CDZ What is the difference between a Machine Gun and an AR-15?

[MarathonMike]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

 

[Slade3200]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

 

[Pete7469]

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

Sigh...

An assault rifle is a selective-fire rifle that uses an intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine.[1][2][3][4][5] Assault rifles were first used during World War II.[6][7][8] Though Western nations were slow to accept the assault rifle concept, by the end of the 20th century they had become the standard weapon in most of the world's armies, replacing full-powered rifles and sub-machine guns in most roles.[8] Examples include the StG 44, AK-47 and the M16 rifle.[8]

AR-15's just scare bed wetting liberals.

Years ago it was AK's.

 

[Care4all]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

I still don't get it?

So for each and every shot, they have to pull the trigger? What makes it semi-automatic then?

Can you fire a lot of shots in one round? Holy crap... and come to think of it, what the heck is a "round"? How does that work? And what the heck is a "magazine"? I know less than a kindergartner, so please be gentle with this dummy!

And what is the power of the bullets out of an AR15 vs just a rifle? Cuz I read an article once by a doctor who works the ER and gunshot wounds and the doc said that these semi automatic Rifles tear the victim apart, and there are slim to no chance of survival if they are hit in an organ by them but if just a regular gun, the Docs have a much better chance of saving the victim even with a direct hit to an organ....???

 

[TNHarley]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

Or a rubber band

 

[harmonica]

........semi-auto can be just as deadly if not more than full auto = semi-auto aimed fire is much more accurate than full auto = no wastage of ammo =rounds on target [ kill shots ]
.....we had the M16A1s with semi and full auto and then went to the A2s with 3 round burst and semi

 

[MarathonMike]

OK I get it, you need a bump stock to get the multiple shots per second out of an AR-15. But even an average shooter could fire at a rate of 2 rounds per second. So without a bump stock or other mod, the AR-15 is not a machine gun per the 1934 definition. But it also isn't much of a stretch to say that the AR-15 meets the "intent" of a machine gun which is to throw lots of lead in the air in a short period of time, yes?

 

[Slade3200]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

I still don't get it?

So for each and every shot, they have to pull the trigger? What makes it semi-automatic then?

Can you fire a lot of shots in one round? Holy crap... and come to think of it, what the heck is a "round"? How does that work? And what the heck is a "magazine"? I know less than a kindergartner, so please be gentle with this dummy!

And what is the power of the bullets out of an AR15 vs just a rifle? Cuz I read an article once by a doctor who works the ER and gunshot wounds and the doc said that these semi automatic Rifles tear the victim apart, and there are slim to no chance of survival if they are hit in an organ by them but if just a regular gun, the Docs have a much better chance of saving the victim even with a direct hit to an organ....???

It’s called “semi automatic” because the gun automatically performs the reloading of each round or bullet. The user only needs to pull the trigger and load the magazine or pack of bullets. Riffles that are not semi automatic required the user to perform an action to reload the bullet before pulling the trigger for a shot.

The power of the shot depends on the type of gun and the type of bullet being used.

 

[Rambunctious]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

Or a rubber band

And your belt loop....

 

[harmonica]

OK I get it, you need a bump stock to get the multiple shots per second out of an AR-15. But even an average shooter could fire at a rate of 2 rounds per second. So without a bump stock or other mod, the AR-15 is not a machine gun per the 1934 definition. But it also isn't much of a stretch to say that the AR-15 meets the "intent" of a machine gun which is to throw lots of lead in the air in a short period of time, yes?

per post # 6--it can be just as or MORE deadly than a fully auto weapon

 

[Pete7469]

I still don't get it?

So for each and every shot, they have to pull the trigger? What makes it semi-automatic then?

Can you fire a lot of shots in one round? Holy crap... and come to think of it, what the heck is a "round"? How does that work? And what the heck is a "magazine"? I know less than a kindergartner, so please be gentle with this dummy!

And what is the power of the bullets out of an AR15 vs just a rifle? Cuz I read an article once by a doctor who works the ER and gunshot wounds and the doc said that these semi automatic Rifles tear the victim apart, and there are slim to no chance of survival if they are hit in an organ by them but if just a regular gun, the Docs have a much better chance of saving the victim even with a direct hit to an organ....???

Slade is an imbecile, and has no idea what he is talking about.

A "round" is One unit of ammunition.

A magazine is a feeding device for weapons.

"Clips" generally contain ammo to feed into magazines rapidly, but there are a variety of guns that can be rapidly refilled or topped off with clips.

Semi auto means you pull the trigger, and one round is fired. After which the recoil most likely forces the shooter to realign the target in the sights, which can take several seconds if the shooter wants to achieve an accurate followup shot. It is not a "spray and pray" sort of weapon.

AR-15's are most often chambered for 5.56x45mm cartridges, which are the same as the standard issue M4A1 infantry weapon. However many civilian models come with a large variety of potential cambering.

In comparison to most rifle rounds, the 5.56 is weak. It's design was not intended to kill quickly, it was designed to wound an enemy infantryman, and in turn cause him to be carried off the battle field.

 

[percysunshine]

Well, a machine gun is anything which is not a muzzle loader.

 

[Care4all]

OK I get it, you need a bump stock to get the multiple shots per second out of an AR-15. But even an average shooter could fire at a rate of 2 rounds per second. So without a bump stock or other mod, the AR-15 is not a machine gun per the 1934 definition. But it also isn't much of a stretch to say that the AR-15 meets the "intent" of a machine gun which is to throw lots of lead in the air in a short period of time, yes?

that would seem correct to me....?

 

[Care4all]

Well, a machine gun is anything which is not a muzzle loader.

bwhaaaaah

And WHAT is a muzzle loader?

 

[Care4all]

ya'll are speaking Greek to me.... cut a girl a break, pretty please, I need more of a crash course, in "gun talk"....

 

[percysunshine]

Well, a machine gun is anything which is not a muzzle loader.

bwhaaaaah

And WHAT is a muzzle loader?

Muzzle loading requires the gun powder and bullet to be loaded through the muzzle.

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

Current Second Amendment jurisprudence holds that an M 16 and AR 15 are similar enough to render both weapons considered to be dangerous and unusual, their possession not entitled to Constitutional protections.

That the former is select fire and the latter semi-auto only is legally irrelevant.

I disagree with this interpretation, but my subjective opinion is likewise legally irrelevant.

 

[harmonica]

Well, a machine gun is anything which is not a muzzle loader.

bwhaaaaah

And WHAT is a muzzle loader?

Muzzle loading requires the gun powder and bullet to be loaded through the muzzle.

....the Native Americans knew how they worked and would ''rush'' the whites after the first fusillade
...they were terribly surprised in some battles to learn they were going against breechloaders/etc

 

[Pete7469]

ya'll are speaking Greek to me.... cut a girl a break, pretty please, I need more of a crash course, in "gun talk"....

I'm trying....

Keep asking questions and I'll try and explain it in easy terms.

I'm a former army small arms mechanic and competitive shooter.

 

[Bruce_T_Laney]

There is a law called the National Firearms Act that was implemented in 1934 that "regulates" (read that mega-taxed) machine guns. It was brought into law basically as a response to the St. Valentine's Day Massacre where 7 guys were executed by 4 guys with machine guns. So not being a gun guy, I would like to know what the difference is between the original definition of a machine gun which means any weapon that can be fired more than once with a single trigger pull, at least the way I understand it. This to me begs the question why an AR-15 or equivalent isn't a machine gun and why isn't it heavily regulated the way machine guns are?

I'm not at all a gun control advocate, but if we already have a law that's been on the books for 90 years that already taxes the crap out of machine guns, wouldn't that same tax and regulation extend to modern semi-automatic weapons?

AR-15s are single pull single shot semi-auto assault riffles... unless of course you modify with something like a bump stock. Machine guns are fully automatic

I still don't get it?

So for each and every shot, they have to pull the trigger? What makes it semi-automatic then?

Can you fire a lot of shots in one round? Holy crap... and come to think of it, what the heck is a "round"? How does that work? And what the heck is a "magazine"? I know less than a kindergartner, so please be gentle with this dummy!

And what is the power of the bullets out of an AR15 vs just a rifle? Cuz I read an article once by a doctor who works the ER and gunshot wounds and the doc said that these semi automatic Rifles tear the victim apart, and there are slim to no chance of survival if they are hit in an organ by them but if just a regular gun, the Docs have a much better chance of saving the victim even with a direct hit to an organ....???

I do not own anything like a AR-15 but like another poster wrote unless modified the AR-15 is semi-automatic which does not allow automatic repeating rounds.

Let me be really honest I prefer a pump action shotgun instead for anything that I do because of the lethal ammo that can be used from slugs to buck.