5 ms·

Where can you buy assault rifles?

by blisterpeanuts 6y ago

BrianOnHN 6y ago
At the local "gun show." It's advertised on billboards all along the highway. No background check required!
- blisterpeanuts 6y ago
  Fully automatic military assault weapons? I don't think so.
  - BrianOnHN 6y ago
    Welcome to FL USA
    - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
      Where in FL USA can one legally purchase fully automatic weapons without a special federal permit?
      - sneak 6y ago
        Just about any federal dealer. There is no permit required to purchase fully automatic weapons in the United States; you just have to pay a transfer tax. Unfortunately processing the tax payment takes about a year, in their effort to turn it into a form of permit, but that's not what it is. Anyone (without criminal background) can pay the tax and buy one. There is a ban on the import and manufacture of new ones (for civilian use) in place since 1986, so the ones available for purchase (by anyone, again, no "special federal permit" required) cost about 10-20x more than they would cost otherwise, which effectively restricts them to "rich people only". They're freely available, though.
        blisterpeanuts 6y ago
        You have to pay $200 and send an application to the Bureau of Tobacco and Firearms. It takes 8 months to a year; they will do a background investigation and send you an approval form if you pass. Then you can purchase the (used) machine gun. Fully automatic weapons are not currently manufactured in the U.S. Florida, in particular, has banned machine guns like the AK-47 which is to say weapons that fire multiple bullets with one pull of the trigger. Semi-autos are the dominant technology in firearms; when a bullet is fired, the energy released forces a fresh bullet into the chamber, ready to fire but you must pull the trigger again. This is known as "semi-automatic" and is legal everywhere, for now.
        sonotathrowaway 6y ago
        How difficult is it for a person to modify a stem-automatic weapon to make an illegal fully-automatic?
        blisterpeanuts 6y ago
        Up until the Vegas shooter in October 2017, you could add a mechanism called a bump stock to a standard semi-auto AR and make it shoot continuously like a machine gun. The Trump Administration banned the device (angering quite a few of his base). Is it difficult today? Not for someone who has some knowledge and connections. The how-to videos and files are still floating around. It's not recommended, obviously, because it's now an illegal modification, but there are thousands of them already out there and it's likely people are still making them in garage workshops.
        sneak 6y ago
        You don't need connections, it can be done with a simple metal coathanger and pliers in 20 minutes. There are instruction videos on YouTube. It's a federal felony, however, good for the better part of a decade in jail.
        sneak 6y ago
        > Fully automatic weapons are not currently manufactured in the U.S. This is a false statement. Only manufacture of automatic weapons for civilians is banned in the US. Many automatic weapons are manufactured in the US for police/military/law enforcement.
- DennisP 6y ago
  The only way no background check is required is if you buy from an individual, not a dealer. The threshold to be considered a dealer is fairly low. If it's someone with a table, they're going to be a dealer. It's just that if an individual sells their personal firearm, they're not required to do a background check, and at gun shows you'll see a few people walking around with a rifle slung over their shoulder and a sign saying they're selling it. But that's semi-auto only (one bullet per trigger pull). Fully automatic weapons have stringent federal requirements.
  - sonotathrowaway 6y ago
    How effective would you rate those federal requirements on fully automatic weapons? If a person wanted to illegally modify a semi-automatic weapon to create an illegal fully-automatic weapon, how feasible would that be?
    - DennisP 6y ago
      Must weapons that were easy to convert have been pulled off the market. AR-15s used to be easy to convert by buying a little part called an auto sear, but now the auto sear is considered a machine gun by itself, so you have to go through the same hassle to buy that as a full machine gun. Owning this stuff illegally gets you a ten-year felony conviction.
MaxBarraclough 6y ago
Some US states allow civilian ownership of automatic rifles, although it's typically a lot of hassle and expense with licensing and taxes.
dTal 6y ago
In 43 states. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_weapons_legislation_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_weapons_legislation_in...
- karaterobot 6y ago
  The person you're responding to asked about assault rifles, and you responded with a link about assault weapons. They're very different things, and this has led to a lot of confusion. Generally, when people talk about "assault weapons" they're actually thinking of automatic, military-style weapons with large magazines. Those are "assault rifles", which have been legislated at the federal level for a long time. The laws are indeed complicated, but in general these weapons are hard to get legally. Here's an decent explainer: https://www.ajc.com/news/national/assault-weapon-assault-rifle-what-the-difference/LPXLAj8ZcHkPn2rLn3bOGK/ https://www.ajc.com/news/national/assault-weapon-assault-rif...
refurb 6y ago
What’s an assault rifle? A normal rifle with features that scared people but have no impact on the actual lethality?
- jordanbeiber 6y ago
  A specific compact form-factor and multiple rounds in a magazine that allow for more rapid fire than a bolt action rifle? I know people claim "hunting" with these rifles, but I think there's a shiny toy thing at play more than utility.
  - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
    No, you're describing a semi-automatic weapon, which requires a separate trigger pull for each shot. Fully automatic allows multiple shots with one pull of the trigger.
    - detaro 6y ago
      I don't see how this addresses anything in the parent comment? Are you trying to say they can't define assault weapons as including semi-automatics?
      - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
        Yes, assault weapons are a different category, legally and technically, from semi-automatic weapons which are the majority of firearms manufactured and sold today in the U.S. The anti-gun lobby has conflated the terms to push a blanket ban on anything that looks remotely military. But functionally, it's two separate categories and fully automatic weapons require a federal permit that takes about a year.
        detaro 6y ago
        If you think that's the definition, why not clearly say that instead of playing this "let others guess what your definition is" game? > Yes, assault weapons are a different category, legally and technically, from semi-automatic weapons What's the clear legal definition of an assault weapon? E.g. as referenced elsewhere in the comments here, the federal assault weapons ban clearly talked about "semi-automatic assault weapons", suggesting the legal definition was not so clearly "only full-automatics"?

Where can you buy assault rifles?

BrianOnHN 6y ago

At the local "gun show." It's advertised on billboards all along the highway. No background check required!

blisterpeanuts 6y ago
Fully automatic military assault weapons? I don't think so.
- BrianOnHN 6y ago
  Welcome to FL USA
  - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
    Where in FL USA can one legally purchase fully automatic weapons without a special federal permit?
    - sneak 6y ago
      Just about any federal dealer. There is no permit required to purchase fully automatic weapons in the United States; you just have to pay a transfer tax. Unfortunately processing the tax payment takes about a year, in their effort to turn it into a form of permit, but that's not what it is. Anyone (without criminal background) can pay the tax and buy one. There is a ban on the import and manufacture of new ones (for civilian use) in place since 1986, so the ones available for purchase (by anyone, again, no "special federal permit" required) cost about 10-20x more than they would cost otherwise, which effectively restricts them to "rich people only". They're freely available, though.
      - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
        You have to pay $200 and send an application to the Bureau of Tobacco and Firearms. It takes 8 months to a year; they will do a background investigation and send you an approval form if you pass. Then you can purchase the (used) machine gun. Fully automatic weapons are not currently manufactured in the U.S. Florida, in particular, has banned machine guns like the AK-47 which is to say weapons that fire multiple bullets with one pull of the trigger. Semi-autos are the dominant technology in firearms; when a bullet is fired, the energy released forces a fresh bullet into the chamber, ready to fire but you must pull the trigger again. This is known as "semi-automatic" and is legal everywhere, for now.
        sonotathrowaway 6y ago
        How difficult is it for a person to modify a stem-automatic weapon to make an illegal fully-automatic?
        blisterpeanuts 6y ago
        Up until the Vegas shooter in October 2017, you could add a mechanism called a bump stock to a standard semi-auto AR and make it shoot continuously like a machine gun. The Trump Administration banned the device (angering quite a few of his base). Is it difficult today? Not for someone who has some knowledge and connections. The how-to videos and files are still floating around. It's not recommended, obviously, because it's now an illegal modification, but there are thousands of them already out there and it's likely people are still making them in garage workshops.
        sneak 6y ago
        You don't need connections, it can be done with a simple metal coathanger and pliers in 20 minutes. There are instruction videos on YouTube. It's a federal felony, however, good for the better part of a decade in jail.
        sneak 6y ago
        > Fully automatic weapons are not currently manufactured in the U.S. This is a false statement. Only manufacture of automatic weapons for civilians is banned in the US. Many automatic weapons are manufactured in the US for police/military/law enforcement.
DennisP 6y ago
The only way no background check is required is if you buy from an individual, not a dealer. The threshold to be considered a dealer is fairly low. If it's someone with a table, they're going to be a dealer. It's just that if an individual sells their personal firearm, they're not required to do a background check, and at gun shows you'll see a few people walking around with a rifle slung over their shoulder and a sign saying they're selling it. But that's semi-auto only (one bullet per trigger pull). Fully automatic weapons have stringent federal requirements.
- sonotathrowaway 6y ago
  How effective would you rate those federal requirements on fully automatic weapons? If a person wanted to illegally modify a semi-automatic weapon to create an illegal fully-automatic weapon, how feasible would that be?
  - DennisP 6y ago
    Must weapons that were easy to convert have been pulled off the market. AR-15s used to be easy to convert by buying a little part called an auto sear, but now the auto sear is considered a machine gun by itself, so you have to go through the same hassle to buy that as a full machine gun. Owning this stuff illegally gets you a ten-year felony conviction.

MaxBarraclough 6y ago

Some US states allow civilian ownership of automatic rifles, although it's typically a lot of hassle and expense with licensing and taxes.

dTal 6y ago

In 43 states. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_weapons_legislation_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_weapons_legislation_in...

karaterobot 6y ago
The person you're responding to asked about assault rifles, and you responded with a link about assault weapons. They're very different things, and this has led to a lot of confusion. Generally, when people talk about "assault weapons" they're actually thinking of automatic, military-style weapons with large magazines. Those are "assault rifles", which have been legislated at the federal level for a long time. The laws are indeed complicated, but in general these weapons are hard to get legally. Here's an decent explainer: https://www.ajc.com/news/national/assault-weapon-assault-rifle-what-the-difference/LPXLAj8ZcHkPn2rLn3bOGK/ https://www.ajc.com/news/national/assault-weapon-assault-rif...

refurb 6y ago

What’s an assault rifle? A normal rifle with features that scared people but have no impact on the actual lethality?

jordanbeiber 6y ago
A specific compact form-factor and multiple rounds in a magazine that allow for more rapid fire than a bolt action rifle? I know people claim "hunting" with these rifles, but I think there's a shiny toy thing at play more than utility.
- blisterpeanuts 6y ago
  No, you're describing a semi-automatic weapon, which requires a separate trigger pull for each shot. Fully automatic allows multiple shots with one pull of the trigger.
  - detaro 6y ago
    I don't see how this addresses anything in the parent comment? Are you trying to say they can't define assault weapons as including semi-automatics?
    - blisterpeanuts 6y ago
      Yes, assault weapons are a different category, legally and technically, from semi-automatic weapons which are the majority of firearms manufactured and sold today in the U.S. The anti-gun lobby has conflated the terms to push a blanket ban on anything that looks remotely military. But functionally, it's two separate categories and fully automatic weapons require a federal permit that takes about a year.
      - detaro 6y ago
        If you think that's the definition, why not clearly say that instead of playing this "let others guess what your definition is" game? > Yes, assault weapons are a different category, legally and technically, from semi-automatic weapons What's the clear legal definition of an assault weapon? E.g. as referenced elsewhere in the comments here, the federal assault weapons ban clearly talked about "semi-automatic assault weapons", suggesting the legal definition was not so clearly "only full-automatics"?