Vintage Gun Ads...The Day After...

[SteyrAUG]

This will likely be my last installment of Vintage Gun Ads. I have pretty well covered the early 1980s and things before and after that just won't be as interesting.

And somehow ending with the 1989 Import Ban just seems fitting as it ended many things. The following ads are taken from SOF in the last months of 1989 and the year 1990.

Prior to that SOF advertisements were almost a wish list for firearms enthusiasts and these were pretty typical.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000156.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000157.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000153.jpg

And then the ban came. Suddenly the semi auto versions of military rifles were gone.

There were still firearm advertisements but they were very mundane and represented what was still "importable."

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000167.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000168.jpg

Advertisements for Ruger and Glock handguns became the standard back page and replaced ads for HK91s, FALs and Chinese AKs. The only AKs advertised for sale in those last months of 1989 were these.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000166.jpg

And the void in the market was filled by bubba nonsense for your SKS rifle (which was still importable.)

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000169.jpg

But things really didn't hit home until we saw this advertisement early in 1990.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000170.jpg

And Colt took some criticism for jumping on the "ban" bandwagon when they voluntarily self neutered their rifles resulting in the Colt Sporter which was sold only with a 5 round magazine and no bayonet lug.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000171.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000172.jpg

And for anyone who still hadn't figured out what all this meant, this small advertisement gave them an idea what the next decade would look like.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000173.jpg

There was an upside however, the void left by the absence of imports was quickly filled by "other" manufacturers of AR-15s which led to the AR-15 being the most dominant black rifle on the market by anyone's standard.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000174.jpg

So even if Colt wouldn't make them, somebody would...at least for the next four years.

As for imports, this is what we were left with until people began producing US receivers and building "parts kits" guns in the late 1990s.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000175.jpg

And for those who thought magazines were expensive today...try this. Keep in mind these are aftermarket magazines.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000176.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000178.jpg

Night vision was no easy investment either.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000177.jpg

And low budget crap ruled the day. The gunsmith geniuses at Red Jacket firearms would later reinvent this "master key" setup for a third time.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000179.jpg

But it wasn't all bad...you could still buy doodads like KGB ballistic knives and when was the last time you saw a Benchmade balisong this cheap?

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000180.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y145/SteyrAUG/GunAds000181.jpg

Thankfully, even with the current restrictions we still have...I think we are in a much better place.

[Redmanfms]

Thankfully, even with the current restrictions we still have...I think we are in a much better place.

I agree, we are in a golden age.

Firearms are generally cheaper too.




I do wish we still had Chinese imports though.

[militarymoron]

I do wish we still had Chinese imports though.

they can be found with a little searching.


they're all looking for a good husband, though.

[QuietShootr]

I want to thank you again for posting these. They remind me of the good parts of my high school years.

[Mark71]

SteyrAUG,

Thanks for taking the time to post up these ads.

[one]

Again I remember every single ad posted. Hell I spent hours looking at that Chinese import Dragunov. Then finally got one years later.

[Moose-Knuckle]

Thanks Steyr for the walk down memory lane. I was in elementary during those years but have fond memories of looking through my dad's gun rags at those ads and seeing all the NIB imports at gun shows.

My dad always wanted a Valmet or Galil, he settled for an HK91 that he still has to this day, thankfully.