Preparing for an FAC

Wireless

Well-Known Member
It seems that the issues regarding an application are many and varied, I don't actually plan to fill out my first FAC application until 7th December, when I will have been a member of a full bore gun club for 12 months (they said they would support such an application after 3 months but the wife and I have had our 25th Wedding Anniversary this Summer, and money only goes so far!), and also a member of an NSRA gun club for about 9 months. I do find it compelling trying to get a perfect card, although I'm not interested in the least in competition, it's the personal challenge I enjoy, and I have to say, I have a long way to go, ha!

I've read variously that the siting of a gun cabinet can be a problem with respect to some FEOs, indeed I'm told in my area of West Mercia, that some applicants have suggested a bedroom but this was refused by the FEO, I've no idea of the reasons, but it seems ridiculous. We'll be presenting a fait accompli to the FEO at application, the wife will only allow me to fit the cabinet inside one of our fitted wardrobes in our bedroom, she refuses it elsewhere in the house because we have nowhere it could be hidden from view, and the wife doesn't want the grandchildren being aware that guns will be in the house.

So I take delivery of a 9 gun cabinet in the next few days, and it will be attached to the wall in the back of the wardrobe with the biggest rawl bolts I can fit. I'd be interested in any comments about the siting of the cabinet, and thoughts about whether the FEO will browbeat my wife as to its location, I don't personally give him good odds.

I note various comments regarding open and closed tickets, well whilst I have no particular issues regarding this, I do intend to shoot in Scotland at some point. In addition, whilst I've been out of shooting for something like twenty years, I do have military experience of firearms, both in 5.56, 7.62, and 9mm calibres, so I'm not a novice by any stretch of the imagination. However, I'm not arrogant either, I plan to undertake LANTRA courses for both rimfire and centre fire in pest/fox control, and also undertake a DSC1, despite being physically disabled. Although these courses do cost money, and it will possibly take me a year or so to gather the disposable income to complete all three.

In Wales I have a 45 acre permission for game, pest/fox control, which encompasses both sides of a valley, providing safe backstops, and have the promise from a friend for a permission for Muntjac in Cambridgeshire, but it might take me a couple of years to obtain a centre fire rifle anyway, due to limited funds, so I'm not overly upset at the closed/open ticket debate, at least until I get the .223 Rem I want, and perhaps a 6.5x55.

Its a journey I'm taking here, if it takes a couple of years then thats ok, I'm in no rush to play with all the toys at once, I want to enjoy things as much as possible at each level, and be able to back up the experience with qualifications, and if that takes time then it takes time. I'll not be a fair weather shooter by the way, all the rifles I intend to buy will be synthetic tools, I'm not one for walnut and polish, and I understand there's more shooting sport available when the weather isn't fine.

I realise I might not fit the profile of your average towny, and I'm not a rich man, or the most physically able, but I'm willing to give it a proper go, and intend to enjoy myself and make a few good friends along the way.

Any and all comments welcome.
 
I think most FEO's would like to see your cabinet affixed to a solid wall, not stud partition, and fixed in such a way as to prevent 15mins of a vigorous attempt to open/remove it from said wall. Rawl screws in the wall (personnally I'd get some 8mm self cutting 4" window fittings, drill a 6mm hole then let them cut into the brickwork-very solid fittings) and carriage bolts into a floor joist should suffice with no significant gap at the back.
A place that FEO's seem to really like is a loft, however, I'm guessing that would make your ability to get to the cabinet difficult as you mention being physically disabled (although having swmbo get a ticket as well might help overcome this with dual access to the cabinet and keep the mrs happy with the cabinet location?)
Sounds like you're taking a very sensible approach to your FAC journey and I'm sure you'll get plenty of help from the folk on here.
 
It will be solid brickwork, the party wall (semi-detached), but I'm uncertain regarding floor joist position, there's only one place the cabinet can be located to provide access, and I'm not sure that will be above a floor joist, however, it will be flush with all surfaces it comes into contact with. As I said, I'm not sure on fixings, I think Braxton supplies them as a part of the package.

The loft would be out of the question, we have no access ladder, and no floor laid, I imagine an FEO would still want the cabinet fixed to the party wall, and that is a long way across joists and insulation from the loft access.

The only other place might have been under the stairs on the ground floor, but we use that for a tumble dryer, with 400mm hole through the outside wall for ventilation, I'm afraid there's not enough space for both, and nowhere to put a tumble dryer if a cabinet was fitted in the same space.

The wife isn't interested in firearms, her passions are her job in Social Services Child Protection, and supporting Rugby Union, of which the latter I share. She wouldn't need ear protection if she did develop an interest in shooting, she's got bi-lateral cochlear implants, maybe when I have rifles in the house, and clean them, or start reloading with centre fires, she may get interested, but at the moment, no. Its funny because she's a country lass, and field sports are something she's had experience of in her childhood, so maybe something will be re-kindled by her towny hubby.

You surprise me with the swmbo acronym, I did have a Landrover Discovery until two years ago, and its a much used phrase on Landrover Forums; I do have a 1958 Series 1 109 Diesel Truck Cab that I may inherit one day, I'd love to go shooting in that, but I imagine the 55mph maximum speed might curtail trips to Scotland!

I was once a very sensible chap, I was an Ambulance Paramedic until I had to medically retire following a motorcycle accident, now I'm a house husband with responsibility for the dog, a chocolate labrador called Harry. Not quite the future I planned, so shooting has been a boon.
 
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I've read variously that the siting of a gun cabinet can be a problem with respect to some FEOs, indeed I'm told in my area of West Mercia, that some applicants have suggested a bedroom but this was refused by the FEO, I've no idea of the reasons, but it seems ridiculous. We'll be presenting a fait accompli to the FEO at application, the wife will only allow me to fit the cabinet inside one of our fitted wardrobes in our bedroom, she refuses it elsewhere in the house because we have nowhere it could be hidden from view, and the wife doesn't want the grandchildren being aware that guns will be in the house.

So I take delivery of a 9 gun cabinet in the next few days, and it will be attached to the wall in the back of the wardrobe with the biggest rawl bolts I can fit. I'd be interested in any comments about the siting of the cabinet, and thoughts about whether the FEO will browbeat my wife as to its location, I don't personally give him good odds.
Hi
After reading your post the FEO is the least of your worries! The siteing of the cabinet as many have said on here is to be fitted to a brick wall or timber with the correct fittings etc etc. As regards of the FEO browbeating your wife, if she says the cabinet is only going in one place and he says he would like the cabinet in another you can wave good bye to your FAC unless you can have a compromise.! Then theres your grandchildren, you say you were a military man and have handled firearms? so why hide your guns away why not educate them about weapons and safe handling of them. With all the bad press with WH Smiths,guns,shooting,knifes etc etc we need to educate the next generations. Both of my children (7yr and 12yr) have been around guns,knifes and shooting all their life's and have been educated about the safe handling and why we shoot animals whether for food or because they are vermin.
 
If the preferred option (The wife's), is on a structural wall, and additionally out of sight, your feo would certainly be in front of a superior for objecting & causing mail to pass back & forth!
 
Hi
After reading your post the FEO is the least of your worries! The siteing of the cabinet as many have said on here is to be fitted to a brick wall or timber with the correct fittings etc etc. As regards of the FEO browbeating your wife, if she says the cabinet is only going in one place and he says he would like the cabinet in another you can wave good bye to your FAC unless you can have a compromise.! Then theres your grandchildren, you say you were a military man and have handled firearms? so why hide your guns away why not educate them about weapons and safe handling of them. With all the bad press with WH Smiths,guns,shooting,knifes etc etc we need to educate the next generations. Both of my children (7yr and 12yr) have been around guns,knifes and shooting all their life's and have been educated about the safe handling and why we shoot animals whether for food or because they are vermin.

Our oldest Grandchild is 30 months old, and the cabinet will be put where the wife says on a structural wall well out of sight of anyone. She's right, there is no place else it can go, if that means I need to send a few letters, then so be it, the FEO doesn't have to live with her, I do. It will be a fait accompli and the FEO will recognise that she's right, and comply, resistance is futile.
 
I realise you've said you can't put a cabinet in the loft but as a point of interest, during my application process and a conversation I had with the FEO it was made clear that although some forces like to see a cabinet in the loft, in reality, most FEOs don't like the idea in practice.

The thought process behind it is that when you get home from shooting, sometimes the last thing you want to do is to think about loft hatches, ladders and clambering into the loft and put your gun away so, in his experience, guns are more likely to get left out, propped up in the corner of the room etc if your cabinet is in a place that is more difficult to get to ie; the loft. Therefore, if your cabinet is in a readily accessible location you're more likely to have your guns locked away than if the cabinet is a pain in the ar5e to get to.

On top of that, the loft is more likely to suffer extremes of temperature than most other places in the house. Mine is cold and damp during the winter and a sweat box during the summer. I personally wouldn't like to leave my prized guns in such a place.

If you have a cupboard under the stairs in which the walls are outside or retaining walls, made out of bricks and mortar that would be a good place. If you live in a bungalow maybe not! Avoid stud walls as they don't pass inspection.

Don't forget, your wife doesn't approve FACs. The cabinet will go where the FEO says, not your wife.
 
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Our oldest Grandchild is 30 months old, and the cabinet will be put where the wife says on a structural wall well out of sight of anyone. She's right, there is no place else it can go, if that means I need to send a few letters, then so be it, the FEO doesn't have to live with her, I do. It will be a fait accompli and the FEO will recognise that she's right, and comply, resistance is futile.
I think not!
 
As I pointed out, we have considered under the stairs, but there's not enough space, physically it 'could' go under there, but then we'd have nowhere to store the ironing board, vacuum, etc, (minor I know, but not to the wife), and secondly, if we ever have to use, service, or replace the Tumble Dryer, the cabinet would have to be removed.

Using the loft would mean the cost of fitting a loft ladder, and laying a floor, to gain access to the party wall, and being disabled I'm not sure about carrying rifles up a loft ladder is a good idea, in terms of practicality and my own health and safety, so a complete none starter, even before considering the temperature extremes under a slate roof laid in the 1930s.

There's no stud walls in the house, they are all brick, either structural or partitioning.

BTW I have signed the WHSmith petition, I'm not against introducing rifles and shooting to my grandchildren, but I think they at least need to start school first before I set up the 10 metre air rifle range in the garden.
 
The FEO has no right to tell you where to put your cabinet, he can only advise...

As long as the wall it's fixed to is part of the structural fabric of the building, you (sorry, your wife) can decide where it goes.
The reason for them not liking guns in bedrooms is because you would have easy access to them in the event of a burglary but it's not stated in the H.O guidelines. I wouldn't recommend the loft either... cold steel attracts condensation.
 
Please believe it, if your wife's suggestion of gun cabinet location is a good one and the FEO approves then there will be no problems. If, on the other hand, your wife's suggestion on location is not practical and doesn't meet with Home Office guidelines then you will have issues.....

Unfortunately she doesn't get the final say on Firearms law.
 
Please believe it, if your wife's suggestion of gun cabinet location is a good one and the FEO approves then there will be no problems. If, on the other hand, your wife's suggestion on location is not practical and doesn't meet with Home Office guidelines then you will have issues.....

Unfortunately she doesn't get the final say on Firearms law.

It is a good one, it is a structural brick wall, its hidden, its practical, I'm sure it meets HO Guidelines, the FEO will approve it.

I'll ask her brother about it anyway, he's a Magistrate.

I've just checked, a floor joist also runs underneath its proposed location, so it'll be job done!
 
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The only thing that it says in the home office guidance is that the cabinet has to be fitted to the 'fabric of the building' as long as you can do that i.e. a solid brick wall then as I understand it the FEO can have no cause for complaint. One way round this is to write to chief constable and point out that in sighting it in the wardrobe attached to the solid brick wall you are compying with all the relevant legislation. I understand that you may be averse to 'going over the head' of said FEO but people really do have to make a stance at some point. It really grinds my gears that the FEO can basically make rules up as they go along. Obtaining a copy of the home office guidance and having it on hand during the interview can really help matters. My FEO was adverse to giving me the ammo allowances I asked for as he claimed a recreational deer stalker would have no need for that allowance, I simply showed him the recommended allowance in the home office guidance notes and he was forced to back down. The only other thing I woul mention is make sure there is no gap between the cabinet and any brick wall, for example if your wardrobe has a false back of hardboard which can easyly be destroyed, a 10mm gap is enough for a hacksaw which can make short work of some fixings.
 
The only thing that it says in the home office guidance is that the cabinet has to be fitted to the 'fabric of the building' as long as you can do that i.e. a solid brick wall then as I understand it the FEO can have no cause for complaint. One way round this is to write to chief constable and point out that in sighting it in the wardrobe attached to the solid brick wall you are compying with all the relevant legislation. I understand that you may be averse to 'going over the head' of said FEO but people really do have to make a stance at some point. It really grinds my gears that the FEO can basically make rules up as they go along. Obtaining a copy of the home office guidance and having it on hand during the interview can really help matters. My FEO was adverse to giving me the ammo allowances I asked for as he claimed a recreational deer stalker would have no need for that allowance, I simply showed him the recommended allowance in the home office guidance notes and he was forced to back down. The only other thing I woul mention is make sure there is no gap between the cabinet and any brick wall, for example if your wardrobe has a false back of hardboard which can easyly be destroyed, a 10mm gap is enough for a hacksaw which can make short work of some fixings.

Thanks I'll prepare for the interview as you say and download a copy of the guidelines, also the back of the wardrobe is rendered brickwork, so that shouldn't be a problem either.

All good advice, thanks.

Just downloaded them...212 pages!!! Seems I have some bedtime reading for the next month or so.
 
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Installation advice

Any security device should be securely fixed to the fabric of the building.

• For preference it should be in a room or area that does not have direct access to the outside of a building.

• It should not be in a garage, shed or other outside building, except in certain circumstances.

• When considering large or heavy gun cabinets, you should consider the load bearing strength of your floors.

• Wherever possible, it should be fixed to a wall that is built from bricks or concrete blocks or to the floor.

• The container should be out of sight (unless the firearm is held for display purposes). If it is in a corner, it is more difficult for a thief to attack it.

• You should avoid fixing the container near any heat source.
see the following link:

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/police/firearms/security_leaflet.pdf?view=Binary
 
Installation advice

Any security device should be securely fixed to the fabric of the building.

• For preference it should be in a room or area that does not have direct access to the outside of a building.

• It should not be in a garage, shed or other outside building, except in certain circumstances.

• When considering large or heavy gun cabinets, you should consider the load bearing strength of your floors.

• Wherever possible, it should be fixed to a wall that is built from bricks or concrete blocks or to the floor.

• The container should be out of sight (unless the firearm is held for display purposes). If it is in a corner, it is more difficult for a thief to attack it.

• You should avoid fixing the container near any heat source.
see the following link:

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/police/firearms/security_leaflet.pdf?view=Binary

If thats the relevant bit, then the proposed location meets all those criteria, its even next to a chimney stack, so almost in a corner, and the cabinet itself is a deep nine gun Braxton design, for scoped rifles, I was told buy the biggest you can afford.

In fact, drilling and fixing to the floor joist seems unnecessary, but I'll do it anyway.
 
Seems a little out of date, '19.9 f) The attractiveness of the type of firearms to criminals. For example, modern multi-shot handguns may be more attractive to criminals than shot guns, which would be in turn more attractive than rifles or older types of gun....'

When was it last updated? I thought maybe it applied to the IOM, but they have their own Government.
 
Hi
After reading your post the FEO is the least of your worries! The siteing of the cabinet as many have said on here is to be fitted to a brick wall or timber with the correct fittings etc etc. As regards of the FEO browbeating your wife, if she says the cabinet is only going in one place and he says he would like the cabinet in another you can wave good bye to your FAC unless you can have a compromise.! Then theres your grandchildren, you say you were a military man and have handled firearms? so why hide your guns away why not educate them about weapons and safe handling of them. With all the bad press with WH Smiths,guns,shooting,knifes etc etc we need to educate the next generations. Both of my children (7yr and 12yr) have been around guns,knifes and shooting all their life's and have been educated about the safe handling and why we shoot animals whether for food or because they are vermin.

+1 - that saddened me about your post. You should be encouraging your grandchildren in the safe and respectfully handling and use of firearms, irrespective of age. Don't hide it - are you ashamed of what you do? The firearms will be secure so their safety is assured.
 
+1 - that saddened me about your post. You should be encouraging your grandchildren in the safe and respectfully handling and use of firearms, irrespective of age. Don't hide it - are you ashamed of what you do? The firearms will be secure so their safety is assured.
+1
 
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