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Nick Adams / Reuters
Seattle Police Department officers inspect a missile launcher seized from Mason Vranish, who purchased it outside a gun buyback program in Seattle, Wash., on Jan. 26.
Nick Adams / Reuters
Seattle Police Department officers inspect a missile launcher seized from Mason Vranish, who bought it outside a gun buyback event in Seattle, Wash., on Jan. 26.
Mason Vranish went to a gun buyback event in Seattle on Saturday hoping to pick up some inexpensive firearms, and he wound up scoring a Redeye missile launcher.
Vranish, who describes himself as a firearms enthusiast, bought the previously used launcher from a man who was taking the weapon to the Seattle Police Department’s gun buyback. People who turned in weapons at the event received a gift card of up to $200, according to the AP.
Vranish paid the man $100 cash for the missile launcher, thinking it would be a great novelty item. He said it was a one-time use launcher that had been previously used. However, police took the weapon until they could find out if it could be legally owned by a civilian. The man who sold the launcher to Vranish told him he had found the launcher in his house and that it was left by the previous owners.
Vranish was given $200 in gift cards for the missile launcher. He hopes to get it back, but now he has “a feeling it was probably stolen.”
Related: Missile launcher shows up at Seattle gun buyback
Nick Adams / Reuters
Mason Vranish, left, pays $100 cash for a used missile launcher outside of a Seattle Police Department gun buyback program in Seattle, Wash., on Jan. 26. Participants received up to a $100 gift card in exchange for working handguns, shotguns and rifles, and up to a $200 gift card for assault weapons. The event lasted from 9 a.m. until shortly after noon, after the event ran out of $80,000 worth of gift cards.
Nick Adams / Reuters
Seattle Police Department Sgt. Paul Gracy, left, seizes a missile launcher from Mason Vranish outside a gun buyback program in Seattle, Wash., on Jan. 26.
Nick Adams / Reuters
Seattle Police Department Sgt. Paul Gracy looks over a seized a missile launcher purchased outside a gun buyback event in Seattle, Wash., on Jan. 26.
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Why not. It's obvious that it's from the Vietnam Era, and ammo for it probably can't be found. That thing is less dangerous than a potato gun.
Thank you Dawgfan, people throwing a fit on the single use and demilitarized tubes and saying the NRA wants everyone to have rocket launchers? Sheesh
Funny that people also don't realize if someone doesn't give a hoot about the LAW (Or more laws being added for that matter) that anyone could make your own launcher and rockets, just look at the stuff getting fired into Israel that you can research online on how to build? I'm not talking the pre made made artillery shells btw.
On a side note about firearms ownership: VP Biden is quoted as saying there is not enough time or manpower to go after the people falsifying the paperwork to buy firearms? Hmm. but the government is calling for more laws and bans to affect Legal owners?
Moo
The door swings both ways here.
The NRA is saying this administration wants to take all your guns and abolish the second amendment.
Both sides are playing the fear mongering game.
These rocket launchers have only one place on the planet where they could do real honest to goodness good but they are being held by the wrong people or in the wrong place. I beg other persons holding such rocket launchers to please send or take them to South Kordofan State in Sudan where they can be used appropriately to stop fascist racist genocidal psychopaths from killing thousands of innocent women and children. The Russian Antonovs come in from the north and bomb innocent civilians every single day for no reason other than racism. Please put those weapons to the only good use they will ever have and be blessed for doing it.
Nope not that old Dawgfan, That is a Stinger tube, Suface to Air, just not all of it is there.
Not a Stinger launcher, its a Redeye launcher, an older version of the air defense missile. Totally useless once it has been fired, cannot be re-loaded.......
Thanks Scout,
@ Dave Tremblant
I didn't waste a lot of time searching but this site claims it is a One Time Use Tube; if so it shouldn't be capable of being reloaded again.
Ack, I cant post links... Check out WAMMT_ORG for M41A3
Its just a neat paperweight, I actually have two (6" I believe) empty artillery shell casings that can do nothing, it was really neat to see a primer about the size of a shotgun primer that originally touched the shells off though.
Moo
Funny fact about these man-portable SAM's...the gas that is used to allow the seeker to lock onto thermal hotspots has a limited shelf life. Even if the missile was still in the damn thing it could not fire or lock on, although the explosives would still be dangerous. These things will become pretty popular if they are going to keep paying people 200 dollars for them at buy back programs. Best paper weight ever!
the gas is a coolant, it cools the seeker of the missile, its called the BCU (battery coolant unit), it is replaceable.....
You think you can find a replacement BCU for a RedEye? They have not been in production since 1969. I know we are getting a bit off topic here...
Gun buybacks are so stupid. The people who intend harm won't be the ones bringing in their guns. Worse, guns are still being sold, so this accomplishes nothing. It is like bailing water in a boat with a large hole.