I’m lucky to have seen this up close on display, talked to the mfg’er/inventor and then witnessed a demo. Unfortunately, it didn’t work as well as it looks but it certainly has potential. You can hardly see it in the photo, but the muzzle brake really completes the appearance. It was very “protoypey” so hopefully future developments will improve its operation and manufacturability. There is tough competition in the compressed gas powered 40mm non-lethal projectile business.
I have a better idea. A while back, I calculated (according to the USGA Rules of Golf) that the allowed velocity on a standard golf ball gives it about the same kinetic energy as a bullet launched from an old S&W .32 (short?) revolver cartridge. The golf ball is obviously bigger and slower, but much more bouncy. The dimples on the ball won’t give you any Magnus Effect from a smoothbore, but may make for more of a spitball, or slider effect if I have my baseball terms right.
Whatever, it’d make a heck of an anti-riot projectile, and might be lawsuit proof, seeing that we let incompetent doodahs launch those things all the time around here and they never get in any trouble for that.
With any luck, some of the rioters would be golfers, and get beaned.
(I don’t care for golf and golfers, at least not in a friendly way.)
December 28th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
I’m lucky to have seen this up close on display, talked to the mfg’er/inventor and then witnessed a demo. Unfortunately, it didn’t work as well as it looks but it certainly has potential. You can hardly see it in the photo, but the muzzle brake really completes the appearance. It was very “protoypey” so hopefully future developments will improve its operation and manufacturability. There is tough competition in the compressed gas powered 40mm non-lethal projectile business.
December 28th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
I have a better idea. A while back, I calculated (according to the USGA Rules of Golf) that the allowed velocity on a standard golf ball gives it about the same kinetic energy as a bullet launched from an old S&W .32 (short?) revolver cartridge. The golf ball is obviously bigger and slower, but much more bouncy. The dimples on the ball won’t give you any Magnus Effect from a smoothbore, but may make for more of a spitball, or slider effect if I have my baseball terms right.
Whatever, it’d make a heck of an anti-riot projectile, and might be lawsuit proof, seeing that we let incompetent doodahs launch those things all the time around here and they never get in any trouble for that.
With any luck, some of the rioters would be golfers, and get beaned.
(I don’t care for golf and golfers, at least not in a friendly way.)