Lets be careful out there.......

[r.morrison]

Bought this on the weekend. Can you see what's wrong with this photo? Contacted the seller after words and all I got was "LOL"! Man needs help. Robert

[maple_leaf_eh]

What's wrong? Harrumph! That's not on any HMV factory checklist, is it? And the colour. Tut tut, the Ordnance Branch would never have issued something so bright and gaudy. Deep polished blue, phosphate, Suncorite, or oil blackened.

Don't get me started on ammunition. Mixed length loads? What storeman in his right mind would have issued something so random? The ammo technicians will have a fit if they find out.

And for good measure, another harrumph!

[Chris Suslowicz]

Best case is it's a wrist-breaker, more likely it's grenade with no delay fuse.



Chris.

[r.morrison]

Or a head remover/opener. The Cartridge is stamped SSG, which if I recall are small ball bearings. Still really really stupid to mix that in with the other cartridges. I sold a few more on Facebook and it's shocking how many stupid people are out there that WOULD insert this shell and fire it off.

[Chris Suslowicz]

SSG is "Swan Shot", in English size 0.30" or 7.62mm diameter, the American equivalent is #1 Buck, Australian SSG is slightly smaller, 0.27" or 7.23mm.

I assume the device pictured is a flare pistol, and possibly made of plastic?

(Over here it would be classed as a "Prohibited Weapon" under s.5 of the Act - pistol or short (!!!) barrelled shotgun.)

Anyone even _thinking_ of producing a flare pistol that will chamber and fire 12ga shotgun cartridges should be locked up for their own (and everyone else's) safety. IMAO, of course.

Chris.

[Chris Suslowicz]

I can't definitely recall the chamber pressures involved, but I _think_ the .303 Lee Enfield ( ) was 7 tons per square inch, and a 12ga shotgun around 3 tons per square inch... 6720psi is going to convert any plastic or diecast flare pistol into handgun McNuggets a few milliseconds after the hammer falls.

The shot load probably won't even have cleared the muzzle by that point.

[tankbarrell]

In the UK, a flare pistol would be a Sec. 1 firearm as there is an exemption from Sec. 5 for signalling and pyrotechnic pistols. However, if it is chambered for a 12 bore cartridge, then that wouldn't apply.

[Chris Suslowicz]

Thankfully there's the whole Atlantic Ocean between us and that piece of mindboggling stupidity. Quite apart from the illegality it's a Darwin Award looking for a recipient.

Chris.

[mark gillatt]

https://youtube.com/shorts/tRN-aUHUA...0raeDAnoetMcJV

[Chris Suslowicz]

Ah, that's _irritating_. It doesn't show the flaregun attempting to fire a shotshell, and wants you to subscribe to see any more. I subscribed and couldn't find it after several pages, so a quick search on Youtube got:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9okikBPvmHU

And, as I thought, in the words of the late Dean A. Grennell: "It doesn't work worth sour owl sweat."

While it doesn't appear to be likely to blow your hand completely off, you are definitely not going to enjoy the experience.

Now I just need to unsubscribe from that channel.

Chris.