although i don't feel comfortable with pistols at all being over 6ft/lb)

12ftlb is more than enough to target shoot and you can hunt with them effectively. the increase in power would be useless for pest control, would mean that target ranges would have to be doubled in length which would put my local one out of business, and would only really be useful to people lamping from a long distance. its just not needed.
I don't want to come across as 'having a go' but can you tell me a .30 or .38 cal running at 25-30ft/lbs would not be useful for short range ratting?

The range issue...well ranges can add suitable backstops if they wish to take on higher energy weapons....or impose a cap and only allow the weapons on site that they can accomodate.

There are many ways to skin a cat.....

Regards
Mojo
 

_scorpio_

Need to contact Admin...
Dec 22, 2009
947
0
east sussex UK
yeah larger calibre larger ftlbs seems to make more sense. but if you are going to have a .38 at 30ftlbs its only really going to have one use, pest control at really close range, so you would probably use it in a professional sort of way and a license wouldnt be a problem.
i was sure i could legally own an air gun at 16... thats what the shop said when they sold it to me anyway.
i dont ever shoot on my own/ with under 21's anyway so i will just say they are dads guns if anyone asks.

its age discrimination anyway, you look at all the nutcase serial killers, like that guy in cumbria with the shotgun, i dont know of any of them that are under 18.
if you are going to be an idiot it doesnt really matter about your age, an idiot will always be an idiot.
 
yeah larger calibre larger ftlbs seems to make more sense. but if you are going to have a .38 at 30ftlbs its only really going to have one use, pest control at really close range, so you would probably use it in a professional sort of way and a license wouldnt be a problem.
i was sure i could legally own an air gun at 16... thats what the shop said when they sold it to me anyway.
i dont ever shoot on my own/ with under 21's anyway so i will just say they are dads guns if anyone asks.

its age discrimination anyway, you look at all the nutcase serial killers, like that guy in cumbria with the shotgun, i dont know of any of them that are under 18.
if you are going to be an idiot it doesnt really matter about your age, an idiot will always be an idiot.



I thought you could be gifted one as well but no you can have a fire arm or shotgun younger but you would need the certificate first etc


its not to stop people going on killing rampages like the cumbria case sub 12ft lb air guns arnt a big danger to humans (yes i know people have been killed or perminantly damaged but its the exception not the rule )
They are trying to stop kids taking pot shots at buses / swans/ cats etc which is a problem tho in he scheme of things a small one and its easier to Ban an object than try and stop a person ( its a no blame society its not little jonnies fault hes from a broken home and its not his parents fault its society really but not )
 

_scorpio_

Need to contact Admin...
Dec 22, 2009
947
0
east sussex UK
and the day little johnny turns 18 and has spent the last 10 years shooting at things out of his window, setting fire to bus stops and stabbing people with a screwdriver is just going to stop? age does not matter to people who have been scumbags all their life, it just means they get put into a new set of government statistics.
the government dont understand that a law telling you that you cant own a gun under the age of 18 will matter to those people who are already careful and not to those who want to shoot at people with one. someone planning to go and kill someone with a kitchen knife is not going to stop because it is illegal for him to have a fixed blade knife in public, but it stops me carrying a useful knife that i can use without it closing on my fingers.
i see where a free license could be useful in this sense. then individuals can be punished rather than everyone.
 

Mojoracinguk

Nomad
Apr 14, 2010
496
0
Hereford
Sorry FGYT http://www.air-rifle.net/history/history.html

Not sure where you got your info from about the power levels but in the eearly 90's i shot a .38 or .40 and it hit hard enough to totally flatten round shot to the point of petalling the shot .....use splatology to work out the velocity and the mass of a ball shot of that calibre is easy so you can estimate the energy......
It was an awsome tool wish i owened it....
The guy had it restored but he has been desceased for nearly 20 years....so cant get any more specific details

He used to be a writer on rifles/black powder arms/air weapons, so when he siad these things were used in warfare pre 1800 then i believe it so....
Mojo
 

Jock

Forager
Feb 26, 2009
181
0
East Kilbride
Unless kids under 18 have access to your house, you don't need to take any additional steps to secure your airguns in it. If they have, you do.

As far as licensing for sub-12ft/lb rifles or sub-6lb-ft pistols - why? Bows and cross-bows are infinitely more lethal - should all of those be licensed too? Catapults? Slings? Pieces of cloth that could be used as slings? Ropes that could be made into garottes or nooses? Sticks that can be given a point and used as spears, swords or deadfall traps? chains? Axes? Anything sharp or heavy? Screwdrivers? Chainsaws? Electric drills? Wire? Household bleach? Petrol/diesel/paraffin/meths/alcohol? Soapflakes? Cricket balls? Footballs? Rugby balls? Any contact sport? Climbing/sailing/canoing? Cars? Buses? Lorries? aircraft? condoms? clingfilm? Bicycles? motorbikes? kiddy scooters? Cookers? Frying pans? Saucepans? Cooking oil? Fire? The list is virtually endless. And all of the above list will have caused more deaths than a currently-legal non-licensed airgun has.

Quite agree not a week goes by without someone being severely beaten by a baseball bat somewhere in the UK.
A young lad was murdered with one not half a mile from my house a couple of weeks ago. Yet theres no rush to restrict or ban them in a similar fashion to air rifles. Looks like yet another revenue raiser by government
 
Sorry FGYT http://www.air-rifle.net/history/history.html

Not sure where you got your info from about the power levels but in the eearly 90's i shot a .38 or .40 and it hit hard enough to totally flatten round shot to the point of petalling the shot .....use splatology to work out the velocity and the mass of a ball shot of that calibre is easy so you can estimate the energy......
It was an awsome tool wish i owened it....
The guy had it restored but he has been desceased for nearly 20 years....so cant get any more specific details

He used to be a writer on rifles/black powder arms/air weapons, so when he siad these things were used in warfare pre 1800 then i believe it so....
Mojo


yes a precharged air weapons where in the battlefield a very long time ago and the shooters where regarded as very low unsporting types ;) (quite and no smoke) but again the old ball resivoir guns usually had a lot of pumping for one powerful (in air gun terms ) shot a lot more effort and money than a black powder gun and a lot slower rate of fire

http://www.henrykrank.com/var167.html

those weapons are not the mass produced spring type that most people have had most of last century they where very expensive required a lot of maintainance and a lot of effort to fill (usually you had a man to do it for you as a gentleman hunter )

the spring air gun is what was produced and that was difficult to get up in power until modern times it was this that was used as a guidance to the 12ft lb level

if they ahd stayed the powerfull but expensive toy for the rich they would never have been licenced at all but once the commomers get it it usually goes that way

makes you wonder about Cross bows and bows etc
 

Mojoracinguk

Nomad
Apr 14, 2010
496
0
Hereford
The war rifles were (from what i remember) had a truck/trailer with men doing nothing but filling air reservoirs...i could well imagine 4-5 men to one rifle.

The rifle i used had a wire wound demasucs barrel and a air chamber that doubles as the stock....it was a tap loader too.

Mojo
 
The war rifles were (from what i remember) had a truck/trailer with men doing nothing but filling air reservoirs...i could well imagine 4-5 men to one rifle.

The rifle i used had a wire wound demasucs barrel and a air chamber that doubles as the stock....it was a tap loader too.

Mojo


definatly a nice bit of kit ive used a Stalker in 7.62cal 120-180ft lbs basically ripped rabbits in half at under 80 yrds


Barnes in the US makes the big boy airguns and works of art to

http://www.glbarnes.com/index.html

http://www.glbarnes.com/index10.html
 

Mojoracinguk

Nomad
Apr 14, 2010
496
0
Hereford
Yup FGYT....i have drooled over the Big bore rifles the states get to play with....there is just some thing about a big cal air rifle that i really would like....i'm not sure what it is....it's not really the power....maybe it's just because they are exotic???

actually it probably is the energy they carry.... ;)
 

santaman2000

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jan 15, 2011
16,909
1,114
67
Florida
Exactly. Remember the Oklahoma City bomber? He made his explosive with fertilizer and diesel fuel. Granted he bought a large quantity but not more than would have been expected for a farmer and there is no "Farmer's Lisence" for him to have to show to prove a need for the quantity. For every law passed there will always be a way for a criminal to get around it. Laws only affect the law abiding.
 

Miyagi

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 6, 2008
2,298
5
South Queensferry
Hi thereMiyagi,yes i was and still am a member of the dunfermline club.
I came back to airgun shooting a couple of years ago,Harry is still there and normally takes charge at weekends John however has been very ill and hasnt been up for a few years.
You will probably remember my dad george.
Regards soloman.

Small world innit? :D

vespasqf on here and I were members in the early to mid 90's.

John had just returned after a previous bout of ill health when we went back for a visit a few years ago. - it's about time we went back for another visit.

It was good to see the old faces again.

Liam
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
I have no particular opinion on this subject, but have heard people suggesting purchasing a trigger lock. I would advise these people to read the BASC advice on the new laws and in particular with reference to trigger locks (which they deem as inadequate under the law)

From the 10th February 2011, the Crime and Security Act 2010 makes it an offence
for a person in possession of an air gun to fail to take “reasonable precautions” to
prevent someone under the age of 18 from gaining unauthorised access to it.
The storage of air guns must be reasonable ‘in all of the circumstances’ and it is
now law for air gun owners to take appropriate steps to prevent young people
gaining unauthorised access to their air guns.
‘Reasonable precautions’ will depend on the particular circumstances in each
individual case. They could be a locked cupboard or a lock or locking device by
which an air weapon can be attached to the fabric of a building, or to a fixed
feature, or a security cord, lockable chain or similar device capable of passing
through a point of anchorage within the building. Where children are very young, it
might be sufficient simply to store any air weapons up high and out of their reach.
Trigger guard locks do not satisfy the requirements, as they do not prevent the
young person from having the air gun with them even though it cannot be fired.
The provisions of section 58(2) of the 1968 Act mean that the new offence does not
apply to an antique air weapon held as a ‘curiosity or ornament’. Nevertheless be
sensible how you look after your antiques or pellets that are for your modern
airguns.

http://www.airgunforum.co.uk/forums...62-basc-advice-regarding-new-airgun-laws.html

So, if the leading shooters rights organisation says a trigger lock is not enough (assuming under 18s in the house etc.), I suspect the courts are likely to agree.

However its not got any case law yet - whether anyone wants to risk a firearms conviction is their own call.

Red
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
I think so yes, its to prevent casual access and removal, a trigger lock doesn't stop removal. B&Q do a covered hasp for cheap. Screw that wherever you want and padlock the trigger guard to it with a long hasp padlock. Job done.
 

BCUK Shop

We have a a number of knives, T-Shirts and other items for sale.

SHOP HERE