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Posted: 2/22/2006 1:31:57 AM EDT
It's amazeing what shows up on the gun boards, M-72 LAW launchers, and even the occasional AT-4 or RPG, and the odd assortment of land mines, and hand grenades both replicas, and demilled, but I have a couple of questions about this stuff....

What is the legality of these items?, do the Rocket Launchers have to have holes drilled in them?, I know most of the LAWs, and AT-4's don't, and some of the laws even come with sub-caliber inserts, and live training rockets, but whats the legality on these?, and how about the grenades I know the ones with holes in the bottom are legal, but what about the ones with end plugs, and the real ones that just have fired fuses, and no explosives?, and what about the mines?....

Also where exactly are all these people finding these things, most of them use stock photos so I know there useing another source, and didn't just find them, so where is the source for this stuff?....

These things would make nice collectables (Plus I'de be the only one on the block with a rocket launcher....), I just wouldn't want to end up on the wrong side of the law....

Also someone posted a picture of a demilled RPG-7 that they had, where did you get that?....
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 2:10:58 AM EDT
[#1]
WTF?
Where have you been looking?
While we all (well most) would like to have these toys to play with. We know what is legal.
We may want a inert RPG and launcher to hang on the wall, we are interested in mill. wepons no more no less.
If you wish to try and solicit these things I suggest that you go somewhere else.
OH AND INBTL
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 2:14:05 AM EDT
[#2]

Quoted:
WTF?
Where have you been looking?
While we all (well most) would like to have these toys to play with. We know what is legal.
We may want a inert RPG and launcher to hang on the wall, we are interested in mill. wepons no more no less.
If you wish to try and solicit these things I suggest that you go somewhere else.
OH AND INBTL



Doesnt look like he is soliciting anyting, just asking simple questions... Let him talk
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 2:25:21 AM EDT
[#3]
As far as I know it is legal to have spent M-72s and AT-4s, at least I have seen them in surplus shops in good as new condition (of course without rocket) in plain sight of anybody.
One of the shops that I used to frequent was searched for something by the .mil(not sure) and police.
Not sure if they confiscated anything, but the spent M-72s and AT-4s were still for sale afterwards.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 2:36:56 AM EDT
[#4]
We find most of these in the shotgun news, and other publications of that ilk. Want to buy a 40mm boffors barrel?  I know where you can get one. Or even a demilled 20mm ani aircraft weapon.
The tubes that are fire and forget anti tank weapons such as the AT4 and LAW are structuraly unsound after the rocket is launched, and there for their fiberglass / aluminum bodies are considered demilled.

THEY ARE A ONE TIME USE WEAPON. THEY CAN NOT BE RELOADED AND FIRED AGAIN.

  I was a gunner in the Marines, and we were taught to hold on to the tubes and dispose of them properly, or if the situation did not permit that to fire a few rounds into the side of the tube to make it obviously inert, and useless.  The reason behind this was to prevent the use of these as chaneling devices for moartars or rockets of another sort.  The enemy could potentialy use them again by burrying them in a road or hillside and waiting for a track to line up with it and comand detonate a launching charge for a submunition.

    In America they are collectable militaria, and as we lack the rotting ordinance just lieing around to be retro fitted into a working munition, and the fact that if they were ever relaunched with someone aiming them the tubes would most likely burst and kill the shooter, the threat of their criminal use is minimised.

California, Chicago, and a few others have banned them from being collected. The biggest threat they pose is the same as the grenade paperweights that are so popular at army navy stores. In Dallas recently one of these paperweights was dicarded and found its way into a storm drain on a bridge. a crew servicing the bridge saw it and they shut down the freeway for two hours. In a simmilar way someone could make a threat of use of one of these, but the fact that they are widely known to be a ONE TIME USE WEAPON it is easy to take the treat of their re-use with a grain of salt and have a sniper pop the badguy.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 2:43:41 AM EDT
[#5]
Launchers
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 3:11:16 AM EDT
[#6]
While these are launchers  in one sence, they are issued as one round of ammunition. So the AT4 and LAW tubes are spent cases. Not Launchers.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 3:18:03 AM EDT
[#7]
a real rpg has to have a hole as large as the bore drilled in the tube (it's usually under the wood/plastic sleeve) and steel rods welded/soldered inside to prevent inserting a round. i think you also have to drill out the firing pin mechanism, although i've seen a bunch that weren't over the years.

rpg's used to be fairly common but they've dried up in the last few years and are drawing big bucks now...

ETA: as said above, gun shows are a good place to find laaw and at-4 tubes as well as militaria/surplus stores. you can also check auctionarms.com, gunbroker.com, some foreign sites (but you gotta be up on your import/export regs!).

you can own the real thing (if you can find them) but they're registered as destructive devices and you gotta go through the whole batfe registration dance.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 6:13:50 AM EDT
[#8]
The "Indy 1500" gunshow has a lot of neat stuff laying around on the tables.  It used to be held once every three months, might have changed in the twelve years since I was last able to go.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 6:21:03 AM EDT
[#9]

Quoted:
California, Chicago, and a few others have banned them from being collected.



Why am I not surprised?


The biggest threat they pose is the same as the grenade paperweights that are so popular at army navy stores. In Dallas recently one of these paperweights was dicarded and found its way into a storm drain on a bridge. a crew servicing the bridge saw it and they shut down the freeway for two hours. In a simmilar way someone could make a threat of use of one of these, but the fact that they are widely known to be a ONE TIME USE WEAPON it is easy to take the treat of their re-use with a grain of salt and have a sniper pop the badguy.


Oh, man. You just reminded me of perhaps the DUMBEST thing I've ever done.

I was about 16 years old in NYC. My friends and I went to this Army-Navy store in the city, and bought a few of thos grenades, as well as a belt of inert M60 ammo (my buddy was an army nut).

On the subway coming home, it got very crowded. When we got to our stop, we could barely get out.

You guessed it.

"Ladies and gentlemen! THIS..."

My friend and I held up a grenade each and pulled the pins...

"...is a live hand grenade. Please step aside."

They did, as you might imagine.


Fucking idiots. I can't believe Darwin didn't pop up and say "BOO!" that day.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 4:39:38 PM EDT
[#10]
Wow you would just be getting out of jail if you had done that even 10 years ago. SO this was like 25 years ago ?

Jeez!
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 4:58:07 PM EDT
[#11]
The real things can be owned if they made domestically under the NFA

CRC
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