Public Domain Firearms

[DeanSports]

Does anyone know what all firearms are considered public domain as of now?

 

[Tactically Fat]

What do you mean?

As in "public rights" to copy/reproduce?

 

[HHollow]

Patents only protect an invention for about 20 years. Trademarks are a completely different matter and can be renewed forever. If a firearm has been around and the patents are expired then anyone can duplicate it and sell it. However, trademarks are protected and one must be careful as to how a firearm is named or labeled.

 

[Psode27]

Mosins? Sorry, that isn't real helpful.... Never really thought about that. Per the patent protection rules, I would bet a whole crap-ton, but I'm not up on stuff like that. Now would that just mean little companies could build them sans royalties?
some sexy examples....
FN Fal - first built 1956
Steyr AUG- first built 1978

 

[aclark]

Ar15
1911
10/22

im just throwing out a few that I would assume fit the category.

 

[1911ly]

Op, Your question is really too broad. Are you asking what guns can you copy? For your own use you can copy pretty much anything as long as you follow ATF guide lines. You can't put Ruger 10-22 on your copy though, etc..

Ak's, FAL's, Uzi's Bren's, Sten's, Sterling's, MP40's.... the list is huge! What are you wanting to do???

 

[HHollow]

Op, Your question is really too broad. Are you asking what guns can you copy? For your own use you can copy pretty much anything as long as you follow ATF guide lines. You can't put Ruger 10-22 on your copy though, etc......

Sure, the trademarks are protected but a clone rifle could be sold under another model name, so long as all patents are expired. Call your Ruger 10/22 clone somethign else, like a 9/11.

Hey, that's a pretty goodname for a gun?!

 

[indykid]

Just a word of warning about trademarks and patents. Although the movie villain loved H&K MP5 is well passed it's patent date, H&K has successfully sued clone makers for copying the design and shape. The cloners called their clone by another name, but still got sued and lost. The ones with enough money are still in business, others not so lucky.

And people wonder why I do not like H&K.

 

[DeanSports]

Thanks for the input guys. I am referring to patents only. Not trademarks or Copyrights. I was looking into why are there so many companies making AR lowers and things like that. Do they all license out the design or what. Then looked into FN and no one seems to have a remake of the SCAR. Eventually the research lead to me finding out that patents last 20 years and then they are public domain.

Thanks for the heads up on the H&K deal. I will look into that a little more. Do you have details? What made the decision final since patents expire?

 

[DeanSports]

I looked into the HK lawsuits. Looks like what the lawsuit was about was that the GSG 22 MP5 looks too much like Hk's MP5, infringing on the design patent. But design patents only last 14 years so I really don't get how they got away with that lawsuit. But later there was a counter lawsuit but I didn't read into that.