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Is it permitted to clean your firearms at home or must you do it at the range? In the unlikely event of a random Police visit, would 'in the process of cleaning/repair' be an acceptable reason to have a firearm out of its secure container?

... given that locking yourself into your gun safe and doing it there is a little... impractical.

Yes. Clean them at home, tinker with them at home, no problem. Just don't go waving them around the garden or any where else that the uninformed can see you/them.

..and make sure you remember to lock them away when you pop out for some milk, I know a couple of people who have left rifles on the bed or table or in the garage and come back 20 minutes alter and thought ooops...

Steve E wrote:Yes. Clean them at home, tinker with them at home, no problem. Just don't go waving them around the garden or any where else that the uninformed can see you/them.

My garden is my property, if I want to take a rifle out there then I will do so. No law stopping it.

That is not a legal thing it is more common sense as some people may prefer not to have their neighbours know about the chosen sport/hobby. Also it depends on your location, our back garden is not over looked so I can happily walk from the house to the workshop with all sorts of interesting things.

I agree, if I live somewhere dodgy.

In terms of normal but anti neighbours, I'll never hide the fact that I shoot. I'm proud of it; it's my chosen hobby and I really object to how shooting has been turned into an 'adult' sport (see WH Smith).

Granted it might spark an argument but I refuse to keep it hidden.

That said, I would keep it quiet should anybody be around who is not a neighbour, as this is a security measure. Neighbours will find out anyway so why worry?

Mr_Logic wrote:I agree, if I live somewhere dodgy.

In terms of normal but anti neighbours, I'll never hide the fact that I shoot. I'm proud of it; it's my chosen hobby and I really object to how shooting has been turned into an 'adult' sport (see WH Smith).

Granted it might spark an argument but I refuse to keep it hidden.

That said, I would keep it quiet should anybody be around who is not a neighbour, as this is a security measure. Neighbours will find out anyway so why worry?

Neighbours can change & change their views too - You don't want next door to call the cops & accuse you of pointing something at them because they are all wound up after an argument about your new fence / extension / dog?

We had one threaten to call social services if we shouted at the kids! (they were a trainee social worker) - after a debate about them painting my fence & it running thru my side.

Thanks for clearing that up - had always thought you could only remove from storage when going to the range!

Then again, who's gonna know?...

hitchphil wrote:

Mr_Logic wrote:I agree, if I live somewhere dodgy.

In terms of normal but anti neighbours, I'll never hide the fact that I shoot. I'm proud of it; it's my chosen hobby and I really object to how shooting has been turned into an 'adult' sport (see WH Smith).

Granted it might spark an argument but I refuse to keep it hidden.

That said, I would keep it quiet should anybody be around who is not a neighbour, as this is a security measure. Neighbours will find out anyway so why worry?

Neighbours can change & change their views too - You don't want next door to call the cops & accuse you of pointing something at them because they are all wound up after an argument about your new fence / extension / dog?

We had one threaten to call social services if we shouted at the kids! (they were a trainee social worker) - after a debate about them painting my fence & it running thru my side.

Your point is a fair one. However, I believe that avoiding that sort of thing merely hides the problem. The simple fact is that firearms suspicion is a guilty-until-proven-innocent situation. This is unconstitutional and wrong. It must stop.

I refuse to hide away simply because someone might say nasty things. They could just as easily call the RSPCA and say I beat my dog. That would result in the same thing - over-use of non-existent power - and still destroy my life. If I do something bad and it can be proven, fine, but I will not hide my life away because someone might make something up about me.

That's a purely personal thing, and I am not advocating or recommending it for anyone. You are quite correct - the risk is there. But frankly, to anyone who would say anything bad about me - prove it, or shut up.

One of my biggest hatreds of society is that people do not have due process any more. See under Jimmy Saville. I hate paedophiles and I find the whole thing abhorrent. However, nothing has been proven, either by inquiry or by court proceedings. And the press HASN'T EVEN BLINKED! That is wrong, plain wrong, and nobody cares! It's nuts and the single biggest scary thing.

Wasn't there a case where somebody had one out for one reason or another, fell asleep and woke up with the rozzers in front of them?

We take ours out to the shed for cleaning, nobody seems to mind.