Gun Building and Safety

[Billnpatti]

I am no attorney and have absolutely no legal training, however, as a Certified Industrial Hygienist, I have been involved in many law suits as an "expert witness" .... a legal definition, not my own.

My belief would be that in any case where there was personal or property damage, one of the immediate legal concerns would be product liability. Was the manufacturer at fault for making a faulty device? The other concern would be whether the end user was at fault for misusing a given product or is there shared liability where both were at fault. Once these facts are established, the final decision lies with the jury. And, therein often lies the problem. Juries often make weird and unexplainable decisions. :hmm: :idunno: The example cited by a previous poster involving a woman spilling coffee in her lap is one good example.

As a builder, there are legal ways, such as liability insurance and forming an LLC, to avoid financial ruin.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Proofing the rifle either by the maker upon your request or by you is the obvious protocol to eliminate any buyer's anxiety. I routinely do that with all muzzleloaders I buy that are not factory made in USA.

Just don't ever claim the gun or rifle was proofed if it was not sent to and tested by a legally recognized proof house, AND it bears the proof mark or marks of said test. If it was not tested by such a "house", then you "tested" the barrel, you did not legally "proof" it...PERIOD.

LD

 

[Stophel]

I have quite enough manure to worry about. I will not live my life in fear of lawyery. :wink:

Besides, you can't squeeze blood from a turnip.

 

[Dane]

Amen.

 

[Gustavo Hoefs]

This is a good question and I have been looking for the same information myself there were approximately 23 responses ( not counting this one) and only one response that was close to answering the question about a barrel company that won a court case but was forced into debt and closure . I have only been able to find pictures of two ( three including the link to the video) blown up black powder barrels on the middlesex website of 2007 & 2010 incidents. The images on google search all show dozens of modern rifles with exploded barrels if this link works it will surprise you as to how much abuse this gun can take. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=en384qVqrug

 

[Vaino]

For those builders who are concerned about the liability they could incur when selling an individual one their builds and in order to sleep nights, these builders should buy liability insurance and incorporate...or don't build.

Me. in my ignorance have sold quite a few MLers w/o any complications and woe is me, w/o liability insurance or incorporating. Started building MLers in 1977 and have sold most of my builds w/o any repercussions and most of all have never even thought about getting sued. Ignorance is bliss....I guess....Fred

 

[Kansas Jake]

If you run a "home based" business, many insurance companies will sell you a rider that covers your business. Also, upping liability insurance on you home owners to a million is pretty cheap.

 

[crockett]

I must admit my ignorance. I thought that if a breech plug or drum wasn't fitted properly but still screwed in the distance, that the threads kept the plug or drum from blowing out. A poor fit- I thought- created nooks and crannies that would accumulate fouling and then start to rust out and a rusted out area could then create a safety issue. I thought if you could ram down a projectile then the thing was swaged to the bore- the only issue would be a heavy conical with too much powder but that issue would apply to any muzzle loader, not just a home made muzzle loader.
Are there issues I am not recognizing? Still learning.

 

[Stophel]

I would dare say that most people who want to have a custom built historically inspired firearm generally know what they're doing, and are not the average idiot, which makes this a fairly safe business. :wink: (those other people usually just buy a cheap Cabela's gun and those little cylindrical "powder" pellets.)

 

[Onojutta]

This thread quickly turned into a discussion of the risk of frivolous lawsuits, which I thought it might, but again the takeaway for me is that there has not been one single mention of an actual incident resulting from build mistakes. That tells me that building one of these rifles is pretty darn safe and that there isn't a lot that can go wrong.

I'd still like to know is it really possible to improperly install a breech plug on a manufactured barrel?

 

[Obi-Wan Cannoli]

I'd still like to know is it really possible to improperly install a breech plug on a manufactured barrel?

yes

 

[Col. Batguano]

While listening to the responses on this thread is fine as far as it goes, when it comes to real legal advice for yourself, that is best obtained by you from people that you personally have on retainer or are paying for.

 

[crockett]

I thought the breech plug just got screwed in but actually we had a discussion on it some time back and it is more complicated than I realized because the plug ought to fit snug against the end of the threaded part of the barrel- otherwise a pocket will accumulate fouling and probable rust BUT you must do this such that the flats on plug and barrel line up correctly. There is also supposed to be a degree of crush in the final fitting- I think.
In any event I belong to the group that has bought kits where this job was already done so I haven't dealt with it yet.