r/canadaguns • u/Whoopity_Longjohn • Apr 16 '17

Why are Valment AK's actually legal?

All AK variants are banned but I'm just curious about what difference makes the Valmet variant legal. Specific components? Caliber? Where it was made?

18 Upvotes

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u/Krazee9 on Apr 16 '17

It is exempt from the ban by name. Specifically, the Valmet M78, Valmet Hunter, and Valmet Hunter Auto are exempt by name. The other Valmets, like the M76, are still banned.

Supposedly, this is because in the '80s sometime the government had given a bunch of Valmets to native groups in Northern Quebec and didn't then want to confiscate them from those groups, so they decided to make a special exception for the Valmet.

4

u/[deleted] Apr 17 '17

Why did the government give away Valmets?

2

u/Krazee9 on Apr 17 '17

Hell if I know, the government does lots of things that don't make sense. I think it was because they were reliable in cold weather so the natives in northern areas would have an easier time hunting or something.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 17 '17

No there's an interesting idea... Help promote a more sustainable way of life by promoting hunting/trapping through various incentives.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 18 '17

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u/downvotemeufags Apr 18 '17

They didn't have a bunch laying around to give away, they bought them to give away.