Hi all, I'm new to the forums. I live in MA where it seems like everything is illegal. In a SHTF situation does any one have any suggestions for homemade weapons or protection? I made bows & arrows when I was a kid, but god knows that they were not that accurate.
look back to 'barbaric peashooter' on todays posts.... and don't do that....
shotguns are pretty much legal everywhere...i think. a dog and a shotgun. unless you are talking about carrying it around.
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You say "Red Neck" like I don't know it and I'm not proud.
I'm thinking more along the lines of TSHTF tomorrow and I don't own a gun (haven't gotten my LTC yet) or have a dog (pretty scary cats though). Any creative thoughts on things you can make with stuff around the house or traps you could rig up?
I'm thinking more along the lines of TSHTF tomorrow and I don't own a gun (haven't gotten my LTC yet) or have a dog (pretty scary cats though). Any creative thoughts on things you can make with stuff around the house or traps you could rig up?
sounds like you are expecting a SHTF scenario. drink some red bull and get yourself a louisville slugger
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You say "Red Neck" like I don't know it and I'm not proud.
Check over your kitchen knives and see what you have. Especially if you have some of the old high carbon knives, you may find something sturdy enough to use in an emergency. An old-style wooden potato masher makes a short handled cudgel. And if you have an old fashioned meat cleaver, you have a hand axe.
And there is much to be said for the traditional cast iron frying pan as a club.
If you have a home shop, you have all sorts of blunt trauma potential there.
And a long-necked liquor bottle makes a decent club too. Contrary to what you see in the movies, they do NOT break on impact. Plenty of murders have been committed with them by people who expected them to just break and knock someone out "just like in the movies."
If you have hair spray plus a cigarette lighter, you have a short range flamethrower. Ditto bug-killing sprays. If you can figure out how to add a squirt of Purelle hand cleaner to that, you have improvised napalm; hand cleaning gels meant for use outside the home are alcohol based and burn nicely.
A glassful of ammonia or household chlorine bleach in the face will cause anyone not on drugs to lose interest in you real fast.
Pepper thrown into the eyes, ditto. Red pepper works best.
Chlorine bleach plus any alkali or lye-based drain opener = poison gas. Best used to lay a trap on your way out the bathroom window - it needs an enclosed space to work. A couple of breaths of it and the perp will be coughing, gasping and unable to pursue effectively.I'd suggest the bathroom sink as the best place to do it. Fill the sink with bleach, dump in the can of crystalline drain cleaner and get the hell out FAST, closing the window behind you if you can.
There. That ought to get your creative juices flowing. Look at the things in your house with a different eye and see how they can be adapted for the defensive role.
Check over your kitchen knives and see what you have. Especially if you have some of the old high carbon knives, you may find something sturdy enough to use in an emergency. An old-style wooden potato masher makes a short handled cudgel. And if you have an old fashioned meat cleaver, you have a hand axe.
And there is much to be said for the traditional cast iron frying pan as a club.
If you have a home shop, you have all sorts of blunt trauma potential there.
And a long-necked liquor bottle makes a decent club too. Contrary to what you see in the movies, they do NOT break on impact. Plenty of murders have been committed with them by people who expected them to just break and knock someone out "just like in the movies."
If you have hair spray plus a cigarette lighter, you have a short range flamethrower. Ditto bug-killing sprays. If you can figure out how to add a squirt of Purelle hand cleaner to that, you have improvised napalm; hand cleaning gels meant for use outside the home are alcohol based and burn nicely.
A glassful of ammonia or household chlorine bleach in the face will cause anyone not on drugs to lose interest in you real fast.
Pepper thrown into the eyes, ditto. Red pepper works best.
Chlorine bleach plus any alkali or lye-based drain opener = poison gas. Best used to lay a trap on your way out the bathroom window - it needs an enclosed space to work. A couple of breaths of it and the perp will be coughing, gasping and unable to pursue effectively.I'd suggest the bathroom sink as the best place to do it. Fill the sink with bleach, dump in the can of crystalline drain cleaner and get the hell out FAST, closing the window behind you if you can.
There. That ought to get your creative juices flowing. Look at the things in your house with a different eye and see how they can be adapted for the defensive role.
roflmmfao....jeez... you are a prime example of why you DO NOT break into someones house....they person whos house your breaking into might be crazier than you....i love it
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You say "Red Neck" like I don't know it and I'm not proud.
As Cyrano explained, virtually anything can either be a weapon, or made into a weapon. You are only limited by your creativity, and possibly your understanding of chemistry. lol
I recommend Gunk carburetor cleaner for flamethrowers or WD40. The streams travel farther than hairspray.
Watch some prison documentaries. MSNBC usually has one on every night. You'll quickly learn that even a small piece of plastic can be a deadly weapon. Hell, even in my Army manual for hand to hand combat it shows sharpening the end of a sturdy stick to use as a weapon if need be.
Once you start looking at your environment differently, as in when you see something, "how sturdy is that? How could I use that to defend myself?" Then the rest is all about figuring out how to use it to its best effectiveness. Study some anatomy, physiology, etc. Figure out the softest, weakest points to attack on the human body, then develop an improvised weapons strategy that will exploit them.
Micsaver,
Cyrano is right, extreme but right. Your house is loaded with potential weapons. For a dedicated SHTF weapon in a controlled state such as yours go to the hard ware store and get creative. A good carpenters hatchet, gardening mattock, lite axe, brush hook, machete, pick axe handle, pitch fork or anything else that will cut or poke will work. Many of the weapons used in midevil times came from farming tools. In prisons the weapon of choice is a padlock in a sock and it can be devastating. Find some thing that is comfortable in your hands, practice with it, go thru "what if" scenarios with yourself and be alert. No weapon is going to ensure your survival but any weapon will help.
I did some research for a novel I wrote and had published online. One of the sequences involved the protagonist visiting his girlfriend in a minimum security prison. I discovered that at many such prisons, the policy is the visitors can bring up to $10 in quarters for the vending machines with them, carried loose in a baggie. The corrections officers won't let rolls of quarters in because a roll of quarters in a fist is as effective as a set of brass knuckles. I had one of the guards explain this to the protagonist, and included a thought from the protagonist that a roll of quarters plus a sock equals a blackjack.
Basically, a handful or two of loose change in a sturdy sock will give you a devastating blunt impact weapon. And the good part is you can make it from your change jar and your sock drawer or the laundry hamper!
And if you want to really give the bad guys a dose of fun, get yourself a copy of the US Army TM 31-210 Improvised Munitions Handbook. All sorts of interesting ideas in there.
Anythign with two ends, one that is closable, will make a good cannon. Open the 'breech', spray in some hairspray, stuff down a tight fitting wooden spike. And dont forget to rig an ignition system (a sparkplug or latern sparker, a drill, and some epoxy. Spudguns are dangerous!)
P.A Luty's work may also be of interest to you, if you're nto worried about legality in a true SHTF situation. If you're making such devices as his designs in preparation, build semi auto and non functional....you can convert them later (They cant be easily converted, as in drop in.....of course. law!). Seriously, the BATFE doesn't like you building sten guns out of plumbing!
P.A Luty can be found at thehomegunsmith.com
The text in this post is for imormational and academic study only. The author of this post is not responsible if you break the law, and does not want you to do so.
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AR- Arm of the free world
AK- Arm of everybody else
MN- Arm of Chuck Norris
Feces,
The DOC in WI allows all inmates one combination lock as well as cans of soda, bars of soap, books belts, etc.. With nothing but time on their hands inmates are one of the most resourceful groups on the planet. I had an e-mail of a "zap" gun that was made of a soda can, a chip bag a 9 volt battery, 2 short pieces of wire and some match heads. The projectilce would penetrate thin sheet metal.
I'm thinking more along the lines of TSHTF tomorrow and I don't own a gun (haven't gotten my LTC yet) or have a dog (pretty scary cats though). Any creative thoughts on things you can make with stuff around the house or traps you could rig up?
This is called booby traps and are highly illegal in almost every state. Look at it from the Police's view, they get a 9-1-1 call at your house and go in to clear. The Police (the good guys) then get caught in the traps you intended to deter the bad guys. The Police will not be happy and are sure to prosecute to the full extent of the law. Stick with improvised weapons as mentioned above. Anything will work. Just don't booby trap, they can't tell the good guys apart from the bad.
Since you are worried about legalities, you should invest in a high quality set of cooking and dinner knives. Get a set that is in a block that sits on the counter. Always accessible, and if you buy quality, they are heavy, extremely sharp, blades that would rival most modern swords. I have an 8" Henckel chef's knife that I use alot for cooking, but it would also dice up an intruder quite handily. Quality kitchen knives are made to cut through thick meat and small/medium bone, exactly what an intruder would be.
I'm not thinking of a situation where the world has ended. I'm thinking of items you can carry with you every day, legally, that could be used to save your life.
A walking stick or cane. Probably legal even in MA, although you might have to have a Dr.'s note or handicapped permit to carry it.
Steel toed work shoes. I always get steel toes in my work shoes. Very effective and you can even take them on an airplane, although it will be a little more hassle. I don't think you'll need a permit for them in MA, but I would check.
A bright, compact flashlight. Look for something with a minimum of 60 lumens output. Fenix, Nitecore, Surefire, and Streamlight come to mind and there are many others.
A telescoping car antenna. I'm not sure if that would be considered a weapon or not. Go to a junkyard and get a broken one off an old car. If anyone asks just say that it was broken off your other car by vandals and you had it with you so when you get to the auto store you can make sure they have one to replace it. Just don't tell them that it may be 20 years before you get to the part store to look for a replacement.
A leather belt with a heavy belt buckle on it. Think real gun belt, not "old west" gunbelt, but the kind of extra heavy duty belt that is designed to carry the weight of a handgun, holster, ammo, etc. and looks like a dress belt. Wilson Combat, Dillon Precision, and most good leather holster makers offer them. Expect to pay a minimum of $50 and probably twice that. You will want a good belt when you start carrying so why not buy it now. A belt like that can make a fearsome weapon by itself.
Find out exactly what is legal in terms of knives and carry something that is legal. "Bringing a knife to a gunfight blah, blah, blah". A knife is a very deadly weapon. For that matter almost any size knife is probably legal to have in your home. A Woodsman's Pal, a machette, an ax or a hatchet would be very comforting.
For your car, either an extended handle lug wrench (a 1-way model with a flat end for removing hubcaps instead of a 4-way) or an extended handle for your jack. Perfectly legitimate reason to have that in your car at any time but either could be used as an improvised weapon.
Also for your car, a 4 to 6 cell C or D Maglite. Try them both. People with smaller hands will probably like the C cell model better. Again, it is a legitimate item to have in your car. If you've ever had to change a tire at night in a dark area you will understand why.
For that matter having a compact folding shovel in your trunk is always a good idea.
At home, as mentioned a baseball or softball bat is very nice. A full sized shove or a sharp hoe would be as well. A broomstick or the handle for a sledghammer or ax. A length of dog chain with several large (1/2" or larger) steel nuts from the hardware store attached to the end would work if you are out in the open. I don't think you would get in trouble just having that in your home but I probably wouldn't carry around. For that matter you could get the chain and the hardware and store them together but not assembled. "Just a bag of hardware and a piece of dog chain officer."
Check into the laws on pepper spray and other chemical sprays.
