Originally posted by christiaan
Nice pics, but I'm confused; is that like your personal private collection? Is all that legal??
Yes they are privately owned, and yes they are legal.
Are you required to have a shitload of licences for those toys? Do you need a safe to store them? Any information appreciated, interesting stuff...
Yes, in the United States there are very complex laws governing the ownership of what we call "NFA" weapons. NFA stands for "National Firearms Act" which was passed back in 1934 to control the legal ownership of full-auto weapons among other types of firearms.
Only 38 States allow private citizens to own machineguns in the United States. You can side-step some of the state laws by getting a Federal Firearms License with a "Special Occupational Tax" (SOT). This allows people who live in states which have banned the ownership of machineguns by citizens to actually own them. Not many people do this though as it costs $500 a year to keep the license.
In my state, Indiana, you can legally own machineguns and roam around freely with them. We can also own supressors and destructive weapons (grenades, M203 grenade launchers, high-explosives, etc.). Indiana is one of many states that also allows its citizen to carry firearms on them almost anywhere with a permit, either in the open or concealed. If you're ever in Indiana chances are you'll walk past lots of people carrying guns and never know it... which is true with many states.
To own machineguns (NFA weapons) you must submit to a Federal government background check, get sign-off by your local law enforcement and pay a $200 tax on each weapon (one time). It takes about 4 months to get one and you must keep the paperwork with you at all times which proves it's legally owned. Basically it's a tax violation if you own an "illegal" weapon. The guns themselves aren't illegal, but having one that hasn't had the tax paid on it is... that's how they side-stepped our Second Amendment which protects US citizens right to own firearms. I liken it to a poll tax used back in the 1800's in the US to keep blacks from voting.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
killerkain
out