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My main range, the American Firearms School, doesn’t allow “human” targets. Well, detailed human targets. In fact, they sell targets with human shapes. Lots of ’em. As someone who shoots computer paper, I’m not bothered. But I am amazed (but not amused) that Massachusetts bans handgun mags that hold more than ten rounds. The high cap mag ban means I can’t carry my preferred firearm—a Springfield XDM—’cause if you sneeze in Rhode Island the snot flies into Massachusetts. And to get from one side of the Ocean State to the other you have to go through the Bay State. What’s the dumbest rule or regulation afflicting you, the responsible and fully legal firearm owner? Oh, and this video is a good guide for someone planning on stealing kiwitedferny’s firearms and Nazi memorabilia (Heaven forfend). That’s pretty stupid, too.

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102 COMMENTS

  1. The Cook County AWB is the dumbest law, not becuase of the ban itself but because it is totally unenforced. To date so far as anyone can tell not a single person has been arrested for posession of an “assault weapon” or “assault clip”. Even most local gun stores know so little about the law it is easy as sin to get any “illegal assault weapon” you would like.

    Basically it is a “catch all” to castigate otherwise lawful gun owners.

    • Whats even worse is Chicago’s AWB, which is basically a old version of the CC AWB. It is problematic because CC allows rifles with a pistol grip whereas Chicago does not. Lasers on guns (and even laser pointers) are banned in Chicago. ARs (and clones and copies) along with >10 round mags are banned in both Chicago and CC, but walk in to any CC gun shop and tell me what you see. Do you know of any place that shows which CC municipalities enacted a home rule law to bypass the CC AWB, besides Chicago?

  2. When I lived in San Francisco, the City required that all guns be kept locked up with trigger guards. I don’t recall if the City regs included keeping guns unloaded. Since they aren’t real guns and they don’t have to be concerned with the 2nd Amendment, the (in)-‘tolerant’ City of SF banned BB Gun and sling shot sales. The State of California even banned targets with vague human outlines.

    • Yes, we cannot have vaguely human targets here in the People’s Republic of Kahlifonia, but a friend of mine at our friendly neighborhood gun range had five different targets, that when arranged a certain way looked somewhat like a person. None of the targets alone looked like a human, and therefore they were legal.
      A question of mine though. We can’t have human-shaped targets, but what about zombie targets? I’ve seen a few of them, in stores. So I figure they’re probably legal.

      • WHAT? Never heard of this.
        Every range I’ve been to sells those chubby mugger targets, I’ve shot hostage targets a bunch, as well as other LEO targets.
        You sure they banned “human” targets?

        • One time I was at a range and someone put up a poster with a Toronto Mapleleafs logo as their target. They got it down to the end and before they got a shot off they were instructed to take it down. Apparently they didn’t allow anyone to shoot at logos or something lol.

          • That has got to be a local range rule–I have never heard of such a thing, and our indoor range uses muggr/hostage as well as outline targets. Must be a Bay Area thing.

      • + a billion. Worst years of my life and I wasn’t even into guns then. Couldn’t even imagine the misery of trying to be a gun owner there.

        • SF is my home town and I still live here. I’m walking distance from the City’s only gun shop and recently bought a 870 from them. Nice folks. I keep hoping that someday I’ll be able to carry legally but the idiocy of the progressives in power shows no sign of abating. So it’s a Surefire Guardian and a can of Fox pepper spray for me.

          • Glad to here that they were finally allowed to open after the remodel. Some tried to stop it on nuisance grounds, but the other local businesses backed them up.

  3. When traveling to see family in Illinois on leave I must do the following.

    Secure and field strip all firearms by placing the receivers in one locked case, and the slides & barrels into another locked case in the trunk. Ammunition is kept in a bag outside of the locked cases. Before anyone starts mentioning the FOPA, not only is my family’s home in Illinois but in that same state there is no state preemption of gun laws. A citizen driving with an assembled and cased gun is still subject to arrest should they pass through a town in Illinois with strict gun ordinances.

    Going to a public range in that state is even more degrading. Any gun I brought in to shoot had to be checked in at the front desk, as the greeter cleared and locked each weapon with a trigger lock, and then affixed a loud orange tag to the outside before sending me across the store on my way up to the range. May as well attach a flag saying “steal me there’s guns inside!” to the case.

    It gets better. Upstairs the rangemaster cuts the orange zip tie, unlocks the weapons that are to be shot,and then reminds the shooter that rapid fire is absolutely prohibited. Gun ownership in that state really is a de-facto privilege subject to regulation and denial by business and government entity alike.

    • Don’t know what range you had the misfortune of visiting here in Illinois but most ranges I go to could care less about your gun. Unless you are buying ammo; they don’t check for a FOID card or Drivers licence. The only exception is at certain ranges that are pistol rounds only, if you bring a carbine I have seen the counter guys ask to check the gun. Thats it.

    • Ha Ha…

      Well did you happen to notice that you are in a shopping mall? What other mall do you know of that you can go to and legally shoot? In that mall (in Gurnee, Ill) you can shoot, shop, eat, ice skate, see a movie, and get a massage. Gee, I guess that’s the price we pay for the convenience of having a place to shoot. Might I remind you, you were in the state of Illinois. Which when it comes to gun laws, it is a rather communistic and unfriendly place. I do not know what state you are from, but don’t take your gun laws for granted there. Protect them and nourish them. We are lucky to have ranges in this part of Illinois. We are pleased and proud that Bass Pro Shop in Gurnee has a range for people shoot at. It is one of the few Bass Pro stores that has a range and it appears that very few customers complain about it. In fact, it makes most customers feel safer when shopping in the store or using that range. I will add that the shopping mall and the city of Gurnee put forth those rules of locking and checking the guns in so that Bass Pro could have a range. I hope you enjoy your range in your state, and again, never take your range and/or your freedom for granted. Also, Bass Pro does cross their T’s and dots their I’s and follows all the gun laws in the state of Illinois. Make sure you vote for the right president, and maybe things will change someday.

      Safe shooting.

      -D.B.

  4. Can’t really think of many. WA state has pretty nice (lack of) gun laws. Maybe the most annoying is that none of the neighboring or nearby states (OR, ID, MT, WY, CA, etc) have reciprocity with the WA CPL, which is a pain for our planned summer camping trip to Yellowstone.

    • Ken, I’d have to say our last bastion of gun law stupidity is the “no carry in bars.” You can carry a gun and drink beer and wine in a restaurant until you’re falling down drunk, that’s fine, but take your gun into a tavern and drink a Diet Coke all night and you’re breaking the law.

      I don’t really drink much, but we have some places here that have great food. And if I can volunteer to be the designated driver, why can’t I volunteer to be the designated gunner as well?

  5. CA’s 10 day waiting period is pretty high on my list. I already own multiple firearms, so what is the point of making me wait 10 days for a new one?

    Also, the 10 round limit- everyone here knows how fast even a novice can change mags, so it’s basically a pointless law (aside from allowing law makers to score points with their gun-ignorant constituents). The REALLY annoying part is when I am ordering new mags. Check out the price on a CA legal Glock 19 mag vs. a standard capacity Glock 19 mag- the bastardized CA mag is literally twice as expensive.

  6. For a “blue” state, Minnesota’s gun laws aren’t too bad. I suppose the stupidest law I have to deal with is the ban on suppressors.

  7. Mine is nowhere as bad as the laws posted above but in Oklahoma you are only allowed to have a loaded handgun in your vehicle if you have a concealed firearm permit. If you do not you must have the pistol unloaded and stored in a case in the back.

    For some reason having a piece of plastic with a picture on it means that I am responsible enough to be trusted with a loaded firearm.

  8. I guess that means California’s law is dumber. You’re allowed to own and use normal capacity magazines (note how I don’t call them “high cap” magazines). You just can’t buy or sell them. And even better, if you have a normal magazine and it breaks, you’re allowed to repair it. That means, if you go to any gun show everyone is selling Glock 17-round magazine “repair kits” which are just disassembled 17-round magazines.

  9. Since I’m in Florida, I don’t have a lot to complain about. The stupidest law that I know of is the campus carry ban. I’m not a college student anymore, so I’m not subject to it, but that doesn’t make it any less dumb.

    For “annoying things that affect me directly,” I’d go with the fact that the CLEO here in Orange County flatly refuses to sign a Form 4, so for NFA items my only option is a trust.

    • Is it legal for said CLEO to do so? If that kind of sh!t happened in my area, we’d just sit back and wait for the next election to sort out the problem.

      • No, I don’t think it’s legal, but it’s also the kind of thing that would likely take a lawsuit or a directive from the ATF to fix. I’ve heard of CLEOs in other areas who similarly refuse, and a local resident got the ATF involved, and they slapped the CLEO’s hand and tell them they can’t do that. That’s anecdotal though, I can’t back it up with citations.

        I will say that I didn’t even try, because it’s a “known fact” that she doesn’t sign. Maybe I should try on the next one, just to see for myself if it’s true and/or how much of a hassle it is. Not like it costs me anything but time.

    • I want to add to my list, the 3 day waiting period. Not only because I think it’s dumb in general, but because it wasn’t until I purchased my first handgun that I discovered that a “3 day waiting period” is what most people would refer to as a “4 day” or even a “5 day waiting period.” The reason I say that is that until I actually laid down my cash, I was not aware that it is “three business days, not including the day of purchase nor the day of pickup.” Buy it on a Monday, pick it up on Friday; buy it on a Thursday, can’t pick it up until the following Wednesday; Friday >> Thursday. And woe be unto you if there happens to be a holiday in there somewhere…

      Note this year, if you buy a handgun in Florida with your Christmas money on Dec 26, 2012, you will not pick it up until Wednesday, January 2, 2013… seven calendar days, including two weekend days and a holiday, later.

      • California has a ten day wait, but at least it is by the clock–they record the time of sale, and 240 hours later you can pick it up.

  10. A loaded gun in my car is by default “concealed carry” and requires a LTCF, while at the same time I live in a state which requires no LTCF for open carry. That means if you OC on foot in my state you are fine, but if you get in your car, you need a LTCF. I think that’s kind of outrageously stupid.

    -D

  11. Where I’m from (suburbs of NYC) you need a “pistol permit” just to own a handgun. Doesn’t matter if ccw never crosses your mind – you still need the permit.
    On top of that, both you and the gun dealer are breaking the law if you handle the weapon before you receive your permit.
    If you finally get the permit and a cute gal with a .22 rifle at the shooting lane next to you bats her baby blues at you and says, “hey, can I try your pistol?” you’re also both breaking the law if she doesn’t have one.
    In addition, NYS wants handgun registration – so every time you buy a new revolver or semiauto, you submit a form to have it “added” to your permit and then you can pick it up – the wait is usually 1-5 weeks for this.
    My range is pretty amazing, though – even though it’s close to NYC, they don’t care what you bring, what your targets look like, how rapidly you fire, etc. It’s a pretty awesome place and it’s close to where I live.

  12. I dont think I have one specific law I find to be stupid.
    I live in California, so the laws here are already pretty stupid. The Brady Bunch voted California to be the best state for gun control laws. Lets begin shall we.

    1. 10 Day waiting period. (Some Places wait 11 to cover their ass)
    – They call it a 10 Day “Cool down period” automatically associating ANY firearms owner with rage and murderous intent. I find it pretty stupid to think I have to wait 10 Days to LEGALLY buy a gun when I ALREADY OWN MORE THAN ONE. Cool down for a new gun? Makes no sense. All it means is I have to drive to Timbuktu to pick up my gear a second time. They have done a great job at closing down ranges and gun stores out here.

    2. 10 round capacity. Seriously? Have you ever seen a proficient shooter do a mag change? It doesn’t change the fact that the gun still shoots bullets. The lemming logic here is that “if a shooter where to go on a rampage he couldn’t go on a BIG rampage.” Well, that doesn’t make sense because all he/she has to do is change mags. They are also assuming that the letter of the law was followed to the ‘t’ prior to said rampage. “Who needs more than 10 rounds?” I hear that all the time. Its ridiculous. Simple answer is because the magazine was designed to stack multiple rounds, it just so happens WITHOUT extending the length of the magazine, or magazine well, the caliber of choice can provide between 8 and 16 rounds direct from the manufacturer. Its like saying “who needs a 23 gallon gas tank” well… because the car was designed that way. Smaller calibers afford larger magazine capacity. If you own pre-ban NORMAL capacity magazines you can’t use them in your rifle unless you have whats called a featureless rifle… See the next law.

    3. Bullet buttons – This one kills me
    Seriously? A magazine release turns your long gun into an assault weapon? Someone must have been huffing paint when this law was created. The options are a bullet button, or internal fixed magazine. A buddy of mine got one of the Bushmaster Carbon 15 “Top Loader” Carbine’s and that thing is such a POS. You have to pull the takedown pin to load 10 rounds. If you had stripper clips it would be easier, but why bother. I’ve practiced using spare bullet to release the magazine and I have to tell ya, they succeeded at making a mag change clumsy and cumbersome. You get used to putting your arm around the front of the mag well and sticking the bullet in the hole and releasing the magazine. It’s really not that hard to do after a little practice, but its awkward none the less. I use a RadLock so when I go out-of-state(“Out side the gate” is more like it), I can A) Use normal capacity magazines, and B) turn the bullet button off without having to take apart the mag release. Oh did I mention that the bullet button doesn’t change the fact that the rifle still shoots bullets?

    4. Approved/Roster Firearms
    OH NO the gun can shoot without a magazine and a bullet in the chamber? Say it aint so! Um, yeah, that’s how it’s designed. What about the other safety features? Oh no, no loaded chamber indicator? Hmm… Sounds dangerous to me. Firearms manufacturers have to send a new firearm, most pistols, to the CA-DOJ testing agency or where ever it goes, who cares really, and for a modest price of $80,000 they can have their firearm tested and possibly approved to On Roster sale in California. Nice racket they got going there if you ask me. Did I mention the part where if the manufacturer changes the color of the polymer frame (Springfield, Glock, Walther) they have to pay to have the pistol RETESTED, even though it’s the same gun, same mechanics, already passed the test, only difference is the paint job? It’s like saying you have to re-register and smog check your vehicle after you give it a paint job. The trick to getting around this is using the internet to purchase your firearms. There are some shops out here (FFLs) that will happily receive your off list pistol, convert it to a SINGLE SHOT pistol using a kit, ask you for a deposit on the kit(5in barrel, and mag well block ~$200-$250), and then release owner ship to you. after 10 days. When you take it home your legally allowed to remove the mag block and change the barrel, because the pistol was SOLD as a single shot(see what they did there) and thus return the pistol to its original configuration. You simply return the single shot conversion kit and they refund your deposit. Easy as pie.

    I can’t think of any more at the moment.

    • One interesting thing about the mag capacity too is that there is no responsiblity for the seller. In NJ we have a 15 rd capacity limit on all guns, not just handguns. You can go online and buy larger magazines and they will ship to you. They provide a disclaimer that it is your responsibility to obey the laws of your state. So I could’ve bought 17 rd mags, but instead I bought some extra 15 rounders to replace the two 10 rd mags that came with my M&P9 to stay compliante. Now what criminal or potential criminal is going to give a shit about that?

      My M&P9 came with 10 rounders because I basically bought a Mass compliant gun in NJ since manufacurers don’t think it’s worth it to accomodate the only state with 15 round limit when there’s uncertainty if the laws would get more loose or strict down the line. I’m going to get one of the Apex trigger kits to get rid of the 10lb trigger.

      • While I’m sure that you could buy online a pistol mag that holds more than 15 rounds if you really wanted to, most major retailers will not sell you one. And honestly, would you want one in a state that absolutely positively hates guns? Believe me, I know how dumb these laws are, but you don’t want to be caught with any illegal firearm parts or accessories here in the dirty jerz. not worth it.

        • My point is simply that placing a limit on magazine size does not prevent anyone (especially criminals because they are least likely to care about the law) from acquiring larger sized magazines. It’s another example of a misguided attempt at gun ‘control’ with the justification and false sense of security that criminals won’t have their hands on these products.

          • True. Those types of laws only put unnecessary restrictions on law abiding citizens.

            If cops and politicians really cared about the safety of residents of, say, Newark, Camden or Paterson, they’d allow CCW carry tomorrow. Crime rate would drop overnight. But instead we are forced to deal with unreasonable laws or laws that are purposely not enforced (NJ is technically a “shall issue” state and they should issue you a permit if there is nothing preventing you from getting one, but that’s next to impossible thanks to their “lack of justifiable need” excuse, which is BS if I ever saw one.

    • I feel your pain – I was going to write all the same things until I saw your comment. More Californians are getting into shooting sports, so hopefully things take a turn for the better in the next few years here.

  13. The SBR law, because 8″ Ar’s are really just tools for crime, but Ar pistols which are actually moderately more concealable (XXXl rather than XXXXL trenchcoat) are not subject to NFA. and Glocks with Stocks are mass murder weapons that only a chief LEO officer should be able to grant people the right to shoot.

  14. New Jersey’s transport laws are completely insane. The way the law is written you are not allowed to transport a firearm, unless you qualify for one of a couple ‘exceptions.’ The exceptions basically just cover if you are moving, traveling to and from a gunsmith, or to and from a gun range.

    If i stop at the supermarket on my way home from the range to pick up some milk with my gun locked in the trunk, I am breaking the law the moment I step out of the car. This is regardless of how many locks I have on the gun. Technically it just needs to be in a closed bag if in the trunk, or a locked bag or container if in the driver compartment (in the event you don’t have a trunk, like a pick up). In this supermarket example they can try to stick you with prison time to the maginitude of years.

    The main reason I just want the reciprocity act to go through is so that I can have my gun in my car and it not be breaking the law. Since I have an AZ CCW permit transport would no longer be an issue. I think the transport laws are way to extreme and make no sense. Every other state operates great with you being able to leave your gun in your car. Really this is just because it’s near impossible to get a CCW in NJ. You need a judge from Trenton to give it to you. NJ will be the last state to have shall issue I’m sure.

    • Oh I also forgot about the handgun permits. Once I go through the hoops for my FID (firearms ID = purchasers card) I can go buy as many shotguns and rifles as I want. But to buy a handgun I need to apply for a handgun permit. The police do the same 5 minute NICS background checks they do when you buy a gun, but they can take 7 to 30 days to give you the permit. Then they only are good for 90 days after that. Then you can only buy a handgun every 30 days.

      I have a friend who has some cops in the family. He went to get a handgun permit one time and the cop gave him the permit right away, but stipulated don’t use it for 7 days or I’ll get in trouble.

    • They make em crazy so they can pin down actual criminals. Sadly the law mostly affects law abiding citizens. Criminals often take the chance of breaking the law and eventually get caught either way. Its just one more thing they can charge people with, ya know, incase that DUI charge wasn’t enough to lock em up for life with out parole.

      • There was that case recently where a guy moved to NJ from Colorado after a divorce to be closer to his kid, and his parents lived there as well. Well, he got kinda down, and Momma was afraid he might off himself, so she calls the cops. The cops pull him over and search the car (why I do not know), and,becaue he was moving from his parents house to an apartment, lo and behold there was a handgun in the trunk, and to make things even worse, he had DEADLT HP BULLETS!!! (which you can own and shoot in NJ, from what I hear, but you can’t transport them or some such nonsense). He got 7 years for that. Christy commuted his sentence to time served, so he got out of prison after a few months, but he still has a lifetime ban due to the felony becuase Christy didn’t grant a pardon. And by the by, this guy’s method of transport was fully within the “safe harbor” transport provisions of federal law, a law theat neither NJ nor NYC will acknowledge.

  15. No retractable buttstocks in NJ. Also they wanted to ban silencers, but the means to the end was to ban threaded barrels. This means you cannot have a removable muzzle break.

    • Well us Oklahoma folk aren’t allowed to carry a handgun caliber larger than .45 in diameter, but unless you want to carry a 454 Casul that law is pretty much inane lol.
      Heck I can legally carry a gonzo 44mag if I want.

      Most of our self defense laws don’t really make sense. Our knife laws are borderline idiotic. There’s no stated length limit for the state, but you can’t carry anything like a dagger or a dirk (a Scott dagger) and a Bowie style knife.

      • I agreed, the knife laws are silly. I miss being able to carry my Benchmade auto knife.

        And like I mentioned above; it’s silly that I have to have a concealed carry permit to have a loaded gun in the console of my vehicle.

        Oh, and the silliness over what type of pistol you qualify with determines what you can carry when you have your SDA permit. That is a dumb rule.

        • My LGS & range here in OKC has normal targets and zombie targets, some of the zombie targets squirt some blood (red goo) if you hit on that spot.
          We might be getting open carry this year but after 2010 I wont hold my breath.

  17. I live in Hawai’i, so ALL of them.

    1. 10 rd pistol mag max.
    2. carrying ammunition is treated as though you were carrying an actual firearm.
    3. firearms must be transported in a “rigid” container – so an unlocked hard container is fine but a typical soft gun sleeve is not.
    4. No carry permits – yeah it’s technically a “may issue” state; in reality it’s a “no way in hell” state.

  18. IN conflicted NM, open carry everywhere, but you can only conceal one gun at a time. Your permit to carry specifies maximum caliber and type of handgun; don’t carry a 40 caliber if the permit says 45 caliber revolver. It doesn’t matter that a 44 magnum blows the doors off of a 45 long colt. No need of a permit for loaded car carry. Did I mention that NM is conflicted? Thank god I don’t live in IL, CA, NY or NJ. I used to live in VA wher you can open carry into a bar and drink a beer, just don’t exceed .08% BAC.

  19. No carry on Federal installation. I would say no carry in a Post Office is a stupid law I have to follow but I can (and have – thanks UPS!) gone years without setting foot in one of those. However, I work on a very large military base where CCW is verboten.

  20. Stupidest? I dunno.

    I have to say the three day wait for a handgun (when I have a half dozen in my safe at home already).

    All in all, my state (Ill-i-noise) lacks some of the major suckage other states live with. We have no approved gun list. We have no magazine capacity limits. No weird limits on ammo. No .50 ban.

    All this is not for want of trying, by the folks in the paved over north east corner.

    • 3 day wait… thats it?

      makes my 10 look pretty good. Waiting at all when you can show proof of ownership is stupid.

    • God that reminds me. Gov.Arnie “The Terminator” Schwarzenegger was the guy who signed into law the .50 bmg gun ban–even though one has never been used in a crime (gee, I wonder why), and even though Barrett builds them in Cali. Apparently he bought the line that a .50 bmg could down a jet aircraft–ignoring of course, that if a terrorist wanted to do so, nothing would prevent him from buying one in Az and bringing it into Cali in his trunk…..

  22. Campus Carry prohibitions and under 21 limitations for permits and handguns. Also my favorite range near my parent’s house is across the border in SC. When I visit them, I often find that I go shooting during the day while they are working. SC doesn’t accept GA carry permits and prohibits OC. And my momma wouldn’t appreciate it if I stopped coming to visit her.

  23. Some of the many reasons I escaped the People’s Demokratik Republik of NJ was the firearms laws. As posted above, they need an I.D. card to buy long guns, but have to apply for a pistol permit for each individual handgun bought, including pellet and BB guns (classed as firearms in NJ). That permit requires fingerprinting (or it did when I lived there) and is only good for one purchace and expires if not used in 90 days. I live in PA and work in NJ, and can not put any firearm in my trunk, even unloaded, disassembled, cased and locked with the idea of stopping at the range on my way home from work, or I would be breaking NJ law. Can’t buy a sling shot in NJ to my knowledge. PA is pretty much common sense with it’s firearms laws. We just recently got “Castle doctrine”, and concealed carry permits are not too tough to get.

    I have shot at ranges where they forbid the use of human face targets of any kind. I was told it was done to improve the standing of shooters in the community. Apparently someone had seen face targets used and jumped to the conclusion that people were training as snipers to shoot humans. Not a state law, but a range rule. I have also shot at ranges where no rapid fire was allowed, again to not alarm the nearby residents who falsely believed that machine guns were being used at the range and called the police EVERY TIME they heard rapid fire.

    • So also from the People’s Demokratik Republik of NJ, there is a rule, or maybe more accurately an interpretation of the law by NJ’s leftists courts, that if you have a loaded magazine, then you have a firearm. No matter of the gun itself is separately locked in the trunk and the magazine is locked in a separate container in the cabin of you car, if there are bullets in the magazine then you have a firearm and can be cited for illegal possession. And then there’s this: EVERY SINGLE firearms infraction is a felony, no matter how slight.

      • NJ gun laws defy logic, that’s for sure. Can’t have a semi auto shotgun with mag capacity larger than 5. And be ready to do jail time if you want to put a pistol grip on one, too. Why? Who knows, I guess it’s an assault something or another. But wait…you can put pistol grip and a folding/telescoping stock on a pump shotgun, and it’s ok to have large mag capacity like 6 or 7 shells (not sure if there is a mag capacity restriction when it comes to pump action).

        But here’s my fave: you can only buy 1 pistol in a 30 day period, and I’ve heard horror stories from dealers about people getting in trouble JUST FOR CALLING to get a NICS check before day 30. So, most dealers want you to wait not 30, but 32 or 33 days between purchases, just to be safe. I wish I were kidding.

    • You cannot even touch a handgun at a gun store without FOID (20 years ago), and the slingshot is so prohibited per Florio’s AWB, that sale, manufacture, transport, possession, etc, of components to make them is also a no-no.

      Thus, your thumb and index finger, a paper clip cut in half and a post office rubber band is also prohibited contraband! (well, I am extrapolating here, but that is the stupidity of NJ)

  24. Here is a gem from MA:
    Cartridges are ammunition, (and require a permit) but so are individual powder, primers, bullets and casings. Yes, an empty brass case is ammunition, and possession of such without a permit is a crime. The same applies to pepper spray and mace (MGL 140 121).
    And of course, the The “MA compliant list” which basically forbids any dealer from selling a gun that does not have an atrocious trigger and a whose manufacturer did not pay a huge fee to Marsha. (ex. glock, kimber, Springfield, les baer, etc). Except for police, who can have any “unsafe” gun they want.

  25. No carrying on Army Corps of Engineers property. In reality the land belongs to the tax payers but we can’t carry firearms on it. I can legally carry in local parks but the moment I step foot onto COE land I am not to be trusted.

  26. I travel between KY and OH almost every day, so I have to deal with two states gun laws. And they don’t line up.
    Case and point: Open-carry is fine in either state, but if I cross into Ohio, I can’t have a loaded magazine in the car if the gun is in the glove box without a CCW. As in ANYWHERE in the car. Loaded mag locked in the trunk, gun locked in the glovebox? Jail time, baby.
    I was going to write to Governor Kasich, but then I saw the pending Constitutional Carry legislation, and decided my time was better spent advocating for that! KY has one pending too, so I have my fingers crossed that both will pass the legislation and I won’t need no steenkin’ CCW at all. Then I’ll have to find something else to bitch and moan about 🙂

    • Sad but true. This state will do anything it takes to discourage you from owning firearms.

      Good luck applying for a CCW permit. If you go to NJ State Police website and download the CCW form, look at the bottom where it says “Reason for Disapproval.” Basically, unless you can prove that your job requires you to carry a pistol, everybody will get a check by option G) Lack of justifiable need. That’s right, if you’d like to protect your life when you’re outside of your home, that is not good enough reason to get a permit in this state.

      • I wonder if biker/sociopath Mudman Simon – who shot and killed Ofc Ippy Gonzalez at a traffic stop on NJ-55 some years ago – had a CCW? Mudman finally got his just desserts in jail a few years later – good riddance.

  28. I have two to nominate here in NC:

    1. “Pistol Purchase Permits” which are issued by the county Sheriff with some counties being essentially “may issue” and requiring character references. (A CHP holder does not need a PPP and in some counties the CHP is easier to obtain due to “shall issue”.) This PPP system predates NICS checks, but so far has too much support among those controlling the permit process to be declared redundant and go away.

    2. No transporting firearms during a declared state of emergency. States of emergency can be declared often during hurricane season and many times are issued well in advance of a storm arriving. It is easy to be on the wrong side of whatever arbitrary line the Governor selects for the SoE boundary. This only applies to the little people as the usual exceptions are made for LEOs.

    • Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t the NC Pistol Purchase Permit laws originate during the Jim Crow era? Someone told me they were specifically created to prevent blacks from getting guns to defend themselves. If so, why are they still on the books and why is it not brought up more often?

      • This legislature during this past session attempted to change the PPP law, but that effort failed this time. Keep in mind that the Republicans just took control of the NC House and Senate for the first time in over 100 years (edit: last time was 1898) with the 2010 election. Democrat Governor Bev Perdue used her veto pen early and often that session.

    • #2 is just plain stupid. A state of emergency is exactly the time you want to have a firearm close wherever you go. If the rationale is to keep looters and miscreants unarmed during a crisis they need to rethink that fantasy.

      • I agree that those are the times when people who are able to defend themselves and their community should be encouraged to do so. The law is actually worse than that if enforced to the letter. The law covers “transport” rather than “carry” so in the event of an evacuation under a state of emergency, you have to choose between staying with your collection in harms way, leaving your collection, or break the law by taking your collection with you.

        Now let me tell you of another overly broad law here just waiting for an over zealous prosecutor: “Going armed to the terror of the public”…

  29. Right now the whole “wait 10 days” law here in CA is killing me. I just bought my first handgun (an M&P45 FS) on Sunday and I can’t take her home until next Wednesday.

    Dumb.

    • There are too many twisted and inconsistent laws in California, with exceptions, and exceptions to exceptions to boot. Since 1968, it has been illegal to carry a loaded firearm of any kind unless LEO or CCW. Since Jan. 1 this year, OC of unloaded pistols (with some exceptions like paragdes and hunting), is banned. Various cities ban specific ammo. San Francisco bars the sale within city limits of “nonsporting ammo” (which is meant to bar the sale of hollow points) although it is legal to possess them. Last I checked an (unconstitutional) ordinance was on the books there barring the discharge of a firearm for any purpose, including self-defense, except for LEOs. The CCW licensing system is a joke-the law gives each sheriff considerable discretion in deciding whether an applicant has “good cause,” so that in rural counties it is pretty easy to get a CCW but in large urban areas (other than Sacramento) it is utterly impossible. We don’t have a “permit” for getting a firearm, but for handguns, you do have to possess, at the time of delivery, a valid Handgun Safety Certificate, which in turn requires a 20 question multiple question test (with curve balls) and a “practicum” of demonstrating the “safe” handling of a firearm. (Load, unload, and lock up with cable device). All handguns must be accompanied by proof of purchase within 30 days of an approved locking device–but the one that comes with a gun doesn’t qualify, so you have to buy a second cable lock for $10 that you will never need. DUMB! Then there are the “evil gun” laws, which are so bizzantine I don’t think I’ll ever understand them. For example, no mags more than 10 rounds, and must have a “bullet button” requiring a tool to remove the mag. No front verticle grips. No bumb stocks or similar. No bayonet lugs. Length limitations that apply to AR style rifles but not to pistols. The roster of “approved” handguns that keeps many guns off the market here, including most of the pocket pistols in 380 or 9mm, as well as models that are identical except for color or materials.Mag locks, LRIs, manual safeties, the list is interminable.
      But we do get guns. There is that.

      • Personally, I can understand the bayonet lug thing, what with all those horrible bayonetings we see on the news every night from every state in the union other than California. They really dodged the bullet, er, bayonet on that one!

      • In California, No more than one gun every 30 days. Completely without merit.

        And then the gun shops are so afraid that the authorities might think they’ve violated one of the stupid laws, so they over-observe the rules.

        I bought a handgun, and after the 10 day waiting period, I was able to take it home on Feb. 11th. A few days later I decided that I wanted to buy a second handgun. (I wanted a .45 instead of a 9mm.) I was not allowed to START the 10 day waiting period for the second gun until 31 days after I obtained the first one, March 14th. I was not allowed to take home the second handgun until March 25rd. So the rules add up and actually mean you can’t buy more than one gun every 42 days.

        The purpose of the 10 day waiting period is supposed to be to allow me to rethink my reason for buying the gun. The authorities wouldn’t want me to buy a gun when I’m angry or depressed, so they give me 10 days to cool down first. NOW TELL ME HOW THAT WORKS WHEN I ALREADY HAVE A GUN AT HOME. Why do I need a cool-down period for a second gun? Ridiculous!

        I was so happy when I was finally able to move out of California, and into a free state.

        • I feel like California gets away a lot of stupid laws because of it’s natural beauty/good weather. I know that’s not a great reason for compromising one’s freedoms but it draws everybody in and then it’s a hub of economic activity, thus one has to be there. It’s terrible but that’s the current.

          For the life of me I don’t know how places in the Rust Belt get away with similarly crappy laws (gun and otherwise). I guess with Chicago it’s a similar economic draw, and yes I know there are some absolutely beautiful places in the Midwest, but you get my drift.

  30. I’m lucky that in Minnesota the stupid gun laws are pretty minimal, but the state does outright ban suppressors even for people with a class 3 license.

  31. I live in Canada.

    Cannot carry. Pistols and other scary firearms are ‘restricted’ allowing me only to transport to a approved range, with both a special liscence (on top of my regular firearms liscence) AND proper authorization to transport. Semi-auto centrefire rifles of any kind are limited to 5 rounds. Any pistol is limited to 10.

    Thats just the beginning…

    I’m also not allowed to defend myself or my wife with any force of ANY kind. It is recomended that I hide and wait for the RCMP to arrive…

  32. No rimfire on the rifle range at my club, only .17hmr is allowed (no .22LR, short, WMR etc). That means if you want to shoot .22 you are restricted to the 25 yard pistol range. Reason being that the targets on the rifle range are mighty close together (about 2 feet centre-to-centre) so .22 flyers were annoying the guys in the next lane.

    You also cannot load more than a single round on the rifle range (full mags are fine on the pistol range). I can see how this makes sense for safety (less risk of a dummy forgetting to unload, or spraying due to slamfire etc). But if you want to check the function of your semi-auto, tough timbits.

    Before you all clamour to say “go to another range” it’s the only one within a reasonable distance (still 30 kms away from my place) that isn’t some shady wrong-side-of-the-tracks indoor range.

  33. 18 USC 922R.

    “It shall be unlawful for any person to assemble from imported parts any semiautomatic rifle or any shotgun which is identical to any rifle or shotgun prohibited from importation under section 925(d)(3) of this chapter as not being particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes “

  34. I am pretty lucky to be in Arizona which is pretty good when it comes to gun laws. I think that gun shops do have to report me if I buy multiple rifles because I instantly give them to Mexican cartels. But I don’t have the cash to buy more than one rifle at a time. Still pretty dumb.

    • Likewise, but there’s still plenty of stupid FEDERAL laws!

      Like “constructive possession.” Got the parts to make something illegal? You might as well have made something illegal. Technically, anyone with a forward pistol grip for their AR-15 and a pistol with a Picatinny light rail (that they don’t have a Form 1 for) could be charged with a felony, because they can easily construct a AOW by attaching one perfectly legal item to the other.

  36. Needing a separate permit for almost every state that I might travel to is the essence of stoopid.

  38. allegheny county, pennsylvania. (the county in which pittsburgh is situated)

    i might be a tad off but…
    it is unlawful to discharge non shotgun centerfire rounds anywhere in the county…. yeah, its confusing.
    now there is an exception for ranges. and i cant remember if pistol rounds are also affected, but i think they are. if you go hunting for any game in allegheny you cannot take anything but a shotgun, and you can only carry shot or slugs. also i think capacity is capped at 3 rounds, for any firearm, and that rule carries over to public ranges as well i believe. i live in a strange place. if someone wants to correct me, feel free.

  39. MD has a 7 day waiting period and a one per 30 days limit on all regulated weapons. This includes all handguns and just about all “assault weapons” except the Colt HBAR, for some strange reason. You can obtain Designated Collector status by mailing a simple one page form to the State Police. The Designated Collector status is almost always granted as long as you have at least one registered regulated weapon already. This waives the one gun every 30 days restriction, but the 7 day waiting period still applies. Why?? I live 45 minutes from the nearest decent gun shop. I have to take two separate trips, 1.5 hours each, every time I purchase a handgun. Is the 7 day “cooling off period” doing any good if I already own a dozen scary guns??

  40. I have just read every one of these comments, and I got to admit. Thank god I live in Indiana. They don’t care about open carry or concealed carry, I don’t have a waiting period for any gun (I bought my first handgun and had it then and there), I don’t have a magazine limit, and I don’t have any restrictions other than schools or government offices. I feel like I’m the Anti-New Jersey. The only issue i have is going knowing which states around me i can and cant keep my gun on me. If anyone knows of any Indiana gun laws, please let me know?

  41. I live in Illinois … I can’t think of a single gun law here that isn’t stupid, nor can I determine which one is more stupid than the rest.

  42. As a Canadian, I can safely say there isn’t a single gun law I have to follow that does not qualify as the stupidest.

  43. As a fellow Mass-head (Also an AFS member) I would have to say the Gun roster that we have follow is the stupidest law.

    For those of you not in MA, we have a Gun Roster of approved guns that FTL’s can sell (it’s very small list) (Kimber is not on the list etc…) Here’s the kicker:
    The AG also has an approval process that approves guns for MA sale and even though the gun may be on the Roster is may not be on the AG approved. AND the AG does not have a printed List.

    You basically have to find out if the gun is approved by the FTL.

    sigh

    Jim

  44. RF,
    I’m also a resident of the Ocean State but I travel to MA very frequently as all my family lives there. You mention the high-cap mag ban as applying to non-residents carrying. Are there any other stipulations on the guns configuration, i.e. a manual safety, etc? Does the MA handgun roster have any bearing on out-of-state carriers? I do realize that there are two types of LTC permit and that those carry their own criteria, but I’ve found little other information.

  45. all of you, please stop whineing.
    i live in australia, just follow this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Australia
    and see how better off you are. btw the waiting period for a LICENCE takes closer [for me atleast so far….] 4 months+ then i have to wait for a permit to acuire wich takes a month for the first rifle or any pistol + proccessing time [which happens after the wait] even if i have purchased the rifle/pistol and i need the permit before i can even take the rifle home/touch it. almost all firearms here are bought after being shown to you at the shop or by a photo on the internet, so basicly sight unseen. PTA is needed for private purchases/transfers. PTA costs around $100AUD these days. the rifle/pistol must have slide/bolt removed if possible, with bolt/slide + ammo + rifles/pistol all in seperate compartments or safes by law. if you don’t follow the law you lose your firearms [they are crushed after the police get them] and chance to get a licence for 5 years. this all happened after 1996 [the year of the Port Artur massacare http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Arthur_massacre_(Australia )] by John ‘i hate guns’ Howard except for the pistol bits which happened in 2002 [monarsh uni shootings http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monash_University_shooting ].

    the worst part was that all the different parts of aussie shooting turned on each other. the trap shooters said ‘take the semiauto centrefires they were used in the shootings.’ and by saying that they thought they could keep thier semi-auto shotties and pump actions. the handgunners took to the shotgunners ‘the shot gun kills more animals than handguns ever have’. this is what happened to aussie shooting culture. the trap shooters lost the pumps and auto loaders, the target shooters lost the ar’s& ak’s&FAL’s and mage over 10 rds for rifles, the handgunners now must go through extensive paper work to get anything from a co2 pistol to a 9mm/.38 and even more to get something up to .45 [.460sw & 454 casual are exceptions]. so look at your laws, then back to ours. this is one of the reasons i consider moving to the us when i can, or even new zealand [which get suppressors & semi-autos if they aren’t military enough] i’m 14 and starting to hate this countries’ laws on some things.

    Whatever you do, don’t turn on each other when they come for your guns and hope your constitution can keep your guns in your hands. that is all for now…
    Dchil15

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