Notice the 6 o'clock firing alignment. Have read the recoil is very manageable for a magnum.
Posted on 07/31/2011 8:02:31 PM PDT by marktwain
A few days ago we reported that Italian firearms manufacturer Chiappa was going to start placing RFID chips into their firearms as part of an internal tracking process. The hairs on the back of American gun owners’ necks tingled at the thought (and not in a good way). Missing the “golden 24″ (hours) of PR response time, MKS Distributing has released their own press release in response to the increased blog traffic regarding the the RFID chips. The American Distributor for Chiappa and Hi-Point promptly shot themselves in the foot . . .
RFID “Chip” in Chiappa Firearms-what’s up with that?
MKS Distributing, Dayton OH, July, 2011-Distributor for Chiappa Firearms
Recently there has been some blogger activity (credibility always guaranteed) concerning Chiappa Firearms putting a RFID (radio frequency identification) in Chiappa Firearms. Yes, but Chiappa will not be using the RFID system for at least a year.
RUMOR: (known as blogosphere food): The erroneous information about some sort of “chip” was put out by a blogger who translated Chiappa (Italian) technical information incorrectly. The incorrect translation and his interpretation came out as some sort of a GPS type tracking “chip” -which RFID isn’t as it cannot transmit anything-it has NO power source (unlike cell phones).
THE FACTS: Recently several Italian gun makers (not just Chiappa) decided to utilize RFID technology to improve manufacturing and provide more accurate inventory control. We guarantee this technology will proliferate to other gun makers world wide as it is so efficient for everything from production QC control to export/import varification. Other industries already use passive RFID technology such as on DVDs, sunglasses, clothes and even some food products for example.
Basically Chiappa RFID (again it is radio frequency identification) assists the manufacturing process, inventory control and shipping. The type of information on the RFID ties in the firearm and proof house verification; the latter is required by the Italian Government for all firearms made in Italy. Passive RFID is also a final check that verifies that what is inside the sealed box is the same thing as shown on the box exterior bar code during shipping. Now, it will no longer be necessary to open/inspect hundreds of boxes by hand prior to packing in export containers.
BOTTOM LINE: The Chiappa PASSIVE RFID can be read ONLY when passed within (2-3 inches) of an active (and powered) reader that is dialed in for the particular long antenna radio frequency of the RFID-this is not random. And it will NOT go into operation for a year or more.
SUMMARIZING: RFIDs have NO power source or GPS locator. Rest assured they are NOT transmitting your identification and location information to a Chiappa Firearm tasked CIA satellite.
RFID Removal: For those still concerned you can simply remove the grip and remove the hot glued RFID from the frame in the grip area when (over a year from now) these begin to appear. Others may prefer to wrap the revolver and their head in aluminum foil, curl in a ball and watch reruns of Mel Gibson’s 1997 film, Conspiracy Theory. Well, that’s a plan too!
First off, who thought it would be a good idea to insult anyone in a press release? When your customer base has concerns about your product or service, you do your best to alleviate their concerns and assure them nothing’s wrong. Simply put: never insult your customer. Or potential customers. This tactic will to cost MKS Distributing and therefore Chiappa a lot of business.
Secondly, bullshit. As The Firearm Blog points out, a hacker at the DEFCON security conference in Las Vegas was able to boost the signal of his RIFD reader and read a RFID chip on someone 217 feet away. I make that 2604 inches.
Thirdly, American gun owners are rightly suspicious of any device or program that IDs their guns to . . . anyone. They trust an Italian gunmaker named Chiappa about as much as they trust the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, if not less.
This press release, filled as it is with insults and misinformation, signals some serious clouds on the horizon for Chiappa and MKS Distributing. As this press release lights fires on gun blogs across the internet, one thing is for certain: American gun owners will punish any company stupid enough to call them stupid.
Even though the devices are meant to only be read from a few inches, the potential for abuse is obvious.
It would only be a small step for the government to require these devices to be permanently attached, and for the range to be increased.
Would everyone be comfortable being required to carry weapons that anyone with the proper devise could detect form a significant distance?
Tactically, it would be a very bad thing. Imagine having to wear a neon sign on your hat that flashes "I have a gun. Model X."
Privacy in personal weapons should be an obvious human right.
I need to find a handheld RFID detector (I do not say “reader”. Also, I need to check future potential firearm purchases for the names “Chiappa”, “hi-Point”, and “MKS” so that they may be struck from the list.
No, I ain’t mad. I actually appreciate it when people who think ill of me tell me up front rather than stabbing me in the back. Thank you, Chiappa/Hi-Point/MKS for your honest fair dealing. Too bad I won’t be expressing my appreciation in any positive financial way.
Or better yet, stick it on the outside where it's guaranteed everyone will see it and its removal is almost a foregone conclusion (besides the written disclosure on the outside of the box and removal instructions in the manual). Then no will suspect you of doing anything underhanded.
Whoever authored this is clearly in the wrong line of work.
Wonder if these folks worked for S&W during that company’s ‘stupid’ era.
I never heard of these clowns, but I know who they are now. Amazing how any business can think they can be that cute.
It’s like the latest James Bond guy saying he loves gun control - ended any interest that I had in his movies. There are times when it’s better to just keep one’s mouth shut.
Not that I was going to buy any of their stuff anyway...
Sounds like a job for a Tesla Coi... um, chip “reader.” But I ain’t buyin’ their firearms, anyway.
Notice the 6 o'clock firing alignment. Have read the recoil is very manageable for a magnum.
Proofing has been required in a number of European countries for several centuries, but not the RFID chip. An ingenious statement.
Irrational Prejudice Alert......
1. Buy and carry the 1911 .45ACP.
2. In case of questions, see line 1.
Someone needs to bring an RFID zapper to market.
Problem solved.
Which "stupid era" extends through today;
S&W have yet to repudiate their "Clinton Agreement."
Don't believe me? Just ask them.
Or ask American Handgunner magazine, their press-release outlet and no.1 fans.
Originally pioneered by......these guys:
Never trust people who want to chip you or your weapon.
Nice - its aligned on center mass. Buell did that with motorcycles and it worked. No doubt it does with handguns as well.
So now their firearms will no longer have a serial number ?
For my inventory control I can read a serial number from 18" away,,,,, if I have my glasses on.
Yours is the best solution so far. There is no reason to place it inside the gun anywhere if it’s just for inventory control. If it’s placed somewhere outside the gun it will be removed within the first 5 minutes it gets home. To hide it under a grip just makes more people uncomfortable and many will never find it. Non enthusiasts put the gun in a drawer and usually don’t clean it after use. RFID can be read at least from 5 feet away with no extra power amps and much much further if you really want to find one. The letter is too cute by half and tells lies to boot. That is absolutely a couple of names I will avoid.
It’s a very stupid idea to place the RFID chip INSIDE the gun grips. In every other application of the chip, it’s usually placed upon (or in) the container the product is placed in for shipment and sale.
In this day and age you cannot believe ANYTHING put out by the government or liberal media without caution.
Big deal. 24 hours after a “chipped” gun goes on sale in the US, there will be a video on youtube on how to disable or remove the chip.
Twp oints-
One-even if the RFID output matches/confirms the serial number of the label on the box, that is not sufficient to prove what serial number of the (or what the contents are for that matter) of the box actually are. The SN is the weapon, not a facsimile-ask any ATFE agent. I can imagine a single digit skip in the RFID sequence and the serial number on the weapon- then you have 100s of dirtibutors with mismatched guns/records-fun fun!!
Two- I’d bet as soon as a RFID chip was placed on a weapon, removing one would be the same violation as “defacing or removing” a serial number. Already on the books, just needs a procesutor to weave the web....
Real life example- we used to have bar code labels on on weapons in a unit I served in. I took over a XO and did a 100% inventory of arms room. The physical serial number and the label on one weapon did not match. The preovous XO knoew this. I tried to change teh label to reflect teh real number- Logistics declared that to be a violation of sensitive items registry and forbade me. I broughtthte weapon ( a small arm) to teh Chief of Log, and he ran teh actual number int eh system and came up with a weapon assigined to a unit in Italy. We were at Fort Hood TX.
Took six months to work out the fix-in the end, the “virtual “number was used, and my weapon had a serial numnber change made at depot level. Fabrique National had to be informed and told to adjust its serial number inventory of the M240C coaxial MGs.... makes lots of sense, huh? FN came back and said “NO”, that number is used also-on a sequential weapon (I told the Army that probability existed). I left long before the glitch was resolved, if ever. I was XO for 18 months. Also, with liberal use of Breakfree and dry-cleaning fluid, the labels adhesive eventuially dissolved and labels went missing....
Any tool for big brother is a bad one.
Can’t disagree with that.
Didn’t think about the “deface or remove” issue.
When somebody claims "RFID can only be read from inches away", the reality is that, while cheap RFID readers can only read it from inches, that does NOT mean that an RFID reader cannot be constructed that can read it from considerably further.
Recoil is fine. Overall appearance and workmanship is fine but the internal design has a lot of parts and has been prone to breaking. Many of them have been sent back for repairs so its not a very reliable piece if you have to have a handgun you can depend on.
I would prefer a SW .357 or a Colt Python or even a Ruger single action .357 as they are better weapons and no RFID chip.
RFID comes in passive and active configurations. Primarily used to track items. Carriers are using RFID to track weapon load out on a plane. Raeders generally placed at threshold area. Signal strength obviously kept low to avoid HREF.
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