Hi-Tech Guns at SHOT Show

[GreenStormCloud]

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/01/high-tech-guns-digital-revolvers-koosh-bullets-and-triple-tasers/all/1

Once a year, in Los Vegas, there is the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade show. It is a showcase for new guns and firearms technology to be intorduced to the market. Some items from this year are:

Digital Gun. You have to be wearing the watch for it to shoot. If the gun is more than a few inches away from the watch, it disarms. At present it is available only in .22 cal, for 7,000 Euros. They plan to market large caliber guns soon. That would be another thing that I would have to buy batteries for.




Green is the new red. Green lasers at the same brightness are more easily seen by the human eye, even in daylight. Laser sight companies are beginning to produce green gun aiming lasers.



"Burris has built one of the most sophisticated rifle scopes we’ve ever seen. It has a laser rangefinder that can automatically adjust your sights to compensate for the fall of each bullet over long distances. Just point the crosshairs at the target, push a button on the side of the scope, and a bright red dot will show you exactly where the bullet will fall. We were able to easily hit targets at 400 and 700 meters without any experience at long-range rifle shooting."



Soft Rubber Bullets for Home Defense?
A Chinese toy company makes the foam rubber balls that are put into a shotgun shell. Will not penetrate the human body.

Sorry, but to me that looks like it would really piss off a home invader.

[ORDagnabbit]

1. cool!

[Katya Mullethov]

2. Dont knock the foam rubber pellets

I know of a guy that carries a 410 Judge for bear whenever he goes flyfishing . The guy that used to use the Goofy avatar . There is a market for just about anything.

[oneshooter]

10. Does he load it with foam rubber bullets? n/t

[Glassunion]

3. Ha!

"Sorry, but to me that looks like it would really piss off a home invader."

Yes, but can you imagine him having to tell his cell mates that he was taken down by getting shot with a French Tickler?

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

4. The burris scope is cool, but still can't compensate for crosswinds.

That's where the cutting edge stuff is ;)

[slackmaster]

5. FAIL - Most people shoot handguns with the dominant hand, and wear a watch on the other wrist

I can't even stand wearing a watch on my left wrist. One on my right wrist would drive me bonkers. I'd probably go into a church and shoot the place up or something.

:crazy:

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

6. I wear watches on my right wrist when I do wear them.

I've destroyed a number of watches over the years by wearing them on my dominant hand (right).
I have been unable to wear it on the correct wrist my whole life. I don't mind though.

[eqfan592]

7. Same boat here.

The only time I wore a watch on my right (dominant) wrist was when my left was wrapped after spraining the crap out of it. Otherwise, it's always been on the left wrist, so that pistol wouldn't work well for me, sadly.

[Nailzberg]

23. I always wear my watch on my strong side. But what if I have to shoot weak side?

Or what if someone breaks in the house while I'm asleep. I have to put my watch on first?

Stupid.

[AtheistCrusader]

8. On the shotgun rounds...

They are intended for LEO, based on the packaging at least. Which means, like Tasers, they will be more likely, not less likely, to use it on protestors and as 'compliance' tools.

If you whacked someone with a full brace of those (8 from my Mossberg's tube, +1) they might be pissed, but they are also going to be a hurting unit. Potentially easier to deal with, with a nice short butt-stroke.

[Euromutt]

17. They're a really bad idea for private citizens, legally speaking

And I quote the packaging in the photo on this page http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/01/high-tech-guns-digital-revolvers-koosh-bullets-and-triple-tasers/6/

This may be the most intelligent way to defend your family against home intruders.

Legally speaking, it's not; in fact, it's really fucking stupid.
This device is "less lethal," not "non-lethal"; quoth the manufacturer (http://www.lightfieldlesslethal.com/law_superstar.html):

The user should only target large muscle groups and soft tissue from the abdomen and below. Always avoid targeting the head, neck, thorax, spine, kidney area and groin as serious injury or death may occur.

That, combined with the fact you're using a firearm, means that, for legal purposes, you're still using lethal force, and you'd better be sure you're justified in doing so. If you're not justified shooting a person with 00 buck, you're not justified shooting him with a 650 fps koosh ball. And if the situation is dire enough that you are justified in shooting someone with 00 buck, why would you fuck about with a 650 fps koosh ball?

[GreenStormCloud]

24. A koosh ball hitting a burglar in the balls at about 450 miles per hour...

may get some interesting results.

[Euromutt]

25. That's probably true...

...but I'm not willing to be the one to conduct that particular experiment. From my perspective (as a private citizen), this round has exactly one selling point, which is that it's extremely unlikely to overpenetrate.

[GreenStormCloud]

28. True. I would perfer to use 00 as opposed to Koosh.

But the image just struck me as funny. If I ever do have to shoot anybody, I want maximum damage, not mere pain.

[TheWraith]

9. That rifle scope sounds damn sweet.

I'd want one, if I didn't expect it to cost as much as a high end rifle. :P

With regard to those rubber shotgun shells, they're not really for home defense. Legally speaking, discharging a firearm at someone is considered use of potentially lethal force no matter what you actually have in the gun.

Although rubber slugs or rubber buckshot could potentially be a useful tool for animal control, such as scaring away the neighbor's trespassing dog without having to seriously hurt it or risk it hurting you.

[guardian]

11. Digital gun = waste of research $

This will never reach any sort of mass demand:

1. too expensive
2. what if your dominant arm is injured and you need to shoot with your weak hand?
3. the watch is (a) ugly , and (b) another way to spot "concealed" carry
4. just something else to go wrong
- there is enough concern over FTFs and other problems with guns themselves
- what if the watch gets broken, fails, or you forget to change the batteries?

Just another hookah pipe dream (i.e., sounded like a great idea while stoned in the hot tube, but useless in the real world).

[PavePusher]

13. Second that.

I'll stick with proven 1911 era tech, thanks. JMB got it right a hundred years ago.

[spin]

15. S&W came out with simple lock for their revolvers...

Internal locking mechanism


All Smith & Wesson revolvers have been equipped with an internal locking mechanism since the acquisition by Saf-T-Hammer. The mechanism is relatively unobtrusive, is activated with a special key, and renders the firearm inoperable. While the lock can simply be left disengaged, some gun enthusiasts refuse to buy "post-lock" guns, fearing the lock might cause the gun to malfunction when needed most, as in a crisis. If the lock breaks, the gun will not work without being repaired.<25> Smith & Wesson has repeatedly stated that the locking mechanism does not affect reliability, although several cases have been documented.<26>

Smith & Wesson announced in March, 2009, that it would begin phasing the internal lock out of its revolver lineup.<27> According to Massad Ayoob in a reply to this statement, however, he claims this is a misquote. "In September (2008) during a visit to the factory, I learned that some in Springfield don't like the lock either and would like to get rid of it as much as anyone posting here. In January (2009) at the SHOT Show, another S&W exec told me simply that it ain't gonna happen." emphasis added



Partial Lock Failure The hammer rebounded from the recoil of a magnum load and the internal lock pin impinged enough to freeze it in place

Many owners simply remove the lock. The instructions are easily available on the net.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVPYgohVCNM

Most gun buyers will simply ignore the digital gun. Plenty of used firearms or new firearms without this feature will be available.

[Katya Mullethov]

20. The intention is likely marketing by Government fiat

They are just watching out for you .

[Euromutt]

26. It may also be easy to disable

The manufacturer, Armatrix, recently won a summary judgment against ZDF (a German television channel), prohibiting ZDF's program Frontal 21 from airing a segment in which a firearms expert is shown disabling the Trustlock system in under 20 seconds using a common power tool bought from a home improvement store (the German newspaper article I read didn't specify the tool, presumably because of the terms of the court order).

[davepc]

12. I was working a booth at the show this year, lots of intresting things

I don't know if the green lasers will take off like everybody was saying they will.

One thing I saw that was intriguing was a nightstand with a steel box hidden in the top drawer of the stand that used a fingerprint pad to unlock. I don't know how reliable it is, but if it always worked even if your hands were sweaty or whatnot then it would be better then a lock with a key or nothing at all.

of course there were hundreds of AR uppers and lowers and a bunch of silly stuff that people made just because they could. An AR system that was modified for 5.7 pistol ammo for example; it used a tube mag on the top (similar to the p90) and dropped the spent casings out the mag well.

[X_Digger]

16. The "AR-57" is not new..

http://www.militarygunsupply.com/shop2/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=35&products_id=338

[davepc]

18. I don't think I described it as new.

[X_Digger]

19. Ahh, I misread. I always look to SHOT for 'teh new hotness' n/t :)

[Hoopla Phil]

22. I have something similar that I use.

It uses push buttons on the top and when you put in the proper code a spring loaded door pops open. I have it bolted to my bed rail.

[spin]

14. K&R Interesting post. (n/t)

[Hoopla Phil]

21. Re: The digital gun

Let the police departments get them first. This will stop cops from getting shot by their own gun AND prove that the system is reliable (if it is).

[TheWraith]

27. Fat chance...

...Most police departments still haven't taken to the idea of guns with safety switches.

[Endangered Specie]

29. I wouldn't load more than one of those soft rubber bullets...

One in the chamber, after that comes 00 buck.