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Sim G wrote:Ah, but Brian, cast your mind back me old mucka to case law surrounding Offences Against the Person Act 1861. "Lethal" is regarded as not being able to cause death, but being capable of causing harm and is determined by a court....

"Lethality is a complex issue and although case law exists (Moore v Gooderham [1960] 3 All E.R. 575), only a court can decide whether any particular weapon is capable of causing "more than trifling and trivial" injury and is therefore is a "firearm" for the purposes of the Acts. The Forensic Science Provider (FSP) will be able to advise in any case where "lethality" is likely to be an issue. See also: R v Thorpe 85 Cr. App. R 107 CA."

May I beg to differ? Lethal is defined as causing or designed to cause DEATH, that is both the ordinary and legal definition of the word. From my recollection the OPA uses the terms grievous bodily harm and actual bodily harm. (However I've only got honours degree in Law)

What about a potato cannon type device? PVC piping, a can of butane and a piezo ignition source.

I'm sure the user DW58 had a tennis ball launcher in his signature on here. Drop him a PM, although I've not heard from him on here for a while...

I have played with potato canons in the past with some quite sophisticated systems built by a couple of us however third hand reports was the decider for moving on to other things.

Laurie wrote:Dave,

here's a 2012 Bill Harriman answer to the legal question if you've not already seen it.

http://www.shootinguk.co.uk/answers/do- ... cher-23944

Yes I have read it before however thank you for reminding me Laurie

WelshShooter wrote:What about a potato cannon type device? PVC piping, a can of butane and a piezo ignition source.

I'm sure the user DW58 had a tennis ball launcher in his signature on here. Drop him a PM, although I've not heard from him on here for a while...

can of deodorant, one little spray works best, I found. I went for a bore size that works best with strawberries.

but I of course destroyed it.

Talk of potato launchers made me think of the cap-powered 'spud guns' when I was a kid. Marvellously politically incorrect and able to fairly bruise. I imagine one would be classed as some sort of dangerous or prohibited weapon nowadays! On a more serious note, when a student one friend rammed a small potato up the exhaust pipe of another friend's car as a prank. The car eventually started after a lot of churning on the starter motor but would barely pick revs up even in neutral. Noticing that the exhaust sound was 'wrong', the owner went round the back, got on his knees to see if the exhaust pipe was blocked or damaged and asked his sister to rev the engine. The potato shot out, hit him full face at about 18 inches range, broke his specs, and gave him two shiners of the year. There were some angry words and it took him some time to forgive the culprits.

well compared we're allowed airsoft guns, which i can't imagine a spud gun overcoming powerwise, i'm not sure it would be classed as anything too heinous

A friend was developing his own range of ever increasing bore cannons and had some spectacular hits on target at good distances. Down side is they could really hurt even at 75m+ and he was occasionally indiscriminate in his targeting which apparently did not go down well on a couple of occasions.

channel12 wrote: May I beg to differ? Lethal is defined as causing or designed to cause DEATH, that is both the ordinary and legal definition of the word. From my recollection the OPA uses the terms grievous bodily harm and actual bodily harm. (However I've only got honours degree in Law)

Sorry, you'd be wrong in quoting your definition. The case law I have quoted so you can view that and the advice of the CPS states exactly the same. "Lethal" is a definition left to the individual court when considering harm that is more than transient. Lethal does not mean death in law.

http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/d_to_g/firearms/

Having policed a university town, you wouldn't be the first to state you had a law degree, then discovered your mistake...... Usually when being put in the back of a marked van!

Laurie wrote:Talk of potato launchers made me think of the cap-powered 'spud guns' when I was a kid. Marvellously politically incorrect and able to fairly bruise. I imagine one would be classed as some sort of dangerous or prohibited weapon nowadays!.

I loved them! My favourite was the "cowboy gun". Black with a white grips and the cylinder opened to the side, where the "spud cartridge" went.... If memory serves, the end that cut the spud was triangular...

Happy days!