Incoming gunsperging:
There's absolutely no way he owns an authentic firearm unless he obtained it illegally, did a Private Sale, or it's just a range gun he rented and I would guess this isn't the case. He probably wouldn't (okay shouldn't) buy a firearm from a criminal and post about it online. I doubt he has the cash to pony up for a Private Sale, so it's likely a range gun or some buddy's gun. More likely it's a pellet gun though really.
In order for him to make a purchase legitimately, he would have to pass a background check with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Here are the guidelines for who a person prohibited from purchasing:
A prohibited person is one who:
Has been convicted in any court of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year;
Is under indictment for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year;
Is a fugitive from justice;
Is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance;
Has been adjudicated as a mental defective or committed to a mental institution;
Is illegally or unlawfully in the United States;
Has been discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions;
Having been a citizen of the United States, has renounced U.S. citizenship;
Is subject to a court order that restrains the person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of such intimate partner;
Has been convicted in any court of a "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence", a defined term in 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(33)[23]
He fits at least 2, maybe 3 of the criteria listed and lives in a State where they aren't in any way lax about that kind of shit. There's no way any NICS operator gave him a Proceed unless it was their first day and thought they were filling out a form for Arizona or something and even then they just took Phil's answers at face value. No fucking way in hell.