The Future of Gun Control.

[luchog]

I also fail to see where this would do anything to curb zip-guns - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zip_gun In fact I can see where this would cause an increase in their use.

A crude but effective firearm similar to the M3 "Grease Gun" submachine gun can be easily manufactured in quantity by anyone with access to an automotive or similar machine shop. Thus easily bypassing any "smart gun" regulations.

 

[Ravenwood]

Actually the Sten is a better example of an easily constructed submachine gun, most of the parts needed are easily available legally on line, with the exception of the reciever, which can be easily fabricated in 15 minutes with a dremel tool and an arc welder. (I am a gunsmith ) even easier to make would be an old style pepperbox pistol. Not to mention the scores of cap & ball revolvers out there...real easy to fabricate ammunition for them, & most states do not require you to register them or even get a permit for them

 

[Bikewer]

On another bulletin board, I posted information we'd recieved as an "officer safety" item.
A fellow doing time in jail managed to manufacture a firearm, using rolled-up soda-cans for a barrell, match-heads for propellant, and a AAA battery as the projectile.
This extremely crude item was capable of denting and even penetrating a galvanized-steel fence section adjacent to the prisoner's cell.

Some years back, there was a news item about a prisoner who manufactured a semi-automatic handgun in the prison machine shop. A magazine and cartridges had been smuggled in, and he machined the rest.
Fortunately, it was found prior to being used in an escape attempt. The prison authorities test fired the weapon, which worked quite well.....

 

[Pope130]

I've examined a number of the safe gun designs. Some of them work well for the intended pupose of preventing an officers gun being taken and used against him. None of them are designed to, or capable of, preventing a stolen gun from being made operational. In every case I've seen it would be fairly easy to disassemble the weapon, disable the safety features and render it operable. In some cases it may be necessary to substitute action components (sear, hammer, disconnector and so on) built for a non-safety weapon, or ones fabricated by the illicit gunsmith.
For police use the safety feature is useful, but only if the safe gun can be made as reliable as the present sidearm. This hasn't happened yet. One worry on any system using a coded chip is that it would be susceptable to jamming. While not a worry for the ordinary citizen (muggers presumably not having this sort of hardware), for anti-terrorist, VIP protection or defense of other high value targets it is a concern.
Interestingly this is not a new idea. I've seen a 1930's era ad for a safety link for revolvers. It fit inside the grips, and had a bar that would block the hammer from being cocked. A ring with a magnet would pull the bar out of the way.

Robert Klaus

 

[Tmy]

. This hasn't happened yet. One worry on any system using a coded chip is that it would be susceptable to jamming.

Can you jam a frequency thats being transmitted (from the ring) just centimeters away from the receiver (in the gun)? I think that kind of tech wouldnt be all that successful. Or available.

 

[luchog]

Can you jam a frequency thats being transmitted (from the ring) just centimeters away from the receiver (in the gun)? I think that kind of tech wouldnt be all that successful. Or available.

That kind of tech is trivial. Since the signal needs to be within a few centimetres to be effective, it's an extremely low-power one. The tech needed to jam such a signal is very simple and easily hand-holdable. A device about the size of a large cell phone can easily create a signal orders of magnitude more powerful over the short term; and one the size of a policeman's radar gun just as much more powerful than that. The range doesn't need to be very far either; since urban engagements typically happen in less than 30 yards.

The jamming circuit is just a wide-band transmitter covering the very limited frequency range for the device, transmitting noise, with a power boost for range. Painfully trivial. Cell phones have sufficient power and range.

 

[Pope130]

Can you jam a frequency thats being transmitted (from the ring) just centimeters away from the receiver (in the gun)? I think that kind of tech wouldnt be all that successful. Or available.

A transmitter mounted in a ring would be of extremely low power (or would need an extension cord). A terrorist jammer set could be relatively high power, both because it need not be so small, and because it needs to work for a much shorter period. A jammer to block a coded chip only needs to transmit enough noise that the receiver in the weapon does not read the ring transmitter correctly. A wrong or garbled code received will not turn the weapon on. Think of it something like the cell phone jammers that are currently available.

Robert Klaus

 

[billydkid]

Actually the Sten is a better example of an easily constructed submachine gun, most of the parts needed are easily available legally on line, with the exception of the reciever, which can be easily fabricated in 15 minutes with a dremel tool and an arc welder. (I am a gunsmith ) even easier to make would be an old style pepperbox pistol. Not to mention the scores of cap & ball revolvers out there...real easy to fabricate ammunition for them, & most states do not require you to register them or even get a permit for them

Not to mention you can easily get airpowered guns which fire projectiles with power well in excess of that needed to kill people.

 

[shecky]

Aesthetically, I don't like the idea of a gun that has this level of complexity. I think this probably holds true for a lot of gun owners, who are capable of servicing their own weapons. Firearms are generally quite simple devices that are kept simple for the sake of reliability. Adding a level of complexity that most users won't truly understand probably isn't a great idea.

Maybe when laser blaster become commonplace...

 

[Mephisto]

How many cars come with alarm stystems that have remotes??? ya'll are acting as if your run of the mill thug is equal to genius supervillian with code breaking tech. When was the last time your car alarm was hacked?

THis is the same principle. And if the tech means that black market regular guns would become more valuable, THEN GOOD! That will price out alot of these young gangbanging thugs that are resonsible for so many shootings.

To be honest, when we moved into our last home the garage door opener was a gigantic two-pound, nine inches square monstrousity the everyone in my car pool poked fun at. The was an electrical engineer in the car and he suggested we punch the button on the opener as we drove down the street (something about older models have a wider bandwidth). To my surprise we opened three garage doors and a car alarm went off (although, I don't know if that was attributed to the opener).

I think the problem with adding technology to simple tools should be apparent. We would be adding unnecessary steps to a self-defense situation where fractions of a second may mean actual life or death.

Here is a quote from a law enforcement officer mentioning the video, "Surviving Edged Weapons," which is basically a law enforcement video. The reason I mention it is the simple fact that people (especially law enforcement officers) often underestimate the quick lethality of a knife in a close combat encounter. Also it features several notable Filipino martial artists.
_________

"Law enforcement has conducted many studies on this and developed some guide lines to follow about being attacked with such a weapon. The first video I saw was one called, "Surviving Edged Weapons." In this video they showed how if someone with a knife was within 21 feet of you they could get to you and stab or cut you before you could draw your firearm and shoot that person. The other point that is very important is that the vests that police officers wear will do nothing to stop a knife from cutting right through them."

http://www.sierratimes.com/05/04/06/sheriff.htm
________

Here is a synopsis of the video that is fairly accurate. Please note that this video isn't for the faint-hearted as there are several autopsy and morgue photos as well as crime scene photos and reenactments.

"Surviving Edged Weapons

[Video]
Northbrook, IL : Calibre Press, Inc.

DURATION: 85 minutes.

In an intense, action-filled 85 minutes, you'll learn to defend yourself against the mounting threat of "knife culture" offenders: how to assess an edged weapon assailant before he strikes...what really works and what doesn't to control him physically...when to use your baton-and deadly force...how to avoid the fatal reactions untrained officers instinctively have to sudden knife attacks...life-saving survival insights from officers who have nearly been killed with edged weapons...how prison inmates and knife experts train for the ultimate deadly attack...what's the latest in improvised weapons...how to search for the most dangerous weapon...medical self-help to save your life if you are cut or stabbed...and much more!"

http://www.cji.net/CJI/CenterInfo/lemc/library/Descriptions/SurvivingEdged.htm
________

My point being, it's much easier for a person to use a knife effectively than it is a gun, BUT most knife-wielding criminals will be detered by a firearm even in the hands of an elderly lady or a young child. Certainly much has to be said about the added preparations a homeowner would have to take in this stressful situation (donning the correct rings or bracelets, loading the firearm, preparing it to fire, etc.) while nothing has been done to slow the attacker.

WAIT! I've got it! Knives that only work when . . .

 

[Freakshow]

As soon as I saw "Here is a quote from a law enforcement officer mentioning the video, "Surviving Edged Weapons," which is basically a law enforcement video.", I thought "21 FEET!!!!!!!"


People just do not believe that, until they see it demonstrated. I didn't.

To be honest, when we moved into our last home the garage door opener was a gigantic two-pound, nine inches square monstrousity the everyone in my car pool poked fun at. The was an electrical engineer in the car and he suggested we punch the button on the opener as we drove down the street (something about older models have a wider bandwidth). To my surprise we opened three garage doors and a car alarm went off (although, I don't know if that was attributed to the opener).

I think the problem with adding technology to simple tools should be apparent. We would be adding unnecessary steps to a self-defense situation where fractions of a second may mean actual life or death.

Here is a quote from a law enforcement officer mentioning the video, "Surviving Edged Weapons," which is basically a law enforcement video. The reason I mention it is the simple fact that people (especially law enforcement officers) often underestimate the quick lethality of a knife in a close combat encounter.
_________

"Law enforcement has conducted many studies on this and developed some guide lines to follow about being attacked with such a weapon. The first video I saw was one called, "Surviving Edged Weapons." In this video they showed how if someone with a knife was within 21 feet of you they could get to you and stab or cut you before you could draw your firearm and shoot that person. The other point that is very important is that the vests that police officers wear will do nothing to stop a knife from cutting right through them."

http://www.sierratimes.com/05/04/06/sheriff.htm
________

Here is a synopsis of the video that is fairly accurate. Please note that this video isn't for the faint-hearted as there are several autopsy and morgue photos as well as crime scene photos and reenactments.

My point being, it's much easier for a person to use a knife effectively than it is a gun, BUT most knife-wielding criminals will be detered by a firearm even in the hands of an elderly lady or a young child. Certainly much has to be said about the added preparations a homeowner would have to take in this stressful situation (donning the correct rings or bracelets, loading the firearm, preparing it to fire, etc.) while nothing has been done to slow the attacker.

WAIT! I've got it! Knives that only work when . . .