Firearms have always been a controversial topic to Australians ever since the 1996 buyback scheme which attempted to reduce violent crime by regulating certain weapons, and outright banning others along with sports such as Air-soft. However, over the passed few years a new craze has hit hard in the form of Gel Blasters. What are these Gel Blasters, and should they be classified as a firearm.
Gel Blasters also known as Gel soft guns or simply Gel guns are toy firearms which are similar to their Air-soft counter parts. Air-soft rifles are largely available around the world, except in a few select countries like Australia, North Korea, and Turkmenistan to name a few who have banned the use and the sport outright (1) with Australian states now looking to ban Gel Blasters.
The designs between the two can be similar with both types of toys coming in different designs, shapes and sizes. Manual, single-shot Gel Blasters usually fire simply using a spring which needs to be worked each time, while automatic and semi-automatic Blasters usually run electronically and contain a small motor, gear box, and battery inside the shell (2).
The two really differ in their power and projectiles. Gel blasters fire superabsorbent polymer balls at around 250FPS, these polymer balls must be soaked in water for upwards of four hours and break easily on contact. Air-soft guns fire hard plastic pellets and usually average around 350FPS when firing (3).
Legality
There is now only one state in Australia in which these toys are legal (that state being Queensland) with South Australia classifying the toys as regulated imitation firearms on October 8th 2020, meaning that owners and sellers of these toys must be properly licensed with a firearm license and have their toys registered with the South Australian Police. Not only this, but the Gel Blasters must only be used on registered paintball or Gel Blaster fields. The South Australian Police have given a period of 6 months to hand in the Gel Blasters (4).
South Australian Police have said, “The firing mechanism in a gel blaster compresses air to fire a projectile and therefore meets the threshold test to be defined as a firearm,” and followed with, “A gel blaster can easily be mistaken for a real firearm, with potential to cause concern in the community and trigger a police response that could involve the use of police firearms, or other tactical options.” (5).
Under the Firearms Act 2015 in South Australia, firearms are defined as a device “designed to fire bullets, shot or other projectiles by means of burning propellant, compressed air or other gases; or declared by the regulations to be a firearm or, includes a receiver and any device which, if complete or in working order, would be a firearm.” (6). While the dictionary definition of Firearm, from dictionary.com is, “a small arms weapon, as a rifle or pistol, from which a projectile is fired by gunpowder.” (7). Although it appears the bans are more concerned with the appearance of the Gel Blaster, worried they may be used in crime.
Will the state of Queensland eventually follow through with the rest of the states, or will the Queensland Police keep their views of these merely being a type of toy used for sport?
-Trent Naz
www.Facebook.com/FactFirstNetwork
(1) Hopkins, M., 2020. Australia Is One Of The Only Countries Where A Popular Sport Is Illegal. [online] Pedestrian TV. Available at: <https://www.pedestrian.tv/gaming/airsoft-australia-banned/> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(2) Fan, Z., 2020. Gel Blaster Introduction And Guide: What Is A Gel Blaster?. [online] ZHENDUO. Available at: <https://www.zhenduotoys.com/blogs/gel-blaster/gel-blaster-introduction> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(3) Renegadeblasters.com.au. 2020. Frequently Asked Questions — Renegade Blasters. [online] Available at: <https://renegadeblasters.com.au/faqs/> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(4) Police.sa.gov.au. 2020. SAPOL — Gel Blasters. [online] Available at: <https://www.police.sa.gov.au/services-and-events/firearms-and-weapons/gel-blasters> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(5) South Australia Police — Keeping SA Safe. 2020. Gel Blasters Declared Regulated Imitation Firearm. [online] Available at: <https://www.police.sa.gov.au/sa-police-news-assets/add-to-all-lsas/gel-blasters-declared-regulated-imitation-firearm> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(6) Police.sa.gov.au. 2020. SAPOL — Firearms And Weapons. [online] Available at: <https://www.police.sa.gov.au/services-and-events/firearms-and-weapons> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
(7) www.dictionary.com. 2020. Definition Of Firearm | Dictionary.Com. [online] Available at: <https://www.dictionary.com/browse/firearm> [Accessed 10 October 2020].
