M4A1 gel blaster opens sixth store on Brisbane’s bayside

M4A1 has opened its sixth gel blaster store in Brisbane’s bayside and while the lifelike toy guns are legal, police say what you do with them can be against the law.

M4A1 Gel Blaster has opened its sixth shop on a busy street in Wynnum.

ONE of the country’s biggest distributors of gel blaster guns has opened its sixth store in Brisbane’s bayside.

The M4A1 gel blaster store opened yesterday on the corner of Bay Terrace and Edith Street at Wynnum.

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It comes as Police Minister Mark Ryan last week made a request to tighten regulations on gel blaster guns after recent incidents in Queensland.

Nick Judge from M4A1 said 40 blasters had been sold yesterday.

M4A1’s Nick Judge said the Wynnum store had sold 40 gel blasters yesterday and the support from the community had been positive.

“It’s about getting people off the couch and out from the computer and actually getting out there having a bit of fun,” he said.

But not all residents are sold on the store and many raised concerns that the gel blasters looked like real guns and were being displayed so clearly.

Melynda Winn from Wynnum hair salon Melz.

Hairdresser Melynda Winn is a fourth generation Wynnum resident and owns Melz — a hair salon in view of the new store.

Ms Winn said she had lost sleep over the new business opening on “the busiest corner” of Wynnum next to where a children’s dance studio was about to open.

“We don’t need gun culture to be normalised in Australia like it is in America,” she said.

“Games already desensitise us towards violence and guns. Now walking for my coffee everyday I have to look at these anxiety creating machines.”

M4A1 Gel Blaster expanded its operations into Morayfield Shopping Centre earlier this year.

Blasters are banned in NSW and Victoria but are legal in South Australia and Queensland after they were deemed a “projectile toy”.

Officer in Charge at Wynnum Police Station Corinne Brown said while the toys themselves were legal — anyone who used them to cause fear would be breaking the law.

“These items should not be used in a public area which may cause fear or alarm to others,” she said.

“This is an offence and offenders will be dealt with by police in relation to these incidents.”

Snr Sgt Brown also had concerns over injuries caused to people’s eyes.

Mr Judge said gel blasters were meant to be fun.

But Mr Judge said should not “victimise” a sport that was meant to be fun.

He said more children were injured from bicycles each year than gel blasters.

Councillor for Wynnum Manly Ward Peter Cumming said he had received three submissions over the new business — one for and two against — but council had advised him they had no power to stop this type of business from trading.

He said he understood the community’s concerns.

“They are very realistic looking and unfortunately means that they could be used in crimes,” he said.