I am currently in the USA and just failed to import my L98A1 Cadet GP Rifle .


I really wanted to have it here as I shot it for years in the UK with great success .

I am considering selling it . My dealer has said he would give me £ 3,000 for it .

I know in the USA it would be priceless but I can not import it ( unless anyone has any ideas )

It is currently with my dealer on the Isle Of Wight accruing storage charges .
Does anyone on this forum want to buy it ?

Just read the general rules for posting and discovered that I am in breach by trying to sell in this post .

I did read an archived post ages ago discussing this very gun and wishing they had one .

I was hoping to contact those guys

I can see no point in putting this in the equipment exchange as only a UK resident could buy it and they would probably never visit that area .

Pull this down if you want - sorry for not asking or reading the rules

I do want to sell it ( unless I can import it to the USA somehow ) though and can be e mailed at [email protected]

There's a UK-specific EE thread here:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_8_5/511051_UKHTF_Equpment_Exchange_.html

I expect you will be inundated with potential takers.

No you can't import your L98 it is prohibited for import  just as my AR15's were when I moved to the USA.

You are better off getting all your State side credentials in order and getting a better rifle.

By that I mean If you do not have a green card yet 30 day old State driving license, Hunting License, Three Months of Utility bills in your name, and the Visa in your passport. Be aware the Three months starts again every time you leave the USA. so if you buy a gun say on Monday travel to the Canada for the day you will have to wait three months for your next gun.

If you already  have your Green card you just need that and another ID and now after recent changes no three month delay

PS. sell it to your Dealer $5000 will buy you a lot of gun here.

EDIT YOU SHOULD LOOK AT THIS THREAD IN THE WA HTF as WA seems to have some dumb rules!!

LINK

Jon

Yes please, I have been looking for one for ages!

Tried to IM you but my inbox was full, it should be emptied overnight.

Cheers

David

Good heavens!  I just realized what you owned in the U.K -

-OP has a manually-operated version of a Enfield SA-80.  

Sorry if that wasn't clear to everyone, but those Americans on Arfcom lack familiarity with the SA-80 in general; importation of any version was cut off in 1989 (other than airsoft).

I agree with the poster above:  if you were to sell it to a countryman in the U.K. for $5,000, you could probably buy a Tavor in 5.56mm Nato, a Steyr Aug, and maybe have enough left over for some sort of M4 clone - provided of course you met the legal requirements.

Here in the Commonwealth, such a purchase would also require proof of U.S. citizenship. Check your local laws before you head to the gun shop and/or Walmart.

https://www.facebook.com/jhinchliffe/media_set?set=a.10150267208136822.325116.629071821&type=3


I have been resident for over three years and have a few guns here .

I live in WA and was partly responsible ( mainly thanks to the second amendment foundation ) in getting this law changed . Now it doesnt apply to permanent residents ( green card holders )

It was a nightmare for a while as to get the aliens license you needed a background check but the FBI would not cooperate with the WA licensing dept so none could be issued .

Thanks for the heads up though !

Congrats! Good to know.  

The Commonwealth's law is unique AFAIK; even some gunshops here in Virginia are not aware of it and fail to verify citizenship.  Stranger still, it does not apply to lowers.  It was hastily adopted following the killings at the alphabet agency affectionaly called the Farm (took several years but they got the bastard who did it).  

As you've had some success since arriving here, perhaps you could convince a US-based company to start producing SA-80 clones here?  

-Steyr did it after 2 U.S. clones were introduced

-Sig's done it (though with somewhat mixed results)

-IMI/IWI somehow pulled it off with the Tavor - though it might be in a catagory like the FN FS2000 that was never banned from import

There are a half-dozen other examples.

Doesn't the SA-80 use a stamped-steel reciever?  If so, manufacturers in the U.S. have mastered stamping for guns like the AK-47, the H&K 91 / "G3" and the Swiss PE-57.

Perhaps you could convince H&K-USA to get into the game as their parent company has some experience with the SA 80?

yes the commonwealth law is a mess when I moved here a local gun store got legal advice for me and AR15's are all good to go, AK folder, Sig 556 side folder assault weapons not good unless you have a green card.

gun stores tend to play it safe and apply the law incorrectly or even add words but it is their store and they don't have to sell to anyone.

however it does piss me off when a store claims it is the law when it is actually store policy, tell the truth nothing wrong with a store policy.

I have had the utility bill run around despite having a WA driving licence and a green card both showing residency for three years .

I usually use my local dealer for purchases and often source guns through gunbroker .

I even have a concealed pistol licence but as you say dealers are so worried about loosing their livelihood that sometimes they err deeply on the side of caution .

2nd dibs if it's not already sold

I'm afraid I got it .

Pics in the picture thread .

Just seen this.

We are "thining out" our reference collection, and in the next few months our L98A1 Cadet rifle will be available..............

It will be placed on sale  via Gunmart or Guntrader for those interested.

As to the USA, individuals cannot import any version of SA80 as due to the lower receiver design ATF considers them all "Class 3", whether it a Cadet, semi, full auto or DP version.

If that 'Cadet' SA-80 could have been sold privately here in the USA as a Title I firearm -- and it couldn't, for reasons mentioned above -- I'm confident that it would have sold for $25,000 within 15 minutes of the ad being posted.  That's despite any reputation the parent rifles in British service may have justly or unjustly earned, and despite that it's a manually operated rifle.  Collectors would fight furiously.

Sold for at least US$25k in fifteen mins, and I'd bet my dog on it.