Overkill Defined

Every time I mention I want to eventually get a .50 BMG or a machine gun people tell me they are overkill. Well they apparently don’t know what overkill is. THIS is overkill…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-388_Davy_Crockett

I present for your amusement the M-388. The M-388 is a system involving a recoilless rifle that shoots a nuclear warhead. No this isn’t some exotic weapon from the Fallout series of games, this is a real weapon that was actually produced during The Cold War.

The idea was to have a bunch of soldiers with these and various other nuclear weapons between the border of The Soviet Union and Europe. If Russia tried to invade the idea was to make the border a total radioactive wasteland for at least 48 hours, enough time to get NATO forces into position.

The M-388 could propel a projectile with up to half a kiloton payload to a distance of two and a half miles. The radioactive fallout would be instantly lethal to all people within 500 feet. Of course the recoilless rifle was dreadfully inaccurate so the three man team operating it more or less just lobbed the projectile at the largest Soviet group they could find and figure the concept of blast radius would take care of the problem. Certainly a most interesting weapon.

All I can say is overkill in a semi-portable weapon has been defined.

The SPAS 12

A couple of weeks back I finally obtained the gun I’ve been after since I first saw Jurassic Park, a SPAS 12. Here she is…

SPAS 12 and Choke Tubes

As you can see I also obtained a full set of choke tubes for it. As far as I know these are all the choke tubes that were produced for the SPAS 12. They are in order from left to right…

  • Improved Cylinder
  • Skeet
  • Improved Modified
  • Modified
  • Full
  • Extra Full

SPAS stands for Sporting Purpose Automatic Shotgun, although automatic really means semi-automatic. In actuality it’s a military shotgun now a sporting shotgun but the marketing people at Franchi probably didn’t think they would sell nearly as well with a name like MPAS.

The SPAS 12 is an interesting gun to say the least. It’s one of the few shotguns I’m aware of that can be used both as a semi-automatic and pump action shotgun. There is a button under the fore grip of the gun. Press it in and push the fore grip slightly forward and it goes into semi-automatic mode. Press the button and pull the grip back and it goes into pump action mode. This might seem like a strange idea until you realize some of the intended uses of this shotgun. Most non-lethal shotgun round, like beanbags and plastic slugs, lack the required pressure to cycle the gun in semi-automatic mode. Because of this the capability to manually cycle the gun was desired.

Another feature to facilitate using specialty rounds is the magazine cut off. On the right side of the gun is a small button near the magazine. Once pressed in the magazine is cut off so when the gun cycles next a new round won’t be automatically fed. So if you needed to use a slug but you only had shot loaded in the magazine you could hit the cut off, eject the currently chambered shot shell, and insert a slug. Once the slug is chambered the magazine cut off disengages automatically so the gun will function normally after the newly chambered shell is fired.

There are two safeties on the SPAS 12. The first being the quick action safety on the left side of the gun. When it is clicked back towards the user the trigger is disengaged. When you click it forward with a simple forward movement of your trigger finger the trigger is reengaged.

The second safety is located on the right side of the gun. There are two different setups for this safety. On older guns there is a large lever that really doesn’t have a save position which I’ll explain in a second. The second type is a crossbar safety which is a button similar to safeties on most modern shotguns. The reason I say the lever safety doesn’t really have a safe position is because it had a defect. Turning the safety from fire to safe could discharge the gun. This is why it was recalled and the new cross bar safety was used. Lucky me my gun has a level safety, but I’m not one to use manual safeties so it didn’t concern me much. The once nice thing about the large lever safety is it can be easily manipulated with gloves on, which was the original intent.

The final thing I’ll talk about in this post is the sights. Unlike most of the shotguns I’ve used the SPAS 12 doesn’t have a simple bead sight. Instead it has a nice ghost ring rear sight and a blade front sight. The ring has a notch cut out of the button. When using slugs you place the front blade into that notch, otherwise you center the front sight in the ring of the rear sight. It’s a very nice sight setup I will say.

I’ve had this gun out to the range twice so far and absolutely love it. I’ll be posting articles from time to time on interesting things I find with the SPAS as well as applications I’ve successfully used it for (I’m going to try trap shooting with it one of these days).

Gun Documentation

I just finished up doing a project that’s been on the back burner for far too long, gun documentation.

Gun documentation is simple, you document all the guns you have. I know that a lot of people scream that this is a bad idea and only facilitates helping the ATF when they come to steal your guns. That’s why you keep this documentation private.

Why would you want to do this? Simple so you have proof of the firearms you own. Should the worst happen and your guns get stolen you can provide the documentation for the stolen guns to the police. This is so they know what they are looking for. It also allows them to report the guns to any gun stores or pawn shops so they know if somebody tries to sell them the gun they can report the person. This is actually a good idea to do with an expensive property which you lack a deed for.

The documentation is pretty simple. For the basics you really only need the following…

  • Photographs of each side of the gun
  • Photograph of the serial number

That’s it really. Now you can just write down the serial number if your camera isn’t capable of getting the serial number. I prefer a photograph because of two reasons. First you won’t run the possibility of incorrectly recording it. Second it shows the serial number of the gun you photographed which proves the gun was in your possession at some point in time.

Make sure you keep a copy of this information offsite as well. Of course that rule applies to all documentation information.

This Tacticool Stuff has Gone too Far

So I was browsing The Firearms Blog and came across this…

http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2009/05/16/stoeger-double-defense-21st-centeruty-tactical-coach-gun/

Stoeger is bringing out the Double Defense series of double barrel side-by-side shotguns. Go look at it. It’s a coach gun with rails on it. Yes RAILS on a coach gun, now I’ve seen it all.

Ruger Delivers a Piston Driven AR-15

Welcome to the club Ruger…

http://www.ruger.com/SR556/

I think it’s a little late but they have finally delivered an AR-15. It’s even one of those super fancy piston driven ones that cost an extra arm and leg. Personally I’ve always viewed Ruger as providing guns that didn’t have to cost you a small fortune. I find it odd that they decided piston driven was going to be the way they introduced an AR-15.

In all honestly though the market is so saturated I don’t know what they feel they are brining to the table that differentiates themselves. Heck I’m pretty much AR’ed out myself.

Ruger is Cooking Something

Looks like Ruger is counting down to something new…

http://www.ruger.com/index.html

I know Tom Gresham made a remark on Gun Talk about Ruger reintroducing a folding stock option and 30 round magazines for their Mini 14 series. I haven’t a clue if that’s what this count down is for but I believe so.

Rumors floating around the web also say Ruger could be introducing an AR-15.

Effective Zombie Weaponry

Well it’s happening again, zombie outbreaks. This time the cover story is under the guise of a “swine flu.” Yes people are dying and turning into zombies and the best cover up that the governments can come up with is a flu found in pigs. But I guess it’s better then the last cover story of a flu found in birds.

Anyways as a certified zombie control officer I thought it would be best to post a quick brief on effective weapons against zombies. Refreshers are always good. The weaponry listed will be restricted to ones obtainable by average American civilians so no missile launchers or machine guns.

The first rule of engaging zombies is to do it from as far away as possible. So the first few things we’ll cover are the queen of weapons, rifles. Lister here are some nice rifles for combating the zombie threat.

-AR-15

Nice light and accurate. The AR-15 is a semi-automatic version of the military’s standard battle rifles the M-16 (also come in M-4 style configurations). They’ve been around since the Vietnam War so most of the technical kinks have been worked out making them very reliable. They shoot a small bullet at high speeds. They have an effective range of roughly 400 yards although you can get more out of them if your a good shot and have good ammunition matched with an equally good gun. Their weight, or lack thereof, make them very nice to carry for long hauls. Ammunition is also fairly common (or at least was before the recent buy up craze). You can’t go wrong.

-M-14 / M1A

The previous battle rifle for the United State’s armed forces. It shoots a 7.62x51mm (.308) round with an effective range of roughly 600 yards. Once again a good rifle matched with good ammunition can get you much greater range in the hands of the properly trained. Their bloody reliable, more so then even the AR-15. Their also a lot heavier so hauling them around while running to the relative safety of the countryside can become burdensome. Ammunition isn’t as easy to find as it is for the AR-15 but it’s still plenty common. Do also note the ammunition is larger and heavier so you won’t be able to carry nearly as much. This means you need to make every shot count. Many can accept a fixed bayonet which makes the M-14 usable in close quarters combat (although there are much better weapons for that).

-AK-47

When Mikhail Kalashnikov invented this iconic rifle he was going for reliability and manageable recoil. He wanted all of this in a package that was easily portable by average people. What we got was one of the worlds most reliable rifles. Out of the ones listed here the AK-47 is the least accurate. Russians never really worried about tight tolerances when they built these things. But those lose tolerances also made for unstoppable reliability. This rifle will not fail you so long as you do not fail it. Drop it in the mud, sand, or water and pull it out and continue firing. This is one of the best anti-zombie rifles out there. It fires a 7.62x39mm round which has become exceedingly rare as of late. And it’s effective range his highly dependent on the quality of the rifle you obtain. But it will not fail, it’s easy to field strip, and easy to use. You simply can’t find a gun more suited for anti-zombie defense for average citizens. Get one.

OK now keeping zombies at a range isn’t always possible so we need to cover medium to close range combat.

– 12 Gauge Shotgun

When it comes to killing zombies nothing is more symbolic then the shotgun. It’s pure raw power put into a man portable system that is hard to fuck up. Simply aim at the head of your zombie target and pull the trigger. The only downside is range, you don’t have much of it. You’re looking inside 100 yards with slugs on a good day and less then 50 yards with birds shot. Buckshot has even less of a range, you’re looking at inside of 25 yards. There are many types but I’ll give my recommendation to the pump action variety. Unlike semi-automatics you don’t have to worry about jams with a pump and at the ranges you’ll most likely be using a shotgun for failures are not an option. The ammunition is bulky and heavy so you won’t be able to carry a whole lot. But shotguns are cheap and reliable. This is probably the best short range anti-zombie weapon money can buy.

– Springfield XD / Glock

I lump these two pistols together because they both have similar features. I chose pistols over revolvers when dealing with zombies because of the speed at which you can reload them and the additional capacity for ammunition. The trade off is reliability. Both of these pistols have been proven to fire reliably in the field so they are your best bets for pistols. When chose one remember to kill a zombie you only need to take out the brain and most zombies won’t be wearing helmets (unless the person died with it on) so any caliber which can penetrate skull will work. I usually say chose 9mm or larger. Do remember though with the increased size and weight of the rounds comes the side effect of not being able to carry as much so pick a happy medium for yourself. I chose .45 automatic because I’m familiar with it and it’s proven effective for me. For most people I recommend 9mm though because it’s small, light, and has very little recoil. The ammunition is also much cheaper.

– Subgun

A subgun is a small rifle style weapon that shoots pistol ammunition. They can get more range out of a pistol round then actual pistols due to the increased barrel length. I haven’t recommended any particular one because you should chose one that matches the ammunition your pistol will use. I have a Beretta CX4 in .45 automatic which has prove reliable to me. They also make the CX4 in 9mm and .40 S&W both good choices. The only real benefit you get from these is more range out of a common ammunition pool. These are NOT replacements for rifles. But having one can certainly increase your range in a small and light weight package (due to weight I do not recommend a Thompson submachinegun style weapon).

And finally for when things get really ugly and you have the undead within biting distance you need to get brutal. Brutality comes in the form of melee weapons.

– Entrenching Tool

Ah yes a small collapsible shovel. You never think of these things as being much for weapons but they certainly fit the bill. They have a nice pointed tip on the shovel which will pierce right through skull and brain with only a little force. And they work for digging and other various tasks to boot. All of this an they weigh almost nothing. This is the best melee weapon you can find when you factor in all the other tasks it can perform. Do note that many companies now make e-tools with cheap plastic, you don’t want one of these. You want to get the real deal. Go to your local military surplus store and pick up a nice one made of good old fashion metal. You won’t regret it (although you will regret not getting that rifle and having to deal with zombies at biting range).

– Machete

What beats a knife? Well when dealing with zombies anything that actually weighs enough to bust through skull. But more precisely a long knife with enough mass to bust through skull. Like the e-tool mentioned above machetes can server multiple roles. They are extremely handy if you have to cross heavily forested ares or jungles on your way to safety. They will cut through almost anything including the heads of zombies. Even if they become dull their mass is usually enough to cave in the skull of a nearby zombie. Do note that like the above mentioned e-tool many companies make cheap machetes. You don’t want one that will break in the heat of battle. Get a nice high quality one and it will defend you from the undead for years to come.

– Crowbar

Although not nearly as effective as the above two items a crowbar will let you bash skulls in Freeman style. They have enough weight to bust up zombie heads and are light enough to carry around. They also have a pointed end that you can jam through a zombie’s noggin. They are also very handy when you need to use them for their secondary function, prying things. Remember a crowbar is a fancy lever and you can always find a use for levers. As stated for the last two items get a high quality crowbar not some Chinese piece of shit made of pot metal. You don’t want this thing snapping when using it as a lever because it will fly up and hit you in the face most likely killing you.

This has been a public service announcement from the Zombie Control Task Force.