One Canterbury gun owner says the atmosphere at the first gun buyback event had an interesting atmosphere. 

Author Ray Berard was one of the 169 owners who attended the event at Riccarton Racecourse yesterday. 

A total of 224 guns were handed in yesterday, the first of 258 that will run across the country over the next three months.

On top of more than 200 guns, owners handed in 217 parts and accessories, with the total compensation cost coming to $433,682.

Berard says he was happy to hand his guy over. It was a 45 minute process, and he received 90 per cent of what he had paid for the gun as compensation.

He says that most people seemed to be fine with the process, but there were some that were still divided over the process.

"It's a big thing when the Government decides to change the law and buy it back." 

Berard has accepted that he had to hand it back. He says that he has come to understand that military style rifles should not be in the hands of private citizens. 

"My rifle was a beautiful rifle, but my rifle in the wrong hands could kill a lot of people really, really quickly."

Berard intends to buy a bolt-action rifle with his compensation, and will continue to hunt at least once a year. 

• Over $400k worth of guns handed in at first buyback event