As a result of recent regulation, we have lost yet another firearms related business—not to the forces of the market or competition and not due a slowing number of sales or profits. Instead, Slide Fire is closing its doors due the whims of the feel-good politics of politicians and the efforts of gun control advocates.
The Armory received confirmation that Slide Fire plans to announce that it will cease all operations on May 25 at midnight. This will include sunsetting all web sales and properties.
Backstory
During the October 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas, the shooter was reported to have used a bump fire-style stock on one or more of the firearms used. Although hundreds of thousands of bump fire systems have been sold, and only one recorded criminal act was purportedly committed using the system, politicians across the nation—including President Trump—have sought to outlaw the equipment. Likely this was the final impetus necessary to drive Slide Fire to the decision to cease operations.
In discussions with my non-gun owning friends, I have often pointed out the error of blaming the equipment and not the evil actions of the person committing the act. When discussing bump fire stocks with fellow gun owners, I often hear how they are a waste of expensive ammunition or how that particular person does not own a bump fire system, so they are not concerned with the regulation. This is a misguided attitude.
If one piece of equipment can be outlawed due to a single heinous act, or even the events of a few bad actors, where will it end? Will the United States follow Britain? Will we regulate firearms to the point of effectively banning all firearm ownership? After several years of firearm regulations, edged weapon attacks in Britain have risen to alarming rates. In fact, Britain is now considering regulation on edged weapons. Will this be our future?
Conclusion
I am all for the free market. The success or failure of a business should be left to the forces of a free market and the business’ ability to compete within its sector. In Slide Fire’s case, however, it is not a free market that is causing its downfall. Instead, it is politicians making poor decisions based on blaming a piece of equipment and not the person committing the unlawful act. This should be a lesson to us all and cause every gun owner to take a step back and reexamine the threat to the Second Amendment. Outlawing bump fire stocks will not quench the thirst of feel good politics or the efforts of those bent on repealing the Second Amendment; it will only embolden them for the next attack on our rights.
So is the customer sales database going to go up in smoke or is the BATFE likely to glom onto that list so that those folks ultimately end up being persecuted for possession of a proactively prohibited item?
My guess is yes, ATF will try to glom onto any databases, but Slide Fire’s is likely to be a dry hole, as I suspect that most of the units were sold through 3rd party vendors, and so Slide Fire’s database will mostly be a list of retailers.
But it does suck, and suck hard. Put me in the camp of those who never owned a bump fire stock, and who did think that they’re a waste of ammo…….BUT, anyone is free to burn up their ammo any way they want to, as long as they’re not sending any bullets my way. So, if that’s what floats your boat, by all means have at it. I do NOT think they should be outlawed.
The other issue that concerns me is that in the ATF’s proposal for suggestions, they talk about bump fire stock owners either turning them in to ATF for destruction, or destroying the stocks themselves with proof that it was done, but NOWHERE do they talk about compensating citizens for taking their property, which was lawfully purchased at a time that the property was legal to own. They talk of compensating the retailers who still have inventory, at a price of $40/unit, but no talk of compensating private citizens who already own them. And that right there is BS, un-American, and in violation of the spirit of the Constitution.
The flip side is that this BS nudges us all a little closer to putting our 2nd Amendment into use for its intended purpose — maintaining the security of a FREE state from enemies foreign AND DOMESTIC. I have 6 registered and stamped items under my trust — 4 suppressors and 2 SBRs. I’m worried that they’ll be next on the fascist agenda, along with any of my semi-auto rifles and handguns, and all of my “sniper scopes.”
It’s getting to be time to start burying things for later.
Man I really hope I win the K-Var Swag Bag!
This is a damn shame! More Americans losing jobs due to emotional outburst of uneducated people. We don’t see this outcry when a Ryder, Penske, or U-Haul truck kills a mob of people when a terrorist hops the curb!