Brownell's Spring Reloading Sale

Help Me Legalize Semiauto Rifle Big Game Hunting In Pennsylvania

I live and hunt mostly here in NY, and surprisingly we can use semi autos to harvest big game. We cannot , however, own suppressors, they are too "militaristic". Though we can use semi autos, rarely do you see someone with one afield, because we have to use a caliber larger than .22, so all those 5.56 and .223s are out.

I hunt mostly with a bolt action .308, but I pull out the old 870 every now and then for a walk in the woods.

Does someone need a semi auto to harvest a deer in a humane and ethical manner, no, but I will support their right to do so in a safe, ethical and humane manner.
 
I lived in PA many years ago and experienced the opening day of Buck season a few times. It sounded like a civil war reenactment. I participated in making the noise!

I have participated in many driven deer hunts which are the most active shooting I’ve seen in big game hunting. We killed 14 does one big drive in PA…

I’ve hunted many states since then that allow semi automatic rifles and experienced anything dangerous or rapid fire shooting.

I don’t own a semi automatic rifle. Nothing against them, they’re just not my cup of tea.

I do own semiautomatic shotguns and raise holy hell with them on birds.

My thought process here is why limit a viable hunting weapon option. The percentage of people who will use them will be small. The idea that it’s going to be rapid fire is a misconception too. It takes time to aim.
 
I have started a petition to legalize the use of semiauto rifles for big game hunting in Pennsylvania.

You do not need to be a resident to sign the petition as non-residents can hunt in Pennsylvania with the proper licensing.

I don't do Facebook or X, so if you could kindly share the link on those platforms I would be grateful.

https://chng.it/twNR9CkrTW
 
Never once have felt the urge to lay down a rapid fire barrage at big game.

Never once have I thought I could have killed a big game animal, if only I had another 2,3,or 4 follow up shots.
 
I signed the petition. Initially i wasnt going to, only because it doesn't pertain to me and ive got not current plans to hunt PA - but your candor and decency amonst a bunch of poor logic made it easy to change my mind, @2Die4. Good luck.

Ar15s make great affordable hunting rifles. Especially for women/children. Low recoil. Lightweight. Easy controls. Good suppression (300 bo). Etc.

By the way - john waynes ar15 and/or the eugene stoner edition amish machine guns probably arent much slower in practice and take the same magazines as the scary ar15.


 
How many of you followed the link and actually read the argument in the petition?

Just curious...
I read it and I'm wondering what the reasoning is for wanting them to be legalized? Being able to spray a barrage of bullets across the field or hillside does not contribute to safe hunting especially in a state with 630,00+ hunters in the state.
And this statement on the petition is not real-life. Even with a recoil or gas operated semi-auto you will lose the sight picture.

Semiautomatic rifles allow for faster, more accurate follow-up shots without disturbing the sight picture, which is crucial for quickly and humanely dispatching wounded game.
 
I read it and I'm wondering what the reasoning is for wanting them to be legalized? Being able to spray a barrage of bullets across the field or hillside does not contribute to safe hunting especially in a state with 630,00+ hunters in the state.
And this statement on the petition is not real-life. Even with a recoil or gas operated semi-auto you will lose the sight picture.

Semiautomatic rifles allow for faster, more accurate follow-up shots without disturbing the sight picture, which is crucial for quickly and humanely dispatching wounded game.

Here you can see this young fellow practicing for deer season. Maintaining his sight picture the whole time.
 
I read it and I'm wondering what the reasoning is for wanting them to be legalized? Being able to spray a barrage of bullets across the field or hillside does not contribute to safe hunting especially in a state with 630,00+ hunters in the state.
And this statement on the petition is not real-life. Even with a recoil or gas operated semi-auto you will lose the sight picture.

Semiautomatic rifles allow for faster, more accurate follow-up shots without disturbing the sight picture, which is crucial for quickly and humanely dispatching wounded game.
In hindsight, that should have been worded "without disturbing the sight picture as much as a conventional rifle."

As far as not disturbing the sight picture, it depends on the caliber. I built two .204 Ruger uppers with 24 inch barrels for a prairie poodle hunt that I can watch the hole appear on target through the 24X scope at 100 yards at the pull of the trigger. My .458 SOCOM upper is another story, lol!

Given two rifles of equal weight firing the same load, the gas rifle will always have less felt recoil due to the buffer and recoil spring dissipating the reward velocity of the bolt carrier group over time.

The "straight" stock of an AR-15 has no drop at the comb, so there will be less muzzle rise compared to a monte carlo style stock.

Thanks for your input!
 
Regarding the Forced Reset Trigger in the video doing 30 round magazine dump : I am in favor of a 5 round magazine capacity limit for big game hunting as well as not allowing Forced Reset Triggers to be used for any hunting scenario.
 
I love my 760. I can confirm with you that they are indeed referred to as the Amish Automatic down here!
They are often surprisingly accurate too. But never seen one whose forearm didn't rattle when carrying without a hand on it.

We have always allowed semis and only with the black gun boom have I noticed problems. Every year lately someone lets off with a volley of way more than 5 rounds that makes me wonder if I should hide behind a tree.

It's more a mag capacity issue than semi auto IMO. Maybe bump stock or trigger alteration which ain't legal here anymore. I think you'd have to have a mag limit to have a chance of changing this.
 
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