OT: Need firearms advice... UPDATED

[castor troy]

ORIGINAL: Big B

Sounds like Switzerland[:)]

ORIGINAL: Oddball_France

can i ask you where are you from, P.Hausser ?

yeah, sounds like Switzerland. The Swiss guys I know don´t have 3000 rounds at home but 2 or 300 though.

[P.Hausser]

It is northern Scandinavia I live in.
Until the 80's it was far more common, and then they used 3110 x 7,62mm rounds located in a special container, and one container pr man. Was very heavy to move it.
(If memory serves me correct the container is composed of 3 sections each wearying 31 KG)

Now a days less people are ordered to do military service then how it was back in the cold war, but the principles are the same.

I think Finland, Sweden and Switzerland implement the same or similar systems.

[Mark VII]

hope he gets to rotate those 3000 rounds every five years or so just to make sure they all work when the national emergancy arrives.

[P.Hausser]

ORIGINAL: Mark VII

hope he gets to rotate those 3000 rounds every five years or so just to make sure they all work when the national emergancy arrives.

Yes, a few years after basic training, the individuals are called in on 2-3 day exercises, and the bullet container you then has to bring with you, and they inspect it (to see that you have not opened it), it is also replased every 12th year. (On the paper anyway..)

It depend a lot on were you live, I.E the forces who live in the Northern region near the Russian border has a different schedule then the ones living far south. I'm sure this has changed a bit since the cold war as well, but the principles remain the same.

[byron13]

ORIGINAL: Mark VII

hope he gets to rotate those 3000 rounds every five years or so just to make sure they all work when the national emergancy arrives.

Ideally, I would think that they'd use up some of the older stuff when having the reservists re-qualify on the weapon - but maybe that doesn't happen. That would be pretty expensive for a European country with such a large reserve force. Regardless, the ammo should keep for decades. I shoot military surplus on my M14s, and the stuff from the sixties and seventies shoots just fine (and those with WWII era weapons are still shooting WWII era loads). Accuracy may be degraded a little bit, but not the reliability, and any loss of accuracy will be minimal compared to the loss of competency of a 45-year old banker trying to fire his whatever for the first time in 15 years under combat conditions.

[byron13]

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

ORIGINAL: byron13

ORIGINAL: P.Hausser


HaHaHa.. Are you an American maybe?? lol
Renting a weapon, this is absurd!

I can see where it might. Just so we don't spread any misconceptions about the America being the wild wild west (so just the wild west), let's be clear that you don't rent a machine gun like you rent a movie, promising to return it the next day. You rent it at the range, shoot it, and hand it back in. You don't get to leave with it. That's not to say that certain aspects of our gun policies won't still appear absurd to others, if not absurd in fact.

@Byron13, I certainly didn't intend this thread to be a defense of our Constitution, Bill of Rights or existing gun laws to those (that have been long since green dotted by myself) from other countries. But your clarification may be helpful to those unfamiliar with the idea of gun rental. Do you have any recommendations?

I mentioned the Thompson earlier on - but that's the only one of the bunch that I've ever fired. I agree with some of the others that firing a real machine gun with a belt is a real kick-ass experience. M60/M240, etc. But you almost need 1000 rounds of ammo and a range of at least 300 yards to really feel fulfilled. Too expensive and good luck finding a range of that length where you can actually shoot an MG. So you're limited to a SMG or AW on automatic. Not so much a recommendation as a comment, I was just amazed at how smooth the Thompson was - not the rodeo ride I was expecting at all.

We all want to know what your decision was - and we want pictures.

[JohnDillworth]

Wear a nice but slightly over the top suit, a hat, and saddle shoes to complete the effect.

I love this idea. BTW, hats off to the guys wife for such a thoughtful gift!

[AW1Steve]

When I lived on Guam , there were a number of shooting ranges that catered to Japanese tourist. They would have some of those fully automatic weapons, and a fully equipped costume shop , so the tourist could dress up as a cowboy and shoot six shooters and winchesters , or as Rambo and shoot an m-60. And of course the gangster outfit to shoot the "Chicago typerwriter" version of the Thompson.And of course a onsite photographer to document the shoot! [:D]

[stuman]

ORIGINAL: AW1Steve

When I lived on Guam , there were a number of shooting ranges that catered to Japanese tourist. They would have some of those fully automatic weapons, and a fully equipped costume shop , so the tourist could dress up as a cowboy and shoot six shooters and winchesters , or as Rambo and shoot an m-60. And of course the gangster outfit to shoot the "Chicago typerwriter" version of the Thompson.And of course a onsite photographer to document the shoot! [:D]

What a great idea.

[AW1Steve]

ORIGINAL: stuman

ORIGINAL: AW1Steve

When I lived on Guam , there were a number of shooting ranges that catered to Japanese tourist. They would have some of those fully automatic weapons, and a fully equipped costume shop , so the tourist could dress up as a cowboy and shoot six shooters and winchesters , or as Rambo and shoot an m-60. And of course the gangster outfit to shoot the "Chicago typerwriter" version of the Thompson.And of course a onsite photographer to document the shoot! [:D]

What a great idea.

But then again , those same tourists would visit a American chain eatery like Lone Star steak house, order everything on the menu so that they could have a photo of themselves taken with all this American food.[X(] Then eat very little of it. But , hey , they had the photo's. That's one of those "cultural differences" , that I never understood.[&:]

[jb123]

pics?

[m10bob]

ORIGINAL: jb123

pics?

Photographs

[Odin]

Strange to see you can use/buy this weapons for fun.
 
For myself, a G36 would be a cool christmas present for me!![:D]

[xj900uk]

Can I ask a question - what are you planning to do with your (S)MG when you rent it?  Use may influence choice...

[lolz]

fired Tavor,m16.m4 flattop,m2 HMG,negev LMG,FN 58,k98 and arisaka.
loved all of them,specially the arisaka,my favorite bolt rifle.

[Mike Solli]

Personally, I'd go with the Thompson first and the Bren a close second.  I've fired the M249 and MP5.  They're both fun to fire (as are all weapons, in my opinion).  What's an XM15?  If it's similar to an M16, then I've fired that more than I care to admit.
 
I would have to go with the older weapons.  That would be a blast!

[Mike Solli]

Personally, I'd go with the Thompson first and the Bren a close second.  I've fired the M249 and MP5.  They're both fun to fire (as are all weapons, in my opinion).  What's an XM15?  If it's similar to an M16, then I've fired that more than I care to admit.
 
I would have to go with the older weapons.  That would be a blast!

[sfbaytf]

Another thing on my to do list before I die:
 
fire a machine gun. Wouldn't mind a anti-tank rocket either, but I don't think that's allowed anywhere in the US.
 
I worked at a gun store part years ago when I was going to college, but fully automatic weapons were and are still banned in California. So while I had the pleasure of trying out all sorts of different firearms, fully automatic weapons was not on the menu. We did sell Tec-9s and Mac-10's that could easily be converted. AR-15's could also be converted. You could and probably still can cross state lines and buy the conversion kits in Nevada.
 
For me a Remington 870 and a trusty 45 automatic is all I need. I also love the Ruger 22/45. Nice little plinking gun that easy on the wallet.

[jcjordan]

Well being a collector of Brit guns (the sun never sets on the British Empire [:)]), I'd go Bren personally but I'd also go w/ a BAR if that was on the list

[Chickenboy]

UPDATE:

Tonight was the night.

Bren it was. Thompson m. 2 (the WWII GI version) it was. Zombie and Osama Bin Laden targets it was.

Both guns were great fun to shoot. The Bren was easy to fire in short bursts. I could fire 3 round bursts on that thing all day long. Accurate too. Very nice weapon-easy to see why it lasted so long with the Brits. Too bad the ammo was so damn expensive...Brit .303 rounds are running about $1.20 a pop here.

The Thompson was easier to fire than I thought. Hardly any recoil on selective fire, but muzzle climb up the wazoo on anything longer than a 4-5 round burst. Still, a pretty easy weapon to handle-point and shoot.

I added in a bit of Sig Sauer P226 9mm (my 'dream' gun-one of these days...) and my own little Rossi .38 special for flavor and the evening was complete.

Thanks for everyone's opinions-they helped a lot!

ETA: Bump for those that didn't see this posting late last night.