4 ms·

Here's an illustration I saw in my local newspaper. Other than the collapsible stock (which makes the weapon easier to conceal) and the (separately regulated) h

Here's an illustration I saw in my local newspaper. Other than the collapsible stock (which makes the weapon easier to conceal) and the (separately regulated) high capacity magazine, pretty much everything is purely cosmetic. http://seattletimes.com/ABPub/2013/01/08/2020087609.jpg http://seattletimes.com/ABPub/2013/01/08/2020087609.jpg

jack-r-abbit 14y ago
Exactly. And even the collapsible stock is partially cosmetic and partially functional... but only for ease of use. It does nothing to make that weapon any more deadly than any other.
- MartinCron 14y ago
  I can kind of see the collapsible stock as a functional thing, as it makes a rifle (more powerful and accurate than a handgun) easier to carry in a concealed way, but if that's the case, you could regulate collapsible stocks separately, as well.
  - jlgreco 14y ago
    Seems like a better rule than "has a collapsible stock" would just be "is shorter than [whatever a reasonable length is]", since the problem is less what the stock can and cannot do, and more how long or short the gun can be.
hga 14y ago
Important detail: the collapsible stock cannot make an AR-15 pattern rifle "short" beyond a very small amount because the recoil spring is inside it. It's mostly to allow issuing one variety of weapon that will fit anybody, and fit when wearing serious body armor or not.
- MartinCron 14y ago
  Did not know that. Thanks for pointing that out. I seem to remember this as a design feature of other weapons, but I am not an expert.
  - hga 14y ago
    It's all part of AR-10/15 design, which has one very big issue, gas is injected directly into the receiver (not where you want cruft), but also some big virtues: fewer moving parts and potentially lighter in weight overall, inherently the most accurate semi-auto design (much less is moving before the bullet exits the barrel, and it's all behind the barrel, not parallel with it), and the front is lightweight since the center of gravity is moved backwards compared to piston designs. I'm told AR-15 pattern rifles rule in 3 gun competitions (pistol, shotgun, and rifle/carbine) because of the weight distribution, which of course also is a virtue in close quarters combat/battle (CQB). I can't remember this feature in any other designs, but there are very possibly some ones that I'm not interested in and haven't learned the details of. Almost every other design puts a piston forward, which naturally incorporates the recoil spring. There's also the roller locking recoil designs, the ones that I'm familiar with (G3/HK 91, StG 57) have their piston forward as well, although that's not strictly required by the mechanism.
    - hga 14y ago
      Typo: There's also the roller locking recoil designs, the ones that I'm familiar with (G3/HK 91, StG 57) have their spring forward as well, although that's not strictly required by the mechanism.

jack-r-abbit 14y ago

Exactly. And even the collapsible stock is partially cosmetic and partially functional... but only for ease of use. It does nothing to make that weapon any more deadly than any other.

MartinCron 14y ago
I can kind of see the collapsible stock as a functional thing, as it makes a rifle (more powerful and accurate than a handgun) easier to carry in a concealed way, but if that's the case, you could regulate collapsible stocks separately, as well.
- jlgreco 14y ago
  Seems like a better rule than "has a collapsible stock" would just be "is shorter than [whatever a reasonable length is]", since the problem is less what the stock can and cannot do, and more how long or short the gun can be.

hga 14y ago

Important detail: the collapsible stock cannot make an AR-15 pattern rifle "short" beyond a very small amount because the recoil spring is inside it. It's mostly to allow issuing one variety of weapon that will fit anybody, and fit when wearing serious body armor or not.

MartinCron 14y ago
Did not know that. Thanks for pointing that out. I seem to remember this as a design feature of other weapons, but I am not an expert.
- hga 14y ago
  It's all part of AR-10/15 design, which has one very big issue, gas is injected directly into the receiver (not where you want cruft), but also some big virtues: fewer moving parts and potentially lighter in weight overall, inherently the most accurate semi-auto design (much less is moving before the bullet exits the barrel, and it's all behind the barrel, not parallel with it), and the front is lightweight since the center of gravity is moved backwards compared to piston designs. I'm told AR-15 pattern rifles rule in 3 gun competitions (pistol, shotgun, and rifle/carbine) because of the weight distribution, which of course also is a virtue in close quarters combat/battle (CQB). I can't remember this feature in any other designs, but there are very possibly some ones that I'm not interested in and haven't learned the details of. Almost every other design puts a piston forward, which naturally incorporates the recoil spring. There's also the roller locking recoil designs, the ones that I'm familiar with (G3/HK 91, StG 57) have their piston forward as well, although that's not strictly required by the mechanism.
  - hga 14y ago
    Typo: There's also the roller locking recoil designs, the ones that I'm familiar with (G3/HK 91, StG 57) have their spring forward as well, although that's not strictly required by the mechanism.