HK MP7A1 is it legal?

[caveman7815]

I keep seeing this when i try and look up the law on a sub machine gun.

It is illegal to sell or possess a machine gun, a sawed-off shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches, or a firearm made or adapted for concealment or silent discharge, except when in compliance with the National Firearms Act.

It is illegal to sell or possess a machine gun.... isnt the hk Mp7A1 a Sub-machine gun??

So i give up the internet has to many websites and repeat info. i am just looking for a answer can anyon help with this. I want to buy a HK MP7A1, so is it legal to buy, own, where to track one down.

[unclejumbo]

Someone will correct me if I am wrong but I believe the answer to your question is...no. Automatic weapons made prior to May '86? are the only ones transferable to civilians. Anything after that is military, law enforcement (and I believe corporation) only. Someone with more information will weigh in but I think I have it pretty close.

[JayBell]

please read the stickies in the main NFA forum, they explain the issue.

All foreign made NFA firearms must have been imported into the US by 1968 to be owned by civilians. this includes ALL types of NFA firearms.

For Machine guns made in the US, either conversions of domestic or imported semiautos, or factory MGs, they must have been manufactured before may of 1986 for civilians to own them

Other US made NFA items than MGs can be possessed regardless of date of manufacture.

IN PA, you can possess all NFA Items other than Explosive Destructive Devices (grenades, bombs) as long as they are legally registered per the NFA Act of 1934


the MP7A1 is not legal for importation for civilian ownership in any form, semi or select fire, its available to Military or law Enforcement Agencies only.

as a note, almost 100% of the foreign made modern MGs in civilian hands, like Uzis, AK47s, MP5s, Steyr Augs, and other such items are conversions made from semiautos imported before 1986.

[rovert97]

im a bit of a noob as far as the NFA items go, but isn't the MP7 technically an assault rifle, due to the fact it shoots a rifle round, not a pistol round?

i got the wholte short barrel, semi/fully auto thing, but wasnt too sure about the ammo type playing a part into if its a sub machine gun or a rifle.

[SigForLife]

Caliber does NOT matter. If the firearm can shoot multiple rounds with ONE manipulation of the trigger, it is a machine gun. Generally, "Assault Rifles" are rifle calibered weapons that shoot semi-automatic (One round per manipulation of the trigger)

[mojo]

Caliber does NOT matter. If the firearm can shoot multiple rounds with ONE manipulation of the trigger, it is a machine gun. "Assault Rifles" are rifle calibered weapons that shoot semi-automatic (One round per manipulation of the trigger)

I always thought that "Assault Rifles" = Machine Gun.

Hence why everyone on this will correct you if you call and AR-15 or AK clone an assault rifle.

[SigForLife]

Well, in the past wars, the firearms that our soldiers carried were called "Assault Rifles." Those weapons, post Vietnam, were generally either 3rd burst (which is still a machine gun because it fires more than one round per trigger manipulation) or semi. The majority today are semi only, unless you are in the special forces. Then, in the late 80's, the idea of the assault rifle/black rifle came about. That's when the idea came about that generally assault rifles are semi automatic rifles. People don't like the term "assault rifle" because it connotes that it is only used for killing. Hence, why people who own Ar-15s and Ak-47s don't like the term, even though it is applicable.

[Xringshooter]

A compilation from several different sources:

An assault rifle is a rifle designed for combat, with selective fire (capable of shooting in both fully automatic and semi automatic modes). Assault rifles are the standard infantry weapons in most modern armies, having largely superseded or supplemented larger and more powerful battle rifles such as the M14, FN FAL and the Heckler & Koch G3. Examples of assault rifles include the AK-47, the M16 and the Steyr AUG.

The term assault rifle is a translation of the German word Sturmgewehr (literally meaning "storm rifle"), "storm" used as a verb being synonymous with assault, as in "to storm the compound". The name was coined by Adolf Hitler to describe the Maschinenpistole 44, subsequently re-christened Sturmgewehr 44, the firearm generally considered the first true assault rifle that served to popularize the concept.

The translation assault rifle gradually became the common term for similar firearms sharing the same technical definition as the StG 44. In a strict definition, a firearm must have at least the following characteristics to be considered an assault rifle:

* It must be an individual weapon with provision to fire from the shoulder (i.e. a buttstock);
* It must be capable of selective fire;
* It must have an intermediate-power cartridge: more power than a pistol but less than a standard rifle or battle rifle;
* Its ammunition must be supplied from a detachable box magazine.

Rifles that meet most of these criteria, but not all, are technically not assault rifles despite frequently being considered as such. For example, semi-automatic-only rifles that share designs with assault rifles such as the AR-15 (which the M-16 rifle is based on) are not assault rifles, as they are not capable of switching to automatic fire and thus not selective fire. Belt-fed weapons (such as the M249 SAW) or rifles with fixed magazines are likewise not assault rifles because they do not have detachable box magazines.

The term "assault rifle" is often more loosely used for commercial or political reasons to include other types of arms, particularly arms that fall under a strict definition of the battle rifle, or semi-automatic variant of military rifles such as AR-15s

The US Army defines assault rifles as "short, compact, selective-fire weapons that fire a cartridge intermediate in power between submachinegun and rifle cartridges".

[mojo]

A compilation from several different sources:

An assault rifle is a rifle designed for combat, with selective fire (capable of shooting in both fully automatic and semi automatic modes). Assault rifles are the standard infantry weapons in most modern armies, having largely superseded or supplemented larger and more powerful battle rifles such as the M14, FN FAL and the Heckler & Koch G3. Examples of assault rifles include the AK-47, the M16 and the Steyr AUG.

The term assault rifle is a translation of the German word Sturmgewehr (literally meaning "storm rifle"), "storm" used as a verb being synonymous with assault, as in "to storm the compound". The name was coined by Adolf Hitler to describe the Maschinenpistole 44, subsequently re-christened Sturmgewehr 44, the firearm generally considered the first true assault rifle that served to popularize the concept.

The translation assault rifle gradually became the common term for similar firearms sharing the same technical definition as the StG 44. In a strict definition, a firearm must have at least the following characteristics to be considered an assault rifle:

* It must be an individual weapon with provision to fire from the shoulder (i.e. a buttstock);
* It must be capable of selective fire;
* It must have an intermediate-power cartridge: more power than a pistol but less than a standard rifle or battle rifle;
* Its ammunition must be supplied from a detachable box magazine.

Rifles that meet most of these criteria, but not all, are technically not assault rifles despite frequently being considered as such. For example, semi-automatic-only rifles that share designs with assault rifles such as the AR-15 (which the M-16 rifle is based on) are not assault rifles, as they are not capable of switching to automatic fire and thus not selective fire. Belt-fed weapons (such as the M249 SAW) or rifles with fixed magazines are likewise not assault rifles because they do not have detachable box magazines.

The term "assault rifle" is often more loosely used for commercial or political reasons to include other types of arms, particularly arms that fall under a strict definition of the battle rifle, or semi-automatic variant of military rifles such as AR-15s

The US Army defines assault rifles as "short, compact, selective-fire weapons that fire a cartridge intermediate in power between submachinegun and rifle cartridges".

That was my understanding. Just know that I can't have typed it that well.

[rovert97]

i think people missed the point of the OP and me, is the MP7 a machine gun or a submachine gun, due to its caliber and cartridge?