Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Canada PAL renewal times.

I’ve never had any problems with the Mounties. Something to keep in mind, this Canadian fire arms office in Mirrimishi NB is the single place in the country that handles licensing for all Canadian firearm owners. One facility for the entire country. They’re busy. In the states they do it state by state. In Canada, it’s done at the federal level.

Then open 2 facilities.

673;
Good morning my friend, I hope you're all having a mild morning up there too and all is well with your fine family.

While I've told this one before, hopefully I can be forgiven for repeating it and even more hopefully I don't change the details enough to bugger it up - but and nonetheless...

In the dark days of the long gun registry, I'd picked up a .250AI built by a local very talented amateur gunsmith who'd passed on, so a buddy was helping the widow get rid of the collection and projects both finished and sorta finished.

Since we had to phone in the transaction to Miramichi, I did that and got some nice lady with an East Coast sort of accent that we don't hear that often in the land of fruits and nuts we call home.

At that time they wanted the barrel length and all the details, so I informed her that it was a .250AI with serial number etc., etc. on this type of action and she stopped me mid sentence.

"That's the wrong cartridge designation sir", she said, "I've got it as a .300 Savage"

My reply was, "It's most definitely a .250 Ackley Improved, with a 40° shoulder, not the 28° shoulder, would you like to know the barrel maker?"

She then said something about me having to take it to the local firearms verifier and it was my turn to stop her in mid sentence with, "Sorry ma'am, I happen to have turned down that position, know the verifier very well and can assure you this is what I am telling you it is. Further more, you do realize that rifle barrels are just screwed in, right? They have told you that have they not? We can change them out just like snow tires"

Her response was a unique combination that contained some unrepeatable words, sort of like when some of the Newfoundland co-workers would cuss, but different than that even.

Again, we don't cuss in those combinations out here in the savage west apparently, mostly our cussing deals with the article in question procreating, with the possibility that a deity has condemned it before and during the procreation process, but we're less colorful for sure.

Anyways, I'd have liked to have been a fly on the wall during the coffee break out in Miramichi when she informed her fellow firearms registry people there were BC rednecks changing gun barrels like snow tires!

Oh and by the by 673, buddy that I bought it from had a LA 700 that we'd fitted at least 4 and perhaps I'm forgetting one or more different Remington take off barrels on and they head spaced out fine. The writing and sight holes in the barrel didn't line up on them, but the head space was fine and I shot them with him without incident.

He of course thought my conversation with the lady in New Brunswick was humorous too.

That buddy has been gone for years now 673, thanks kindly for making me recall him on this still, misty Okanagan morning. Willy and I had some grand visits over the years and he was one of a kind.

All the best to you all this Christmas.

Dwayne

35 million Canadians; 350 million Americans

And 52 states.

Angus Reid estimates that there are only 4 million firearm owners in Canada. I don’t know how accurate that statistic is. I saw a recent post somewhere here on the Fire that placed US gun owner ship at over fifty percent. That would equate to 175 million gun owners in the US. Canadian gun owners are definitely a minority. It’s no wonder the US needs state operated gun licensing facilities.

Nick

If a gun owner only has a couple firearms and they are now "prohibited", then why bother with a PAL, just move forward with a GFY?

Nick;
Top of the morning to you sir, I hope all is well with you folks out east this morning.

With the understanding and clear as can be statement up front that all I am going to suggest hence forward is what I hear and not what I have direct knowledge of - here goes.

When the Libs did the first registry of long guns, the number of total firearms which the government floated as being in circulation was much disputed - as in very much.

Independent estimates were as high as 15 to 20 million firearms and they were at 10 million - ish.

Why they would do that is anyone's guess, but I would make the observation that if they had say 2 million firearms registered, the lower the overall number they come up with, the better the compliance looks like.

While I used to participate in some phone and online polling, I quit years ago when it became obvious to me that the questions were constructed in such a way as to produce a very specific and directed outcome.

At that stage in my working life, I was involved in an ISO type certification program in a manufacturing shop, where we had to make manuals for all tasks. We soon learned that we needed to ask very specific questions, in order to get the information that we needed to write the manual which would get us the certification.

Now those questions and the resulting manual may or may not have had anything to do with milking chickens in January when it's so cold that the molasses in your engine block freezes...... but we made manuals and got certified.....

As well during that time in my work, I was responsible for tracking all sorts of statistics in the plant from work station throughput values, waste calculations, cost of goods, cost of labour, cost of toilet paper, etc. All that to say I could do flow charts, pie graphs and multi linked Excel spreadsheets until the cows came home and then some.

So to bring that thought full circle, today I do not do any polls and do not know anyone who does.

If then we have a situation where a certain percentage of a group/society declines to participate in a poll and we do not know how significant that percentage is, the question has to be asked how accurate the poll can possibly be.

Lastly, from chatting with coworkers and friends who have ties to different ethnic communities and LEO, there absolutely are some groups which are really quite well armed that the government nor their bought and paid for legacy media will even whisper about. We are left to speculate why that all is - both why the groups feel the need to be armed and the fact nobody will talk about it.

Anyways sir, I believe it was Mark Twain who suggested something like "There are lies, then damned lies and then there are statistics".

As a former and now reformed statistic maker, that's my thoughts on stats, but as always there's a bunch of horse trails leading to Mecca and all that I'm saying is that's the one I took.

All the best to you all, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Dwayne

If one looks at hunting licenses in BC, there are about 100,000 are sold each year out of a population of 3 million. That number has remained pretty constant for the last couple of decades. Those are pretty rough numbers, but you get the idea.

downwindtracker;
Good morning to you sir, I hope the day in your part of the coast is getting decent weather.

Again being perfectly transparent, I have no direct knowledge of the groups or individuals which I mentioned, but the firearms they had were not for hunting specifically.

Also, some of the groups do not require hunting licenses even if they were inclined to use whatever it was they had in possession for that purpose.

For sure it could be that the LEO and the other folks were just telling me stories or even outright fabrications, I do not know.

We in the hunting and sport shooting community are fairly easy to keep track of since we color inside the lines.

Groups like the NFA, CCFR and even BCWF - which I'm a former member of the first and current of both second and third, advocate on behalf of that group.

My point, albeit poorly made, is that there are an unknown number of "others" when it comes to firearms and firearms owners.

All the best to you all, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Dwayne

I have no idea what you are talking about.

Hi Dwayne,

I hope that you are doing well on this the shortest day of the year. It’s all downhill from here on in. Well, for us in eastern Ontario the worst of winter has yet to settle in. We aren’t all living in the Banana belt of Canada.

I do suspect that there are more than 4 million gun owners in Canada and I don’t know how Angus and Reid came up with that figure. I’ll look into it further. I do, as you mentioned, find any statistics from the current government suspect at best and doubly so when it relates to firearms. Thanks for your thoughts on this and may you and yours have a merry Christmas.

Nick

Nick;
Thanks for the reply and Christmas wishes sir, much appreciated for both.

One of my major issues with any poll would be that the respondent in some cases is being asked questions which may incriminate them in the future if not the present.

Seeing as how most folks can see legal firearm owners have been under attack by the current federal government and for that matter the paid propaganda arm of same, our legacy media, I cannot imagine what would entice me to admit to a total stranger on the phone or online that I owned firearms.

Now before someone points out the irony of that statement since I am doing that on a daily basis - they are correct I am - but - I have been and remain an active participant in the "gun lobby" for more than 40 years. Unpaid of course Nick, but I've been writing letters, teaching new shooters, active in gun clubs and giving statements to local media for the last 2/3 of my life.

If on the other hand a person say still is in possession of firearms but for whatever cause they no longer possess a PAL etc., if they were wise they'd not admit to owning any.

The governments for sure - we fervently hope at any rate - can access how many PAL/RPAL holders are still alive today, as they can access how many hunting licenses are sold, but again, that's not necessarily all the firearm owners or hunters either for that matter.

How many are missing from those numbers are the unknown.

For lack of a better example, it's somewhat like the feds pulling numbers out of the sky when they legalized cannabis products, because honestly they had less than zero clue how many users there were out there.

On that subject, they still have the same grasp on how many are out there if our BC grey market is any indication, but that's another topic for another day.

All the best to you all this Christmas again.

Dwayne

Pardon my ignorant hijack, but do any of you friendly northern neighbors know of an American getting a PAL? I want to start coming to hunting in Canada regularly and might consider getting some property up there. If that comes to pass, I have read that going over the border with a PAL makes the process very easy, but I believe that information is BT (before Trudeau). Can the whole process of a hunting license, gun permit and PAL all be done over a long weekend? I don’t have any interest in a restricted gun but if I’m there doing all the classes and paperwork, might as well get everything I can.

Thanks
Micky

micky;
Good morning to you sir, I hope that this Christmas Eve morning has been good to you all thus far.

The only poster here that I know is a US citizen with a PAL is wabigoon, so that'd be a start perhaps?

The PAL is a Canada wide process and covers you all across the country.

Hunting licenses are provincially regulated and there will be different requirements for each province.

Regarding a gun permit, I'm not exactly sure what you're referring to, but again if it's the paperwork required when you cross the border, that'd be federal both coming into Canada and whatever documents you're required to have re-entering the US.

My thought would be to find a PAL instructor in the province you're likely to spend the most time hunting in, drop them an email and go from there.

Hope that helped.

Merry Christmas to you all.

Dwayne

Mickey, I had a PAL, and renewed it. The last time the RCMP wanted my original test. I sent it to them, what gives?
I'll have to take the test again.

Poor wording on my part. Is there a difference between the courses for no. Restricted, restricted, safety and PAL? Is there a way to get all of that during a couple days is what I’m hoping.

Renewals for the people I regularly shoot with have varied from 2 weeks to over 1 1/2 years. No real differences in any applications --- no divorces or failed business or falling out with the law.

Mine was 3 weeks, my wifes 14 months, our sons 2 weeks, my one hunting partner 8 months. No consistency.

If you are a trustworthy citizen and renew over the internet, it only takes 17 days overn the Christmas season.

As a handgun owner, you also need to send in your gun club membership. That is what usually screws up us Albertans.

Trustworthy??? Maybe that’s what made it take so long. 😂