How do you decommission a gun?

klunkster

Hi, my uncle does not want to pay the gun license fee anymore as he never uses it. It's pretty old but probably not worth anything. I would like to keep it in the family but would not like to pay the fee. How much would it cost to make it inoperable and who does that kind of thing? Also the barrell is very dirty, whats the best thing to clean it with?

Thanks

klunkster

Hi, my uncle does not want to pay the gun license fee anymore as he never uses it. It's pretty old but probably not worth anything. I would like to keep it in the family but would not like to pay the fee. How much would it cost to make it inoperable and who does that kind of thing? Also the barrell is very dirty, whats the best thing to clean it with?

Thanks

rowa

i was asked to decommision a shotgun 2 or 3 years ago by a chap who made props for the local drama society , he went to a gun dealer and asked could he buy the cheapest shotgun he had as there was a shooting in the plot of the next play and have it deactivated too,
the gun dealer agreed and duly gave him the gun , one big problem was though that the dealer never bothered to deactivate the gun . he got to me in a sweat terrified of being arrested with it and asked me to deactivate it which i duly did.
here's what i done .
1. i turned up a plug slightly larger than the diameter of the barrel about 3 inches long and hammered it tightly into the barrel having first milled a slot along where the plug would sit, when the plug was in i tig welded up this slot so as the plug couldn't come back out .
2. i slit the underside of the chamber with an angle grinder wide enough so as to make it impossible to re-weld it , i did this below the action line so when the gun was closed you couldn't see it .
3. i removed the firing pin housing and completely filled the opening with weld and ground it flat , so it looked as if the breech face of the gun was never drilled in the first place .

he nerviously took the gun to the gardai and explained the situation and showed them the gun and they were satisfied it was beyond further use and did organise a letter from the super allowing him to hold it .
i believe ahern has brought in tighter laws so there is probabily a set criterion of mod's to be done to satisfy the gardai that the gun is deactivated .

gunhappy_ie

correct me if im wrong is there not mention in the new bill that deactivated firearms need to be licenced too ? So either way hell be paying the €80 ! On a side note i had a guy ask me to write a cover note for a deac MG 42. Even with a birmingham proof house confirming its deactivation his super still wanted either a garda or army armourer to sign off on it.

Dr Strange

Hi,

there are Proof Houses in England that certify a firearm as "deactivated" once they carried out certain procedures on it. I am not sure how it works here. Maybe ask your local gunsmith? You need to get it re-classified as a "defective" firearm here in Ireland and, although you don't need a licence for this type of firearm, you will still need a letter of consent from your local Superintendent which permits you to have a defective firearm in your possession.

Dr Strange

I just noticed this was posted in Collectibles and Antiques. Maybe the Shooting forum would be better suited? I'll move it over there. SHooting mods: Feel free to move it back if it doesn't suit but I think he my get more answers here.

EPointer=Birdss

klunkster wrote: »

Hi, my uncle does not want to pay the gun license fee anymore as he never uses it. It's pretty old but probably not worth anything. I would like to keep it in the family but would not like to pay the fee. How much would it cost to make it inoperable and who does that kind of thing? Also the barrell is very dirty, whats the best thing to clean it with?

Thanks

Gun Smith in Knocklofty outside clonmel (Gerry something) will take the firing pins out. He'll take the gun give you a letter to bring to local guards.
Once its done he writes to them to say its done & they might send out a guard to inspect it before you get it. Friend has one going through at the moment. It's his fathers old gun thats been through the family so he wants to mount it as an ornament... I'm sure someone will give you the legal ins & outs... Best bet talk to a senior guard...

sfakiaman

The following is from the Commissioners Guidelines.

Deactivated/Defective firearms, not capable of being fired, may be kept on the written authorisation of the local superintendent under S.6 of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act 1990 as amended. The superintendent must be satisfied that the firearm is actually permanently deactivated and may request certification of same from a recognised proof house and have the firearm examined by a suitably qualified member of the Garda Síochána. Ballistics section Garda H.Q. may also be contacted to offer any further assistance if required. The serial number on such a deactivated firearm should always be maintained for identification purposes.

Your best bet is to take the gun to a gunsmith (not a gun dealer) and ask for a quote. Gun oil and 0000 steel wool carefully used should clean the gun.

Sparks

Merging identical threads.

Sparks

BTW, looking at the photo my first thought is this:

How much would it cost to make it inoperable

Nothing, no sane person would fire that thing while anywhere near it.
Seriously, was it ever maintained?

rowa

Sparks wrote: »

BTW, looking at the photo my first thought is this:
Nothing, no sane person would fire that thing while anywhere near it.
Seriously, was it ever maintained?

yeah but there's plenty of insane and foolhardy people about !

sfakiaman

probably not as dangerous as those yokes with pistol grips :D

Sparks

Hey, at least when them yokes with pistol grips suffer a catastrophic failure, you only lose a few hundred quid on replacement parts rather than half your face!

klunkster

The gun was never maintained and was last fired about 10 years ago. I appreciate no sane person would put their eye down its sight and pull the trigger but you still need a license!!

ghostmantra

i was talking to a RFD and he said that he has to drill them out and put three cuts in the barrel more time than anything else