Defensive weapons

[jester]

Originally Posted by kato13

Reminds me of the fact that during peak production RPG-16 rounds were manufactured for the equivalent of something like 75 cents (US).

"Quantity has a quality all its own" - Joseph Stalin

Well, that is also the result of a comand economy, where everyone works for a set wage determined by the state. And what was the going wage of the worker at the time? I wonder how much Chinese made ones actualy cost to make? Probably pretty close to that figure I would imagine since Norinco uses convict slave labor they really are just paying for the raw materials and transport costs, again all state owned/controlled/run so that is at a reduced rate or technicaly no cost. Shipping overseas and marketing could be the major cost.

[Nowhere Man 1966]

Originally Posted by Diamond_Spear

Can we include handguns? To paraphrase what a veteran once told me :If you need a pistol you should already have left�.

I pretty much would see handguns, in a military situation, in that light. They are good backup in case if your rifle/shotgun jams, runs put of ammo or if you lose it.

Chuck M.

Adding a caveat, as many of we Soldiers would say, I would like to talk about using a structure or building itself as a defensive weapon, or perhaps redoubt.

Entrance ways, to include doors, large windows, and combat damage large enough to give entry, interior objects such as bed frames, book shelves, or other large objects filled with ballast like dirt or similar material to add that much more weight, are placed behind these areas. However, careful pains need to be made so that the defenders can not only get out, but get out very quickly if they are about to be overran.

For multiple storied buildings, secondary walls, whether dry wall or other can be taken down and placed over stairs to deny offensive movement from story to story. Furthermore, nails or similar objects can be stuck into the boards, as well as other means of disallowing enemies to get up or down stairs(think the Home Alone series).

Claymores can be placed in outward fans in partially or fully destroyed rooms with either detonators elsewhere, or trip wire set up to provide an alarm that can deny the enemy the element of surprise.

Hallways can be lengthened in terms of fields of fire by taking out non load bearing walls to make a long lane of fire within the building. Murder Holes can be placed in crawl spaces, and along walls. Holes can be cut into floors that have hollow spaces below, and concealed with throw rugs, garbage, or debris like tacked down news paper.

Trip wire at random intervals. Mouse trapped shotgun shells at random intervals.

I can think of plenty of other things, but this shall suffice I hope.

-Hauser

[jester]

Hauser makes a good point. Defesnive weapons is terrain, as well.

So use what is arround you. Like I mentioned in my reply to defending the town in the tactical situation.

Clear fields of fire first.

Minor obstacles that will hinder advancement but, not allow for cover. Imagine having to run over ground covered with bits of cinderblock sized rubble, a tripping hazard, forcing you to change your focus from the enemy to the ground so you don't trip or run into one, put your foot down wrong and trip and fall, or even break a leg or ankle.

Small rail fences can be a problem, it forces the enemy to vault over them, making them a target, but they can be easily shot through too.

Small trenches even, eight to six inches deep and about 1 meter apart, these would make running impossible, again adding to the tripping problem but they wouldn't be deep enough to provide cover.

Other things, try a Blackberry bramble, its a natural barbed wire that is near impassable by infantry and some vehicles. Add poison ivy, it may deter someone or make them pause before assaulting through it.

And in the trenches like I mentioned before, use them for irrigation or even sewage, and toss in broken glass or punji stakes.

another defensive item, a pice of com wire or even better wire from a wireguided missile, its strong, fine and thin. And if you run into one it is something you won't forget. If running into it it will stop you, in some cases knock you down, or cut you. Have come wire just below knee height, the thin wire at neck and face height, so if someone running full bore hit them they will either trip, or get a nice garrote slice to the face, not fatal but it will do them an injury and give them pause.

Also, as Hauser said, filling furniture like bookshelves. Well anyone ever move an bookshelf and it fell? Rig them as deadfalls, as well as specific walls, sections of building, telephone poles and trees, or even rig trap doors in the building, say the front room, that the the enemy will come through, you have cleared the walls etc, so you are firing from the kitchen, enemy storms through the front room, as they cross either they fall into the crawl space about knee deep, or into the basement, or from the second floor to the first. Or even just weaken the floow leaving only enough to allow it to hold itself up.

Other defensive ideas, flood a trench or a feild, it will make it suicidal for most vehicles to cross, as well as men on foot bogging them down and making them advance at a snails pace.

And again you can put stakes and glass as an area denial weapon, especialy somewhere flooded or that has been turned to mud, the enemy wants to low crawl then they have to worry about being punctured or shredded.

[Rainbow Six]

Back in the day Loonz's site made mention to villages sticking up big signs saying "Danger - stay away, bubonic plague" or words to that effect.

That strikes me as a fairly effective defensive weapon...

[jester]

Originally Posted by Rainbow Six

Back in the day Loonz's site made mention to villages sticking up big signs saying "Danger - stay away, bubonic plague" or words to that effect.

That strikes me as a fairly effective defensive weapon...

It would, other signs, "Radioactive" or "Chemical Weapons" signs as well.

And they are really pretty cheap, a board, a stick and some paint. And its all so passive too.