"Smart guns" show promise, but not readily available on U.S. market

[gejohnston]

http://news.yahoo.com/smart-guns-show-promise-not-readily-available-u-113603655.html
Why not?
I first saw it on the local news because of a couple Tampa cops being murdered with their own issued pistols.
My first thoughts were:
Why didn't he approach European gun makers like FN, Glock, SIG, Walther, Beretta, etc? South American ones like Taurus, Bersa etc?
What about gun owners in other countries?
Why can't I buy one after market? I would buy one if I could.
One or two fat police contracts. NYPD would be about 40K to start. Sell another 30K to the RCMP. A German police force for that matter. Why isn't he pitching the device to them as an after market? Glock modifies triggers for NYPD. Smith and Wesson customizes the ones they sell to the RCMP for their purposes. Why not this device too?

[samsingh]

1. there will be ways to get around them

[gejohnston]

2. Who?

the meth head that grabs a cop's gun and executes him with it?
I'm serious. If they were on the market, I would buy them. I saw it on the local news claiming the TPD officers would be alive with them. A couple of folks have posted with the article link. The inventor claims it is "US gun industry" but doesn't approach non US makers or sell directly.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. wild guess -

because the 1% does not want this technology out there

[rrneck]

4. I took a quick look at the technology

and here's what I came up with on another thread.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=2057032

I don't think RFID is the answer yet. Maybe never. But if I was that smart all y'all would be working for me.

[krispos42]

5. A decade or so ago, Remington made the EletronX rifle...

...or something to that effect.


It was a rifle that shot ammunition with an electricity-sensitive primer instead of an impact-sensitive one, and the firing pin and other mechanical parts were replaced with a 9-volt battery and an electode. The "trigger" was really a switch.

Remington claimed that their rifle primers were identical to their impact-sensitive counterparts in terms of performance in burning gunpowder, and if I recall correctly hand-loaders could buy bulk primers for their electronic rifles and load their own ammo.


Okay, then, why not have this for police handguns?

Have somebody build a handgun with an electronic ignition system instead of impact. Purchase ammo for that handgun with electric primers, and build a system wherein the ignition system won't put current through the system if the owner of the gun is not the one doing the firing.

Put an RFID bracelet on each of the cop's arms, and have the gun check to see how far away the bracelet it before firing. If it's more than a few inches away, don't ignite the ammo when the trigger is pulled because it means that somebody other than the cop has the gun.

Of course, the bracelets would have to be stainless-steel, very tough to remove without a key or something.


So now you have the Glock or S&W or Ruger or Sig that still shoots the regular 9mm or .40 S&W or .45 ACP, but won't work if the gun's not being held by the cop it's issued to. And the ammo can't be used in a regular gun, either.


Let the cops work out the bugs first.

[Glassunion]

6. I'd sure hate to put a cop's life in the hands

Last edited Mon Dec 24, 2012, 10:51 AM - Edit history (1)

of a 9 volt battery.

The technology sounds great but I'd like to see a lot of fail-safes in the tech.

[GreenStormCloud]

7. Magna-Trigger Conversion

You wear a magnetic ring on you finger that is key to a device in your gun. No batteries needed. Grab the gun with the ring on your finger and the gun is ready to fire. No ring, the gun locks up. All rings fit all guns, so it isn't individualized.

Massad Ayoob has written about it and he wears such a ring.

http://www.tarnhelm.com/magna-trigger/gun/safety/magna1.html

[spin]

8. This device works or S&W revolvers and some Ruger revolvers. ...

All S&W J, K, L, & N frame guns can be modified. One other revolver, the Ruger Security Six revolver can also be modified. No other brands of guns are being modified and we currently are not modifing any autopistols.
(from your link: http://www.tarnhelm.com/magna-trigger/gun/safety/magna1.html)

If the device could be made to work on Glock pistols many police departments might be interested in installing it on their issue pistols.

It it was half the current price, I might be interested in installing one on my carry revolver which is a J frame S&W.

[PavePusher]

9. No police force in the world will accept such firearms.

Every time such a restriction is proposed, it always has an exemption for police and other government agents.

Odd, that.......

[gejohnston]

10. I was looking the Tampa cops

the local news was saying "these would have saved the cops' lives" since they were murdered with their own guns. I'm not talking about restriction, if this thing is so great and works as advertised, why are not any police armors checking them out? That was my point.

[PavePusher]

11. "if this thing is so great and works as advertised"

Ummm, because they don't.

Note that the military won't even think of buying them either.

[gejohnston]

12. that's what I kind of thought nt