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Commission Internationale Permanente pour l’Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives

Commission Internationale Permanente pour l’Epreuve des Armes à Feu Portatives Permanent International Commission for Firearms Testing “Marking Firearms” And Council Directive 91/477/EEC of 18 June 1991 Introduction The Permanent International Commission for firearms testing (C.I.P.) is a State International Organisation composed of thirteen countries which agree on the reciprocal acceptance of proof-test marks on firearms as well as ammunition which has passed the safety test. Firearm safety tests were made compulsory at the beginning of the 20th century and in the various member countries at the times when national proof houses were set up and proof-test marks were introduced. This led to the establishment of the Permanent International Commission (C.I.P.), the scope of which was to guarantee the safety of civilian firearms, commercial ammunition and all other equipment operating by means of explosive substances. Proof-test marks are issued by the respective testing authorities. The Permanent International Commission, the C.I.P., has been set up to check the activities of the national proof houses and, in particular, to guarantee the presence in each country of laws and regulations to assure the efficient and uniform testing of firearms and ammunition – which would be confirmed by the proof-test marks. Technical procedures by which the C.I.P. establishes and updates the various test methods are issued in the form of C.I.P. Decisions and are distributed through diplomatic channels to the supporting countries. The C.I.P. Decisions are updated, modified and published every two years. 1 2 States and Foundations The member states are as follows: Republic of Austria, Kingdom of Belgium, Republic of Chile, Czech Republic, Republic of Finland, French Republic, Federal Republic of Germany, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Republic of Hungary, Republic of Italy, Russian Federation, Slovakian Republic and Kingdom of Spain. The CIP Convention has the following major precepts: • There is reciprocal acceptance of each country’s proof-test marks, certifying the identity of the firearms and the satisfactory performance of the tests performed in accordance with the pre-set regulations; • Tests are standardised to guarantee safety and their application methods; • At least one state-controlled national Proof House exists in each country; • Every member country enacts a law which makes it compulsory to perform the tests according to the methods, limits and procedures established by the Convention. The main aims of the C.I.P. are as follows: 1. To select test pressure barrels to measure firing pressure and define the measurement procedures for use by official Proof Houses to determine pressure generated by test cartridges and the commercial cartridges fired by hunting, sport and defensive firearms and in machine tools; 2. To establish the kinds of procedures to be followed in the official tests used for firearms and machine tools to guarantee every degree of safety; 3. To adopt the most modern measuring techniques for the arms and ammunition testing procedures; 4. To encourage standardisation of chamber and cartridge dimensions, testing methods and ammunition testing procedures; 5. To examine laws and regulations issued by member states regarding official tests for firearms and ammunition; 6. To declare which countries act in accordance with standard tests and publish a schedule of the proof-test marks applied by the official testing centres of these countries; 7. In accordance with paragraph 6 above, to retract declarations when necessary, and modify the schedule when conditions are no longer valid. 3 Proof Houses of the member states are obliged to perform the tests of firearms and relevant ammunition in accordance with decisions taken by CIP. These decisions apply equally to highly-stressed firearm parts. Proof-Test marks may only be applied when the firearm or the highly stressed parts of it have been tested in accordance with the specified requirements and have satisfactorily passed the test. Tests The test includes: • A check before firing; • Proof firing; • Inspection after proof firing. The check before firing includes, as well as safety aspects, verification of the following identification marks: • Manufacturer’s name, trading name or registered trademark of the manufacturer, or some other mark enabling the firearm to be identified; • Firearm serial number; • Calibre. Marking and record keeping The following details are recorded after completion of the tests: • Test number and date; • Nature of the test firing; • Identifying features of the firearm’s manufacture and or the person requesting the test; • Firearm identification details; • In the event of rejection, the reason for it, and nature of the fault. The proof-test marks which are to be reciprocally accepted by the various countries are shown in Annex 1. It is important to recognise that they are, to all intents and purposes, state identification marks. 4 The operational sequence of the test procedure prescribed by C.I.P. (Decision XVII-11 which came into force on 15.10.83) may be summarised as follows: a) identification marks check (firearm identification): the following marks must be present on at least one of the main firearm pieces: b) Name, trade name or registered trademark; c) Serial number; d) Firearm calibre according to C.I.P. denomination (for example, 12-70, 243 Win., 9.3x74R) Proof-test marks and data registration In accordance with C.I.P. Decision XVII-11, the firearm is marked by the proof house with the internationally recognised proof-test marks if it has successfully passed all the previously mentioned tests: 1) On all firearms with the exception of revolvers: on each barrel action body, frame or essential item of the closing mechanism; 2) For revolvers: on the barrel, cylinder and frame; 3) An identification mark showing the year of manufacture will also be indicated on all firearms (this makes it easier to trace the firearm in subsequent years); 4) The barrel weight, internal diameter of each barrel and length of cartridge chamber must also be marked on smooth-bore firearms. These data provide what is necessary to check, in the event of an accident, whether the firearm has been modified after the marking. Record keeping All the data relevant to each firearm tested by the Proof House (serial number, manufacturer’s name and or company presenting it for testing, calibre, dimensions, date, origin) are shown on the certificate which the testing authority issues, and a copy is kept in the archives of the proof house. In this manner, the testing authority holds a record with the history of all the firearms tested in the last 100 years. It is very important to underline the importance of these records, since they generally represent the first step along the investigative path concerning a firearm if it has been used for criminal purposes. The C.I.P. Proof Houses uses a computerised system for registration of data relevant to the tested firearms. In this manner, the proof-test markings, rejects, output, certification, and billing are registered, as well as the normal items such as date and time of registration and name of test operator. 5 It is possible in this manner to perform the following in real time: - Check that registration on a firearm is unequivocal (double registration or same registration on different items – e.g. barrel and action body) - Check the type of firearm registered - Chronological recording of all operations performed on firearm - Immediate tracing of firearm - Statistical analysis of registered data Also every part of the firearm present in the proof house is immediately traceable and it is possible in real time to prepare a record card with all the related information: manufacturer, customer, type of firearm, entry date, test date, exit date, billing date and any reasons for rejection. Thus it can be seen that the function of the proof house does not begin and end with the user’s safety check, but it also provides precautionary checks on the manufacture and circulation of firearms which are supplementary to those made by the police force. In this respect it is worth recalling the importance of the checks which the proof house must carry out regarding the correct presence of the serial number and the manufacturer’s mark which enable the product to be identified. If firearms come from abroad, the importer must submit them to the proof authority to perform the same operations envisaged for arms produced within the C.I.P. country. This is not required for the importers of firearms from countries in which the proof-test marks are recognised on the basis of the Brussels Convention of 1st July 1969 and other regulations in force – on the condition that they are provided with all the registration and identification marks as per the firearms manufactured within the C.I.P. country. If the serial number is missing from the firearm (which is often the case for foreign firearms), the proof authority punches in a progressive number, which is recorded in a register held at the proof house. In this manner, the origin and the initial history of the firearm can always be reconstructed after testing at the proof house: who made the proof-test mark, when it was presented and to whom it was delivered after the test. Firearms which do not have testing marks impressed by the testing authority as internationally recognised uploads/Industriel/ bancos-de-pruebas-cip.pdf