Got my Ion today....

[Pump'n'Splat]

I take it you haven't read the PA's suggestoin on rule changes then?

Incidentally, the Home Office have reviewed a turbo-moded marker and considered it "ok"...so it really *is* a grey area....

 

[Lucky]

Nope, totally ignorant me.
I have based my statement on a "minor previous incident m'lord"
in which i escaped being made someone's bitch by the skin of my teeth, that "incident" was involving a proper air rifle, but make no mistake, the police really came down hard on me stopping a little short of a good beating with a truncheon, but although i joke about the whole silly incident, and it really was just a moment of stupidity rather than me doing over a post office or something similar, the outcome was the same.
The police treat gun crime very seriously so if you do something silly as i did with a hopped up gun then expect to get put through the system whether your gun was "home office" approved or not !

 

[peegee]

Just cause the pa have announced a rule change does not make it legal

FA is still very illigal as is burst mode,

Am i right in saying even if the home office look into the ramp situation it still has to be pasedd through parliment as it would be a change in the gun law

peegee

 

[Pump'n'Splat]

See where you're coming from there diablo. Paintball is slightly different in that markers are rarely seen anywhere else than on a paintball field or at a tournament....

The police will crack down hard on the use of any type of gun, replica or otherwise, used in public. And seeing as any serious baller will keep their marker well packed until at the site it's not something that's going to come up with the police....I can't see the police turning up at a piantball event and then trying to apply the firearms law against the few people using boards which might bend the home office ruling.

The only time the police would get involved is if you've already committed an offence with the paintball marker and it is found to be fully automatic afterwards..in which case the sport is going to get bad press anyway for the incident in the first place.

This is kinda summed up in a conversation I had with a mate who is one of West Midland's finest the other day:

Me : "I'll be staying at yours before going to the masters...but don't check my bag, because my marker has a US board and can fire fully auto"

Him : "And that's bad is it?"

Seriously, most police don't know the law to the level that we do!!!!

 

[Dusty]

Originally posted by Pump'n'Splat

Seriously, most police don't know the law to the level that we do!!!!

that said the police force know a lot more about public law than you or i do. it is only when they come to formally charge you that they have done their homework on that one specific area, and they will stick to the letter!!!

i personally do not agree with anything other than true semi auto. i have never been (and hope never to be) the victim of someone overshooting me at 15bps in the back of the head. it is only a matter of time before someone does get knocked out at a high profile tournie, and i cannot see anyway that is beneficial for the sport.

 

[Pump'n'Splat]

Dusty, for all the arguments, I agree with you......a lot of people don't (read the thread on the PA rule chnge propositions, it's mentasl...I'm on there around page 6 arguing against it!)....I too have objectoins on any marker that isn't under the full control of it's owner because of possible overshoot...

peegee....you can't actually say "it's illegal" and leave it at that..it's not carved in stone...As MrPink said, try reading the home office definitions! And as I mentioned before..a turbo (assisted fire) board was inspected by the home office and was considered ok to be used under their laws.

It does remain that the only time a paintballer using an 'illegal' board would fall foul of the "One trigger pull" law is if they were using that marker in an illegal manner.

 

[Lucky]

Dear Mr splat,
your right in saying most police don't know which end of a gun is which and i agree fully that we carry our guns securely and use them in a contained and controlled enviroment, and in general we are fine upstanding members of the community.
Now let me put foreward a scenario:
It's a nice summers day and your in the back garden with a few team mates, a bbq, and a couple of beers, a leisurely saturday afternoon discussing details before sundays game.
One of your team has gun problems so it has been stripped, repaired and is now being test fired in a controlled manor, a couple of kids a few gardens down are taking the piss, and in good spirits you fire over the fence near them........you laugh, they laugh, everyone is happy...............................................
The kids go home, and casually mention to their parents that they were shot at, the next thing you know is that the parents have over-reacted and you have an armed response unit stood on your doorstep.
"you'll have to trust me on this that these guys really know about guns and the law surrounding them" !
Yes this was my life of crime and i can only thank the kids that i was messing with for getting me off with a caution, as their parents wanted me hung !
It was stupid i know but so easily done.
It could be you, it could be your fully auto Ion that was used !
Try arguing "it's a grey area" with the firearm squad !

 

[Pump'n'Splat]

It wouldn't have been me....I don't have a back garden!

Personally I wouldn't fire my marker at/near anyone unless they were wearing gogs and at least knew what paintball was.....that's the kind of thing i'm talking about....if a marker is used in public, against the rules of the UKPSF then an "incident" will occur...it's only then that the full-auto "secondary offence" would come up.....

Your scenario sounds pretty harmless, but it still does constitute an arrestable offence.....whereas having a ramping or full auto paintball marker isn't.....

it's a fine line.

 

[Beaker]

Originally posted by Pump'n'Splat
And seeing as any serious baller will keep their marker well packed until at the site it's not something that's going to come up with the police...

It's probably not a serious baller that will get the sport into trouble, it's a kid who nicks his Dad's gun "that's well fast" and fires on his mates, or someone who buys a cheap as chips gun (Spyder/Ion/Pirhana etc) that has modes on it and get caught shooting up some hobo.

As soon as Pandora's box is opened with the Police we are f*cked and if there is a grey area to be clarified you can bet your ass it isn't going to be in our favour - just ask the completely legal, honourable and sensible hang gunners who have to go practice in France.

The whole point of this is that rather than going "oh it's OK, we can do all this because it's a grey area" we need to be going "get it in writing first".

 

[Dusty]

hypothetical situation,

some curious kid at a tournament sees someones marker complete with barrel sock lying on the ground. he picks it up thinking it is not live and clicks the trigger a couple of times. the marker goes into some super duper ramping mode and fires 6/7/8 balls. the barrell sock flies off and an innocent member of the public gets hit in the eye........