As said elsewhere it always was.

As you said they have expanded section 3.2 to fully incorporate the recording of them which wasn't done as precisely previously. Same with section 3.3 it's now expanded to allow you to apply for a license for such a sight on its own.

It doesn't say it must have a serial number. It asks for details which include make/model/serial number, etc. If it doesn't have a serial number you simply give make and model.

That'll be fun. If they are saying all clubs must be authorised as with ranges then it's a grand a year (iirc) unless they wave the fee and as off this moment it doesn't exist so once again they have the cart before the Horse in asking for things that don't need asking for in law and has not been established on PULSE.

The magazine capacity is a simple addition and even easier to fill out. If you have an unrestricted 22 for example you simply state ten rounds, as this is the maximum before the capacity makes it restricted, and you're covered. For bolt action centrefires there is no such restriction on mag capacity so do as you please and for semi autos the law limits them to 10. Rimfire pistols 5, unless you are one of the few with a restricted license for one, and for centrefire pistols it's 20. For shitguns it's three for unrestricted and whatever for restricted. The numbers write themselves really.

I have both 5 and ten round mags for my 22. I'll be putting in 10 for my maag capacity so I'm covered for both ten and five whereas five may only cover me for five and if I use the ten I may be in breach of the conditions on which the license was granted.

Simply write down the max capacity of the mag, as per law, and you're covered. If you have a hinged floorplate mag well and it holds 3 , 4, or 5 write that down but it doesn't limit you to only 5 rounds on your license. They're two separate issues/items. One is an ammunition allowance, the one on the new FCA1 is the max capacity of the firearm.

It's more information and while I may be accused of being naive I can only take it at face value with what the law currently states, so I see no malice here. In fact it might makes things clearer had this version of the FCA1 been used since July 2009, then they [AGS] wouldn't be playing catch up.

One slight correction there, CF magazines, regardless of action type, are limited to 10 rounds by SI 420/2019

I'm guessing that is aimed at new applications for various gun types. So even if you have a shotgun but are going for a rifle (first time) your experience with the shotgun won't count.

If you've already got or owned a shotgun, rifle, pistols, etc. then I'd simply be saying " X years of previous shooting experience, member of Y range/gun club, and licensed on similar firearm for Z number of years".

I've seen the so called competence courses out there and I won't be sitting in anyone's kitchen, drinking tea for an hour just for a bit of paper that isn't worth spit. Not least because I'm more experienced that the majority running them. Called that egotistical but I dare say the majority of lads would be in the same boat.

It is never a good thing when the PTB are looking for more information about something. If I was being very cynical I would say look at the list of firearm subtypes and imagine the Supers/Chiefs eyeing it to make people justify every single tickbox:

Air Pistol

Air Rifle

Active Night Sight

Bolt Action

Breech Loading

Bull Pup

Centre Fire

Double Barrel

Folding Stock

Lever Action

Over & Under

Paint Ball Gun

Passive Night Sight

Pistol Grip

Pump Action

Repeater

Rim Fire

Semi Auto

Shotgun & Rifle Combined(replacing the "combination gun"?)

Side by Side

Single Barrel

Single Shot

Spare Barrel(WTF - why would a spare barrel be required to be licenced, and if you are getting a spare barrel would you need to get the licence re-issued, or god forbid reapplied for?)

Thermal Image Sight

Other(specify) _____________________________

Is the Firearm New? Yes No 

Spare barrels were already covered under your current license, assuming it's of the same calibre you are already licensed for obviously, so that is a head scratcher, but given the club pulse ID thing, and other errors I'm not surprised.

Still nope 😁

Repeating firearm - A repeating firearm or repeater is any firearm (either a handgun or long gun) that is capable of being fired repeatedly before having to manually reload new ammunition into the weapon.

Bolt actions, lever actions, pump action rifles, etc all require each round to be manually loaded after the previous round has been fired. There is no "automatic cycling system" so they are not repeating firearms.

As an addendum. If the DoJ or AGS claim that refers to the loading of each round over the loading of a magazine then they need to define what repeating is, but as they don't ................. !

Gonna have to point to the Irish definition of repeating firearm in SI 21/2008:

“repeating firearms” means firearms that are loaded and reloaded from a magazine or cylinder by a manually-operated mechanism;

Yes it is contrary to the normal interpretation of the wording, but that is not unique in our dreadful firearms legislation.

I do sincerely hope I am wrong on this though 😉

Same with silencers, how many people are licencing a firearm with a silencer ready to go with it, vs picking one up later.

Or even replacing a silencer that has been damaged/worn out.

Utter mess.

I'm erring on the side of them pre-empting the FEC recommendations which will be implemented.

Haha, cheers, as I said I sincerely hoped I was wrong, but at the time it was a concerted effort to effectively ban all CF mags over 10 rounds, regardless of action type.

Now there is also a whole debate about "capacity" and how that is measured(ie some rounds will fit a magazine which makes the mag have a capacity of say 10, but if I put another round, which also fits that magazine in, and fill it and I get 20-something in there then which capacity does the magazine have? Germany had a decent-ish solution by specifying that the magazine had the capacity of the round it was originally intended to fire, but no such sense here).

The problem here now is us calling for more regulation which will lead to "schools" being established like they tried to do a few years back and turn firearm ownership into a bigger money racket than it already is.

So catch-22 situation.

I get the point but overall there is nothing "major" that is not already in law.

The club pulse is something, but the sights being firearms, more detailed application information, etc is already covered for.

The magazine capacity is not a limitation but a recording of actual mag capacities to be in line with law so again nothing changed just declared.

I wouldn't overthink that aspect.

If your 22lr pistol mag has a capacity for ten but is plugged as per SI 391/2015 then it can only legally have five in it. Anymore and it's a restricted firearm hence needing a restricted license. So you declare 5 as that is all the mag can/should hold both physically and legally.

Same applies to all firearms on the same basis.