Indholdsfortegnelse for Volume 77, Issue 23 i Firearms News

RECENT NEWS FOR THE FIREARMS COMMUNITY Spurred by an earlier decision by Justice Samuel Alito on a lower court ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court last Monday sided with President Joe Biden’s Justice Department to allow enforcement of last year’s ATF rule outlawing 80-percent receivers. Commonly called Biden’s “Ghost Gun” rule, the wide-ranging law addresses much more than just firearms without a serial number. While not actually putting a ban on making or possessing unserialized, personally made firearms, it does redefine important legal terms dealing with guns, including “firearm,” “receiver” and “frame,” making the longstanding American tradition of building personal firearms pretty much a thing of the past. Lawsuits challenging the new rule were filed the day the rule became final. On June 30, U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, a George…

The RPD machine gun actually entered service with the Red Army in 1944 but continued in use front line until at least 1961, well into the Cold War. RPD stands for Ruchnoy Pulemyot Degtyaryova, (Degtyarov Hand-Held Machine Gun). It was designed as a replacement for the DP Machinegun recognizable in WWII photos by its large pan magazine atop the weapon. Harkening the future of Soviet small arms, the RPD was chambered for the 7.62x39mm cartridge, which would become ubiquitous with the introduction of the AK-47. Though developed during WWII, the RPD was not actually adopted until 1948 or widely issued until 1953. As the ColdWar, fortunately, did not turn hot, the RPD saw most of its combat in “proxy wars.” Either RPDs from Russia or Type 56s, as the Chineseproduced…

BELLEVUE, WA — The Second Amendment Foundation is celebrating a victory in California as a U.S. District Court judge has declared the state’s decades-old ban on so-called “assault weapons” to be unconstitutional. Federal Judge Roger T. Benitez’ ruling will almost certainly be appealed to the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco, but for the moment, SAF and its partners in the lawsuit known as Miller v. Bonta are celebrating a victory. SAF is joined in the case by the San Diego County Gun Owners Political Action Committee, California Gun Rights Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition and four private citizens, including James Miller, for whom the case is named. They are represented by attorneys George M. Lee at Seiler Epstein, LLP and John W. Dillon at the Dillon Law Group,…

The Soviet Arms AK-47 Spiker rifle is a splendid facsimile of the AK-47 used by the VC and NVA during the Vietnam War. Featuring a few technical nods to modern production techniques, the AK-47 Spiker nonetheless captures that groovy 1960’s vibe beautifully. With superlative execution and plenty of nice retro touches, the AK-47 Spiker is the easiest way to add a vintage Combloc gun to your personal collection without breaking the bank in the process. ‘Twas a Dark and Stormy Night… Lam Trinh sat motionless in the jungle underbrush. He was wet, miserable, and terrified. Surreal white light from parachute flares cut through the dank fetid foliage like a strobe. He squatted on his haunches clutching his brand new Chicom Type 56 assault rifle pondering the very real probability that…

US troops have used shotguns to a greater or lesser degree in all of this country’s wars. Vietnam was no exception, shotguns seeing action with point men on patrols or MPs guarding installations or prisoners, among others. World II trench guns, such as the Winchester Model 12, Stevens 520-30, Stevens 630, and even the venerable and iconic Winchester Model 97 Trench Gun saw action in Vietnam. In addition to those shotguns in arsenals at the beginning of the conflict, some new riot shotguns were acquired for Vietnam, the most numerous of which was the Stevens 77E, of which a little over 69,000 went into Army or Marine inventories. It should be noted, though, that anecdotally, the Marines much revered their Model 12 Trench Guns. Ithaca had produced a limited number…

We warned Firearms News readers back in late June that anti-gun Massachusetts lawmakers were pushing forward with a punitive package of gun-control laws that would further infringe on the rights of lawful gun owners. Now, the state House of Representatives has overwhelmingly passed the measure. Calling it “An Act Modernizing Firearms Laws,” the House passed H. 4135 by a 120-to-38 vote. The measure now heads to the state Senate for consideration. The legislation imposes some of the most restrictive anti-gun laws in the country. If approved by the Senate and signed by Democrat Gov. Maura Healey, the measure would expand the definition of already banned “assault weapons” to include a single cosmetic feature, outlawing even more common firearms owned by many Massachusetts residents. Under the bill, and “assault-style” rifle would…

The XM177E2 was a radically advanced combat weapon for its day. Incorporating cutting-edge Space Age technology in a package that was both lightweight and exceptionally compact, the XM177E2 really ushered in the era of the stubby rifle-caliber carbine. Though the Army referred to the weapon as the XM177E2, troops in country in Vietnam universally called it the CAR-15. The H&R version as offered through Palmetto State Armory is a simply superb rendition of this legendary firearm. Been There, Done That… John Plaster is a foundational name in modern military small arms. Plaster got his start in Vietnam as a Green Beret with MACV-SOG (Military Assistance Command, Vietnam—Studies and Observations Group). MACV-SOG is what first put the operator in special operations. Their missions were audacious to the point of insanity. These…

The M16 rifle was first deployed in Vietnam by 1965. Some M16s may have been seen action with Special Forces advisors earlier, but if my memory is correct the first major deployment of the M16 was with the 1st Cav in 1965. The earliest U.S. military purchaser was the USAF, which adopted the rifle as the “AR-15.” In fact, a friend, who is an Air Force Security Forces officer, told me a few years ago that there were still some rifles in Air Force armories marked “AR-15.” Early USAF guns are easily identifiable even without seeing the “AR-15” markings as they lack a forward assist, this model is known as the 604. Prior to the adoption of the AR-15, SAC bases and other installations were protected by the Air Police…

Republican presidential hopefuls’ intent on knocking former President Donald Trump out of his lead position in the polls are presenting themselves as the right candidate to take on Joe Biden — or whomever the Democrats run with — in the 2024 election. Firearms News will be exploring where these contenders stand on the Second Amendment, in both a separate analysis documenting actions, positions, and statements, and via a questionnaire, the subject of this article, designed to produce unequivocal answers. Will any give them? Conventional Republican establishment political thought says “No,” that the object is to speak in generalities and try to appeal to everybody without not committing to specifics. Otherwise, it will turn off “moderates” and suburban moms, we’ll be told. If “conservatives” address specifics in no uncertain terms, Democrats…

We recently informed Firearms News readers about how the widely told story of Israel arming civilians after the Oct. 7 terror attack is greatly exaggerated, with reforms affecting only a tiny portion of the population. Now, reports out of Israel show that the Shin Bet, Israel’s security service comparable to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), is actually disarming some Israelis in Judea and Samaria, generally known as the West Bank, leaving whole communities unprotected. Yonatan Stern, director of Pennsylvania-based Cherev Gidon Israeli Tactical Training (CherevGi-don.com) grew up in Israel and is a former member of both Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israeli Police. Concerned for his countrymen, Stern is keeping close track of the situation in Israel. “I speak Hebrew fluently and I read the Hebrew media,”…