I know that each gang has their own weapon that is iconic of that gang, but I feel like these minor NPCs should have some variance, and since they don't create a demand when robbed, they should have less-important gear on them. I think it would be cool to see gangers walking around with bokken, basic machetes, butterfly knives, axe handles, pipes, baseball bats, etcetera. It would feel more organic that way, and the iconic weapons would still be in the hands of the recurring gang NPCs who would still want them for the automated jobs.
It's no secret that there's an issue with farming, and I think that the fact that there's a potentially infinite supply being generated by minor gangers is clashing with a very finite demand may be breaking the economy while farming continues for no particulary reason. That's not to say the minor gangers should never have these items, they probably should have them sometimes so that they aren't entirely scarce, but it should be randomized throughout as to make it harder to farm these "big ticket" items as 'help farming' states.