The good 'ole pre-86 days?

[Beretta686]

As I sit here sick pondering random things........

What was getting a Machine Gun like back before the '86 ban?

For instance: if you wanted a belt-fed did you just call up Saco or another manufacturer and say "Hi, I'd like an M60 delivered to my local Class III dealer" or something similar? Could you Form 1 an MG out of a parts kit?

I'm too young to remember much from the early & mid 80's but the thought of being able to pickup an M-16 lower for about the price of an AR-15 lower just seems kinda strange given the MG craze nowadays....

[PTK]

For instance: if you wanted a belt-fed did you just call up Saco or another manufacturer and say "Hi, I'd like an M60 delivered to my local Class III dealer" or something similar? Could you Form 1 an MG out of a parts kit?

In essence, yes and yes.

We were a free country, then. No longer.

[FrontSight]

What happenned in 86 that did it, was it the attempt on Reagan (would be super silly if it was, since it was a snub nose .22 for christ sakes)

[TheManHimself]

It was a tradeoff bit of legislation

Basically, FOPA traded machineguns for mail-order ammunition and some other legal protections for firearms owners.

[GeorgeF]

Hard to avoid what happened. The 86 FOPA helped millions of gun owners a lot. For whatever reason, they threw that MG ban into the mix at the 11th hour (literally). I own several MGs but it's hard to argue the facts that there are only a handful (relatively speaking) of MG owners out there. Most of them own more than one, so that thins the group even more. Figure probably 60,000 or so tops. And thats being generous.

That number vs the tens of millions of gun owners that were helped by the bill, I can see why it got through with the last minute measure.

Dont get me wrong, I would love to see it repealed and my MG values go into the basement. I dont intend to sell them, so they arent investments. I would rather pick up some newer MG's and have fun with them and increase my collection. In todays market I think we would see a HUGE amount of .22 MGs created that resemble existing models, but which save on ammo prices.

I am surprised someone had the presence of mind to go after MGs in the first place. They are so under the radar, most people had no idea you could even own one. They still dont.

[cat9x]

ssshhh :)

[Crosshair]

The worst part is that the amendment was passed in the middle of the night by a very close voice vote that some people say didn't pass.:mad:

[GeorgeF]

Yeah, that last part is crazy. A vocal vote (yay or nay) was reported to be in the 'nay' camp but it went through anyway. And on to the ash heap of history it goes.

[Crosshair]

Yeah, that last part is crazy. A vocal vote (yay or nay) was reported to be in the 'nay' camp but it went through anyway. And on to the ash heap of history it goes.
I love the idea of parallel universes. It would be extremely interesting to be able to change just one small event in history and be able to see how things came out differently. Can you imagine how the last century would have turned out differently had Archduke Franz Ferdinand not been assassinated?

[Yellowfin]

The 86 ban was a poison pill amendment put in the FOPA to discourage it from being passed. I don't know why unrecorded voice votes are legal but apparently it was.