Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Black Market Pistol Factory in India


I have been interested in clandestine manufacture of firearms on the Indian subcontinent since my close friend and associate, Norman Whisler, brought them to my attention in the early 1980's.  Finding articles is much easier now, with the Internets.  Illicit, black market pistols are commonly available in India for about $10-$15.  These pistols show a level of sophistication a bit higher than most, but hand craftsmen have been making semi-autos for as long as they existed.  Many Belgian and Spanish semi-autos were hand crafted.  Semi-autos are routinely handcrafted in small Philippine shops.  From newindianexpress.com:
TALCHER: An illegal small arms unit was unearthed here and police seized firearms, including 31 Mauser pistols, 500 live cartridges, gelatin, gun powder, equipment needed for making gun, documents and a list of names and bank accounts. The unit was operating for the last four months.

At least five persons have been arrested in this connection. One of the arrested is a juvenile.

Acting on a tip off, a raid was conducted last night on the unit, operating from a rented house at Champasi here, and arms comprising revolvers and pistols were seized. Police then cracked down on the house of the owner of the illegal unit Tukuna Swain (40) at Paikasahi. Tukuna, however, managed to escape.

Many unsophisticated and ignorant disarmists think that guns will gradually be confiscated and disappear in their gun control dystopias.  When they see the reality of small clandestine shops such as this, they tend to despair. The gun control laws in India are severe.  Guns, ammunition, tools, parts, components, are all under severe control.  The result has been a thriving black market in clandestine guns, mostly handmade.  Powder is scavenged from ammunition purchased or stolen on the black market.  Shotgun and rifle cartridges are converted to pistol ammunition.  Notice the relatively crude tools compared to an ordinary American hobbyist shop.  Consider what this shop could do with a Harbor Freight drill press, $500 mini-lathe/milling machine, and access to a 3D printer or a CNC machine. 

Consider the many billions of rounds of ammunition stored in attics, basements, and garages.  Consider that 100 years is a resonable shelf life for modern ammunition.

Many years ago, my Father, trained as a machinist and who oversaw a shop full of women making munitions in WWII, told me that revolvers would be very simple things to make with minimal machine tools.  Simple sub-machine guns are even easier.

These are things every American voter should know about.  Education is a good thing.

Definition of  disarmist

©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Link to Gun Watch

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Right next door is the rich gun markets of Pakistan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Pakistan

"Only tribal areas of the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa permits the ownership of heavy weaponry including the use of rocket-propelled grenades, short, medium, and long-range rockets, anti-aircraft guns, mortars, etc. These heavy weapons may be made in Pakistan.

"The people of the provinces of Punjab and Sindh view the bearing and use of arms as a constitutional right whereas the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan view it as part of their culture. Pakistan is also known for its indigenous gunsmith tradition. A notable centre of gun manufacturing is the town of Darra Adam Khel, near Peshawar, historically known for its Lee–Enfield .303 facsimiles."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darra_Adam_Khel

It is a huge cottage industry, there.