BB97 Question

[KO301]

Happy New Year!

I moved to Japan and man the laws are strict here...

I'm looking for a BB97 in 9.3x74R in Australia or New Zealand. I've heard export from those countries are relatively easier.

Also, I would need the barrel re-stamped and bore drilled out a little from the muzzle-end for compliance reasons.

Where should I start looking?

Thanks!

[Joe338ST]

Happy New Year!

I moved to Japan and man the laws are strict here...

I'm looking for a BB97 in 9.3x74R in Australia or New Zealand. I've heard export from those countries are relatively easier.

Also, I would need the barrel re-stamped and bore drilled out a little from the muzzle-end for compliance reasons.

Where should I start looking?

Thanks!

The muzzle end drilled out???....WTF. Is that to reduce accuracy and give game a fair chance of not being shot or increase the wounding ability of the rifle?....

Joe

[KO301]

In Japan, one must own a hunting firearm and register to hunt for 10years consecutively to be eligible to apply for a rifle permit.

A rifle by legal definition is a firearm with rifling on more than half of the barrel length.

So............ yeah......... re-stamp the barrel 410 and if the muzzle is smooth, it can be bassed as a shotgun.
This is usually done with a bolt action rifle.
44-70 or 444 marlin is most popular but recently, the police are a lot more strict about bolt action conversions.

[Gun Barrel Ecologist]

Having moved guns out of both countries I can say that NZ is an easy prospect in terms of export arrangements, however you have the big kicker which is the BB97 is not a common firearm in either Australia or NZ!

If you were to get the Australian or NZ importer to bring a rifle in from Germany, modify it and then export to Japan you would be looking at 6 months + for them to get the rifle in their hands to start with. Last time I was in Japan I was told the waiting time for a centrefire permit was 10 years so patience might be one of your virtues.

The NZ importer of Blaser is Stager Sport http://www.stagersport.co.nz/blaser whilst the Australian importer is Mialls Gun Shop. The advantage of Mialls is they do have familiarity with both the B97 and have a fully capable gunsmithing business on site so any modifications should be possible once you have convinced them what needs to be done for compliance. If you believe their website they do apparantly have a set of 9,3x74R barrels listed https://www.mialls.com.au/product/blase ... 74-barrel/ - no price or clear indication of if still in stock but worth an email, or better yet, phonecall.

The other option is you find a grey importer in Australia willing to buy a secondhand gun from egun or the like, bring it here, get the work done and then file the paperwork and on ship. There are a couple who could do it but the costs would start to mount quickly. From a quick look there is a B97 classic currently listed, just not in the right chambering http://www.egun.de/market/item.php?id=6759029.

If Mialls actually do have a B97 in 9,3x74 in Australia this minute it would still be in your best interests to fly to Australia with a wad of cash to pay a substantial deposit and explain in person what needs to be done to the firearm for import clearance your end - unfortunately that is just the nature of the gun business in Australia when trying to make out of the ordinary purchase arrangements

[Gun Barrel Ecologist]

In Japan, one must own a hunting firearm and register to hunt for 10years consecutively to be eligible to apply for a rifle permit.

A rifle by legal definition is a firearm with rifling on more than half of the barrel length.

So............ yeah......... re-stamp the barrel 410 and if the muzzle is smooth, it can be bassed as a shotgun.
This is usually done with a bolt action rifle.
44-70 or 444 marlin is most popular but recently, the police are a lot more strict about bolt action conversions.

So how much do you usually get removed to bypass the above? There is very little steel in a BB97 barrel to counter bore

[KO301]

Ahh I thought the BB97 is more popular in AU and NZ for some reason. I need to get apply for my license soon in order to not having to renew my license on different years so I was hoping to get it done soon but I guess that's not going to happen.
Thanks a lot!!!

In Japan, the definition of a shotgun caliber is very very vague. They only go by the stamp on the barrel. Anything from 9mm to 12mm can be 410.

[mchughcb]

Could be time to buy a paradox !!!

[KO301]

What's that???

[Gun Barrel Ecologist]

Traditional paradox was a shotgun with a rifled section of choke at the muzzle end -
see https://www.classicshooting.com/blogs/r ... aradox-gun

Cheaper modern versions such as the Fabarm Elos and Lion have the bottom barrel of a U/O fully rifled for slug use http://www.fabarm.com/web_eng/dettaglio ... o.asp?i=67

[KO301]

How accurate are they?

[Gun Barrel Ecologist]

Like every other shotgun with slugs - it depends if you find the ammo they like. I have used an early version of the Fabarm years ago and thought that the accuracy wasn’t terribly impressive.
From memory Japan was one of the first to ban lead bullets -and shotgun slugs- for deer yet lead shot was still legal for birds when I was last there...
Long story short, instead of just finding a slug the gun likes you have to find a non toxic slug the gun likes.
Is it going to be a better option than a pump gun with fully rifled barrel and cantilever mount that seemed to be the favourite of deer hunters I met in Sapporo? Who knows....

[KO301]

Hokkaido is the only place that banned lead bullets for big game hunting. That doesn't stop people from using them though... Also, people in Hokkaido I know don't seem to care for birds. They only go after deer since they can get paid up to 30,000yen per deer they harvest. (20,000 from local government and 10,000 for selling the meat to processing plants).
Most of my friends in Hokkaido use Browning A Bolt slug gun in 12ga. I have a Savage 220 that shoots pretty well out to 100m but it probably holds a 20inch group at 150m. I'm trying all sorts of things to make it group better but it's just not as good as a rifle... hence my desire for these "410" shotguns.
All the slug guns in Japan are half-rifles. You have to remove 1/2 of the rifling from the barrel to make it legal in Japan. I first bought my Savage 220 in Denver and had the rifling removed before Inmoves to Japan but I see no difference in accuracy. Just not impressive... man I miss my R8...

[ebrownw2]

Are the deer so abundant that they are a nuissance? Invasive species? I am just curious as to why the government has put a bounty on them.

Are the rifle restrictions based on safety because of population density as in some areas here in US?

[KO301]

There are more than abundant deers all over Japan, especially in Hokkaido. The hunter's population has been declining for the past 20 years and the population is concentrations towards big cities so deers and wild boar population has exploded.
Due to the difficulty to obtain and maintain firearm license and the Buddhist influence in Japan, people don't like hunting.

The rifle regulation is due to an incident by communist college student terroist group. In Japan, you used to be able to just buy guns and register them with the police. One day, these communist terrorist robbed a gun shop and got a few Mini 30 and M1 carbine and started a shootout with a police. EVERYTHING got super strict after that...

[Gun Barrel Ecologist]

I was under the impression that the 10 year waiting period for rifled Centerfires was fairly unique to Japan - it often takes 9 months for licences to be processed in Australia but that is (we think) due to incompetence rather than overt intentions - however it appears Russia have a 5 year wait, inspiring similar paradox type hunting firearms in chamberings such as the .366TKM and 9,5x53 Lancaster, the latter using oval rifling of the 19th century

http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2015 ... ak-rifles/

http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017 ... -tkm-news/