Volume 9 No. 2 - Adask's law

might sheepishly laugh about being convicted
three times back in 1968 for selling
small quantities of marijuana. However, this
mature model citizen might be shocked to
discover that, based on his three 30-year old
convictions for selling pot, he is now prohibited
from possessing firearms. If caught
merely “possessing” a gun (even duck hunting)
he can be classified as an “Armed Career
Criminal” and subjected to the “enhanced
penalty” of 15 years to life imprisonment.
There are tens of millions of Americans
that fit one of the nine prohibited categories.
There are also over 10,000 “prohibited persons”
in Federal Penitentiaries for illegal gun
possession including over 2,000 with the enhanced
15-to-life penalty. Horror stories
abound and I know of two published decisions
where persons were sentenced to 15plus
years: a duck hunter caught with duck
decoys and a shotgun; and a man caught with
a Model 1908 Colt .25 caliber automatic pistol
with no ammo, no clip, no grips, and the
slide rusted closed.
Obviously, there is a great need for
Americans to understand this law, especially
since Congress added those convicted of
misdemeanor domestic crimes to the list of
prohibited persons, and also removed the
former exemption for military and law enforcement
personnel.
Antique firearm exception
Federal law exempts antique firearms
from all gun controls. 18 U.S. Code Section
921(a)(16) defines antique firearms as all
guns made prior to 1899, 2 muzzleloaders
made anytime, and replicas of pre-1899 cartridge
firing guns made anytime (provided
such replica uses cartridges “not readily available
in the ordinary channels of commercial
trade”). However, under 26 U.S.C. 5861
(IRS Code), all cartridge firing machineguns
and short-barreled shotguns are illegal regardless
of when they were made.
Muzzleloaders (so-called “black powder
guns” loaded from the end where the
bullet exits) are legal, whether original, or
replica, regardless of the date of manufacture.
You can buy them by mail-order. The
most practical antique guns for self defense
are the so-called cap and ball revolvers originally
made between 1840 and 1870 and used
by Wyatt Earp and other gunslingers of the
West. Numerous companies make and sell
replicas of these six-shooters. Many can be
had for $100 or slightly less. A good choice
would be the .44 caliber Model 1860 Army.
To use them you need powder, lead balls,
wads, and percussion caps, all readily available
in gun shops and sporting goods stores.
Cartridge firing guns
Between 1858 and 1898 millions of
cartridge firing guns were made by gun
manufacturers like Smith & Wesson (S&W),
Colt, Iver Johnson, an Remington in calibers
like .22, .32, .38, .44, .45 and dozens of
others. Believe it or not, these original guns
are not only so abundant that they can be
purchased for $150 or less at virtually any
American gun show – they are totally exempt
from federal gun control regulations.
At most gun shows you can find very workable
.32 or .38 S&W revolvers, 12-gauge
double barrel shotguns, a 7mm German
Mauser bolt action military rifles, and many
other firearms for less than $150 – all made
prior to 1899 and legal for anyone (even “prohibited
persons”) to possess.
Ascertaining “antique” status
If you want a gun exempt from AFT
regulations, be certain that whatever gun you
acquire is in fact an exempt antique. Shady
gun show vendors sometimes sell shotguns
they swear are “antiques”. Nevertheless,
you may later discover a “1902” patent date
stamped into the gun’s barrel which could
subject you to serious problems should you
be caught with it and the ATF find out.
Making sure your new gun is in fact an
“antique” may take research. A good book
to have is Flayderman’s Guide to Antique
American Firearms and their Values.3 In
it’s Smith & Wesson section for example, it
lists serial number runs along with manufacture
dates. For example, any .32 caliber S&W
Double Action First Model Revolver made
in 1880 only had serial numbers from 1 to
30. The “Second Model” made between
1880 and 1882 had S/N’s 31-22172. The
“Third Model” manufactured between 1882
and 1883 had S/N’s 22173 to 43405. Therefore
any S&W .32 Double Action Revolver
with a S/N of 43405 or below is a legal antique
as it was made between 1880 and 1883.
Another example would be the Model
1898 Krag U.S. Military .30 caliber bolt action
magazine rifle made between 1898 and
1903, S/N’s 110000 to 480000. According
to Flayderman’s, S/N’s below 152670 are
“considered antique under Federal Firearms
law.” Some guns have the manufacture year
stamped into the frames (i.e. Model 1895
Mauser 7mm Military bolt-action magazine
rifles).
Other guns have no S/N’s at all and
therefore require further research. For example,
if you wanted to buy an apparent (but
unconfirmed) “antique” firearm from a
gunshop, you could always put down a $20
deposit to hold a gun, and then send a complete
description of the firearm to ATF’s Firearms
Technology Branch 4 and ask for a free
“classification decision”. If the ATF classifies
the gun as “antique,” then buy it – if not,
don’t.
If you don’t want ATF knowing your
business, for a fee you can get an antiquity
decision from any number of antique firearms
experts. For example, for $20, Smith
& Wesson 5 will give you a letter stating the
exact shipping date of any antique firearm
made by them if you provide a description
and serial number.
Finally, if you buy a cartridge firing
antique firearm by mail-order, you should
feel secure that it really is a pre-1899 gun.
Unlike fly-by-night gun show vendors, mailorder
gun dealers are closely watched and
know that any mail-order fraud will be quickly
prosecuted by the ATF. 6
Ammunition
Ammunition can be a problem. The same
statute [18 U.S. Code 922(g) and 924(e)]
that outlaws prohibited persons from possessing
modern guns also prohibits them
from possessing ammunition for modern
guns (a guy in New England just got 20
years for possession of a single 9mm cartridge).
The statute and the ATF’s implementing
regulation (Title 27, Code of Federal
Regulations, Section 178.11) defines ammunition
as “ammunition or cartridge cases,
primers, bullets or propellant powder designed
for use in any firearm other than an
antique firearm.” [Emph. add.] This is no
problem for muzzleloaders. The ATF concedes
that muzzleloader paraphernalia is without
question designed for use in none other
than antiques. But when it comes to ammunition
cartridges, even obsolete ones, ATF
legal counsel takes the absurd position (never
upheld in any published court decision) that
“designed for use” really means merely suitable
for use or otherwise “usable” in a postl898
gun subject to ATF controls. 7
For example, the ATF has administratively
ruled that .50 caliber Remington Army
18 ANTISHYSTER Volume 9 (1999 A.D.) www.antishyster.com adask@gte.net 972-418-8993