The Calico Light Weapons System
A gun for the new millennium
This is the most advanced firearm that I am aware of,
and is likely the most advanced weapons system which still fires a projectile,
rather than some sort of death ray. Compared to the Calico, most other firearms
seem like throwbacks to the last century. In referring to throwbacks from
the last century, it is unfortunate that for the first four years of this
millennium, until the expiration of the dreadful crime bill of 1994 on September
13, 2004, new Calico firearms, and new magazines will only be available to
the military, and law enforcement. Those fortunate enough to have acquired
them while they could still be had should consider themselves lucky. Here
is a summary of how many of these innovative weapons were produced for the
civilian market: ( I could get no breakdown on carbines as to how many were
in 9mm, and how many were in .22)
| Year |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
Totals |
| Pistol 9mm |
349 |
900 |
495 |
676 |
2569 |
- |
4989 |
| Pistol .22 |
532 |
1800 |
675 |
688 |
625 |
- |
4320 |
| Carbine(9mm/22) |
2136 |
1900 |
0 |
1743 |
5058 |
668 |
11505 |
As is readily apparent, there are not very many of them. Just over twenty
thousand 
of all types were produced before the new gun bill legislated them out of
existence. Certainly, there is still the foreign market along with the domestic
police and military, but the scarcity of guns, and particularly of the hundred
round magazines, has done terrible things to prices. Note that production
of pistols ceased in 1995 after the passage of the so called crime bill.
I assume that the carbines produced after the ban were all in .22, which
may be exempt under the crime bill. The 1996 add for Calico would seem to
confirm this, as no mention of a 9mm model, nor of any pistol model is made.
Adding to the scarcity of the guns is the matter of attrition. Though guns
are built ruggedly, things break, get lost, are improperly maintained, and
accidents do happen. The newest of these weapons in 9mm is six years old.
The plastic bodied magazines can be somewhat fragile, and were never abundant
(particularly the 100 round models).
My personal collection contains the
pistol, the carbine, three 50 round magazines,
and one hundred round magazine. I am still kicking myself for not getting
an extra pair of hundred rounders while they were available at a reasonable
cost. I was a gun dealer back when I purchased these weapons, and could have
had the hundred round magazines for about $60 apiece. Presently the magazines,
when they can be found at all, sell for hundreds of dollars each. I can only
hope that production of .22 rifles will keep Calico in business until the
ban expires; their life has not been an easy one. On top of the ban, passed
four years after they began production, equally foolish (and equally unconstitutional)
laws have been passed in California which made it impossible to continue
production there. They have moved from a plant in Bakersfield California
to a new one in Sparks Nevada. Here they will hopefully be left alone to
pursue their business and provide an honest living for their employees. There
is a web site at http://www.calicolws.com/
which presently gives little information except the company name, address,
and the promise of more to come.
There is somewhat more information about the
mechanics of the gun on the individual pages for the firearms themselves,
along with a passing reference to them on my pistol/carbine
combo page. This gun has been used in one movie of which I am aware. This
was the James Bond movie "Tomorrow Never Dies", unfortunately these weapons
were carried by the bad guys. There is so little information on the Calicos,
because of their short history, and stunted market, that even as the owner
of a set, I have little knowledge of them, and little is available. I do
expect that there will be a resurection of sorts when the ban expires.