Psycannon vs MIU liked psycannon

[Adlan]

When I fire it, it's a round, when it hits something, it's a bullet, when it's been fired, it's spent brass (or casings).

When I'm bombing up (or charging) a Magazine, I use a Clip, when I'm loading Vera (we all name our rifles) I use a Magazine.

Marco shows, once again, why he's our resident firearms boffin.

[precinctomega]

we all name our rifles

You sad, sad muppets.

R.

[Koval]

we all name our rifles

You sad, sad muppets.

R.

[greenstuff_gav]

when I'm loading Vera

"she's got a name!"
"'s got a name. I call her Vera"

[Inquisitor Cade]

yeah, points for the reference but none for originality.

[MarcoSkoll]

Ah, I know of a much more impressive gun named "Vera"... A 19" bore cannon designed to launch 100 lb. projectiles or small children at 1,000 feet per second.

Construction isn't quite finished, but the muzzle energy of 1.6 million ft-lbf will speak for itself. (But if strain testing goes well, it'll be possible to up it to around 2.4 million ft-lbf.)

Unfortunately, this is NOT a project I am involved in.

[Adlan]

we all name our rifles

You sad, sad muppets.

R.

To be fair, we didn't get a choice. CSM told us to name our rifles. Happyfeet didn't want to. Happy feet did 10 Bastard Gecko's.

We named our rifles.

[Inquisitor Cade]

Unfortunately, this is NOT a project I am involved in.

Not one of your backyard aircannon experiments then?

CSM told us to name our rifles.

Did anyone go for a satyrical/amusing name, or would the CSM have not accepted anything other than a girls name?
Incidentally how is your OTC operating now? We are paid until Sunday and then C1 training apparently.

[Adlan]

Same, all training C1, no budget for anything much at all.

The Bitch, was quite a common name after the first weekend of lugging them around everywhere, And someone memorised the seriel number and said that was their name, and most of the girls went with blokes names, but other than that, no, most everyone went with a girls name. Most of them Ex girlfriends names.


Marco, you seen any of the current coil guns being made recently? Seen some impressive ones, with a little better magazine and smaller lighter projectiles, some could do as 'legal' firearm substitutes, though obviously, carrying one as a weapon would make it illegal. Think this will be the next step in firearms? Only problem I've seen is the recharging time of capacitors.

[MarcoSkoll]

Not one of your backyard aircannon experiments then?

Neither part of my backyard tinkering, nor part of my work. I'm on decent enough terms with the guy who IS running the project, but other than the fact the two of us occasionally shoot ideas (not literally) back and forth, there is no involvement on my part.

Marco, you seen any of the current coil guns being made recently?

I have. I've been working on one of my own for a while, in fact.

Think this will be the next step in firearms?

I think it's unlikely that we'll see man-portable coilguns that can challenge powder-burners in many a year. As it stands, powder-burning firearms do their job, and are a whole lot simpler.

Only problem I've seen is the recharging time of capacitors.

For my own project, I'm doing my best to bring up efficiency in an attempt to be able to improve recharge time. (Obviously, if you can get the same muzzle energy with a smaller capacitor bank, then that smaller bank will charge in less time.)

I figure I may be able to get a 30 Joule (kinetic) coilgun - around twice the energy of an air rifle - capable of charging in around three seconds. Enough to deal with small pests, but little more. (Still, the silent nature of coilguns would prove a boon to pest control.)

[Koval]

Unfortunately, this is NOT a project I am involved in.

Must break your heart, Marco.

[MarcoSkoll]

Must break your heart, Marco.

I'll live. I prefer things I can actually pick up.

And suffice to say, where the barrel alone weighs more than 2 tonnes, it's a bit hard to do that.

[Simeon Blackstar]

Only problem I've seen is the recharging time of capacitors.

For my own project, I'm doing my best to bring up efficiency in an attempt to be able to improve recharge time. (Obviously, if you can get the same muzzle energy with a smaller capacitor bank, then that smaller bank will charge in less time.)

I figure I may be able to get a 30 Joule (kinetic) coilgun - around twice the energy of an air rifle - capable of charging in around three seconds. Enough to deal with small pests, but little more. (Still, the silent nature of coilguns would prove a boon to pest control.)

How does that fit into UK gun law?  I know that beyond a certain air pressure of air rifle you need a Firearms License own/use it, but this isn't an air rifle, and probaby isn't even a conventionally acknowledged type of gun, so there might not even be a law concerning it.  I'm really quite interested in this one.

[DapperAnarchist]

I think the firearms law simply applies to projectile weapons of all forms - my sister has had MACE cans taken from her on occasion under firearms legislation in London (she's been mugged about 6 times in 5 years... They never give her a warning, they just take it, tell her she shouldn't have it, then send her on her way)

[MarcoSkoll]

How does that fit into UK gun law?

Strictly, UK gun law covers any "a lethal barrelled weapon of any description from which any shot, bullet or other missile can be discharged". There is some leeway around lethality and whether something is a "weapon", but while airguns receive a certain amount of automatic dispensation, coilguns do not.

Of course, it is entirely possible to build a coilgun which hasn't got what would conventionally be perceived as a barrel, and under those circumstances, you'd then be limited under crossbow/slingshot legislation... which is basically non-existent. Aside from the restrictions on having them out in public and not using them as a weapon, there's very little limitation compared to firearms.

I could go out right now, and build a Van Helsing-esque auto crossbow (for which I do have a set of blueprints I did a year and a half back) of any power, and it would be entirely legal.
Compare that to the whole fuss about airguns... you can't even buy them over the internet these days, it has to be done in person at a dealer.

There is currently no specific coilgun law - mostly because no-one has done anything to make them write it yet.
Anyway, as it stands, there are some loopholes that define something as not being a weapon. A coilgun can either fit in one of these, or it can be built in such a way so that it's not a firearm.

So, they can be legal.

I suspect that DapperAnarchist's anecdote is the police simply using firearms law as an excuse to confiscate what is (to be honest) a weapon. Evidence has shown enough times that the police often just guess at the legality of something, and make up a likely sounding excuse if they think it's illegal.