what gun for mtbing?

Someone buying a MAC-10 for instance (before they were banned) wasn’t getting it to hunt rabbits.

You can still buy fully automatic weapons in the US, you just need a licence, not unlike we have. There are thousands in circulation.

Have a google and see how many murders have been committed with legally held automatic weapons. Ever. I think it’s 2.

You including semi-automatics in that 5thElefant?

No, that’s just fully auto – assault rifles, sub-machineguns and machineguns.

I don’t see the need for automatic weapons outside of the military what so ever.

You’re hardly going to fill a deer you want to eat full of 50 bullets or need it to ‘protect’ your home

People go to the range and shoot stuff, making lots of noise and making things blow up.

It’s an odd and expensive hobby, but we all have those one way or another.

No, that’s just fully auto – assault rifles, sub-machineguns and machineguns.

So in your “2 deaths. Ever” you are counting incidents like:

Aurora: 12 dead, 70 injured. Weapons included a
Smith & Wesson M&P15 assault rifle with 100-round magazine.

But not Sandy Hook school (28 dead) because the Bushmaster M4 and other weapons he used were only semi-automatic. This apparently doesn’t qualify as an “assault rifle”:

Source: http://m.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/mass-shootings-map

So in your “2 deaths. Ever” you are counting incidents like

Nope, just a response to what I quoted:

Someone buying a MAC-10 for instance (before they were banned) wasn’t getting it to hunt rabbits.

Your mass shooting graph would look different if they banned everything but shotguns. There’d be one big column labeled shotgun with the same grand total.

Derrick Bird killed 12 with a bolt action .22 and a shotgun

All the rifles in my photo above are potentially far more ‘lethal’

The point about ‘high capacity magazines’ is just as pointless – magazines are, by their very nature, removable and replaceable, a 5 round mag swaps for a 30 round mag and suddenly you’ve got a ‘lethal killing machine’ – anyone with some glue and a bit of perspex can make a ‘high capacity magazine’ if they wanted to.

Nope, just a response to what I quoted:

So if we accept that only 2 deaths have occurred from fully-automatic machine guns then doesn’t that suggest that laws heavily restricting their sale have been pretty effective?

In fact it turns out that the States with the tightest gun control have the fewest firearm deaths. Who would have guessed?

Source: http://m.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/01/the-geography-of-gun-deaths/69354/

There’d be one big column labeled shotgun with the same grand total.

I disagree. Purely because many of those killings involved the culprits firing hundreds of shots. That’s not something you can easily do with a double-barrel shotgun. Even a pump-action holds a fairly limited rounds and is time consuming to reload.

What gun for mtb-ing?

Hmm…choices choices…

Either the 12-gauge auto-loader, or the .45 long slide, with laser sighting, or thePhased plasma rifle in the 40-watt range. However,if they’re not available I’ll stick with the trusty ol’ Uzi nine millimeter. 😉

10/22’s look awful with clear banana clips.

Derrick Bird killed 12 with a bolt action .22 and a shotgun

And we remember that incident and Dunblane because they are very unusual here, thanks to our tight gun control.

Meantime in the US there have been at least 61 mass shootings since 1982.

I doubt anyone remembers all of those. 🙁

So if we accept that only 2 deaths have occurred from fully-automatic machine guns then doesn’t that suggest that laws heavily restricting their sale have been pretty effective?

Yeah, sure. Availability is certainly a big factor. Nature of the gun isn’t, and more importantly cost. Fully automatic weapons are expensive because they’re supply is restricted.

I disagree. Purely because many of those killings involved the culprits firing hundreds of shots. That’s not something you can easily do with a double-barrel shotgun. Even a pump-action holds a fairly limited rounds and is time consuming to reload

I doubt that’s true.

The last spree here was, as ninfan said, sporting guns and previous to that I believe it was a revolver (an unpopular choice on your graph). A gun is a gun.

10/22’s look awful with clear banana clips.

The only thing those mags are good for is plinking!

only ever use modified 10 shot mags!

Meantime in the US there have been at least 61 mass shootings since 1982.

Yes, but perhaps there are deeper issues rooted in American society causing that than simple gun ownership – things like poverty, alienation, crime etc? As nicely covered in ‘bowling for Columbine

At the same time we in the UK stare agog at the american ‘guns secure our freedom’ outlook, but its very easy to forget where much of american society comes from – a great, great many people fled to America to escape victimisation at home, they saw governments that repressed and murdered those unable to defend themselves on a mass scale. For them this isn’t an abstract, its a real living memory, for a great many more it is the stories they heard at their parents and grandparents fireside – and when you put that in place you begin to understand a psyche that vows ‘governments should be afraid of their people’!

A gun is a gun.

Indeed and some guns are better for killing lots of folks – was there another design reason for the ability to fire lots of shots that I have overlooked?

but perhaps there are deeper issues rooted in American society causing that than simple gun ownership – things like poverty, alienation, crime etc

You have gone all bleeding heart liberal now dude 😉

For them this isn’t an abstract, its a real living memory

Its a bit longer ago than that. I dont think they really do have the guns because they think the govt might attack them and if they do they are the kind of paranoid loons who should not have access to guns 😛

Americas relationship with guns is a complex one for sure but lots of guns sure aint helping.

…when you put that in place you begin to understand a psyche that vows ‘governments should be afraid of their people’!

As you say there are histories that explain some of America’s obsession with guns, going right back to the fundamental “right to bear arms” argument. I get that. That doesn’t make it right or helpful.

We have a fair number of refugees from modern war zones and oppressive regimes in the UK. We don’t give them special dispensation to keep assault rifles.

Moreover the US government has access to the biggest military machine in the world. Planes, tanks, drones, missiles, aircraft carriers, chemical weapons, nukes… would they ever really be afraid of the people? It’s not a battle that the people would ever win by firepower.

would they ever really be afraid of the people? It’s not a battle that the people would ever win by firepower.

I’ve spoken to a couple of people over here who really truly believe that their government is kept in check because the American people are armed.

I backed out of the room, smiling and not breaking eye contact.

TooTall – Member
would they ever really be afraid of the people? It’s not a battle that the people would ever win by firepower.

I’ve spoken to a couple of people over here who really truly believe that their government is kept in check because the American people are armed.
I backed out of the room, smiling and not breaking eye contact.

I think that pretty much sums the whole thing up, there is no logical reason for modern america to be full of guns. But it makes them all feel special by some divine right and they are in control of their country not the politicians.

Rather them than us. I’d rather be aware of the fact our country is run by tossers and owning a gun isn’t going to do squat about it…

I’ve got this lot In my cupboard, but I’ve not shot anyone (yet)

As an FAC holder this is a very unwise statement. About as wise as telling someone at an airport you haven’t got a bomb ha ha. We might take it as a joke someone else might think it shows a level of consideration for the act.

Also why are all your rifles out of the cabinet at the same time?

You can take all of your firearms out of your cabinet at once you know. He could have just cleaned all of them, or be selling one.

Next you’ll be trying to tell me off for not keeping the bolts separate… 🙄

The more paranoia that we, as a responsible and mature ‘shooting community’ show about possibly, theoretically bringing ‘them’ down on us, and driving our sport into the sphere of some secret underground shady dirty secret that we can’t tell anyone about or act normally over, the worse it gets for us, and the more silly pretend rules get ‘made up’ by people (like needing to keep bolts separate, or having more than one out the cabinet!)

Why oh why would you not be allowed all of your guns out of the cabinet at once?

Back to the OP. I’d have one of these below (and the bike). Equally effective at seeing off Bears, Bosche or Bandits, what what?

Not convinced about his choice of tyres though. And am I much mistaken, or are those hub gears? Must be one of those new Nicolais…

For those of you who are pedantically questioning the viability of carrying, retrieving and letting fly with, your gun before the forces of oultlaw/bears/the Bosche can relieve you of your velocipede and have it away on their toes, I will point out that the Enduro Rider in my historically accurate picture is pulling a manual whilst simultaneously giving the Bosche a lead lobotomy. I think we can all agree that that puts that argument to bed, lock, stock and one smoking barrel.. 8)

I will point out that the Enduro Rider in my historically accurate picture is pulling a manual whilst simultaneously giving the Bosche a lead lobotomy

Some people are trying to keep these old skills alive (but a bit slower on the draw)

That’s an ergonomic disaster, fixed years ago.