Safety Certification of Rifles

[Barry Davies]

Can anyone enlighten me on this.
There is a situation at Castlemaine RC where a member purchased another rifle from a well known Dealer/ VRA member/ armourer.
He was told in no uncertain terms ( by the club Captain ) he could not use the rifle until he produced certification that the rifle had been inspected by a qualified person and declared safe.
Anybody aware of such requirements?
Barry

[saum2]

I may be wrong, but is this something to do with an Omark, ensuring the bolt head has the large retaining pin and not the small one which was banned???

[Barry Davies]

That's normally taken care of by the armourer. No, this is about having to have certification and applies to any rifle. I've never heard of it before. Apart from the requirements of SSR's re barrel replacements I am not aware of the need of a safety certificate before one can use the rifle.
Barry

[williada]

Not aware of any such requirement Barry. In Australia we do not have a trade qualification for “Gunsmith” and the term “Armourer” was a military designation in our armed forces. The only other restriction I see was in the import of small arms passing a drop test in relation to a cocked rifle. Hardly see that as being relevant these days. But we are governed by our own rules under the NRAA and our own rules of club incorporation.

With the advent of uniform legislation in relation to gun laws, it is the “Gun Dealer” that is required to be registered and that the paperwork is fundamentally designed to track the whereabouts of a firearm and not the safety. As such, anyone who has the necessary funds for registration and is of good character can hang a shingle up as a gun dealer and for a lesser fee as an armourer. The designation of the armourer is based on common practise of working with firearms and demonstrating experience which has been transposed from older practices. So in that sense it is recognition of prior learning. The armourer and the gun dealer are subject to police check, inspection and discretion for licensing as I understand it.

In Britain and on the continent there are proof houses where the safety of rifles is controlled by statute and common law and like America, there are designated trades and the manufacture is regulated by agreements and standards determined for firearms and ammunition by the industry such as CIP and SAAMI. We have adopted many of these practices by common usage and our insurance follows these guidelines. They are guidelines. Go outside the these standards, and you are in the field of custom builds and wildcats and the owner bears full responsibility in the first instance in civil law under the law of torts, particularly negligence for which there is a great body of case law or common law set by precedent. We have followed those practices much of it by persuasive precedent or non binding precedent which our judges can choose to follow or not, except in the body of common law we inherited from England. As such no certification is required in Victoria I know of.

However, we do recognise qualifications of mechanical engineers and trades of fitting and turning etc. in the common law. But in reality, and I speak for Victoria, the technical colleges producing trades people has almost ceased to exist due to funding cuts. Or prior learning is just ticked off and real knowledge is not tested to a level previously conducted after a long apprenticeship.

We self regulate too through our own rules and insurance and it is working well. Such as having determined and set qualifications for range officers and range procedures who oversee activities like a bolt cycle before shooting, showing the empty receiver to the scorer etc. Range safety is also maintained by fallout zones and safety angles etc.etc.

Every shooter holds responsibility for the safe procedure on the day, but it the Captain who is responsible for the daily running of the program. It is also the Captain now who can certify members for Range Officer at the local level. Unless the Captain has power granted to them under the rules of the club’s incorporation, there is no authority to demand a safety certification for a rifle that does not exist but they are at liberty after a safety incident under our rules to arrange for an inspection of the damaged equipment by our association designated person. They are at liberty if conduct and suspicion that the gear is not safe to refuse the person access to shoot if the rifle or component such as a bolt retaining pin are outlawed under our rules. But in our common law, that decision has to be based on reasonable grounds and not malice aforethought. Otherwise the Captain could be exceeding their power and a counter claim could be ensued. Common sense should prevail one would think. It’s about good communication.

Be aware the Firearms Consultative Committee in Victoria is comprised of some shooters and members with an active history in the firearms industry and is a watchdog and part of the appeal mechanism in the criminal court system.

Unless the rules have changed since I was active we are governed by our own competition rules.

[mike H]

One could think this is a malicious act.

[Chopper]

In saying that all, where does he expect this certification to come from ? ask him !!!! Chop

[Chopper]

PS, and please let us all know .

[Musgrave]

One could think this is a malicious act.

Im with you

[Rowdy]

Does this mean we are no longer able to shoot on the Castlemaine range until our firearms have been 'certified'?

[Chopper]

By Who ???? Chop

[Rowdy]

Good question Chop, shooting suspended until further notice I guess

[Razer]

Can anyone enlighten me on this.
There is a situation at Castlemaine RC where a member purchased another rifle from a well known Dealer/ VRA member/ armourer.
He was told in no uncertain terms ( by the club Captain ) he could not use the rifle until he produced certification that the rifle had been inspected by a qualified person and declared safe.
Anybody aware of such requirements?
Barry

I have never heard of any such certification and if I was the shooter in question I would be challenging the club captain as to where he got the information from that 'he said' was needed.
If the issue cannot be resolved by seeking an explanation, then the club committee should then take a look at just what is going down.
Surely the state association could resolve/clarify as to whether any such certification is a requirement, or even if it exists.
Failing that, then the NRAA would be the next stop.
I can see Pauline Hansen here; Please explain?

[Longranger]

What type of rifle? Omark bolt head retaining pin issue or an old No. 4 action 308 conversion? (Haven't seen one of those getting around for a while now).

Clarification needed here.

[Barry Davies]

Rifle is an Omark with all necessary modifications ( Retaining pin etc )
Investigations reveal the Captain has a problem with the Dealer/Armourer going back several years and apparently decided his work was not up to scratch
I think Malicious is the correct word.
Barry

[Brad Y]

Captain probably shouldnt hold his position much longer if that is the case Barry. How do you lead a club forward like that?