Ice Bullets

[JWarren]

OK... someone is REALLY going have to elaborate on the Ice/pulp aircraft carrier.


I've got a few guesses as to why the idea was scrapped.


-- John

 

[jefnvk]

The US looked into making a aircraft carrier out of it.

Believe it was the Brits. Made a scale replica of it in Canada somewhere, actually worked.

 

[RKBABob]

Mythbusters used a small caliber rifle to test the ice bullet thing. A better test would be a .44 or larger pistol bullet.

Mythbusters revisits different tests, if enough people email them to suggest flaws in their tests... I'm too lazy to find the show's email address, though.

 

[Erebus]

I remember an episode of some show where the bad guy used ice bullets. And an episode of another show where a serial killer used icicles. Was a long time ago though.

 

[JWarren]

Believe it was the Brits. Made a scale replica of it in Canada somewhere, actually worked.

I'm just imagining how bad you'd have to screw up to be a sailor assigned to a boat MADE of ice.

-- John

 

[NeoSpud]

I was right:

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/235665/2_million_ton_pykrete_aircraft_carrier_in_ww2/

 

[Gunnerpalace]

If anyone watched the episode you will remember that while they could not make them, Adam wrote a letter to the CIA about it any they gave the "cannot confirm or deny" piece. Interesting. (I would also like to point out Iam not a member of the Tin Foil Hat Club I just watched the show)

 

[jefnvk]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pykrete
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Habakkuk

Scrapped due to budget allocation, not uselessness. The experimental ship took three summers to melt when left unmaintained.

 

[Flyboy]

I saw this in a tv show once. They used it to kill someone so when they got shot it melted so there wasn't a trace to the killers.

I remember an episode of some show where the bad guy used ice bullets.

Father Dowling Mysteries. I haven't seen that show in at least a decade, but if I found it on DVD, I'd snap it up.

 

[Timthinker]

The "ice carrier" was intended to provide Allied airpower against the German U-boat menace. Since Hitler did not have aircraft carriers, these ships were designed to defeat the U-boats. After the Allies overcame the German submarine threat in 1943, these "ice carriers" lost their reason for existence. In the Pacific, the Allies took islands upon which to construct airfields. Also, the American Pacific fleets included aircraft carriers from which they could launch devastating attacks upon Japanese airfields. So with the tide of battle turning against the Axis powers, these frozen airfields simply became interesting historical footnotes.

Regarding ice bullets and knives, these weapons occasionally appear in novels and movies to stimulate public interest. They are more successful in doing this than becoming effective killing tools.


Timthinker

 

[Novus Collectus]

How about using frozen methanol bullets? Once it melts the coroner would have no bullet and think the victim was drinking.

 

[Wheeler44]

I have an old gun digest around here somewhere with a fictional story in it about a gunsmith that solves a murder where the murderer collects a bullet from a match shooters range, makes a wooden sabot and fires it through an old muzzle loader. I'll look for it tomorrow.

 

[230RN]

^^^

I have an old gun digest around here somewhere with a fictional story in it about a gunsmith that solves a murder where the murderer collects a bullet from a match shooters range, makes a wooden sabot and fires it through an old muzzle loader. I'll look for it tomorrow.

That's pretty clever. Maybe we ought to enlist fiction writers to work out really neat dramatic situations where microstamping doesn't work or can be defeated.

I'm sure CA defense lawyers would be interested in that.

 

[Never No More]

WHen I was a kid, my ole man made a mold and kept it in dry ice at the range.

HE fired them thru a Benjamin 22 cal air rifle.

 

[Odd Job]

IIRC the other film that had ice bullets in a large calibre rifle was "Most Wanted"

 

[Kaeto]

In an old Dick Tracy comic strip they had a bad guy use Ice bullets.

But I have to agree on the Mythbusters findings. The shock of firing would cause an ice bullet to shatter.

 

[Robert Hairless]

Nothing beats a PCR (Penetrating Cosmic Ray) fired from an Thunder Stick with an IAFF (Infinitely Adjustable Force Field). Only thing that will deflect a head shot from one of those babies is a Reynolds Alcoa beanie, which is why people in the know never go out without one on their heads.

Thunder Sticks are no longer legal in California: no one has figured out how to microstamp the PCR. Pity.

Jim Keenan knows what I'm talking about I bet.

 

[Erebus]

If trying to prevent any kind of ballistics analysis on the projectile is the goal pykrete might do the job. Would depend on how well it would work as an actual projectile.

 

[skipjack_1st]

Darn... I thought the CSI episode with the frozen beef burger bullet was cool. Now I find out it won't work...

 

[Sheldon J]

How about a different media, they make some golf T's out of a compressed starch that biodegrades when wet, so how about a starch bullet? Once there the moisture would turn it to mush.

 

[230RN]

^^^
I've always wanted to try golf tees out of my blowgun.

I was delighted to find that push-pins fly point forward (amazingly!) out of a blowgun and make good practice ammo. Also, if you pop a pesky cat or dog or skunk or noisy magpie (gr !) with one, all it does is sting the critter and all that's left is an innocuous little push pin that anyone could have dropped there.

I only use black pushpins because they're much more tactical.

But they've got a real rainbow trajectory. You have to get really expert at range estimation....

 

[woodybrighton]

had a thread shot by a bic biro pen went through his arm.

our hero discovered if you take a browning high power cock put a biro down the barrel pull the trigger biro will fly across room. this happily entertained him for an
hour (infantry soldier easily amused)
mate comes off sentry duty hero shows him new game he pulls his loaded browning cocks it puts pen down barrel bang biro at warp speed goes through arm followed by 9 mm round.

both idiots get 28 days in jail

 

[AJ Dual]

The funny thing is that you can shoot someone with impunity with a soft lead bullet and a revolver, or bolt-action rifle, and leave very little forensic or ballistics evidence. All those other methods still show the aurhorities that the victim was shot by something. If anything, you're simply generating additional mystery that will garner the case more attention and resources put twoards solving it.

Honestly, unless the perpetrator leaves his wallet at the scene, or gets his face on video, 99% of crimes are solved by human information. Who talked to who, who saw who where etc. It would seem to me that unless a fingerprint or DNA is on file, the forensics are more to secure a conviction rather than idenfify the perpetrator.

That's why serial killers rack up such a body count. They don't talk to anybody, at least until they get so squirrely they feel the need to start writing 'zodiac letters' etc. to the papers.

Being aware of your surroundings and who knows what about who seems like a much better way to conduct "wet work" than exotic bullets.

 

[Stephen21B]

One thing I thought of when I saw the mythbuster's episode was instead of ice or meat why not a bone bullet?

 

[cpileri]

Nah

If I get a time machine I would show up as the defense attorney (who didn't show up) the day the Supreme Court decided against Miller re: NFA 34.

But that's a topic digression.
C-