Gun sellers say lifting of assault ban no big deal

CHICAGO -- The U.S. ban on assault weapons is ending not with a bang but a whimper.

The decade-long ban expired Monday. The measure, signed by President Clinton, had outlawed 19 types of military-style assault weapons, banned certain features on firearms such as bayonet mounts, and limited ammunition magazines to 10 rounds.

But gun sellers and manufacturers say they do not expect to see any immediate surge in orders for the weapons.

"The thought that people are lined up around the block or that guns are going to flood the streets, that's nonsense," said Mark Westrom, owner of firearms manufacturer ArmaLite Inc.

For one thing, the gun industry says, weapons very similar to those banned have been legally available over the past decade. Also, because of a grandfather clause in the 1994 law, assault weapons or ammunition clips that were manufactured before the ban took effect could still be legally sold over the past 10 years.

Joe McBride, president of McBride's Guns in Austin, Texas, said he expects interest in the new ammunition magazines, but he has not noticed any increase in traffic at his store over news of the ban's end. McBride said some gun dealers also might be leery of stocking up too much on post-ban firearms.

"I think there's some wariness about what might be reinstated after the election," McBride said.

Some foreign guns still outA clause in the 1994 ban said it would expire unless Congress specifically reauthorized it. President Bush did not lobby the Republican-controlled Congress to renew the ban, and the deadline passed without a vote.

The expiration of the ban means firearms like TEC-9s can now be legally bought. But some of the 19 weapons -- foreign-made guns like the Russian- or Chinese-made AK-47 and the Israeli-manufactured Uzi -- are still banned under a 1989 law prohibiting imports of specific automatic weapons.

At ArmaLite, based in Geneseo, Ill., Westrom said it will take some time for the company to produce and ship rifles that contain features the act banned.

Even so, he said, the rifles will appeal mainly to collectors, not the hunters and target shooters who account for a good portion of ArmaLite's business.