Which is Which?

Some of these flintlock pistols are reproductions and some are antiques, can you tell which is which? The NSW police commissioner can't, and neither can the local police. In fact the majority if not all of the local police don't even know what a muzzle-loader is and have no interest in them. Recently when I tried to hand in an illegal reproduction muzzle-loading pistol they told me they were not interested and told me to take it home again!!!
So if the police don't care, and the commissioner of police can't tell an antique from a non antique, why are we being given a hard time over this issue? Why can we own, but not use an antique gun without license, without registration and without a permit to purchase, and yet we can not own a copy of an antique flintlock pistol without an "H" class license (!), registration and a permit to purchase?! I mean these are one and the same except for the manufacturing date.
So this is an open letter to the NSW Police Commissioner. Sir, can you tell the difference? And if so what is the difference? what is the difference between flintlocks made after 1900ad and flintlocks made before 1900ad ? Why are post 1900ad flintlocks classed the same as breech-loading semi-autos and revolvers and pre 1900ad flintlock pistols are not? I would really like to know. I mean if I am not allowed to legally own one, I would like to know why.

If you chose number 2 as a reproduction, sorry but you are wrong. It does look different, but it is an original. This you see is how absolutely stupid the NSW firearms legislation is regarding flintlock firearms. I had to take mine to a gunsmith to get them authenticated because the police officer who checked my guns could not tell a breech-loader from a muzzle-loader or an antique from a non antique. So here they are giving me a hard time over my antique long guns, and at the same time telling me to take an illegal repro back home with me because they did not want it! They are not even going to charge the chap who illegally sent it to me claiming it was an antique!!!

So what people say is absolutely true, the police are actually protecting the criminals and yet persecuting honest law abiding citizens. Just what in hell are we supposed to do about that?

Could lose my antique guns. Their Ignorance!

I had a gun inspection yesterday, but the attending police officer, a sergeant, knew very little about the present gun legislation or about guns! He refused to believe that my antiques were in fact antiques, he also did not know the difference between a breech loader & a muzzle-loader. The officer thinks I should register these guns, firearms registry don't want me to register these guns!
To register guns NOW, I have to take them to a dealer. The dealer has to accept these guns into his stock in order to register them. Then I have to apply for a "Permit to acquire a firearm" in order to get my own guns back again! BUT, (a) two of these guns are not complete, and (2) I am not supposed to require a "Permit to acquire a firearm" if it is an antique!!!
So it looks like I might lose these antiques just because no one in firearms registry or the local police service no what they are talking about. These guns were left to me by two of my dearest late close friends, with the request that I look after them and keep them in the family.  The problems as I see it are (1) the dealer may not be able to register them as two are incomplete, and (2) I will have trouble getting them back if they do register them because I am not supposed to require a "Permit to acquire a firearm" if it is an antique. I simply just can't win.
If it were not for the fact that these guns mean so much to me I would smash them with a sledge hammer and deliver the bits to Armidale Police Station!

 

W. Hollis.

 

A Belgium Trade barrel with a snail drum integral to the breech plug.

 

The W. Hollis breech.

How anyone can confuse these with a modern breech loader I really do not know. I can't even imagine a police officer being allowed to do firearms inspections without some basic knowledge of firearms in general.

Antique Firearms in Question.

1.    15 gauge muzzle-loading double barrel W. Hollis percussion shot gun.  Serial number 4027. (Not complete and not able to be used).

2.    44 gauge Belgium smoothbore single barrel percussion muzzle-loading shot gun. No maker’s name visible. Serial Number 0218. (Barrel only).This has a 19^th century snail drum but no nipple.

3.    14 gauge smoothbore single barrel percussion Muzzle-loading shotgun. Maker: Samuel Marson and Company Birmingham. Serial Number 3702.

All three guns are pre 1900ad.

Keith H. Burgess

Wychwood Forest, MSF 2007, Armidale NSW 2350.

14/12/2012

To: The Commissioner Of Police NSW.

Dear Sir,

Yesterday I had a firearms inspection. The officer attending did not know the content of the present gun legislation or the updates. He was not sure what the difference was between a muzzle-loading gun & a breech loading gun, & said he thought that my three antique muzzle-loading guns needed registering.

I have received no help from firearms registry, they say these guns should not be registered unless necessary. I can’t find anyone in the area who can identify these guns for me. The one gunsmith that is supposed to live in Arding somewhere is unlisted & I can’t contact him.

I decided that I would get these antiques registered to save me the trouble, I live out of town & am not mobile at present due to a recent hip replacement. Firearms registry tell me that I must take these guns to a dealer to get them registered, & then, I must apply for a “Permit To Acquire” a firearm, even though the legislation clearly sais that I do not need to have a permit to acquire an antique gun made before 1900.

This surely is total madness! No where in the legislation have I read that I need to find someone to authenticate my antique firearms, to anyone with an ounce of common sense it is perfectly obvious what they are. I do not wish to use these guns, I do not wish to fire these guns. They were family possessions of two dear close friends of mine who left them to me with the express wishes that I look after them & pass them on in my family. If this were not the case I swear I would destroy them & take the pieces to the police station.

Parts of the legislation are open to interpretation.. On top of this we have police officers who know very little of the firearms legislation or about firearms. This is going to cost me time & money, in deed it already has because I have had to spend today researching & copying the legislation so I can better understand what the problem is.

The main problem with this legislation is that it states there is a difference between an antique muzzle-loading gun and that of a post 1900 muzzle-loading gun, which of course there is not! Both are muzzle-loading, both require black powder. The flintlock still requires a piece of flint for ignition. If this had not been written into the legislation I could simply have either had all my muzzle-loading guns registered earlier without having to go to a dealer, OR none of them would require registering, which would have been more sensible.

I fear that somehow no matter what I do now it is not going to be easy. Two of these antique guns are incomplete & not usable. I think that (a) I will have trouble registering them, and (b) I am going to have trouble acquiring a permit to acquire in order to get my guns back if the dealer is willing to register them.

If you can think of any solution to this problem I would appreciate your assistance in this matter.
Sincerely, Keith H. Burgess.

Member: NECLHG. ALHF. ARLHO.LHA.