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WWII firearms

nderricknderrick Member Posts: 2 ✭✭
edited February 2002 in Ask the Experts
I am interested in bying (preferably working) WWII military firearms. How would I go about finding and buying these. I am most interested in the BAR, M2A2 .50 cal MG, Thompson .45 SMG, and Garand rifles. All German, Japanese and Russian weapons are also high on my list of purchases. Money is not an issue right now, I just want to know where to find the guns first.
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Comments

  • RembrandtRembrandt Member Posts: 4,486 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    To start with you'll need a class III licensed dealer and plenty-O-money, like about 50-100G's should get you started...Since full auto units are no longer available, the only source of these would be in the hands of collectors or a few licensed dealers....and "if" they wanted to part with them, you will pay a hefty premium. The other alternative is buy replicas that are semi-auto versions....easier to find and much less money... [This message has been edited by Rembrandt (edited 02-08-2002).]
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  • cpermdcpermd Member Posts: 5,273 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    OKI want to call the * on these posts about licenses,etc.If you want a FA firearm,all you do is pay a $200 tax on each purchase and go through the background check.If it is legal in your state,you will be approved.I am tired of reading that you have to have some "license".Of all places,the folks here should know better.Rembrandt,if you are ignorant of BATF law,please read some more and don't post til then.cpermd[This message has been edited by cpermd (edited 02-08-2002).]
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  • RembrandtRembrandt Member Posts: 4,486 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Sorry to have posted in error...I was just passing along what a LEO in my state had told me....just trying to be helpful.
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  • boeboeboeboe Member Posts: 3,331
    edited November -1
    I did notice an authentic WWII .50 Browning Heavy in a recent issue of Shotgun News, it was registered in the 1969 amnesty, seems like it was in the mid 60K range. If you got 60 grand to spend on one gun like that you probably ought to invest in a subscription to SGN and read through the Class III ads. That would be a good start.cpermd, not that such language personally offends me but there are other on the board who will be quite willing to blow you in to the moderators for some of the words we hear everyday. You're a smart guy and have lots of good info. I'd hate to see the moderators or administration inflict their wrath on you for what some would consider inappropriate language. [This message has been edited by boeboe (edited 02-08-2002).]
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  • ADfreeADfree Member Posts: 188 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I remember seeing that .50 ad in Shotgun news too... I am certain that it was $18,000
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  • competentonecompetentone Member Posts: 4,696 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Actually, wouldn't a class 3 license be the way to go (assuming money was not an issue); one would be able to purchase newly manufactured "sample weapons"--which would not be transferable to any third parties--but could be kept in one's inventory as "dealer samples" for potential law enforcement sales?nderrick,As already noted, what you're looking for are scarce, and there can be significant legal issues in purchasing/owning them. Your best bet--since you say "preferably working", implying that the functioning is not a necessity-- would be "non-guns" that are manufactured to look exactly like the real thing, but cannot be fired (often they are built with parts from the real guns).There are a number of smaller companies that make them and most I've seen are WW2 American and German arms--someone here might be able to give you a list, or may have some for sale (I've seen them listed in the auction in the past).
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  • jonkjonk Member Posts: 10,121
    edited November -1
    A class 03 or Curios liscence would surely be the way to go, or a trip to a few good gunshows- you will probably pay a slight bit more, but at least you get to examine the merchandise.
    "...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conference in 1899.
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  • cpermdcpermd Member Posts: 5,273 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Let me let you in on a little secret the BATF does NOT want you to know about.YOU can get a Class 3 license to do business.If you do it and turn a profit,then you can "retire",but you may also keep the pre 86 sample weapons as your own.A good lawyer could help even more but 99.9% of lawyers and 95% of BATF employees have no idea what the laws are.Captain KirkWould you publish a Class 3 and Shipping FAQ if I sent it to you.Something to tack at the top of the forum?I get tired of this every 2 weeks.cpermd
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  • boeboeboeboe Member Posts: 3,331
    edited November -1
    I stand corrected, just spent 10 minutes digging through the waterlogged SGN's on the bathroom floor, it was $18,500.
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  • idsman75idsman75 Member Posts: 13,398 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    cpermd--QUITE stinking typical of the Class III know-it-all attitude that I get from the Class III buffs at gun shows. I think it stems from the "I have one and you don't" two-year-old mentality that you seem to be displaying here. Rembrandt may have been in error but you would bite your tongue if you knew of the stuff from which he is made. I know that this post probably violates every rule governing this forum but I figure this thread was already jacked up by a high-and-mighty know-it-all ever since his first post here.Maybe we shouldn't call it "Ask the Experts". Maybe we should call it "Ask cpermd"[This message has been edited by idsman75 (edited 02-09-2002).]
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  • boeboeboeboe Member Posts: 3,331
    edited November -1
    Idsman, fact is, there is a lot of missinformation posted here. I see it all the time. Some of us just make little mistakes, others make bigger mistakes. I just made a mistake of about $50,000 up the thread, but do think the suggestion to invest in SGN was pretty good.I see LOTS of fine people on this board make mistakes, and while cpermd language may be a bit offensive to some I think he has a good point. People spout off about things they know nothing about here, and someone drifting through who asks a question may think he has a real expert answer when he doesn't. And if the same question gets answered over and over again (which they do) it takes some of the fun out of answering them. I don't know how many times I've seen questions about SKS detatchable mags and modifying either an MAK or SKS.I can think of only three, maybe four regular posters on this board who I really consider experts. I notice these three or four will not answer questions on certain topics. They know their limitations, which is the sign of a real expert. There are other guys who post that are very knowledgeable withing a particular area but tend to try to answer questions outside their field, in areas they really aren't qualified to answer.Myself, I have wondered if there should be a position similar to that of moderator to designate the real experts on this board. It would help figure out how good of an answer was really being posted.[This message has been edited by boeboe (edited 02-09-2002).]
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  • cpermdcpermd Member Posts: 5,273 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    idsSo sorry if I pissed you or others offWhat in my post was offensive to you?I just do not like misinformation posted here.Too many folks read these posts and make financial mistakes or break the law.Rembrandt posted a completeky wrong answer and owned up to it.I posted some facts and you are now pissed.If it has to do with AR15,M16,M14 clones;then yes I probably do know more than most and I post it.If I made an error or posted disinformation then bash me.cpermdRemoved a "damn" for those who would be offended.[This message has been edited by cpermd (edited 02-09-2002).]
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  • robsgunsrobsguns Member Posts: 4,581 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Geez, cant we all just get along, we just got rid of 'disgusted', lets be happy and put up with each other, just for today, eh? I gotta work tomorrow, 24 hr. duty, and I'm sick with a bad head cold, I dont have the energy to be pissed.
    SSgt Ryan E. Roberts, USMC
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  • idsman75idsman75 Member Posts: 13,398 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    This IS the "Ask the Experts" forum. I expect experts to correct misinformation when it is posted. However, I have seen many experts disagree about certain points. In this case, I was not disgruntled over the corrections. I was irked by the sarcasm and the condescension. I've already abused the forum with my comments on this thread and have over-stepped the boundaries.I'm done here.
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  • COWBOYKIDDCOWBOYKIDD Member Posts: 239 ✭
    edited November -1
    cpermd. Very good suggestion to the moderator. I too have seen this question come up and the info given is incorrect and passed on. Such as a snoball effect as when the next time the question comes around you have more people with incorrect answers.
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  • boeboeboeboe Member Posts: 3,331
    edited November -1
    There should be a few pages of different FAQs people ask in this forum. If the questions come up, a regular user could just direct the poster to a web page for the answer.There is a real good FAQ possibility on the Mini-14 Extractor thread right now, regarding 180 series Mini-14 extractors. This question pops up very frequently. You will see one of the real experts a bit aggrevated that the question has come up again.There are several FAQ possibilites, reqarding full auto, SKS detatchable magazines, modifying SKS, AK, MAK90, Mini-14 with folding stocks, etc, etc, that come up again and again. It there was web space available we could just direct the users to these FAQ pages when they come up.[This message has been edited by boeboe (edited 02-10-2002).]
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  • v35v35 Member Posts: 12,710 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Dont neglect planning a nice sized building to store or display the stuff. You're talking a whole lot of firearms if you're meaning one each of all the small arms used by the warring nations up to and including heavy machineguns.
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