The Great Pistol Theft

[ovenpaa]

German Milsurp seems to work well regardless of age, unlike MkVII Ball....

[Jame5m]

It does! An 8" White flame with every pull of the trigger! I do hope it wasn't corrosive and it didn't rot my barrel in that plastic box they put my pistols in!

[John25]

It does! An 8" White flame with every pull of the trigger! I do hope it wasn't corrosive and it didn't rot my barrel in that plastic box they put my pistols in!

James, I wouldn't worry too much. Most, if not all went into the furnace.

Although I wouldn't be surprised if a few were 'lost'!

[Chapuis]

I know of guys that loaded up ammunition using whatever components they had to hand in order to claim the compensation as loaded ammunition was worth far more than the sum of the components. Some of this ammunition didn't even have any powder in it, some had sand in place of powder and some had very unsuitable powder or powder loads. They were so bitter that they couldn't care less about any damage caused or the consequences. I am told that none of the "stolen" ammunition was ever used and that all of it was incinerated, I do hope so.
While some people were able to obtain reasonable setlements on their claims many were denied compensation on some items especially things like speedloaders for some reason. In my case I was compensated for my speedloaders but a friend wasn't for his?
It was rather unfair in the case of pistol shooters that had no interest in rifle shooting who were forced to give up their sport but were unable to gain compensation for reloading presses that were of no further use to them and for which that was very little market at that time.

[4Islander]

I didn't trust a government that would confiscate my property to actually pay the compensation.

So I chose to deactivate my guns & keep them, in fact I kept almost everything except the ammo which got burned away in a final days session at my club.

Im glad of the decision i made because I still use the belt rig & holster shooting matches in Europe.

The glock I kept is very handy to practice dryfire drills & magazine changes & sighting on targets.

The other thing is that they are now worth more than when I bought them new.

4I

[John25]

None of us foresaw the day when a de-act would command such a high price, I just didn't want mine at home a a reminder of all the effort, money and fun associated with them.

I listed my speedloaders as 'specialist equipment' as I did with most of my kit. The only things I didn't get any money for were my Dillon (which lay dormant until I bough my 45LC), some twenty round Browning magazines and some metal browning magazine clips.

I gave the twenty round magazines to a friend based at RAF Hereford, I still have the clips (magazine holders)

Nor did I forsee the day when I would be in a position to travel abroad to shoot, I was self employed and struggling at the time.

I am now in a position to rectify that, but I'm a realist. At my age I am going to find it difficult (if not impossible) to regain the skill level I had and be competitive in a young man's sport.

I am realising so many dreams now, and ticking off my bucket list. My wife doesn't shoot, as I don't watch football, so we compromise. I still have the best deal as we have a caravan at Bisley, whereas we don't have one to use for away matches - yet!

For me, pistols was another life now, besides, I have my 'F' class, my PSG and my underlever, thankfully, I can be (on the odd good day) competitive with those.

Doesn't stop me wishing of course, or being a little jealous!

stgeo

[ovenpaa]

Someone I know could not bring himself to hand his immaculate Luger Artillery in so he had it deactivated. It sits in a safe now along with the original holster which has been numbered to the pistol. I suspect keeping it will prove to be an investment however he did say it cost him GBP700 all those years ago.

[Blackstuff]

Someone I know could not bring himself to hand his immaculate Luger Artillery in so he had it deactivated. It sits in a safe now along with the original holster which has been numbered to the pistol. I suspect keeping it will prove to be an investment however he did say it cost him GBP700 all those years ago.

Were compensation payments made to get guns deactivated?

Also, how did the government get away with not paying compo for those Brocock revolvers?
Was it because you could get them added to an FAC?
And my final bit of derailment - Is it true that those guns which were added to an FAC got a non-transfer condition added? i.e. Only the owner at the time can own that specific gun, you can't give/sell it to another FAC holder?

[Michael Sproul]

I recently asked a club member about the old pistol days, practical competitions and such like and instantly regretted bringing it up! Not because what he told me wasn't interesting, far from it! But because it sounded like a shed load of fun and the look in his eyes def seemed to me like he lost more than just "a pistol" that day.

[Sim G]

I wouldn't keep a Ferrari in the garage without an engine, likewise, I couldn't have deactivated my "race gun"........