Are you loaded?

limulus

Well-Known Member
Another thread brings up (throws up?) an interesting subject.

At what point is a rifle 'unloaded'?
Has this been defined in case law or is this something else we all have a best guess at?
I know what best practice says, I'm interested in what the good people of SD think and, if possible, what the legal interpretation is.
 
Nearly fell foul of this a good few years ago driving up a road between fields and using a walkie-talkie whilst driving!
The chap that pulled me insisted that because the mag was in the rifle it was loaded even there was nothing in the chamber and the bolt was shut.
Luckily the FEO at the time sorted things out for me and it's water under the bridge so now I drop the mag as well as emptying the chamber.
 
My two penneth… for the sake of a good debate...

"Loaded" could simply be defined as a charged magazine, applied to the weapon… so a round in waiting to be chambered.
"Ready" or "Made Ready" is a round chambered and the action primed to fire with safety catch applied… therefore safety catch comes off round is squeezed off without disturbance to the firers position, also allowing opportunistic shooting.
"Unloaded" would be no round in the chamber and magazine removed… allows weapon to be rendered fully safe.
 
funny that one of the lads asked the same question last night when i was reloading some 20 tac brass,

i was always told that the rifle must not have any ammo in it at all.

then i have heard that even if you have a safe rifle. no mag/no ammo in the chamber. but a loaded mag this is classed as a loaded rifle.

all i know is that i have a empty rifle and empty mag at all times when on public roads or driving on the roads on the estate.

bob.

interesting question,
 
Another thread brings up (throws up?) an interesting subject.

At what point is a rifle 'unloaded'?
Has this been defined in case law or is this something else we all have a best guess at?
I know what best practice says, I'm interested in what the good people of SD think and, if possible, what the legal interpretation is.

Rifle empty mag empty end of. Mag loaded on its own as I understand without even being in the rifle is also classed as loaded, so youre equally up **** creek if stopped on the road, in a shop etc etc
 
My two penneth… for the sake of a good debate...

"Loaded" could simply be defined as a charged magazine, applied to the weapon… so a round in waiting to be chambered.
"Ready" or "Made Ready" is a round chambered and the action primed to fire with safety catch applied… therefore safety catch comes off round is squeezed off without disturbance to the firers position, also allowing opportunistic shooting.
"Unloaded" would be no round in the chamber and magazine removed… allows weapon to be rendered fully safe.


Can the magazine be loaded in your pocket???............what definition does that fall under???
 
My understanding is that loaded is a live round in the chamber, however I believe the legal definition is any live rounds in the rifle whether or not in the chamber. So the question becomes who's asking the question?
 
"Unloaded"" means empty magazine as well as empty rifle.

22.12
Section 19 of the 1968 Act makes it an
offence to have in a public place without
lawful authority or reasonable excuse (the
proof whereof lies on the accused) a loaded
air weapon or a loaded shot gun, or any
other firearm, whether loaded or not,
together with ammunition suitable for use in
that firearm. Care should be taken to ensure
that those who may have lawful authority or
reasonable excuse to carry firearms in a
public place are not unnecessarily
inconvenienced.

22.13
Section 57(6) of the 1968 Act includes
a definition of “loaded” in relation to shot
guns and air weapons. An air weapon is to
be treated as loaded if there is a pellet in the
breach, even if the compression necessary to
fire the gun is not present; and in the case of
a shot gun or air weapon having a loaded
magazine, the gun is to be treated as loaded,
even though there is no round in the breech.

ATB





 
My two penneth… for the sake of a good debate...

"Loaded" could simply be defined as a charged magazine, applied to the weapon… so a round in waiting to be chambered.
"Ready" or "Made Ready" is a round chambered and the action primed to fire with safety catch applied… therefore safety catch comes off round is squeezed off without disturbance to the firers position, also allowing opportunistic shooting.
"Unloaded" would be no round in the chamber and magazine removed… allows weapon to be rendered fully safe.[/QUOTE

:) no problem with definition back in the day lol
 
When on the range the command LOAD means inserting a mag with rounds into the rifle. MAKE READY is the act of chambering a round thus the rifle is LOADED MADE READY.

semantics depending on who is asking really.
 
Loaded, to me means one up the spout, but as has been demonstrated above, legally it means having live rounds in the firearm (including magazine). You can define it whichever way you want for your own purposes and argue happily until blue in the face, but when it matters, i.e. when you might fall foul of the law, the wise thing to do is go with the legal definition.
 
a magazine with bullets in it is classified as a loaded weapon, I know this is true, as. I meet a shooter who had his license revoked for having a loaded mag in his glove compartment while in a public place, the rifle was in its case on the back seat of his truck.
 
My two penneth… for the sake of a good debate...

"Loaded" could simply be defined as a charged magazine, applied to the weapon… so a round in waiting to be chambered.
"Ready" or "Made Ready" is a round chambered and the action primed to fire with safety catch applied… therefore safety catch comes off round is squeezed off without disturbance to the firers position, also allowing opportunistic shooting.
"Unloaded" would be no round in the chamber and magazine removed… allows weapon to be rendered fully safe.

thats what i was going to say...
 
"Unloaded"" means empty magazine as well as empty rifle.

22.12
Section 19 of the 1968 Act makes it an
offence to have in a public place without
lawful authority or reasonable excuse (the
proof whereof lies on the accused) a loaded
air weapon or a loaded shot gun, or any
other firearm, whether loaded or not,
together with ammunition suitable for use in
that firearm. Care should be taken to ensure
that those who may have lawful authority or
reasonable excuse to carry firearms in a
public place are not unnecessarily
inconvenienced.

22.13
Section 57(6) of the 1968 Act includes
a definition of “loaded” in relation to shot
guns and air weapons. An air weapon is to
be treated as loaded if there is a pellet in the
breach, even if the compression necessary to
fire the gun is not present; and in the case of
a shot gun or air weapon having a loaded
magazine, the gun is to be treated as loaded,
even though there is no round in the breech.

ATB





In the case of AIR WEOPONS or SHOTGUNS.

if, by cycling the bolt, it loads one up the spout, then having a charged mag FITTED to the gun can cause you a problem. If you have a charged, detachable mag, in your pocket, it is NOT a loaded gun. It is merely a way of keeping your ammo clean and dry.
 
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