Although this seems a bit odd for our group, boys and girls, it certainly
doesn't stretch our assumed skills and knowledges too much. Please treat the
question-and-answer with a bit of thought.

Jonathon DID join the group for the specific reason to hear our opinions on
his question, AND he does make the leap of faith in calling us gun
'experts,' but his question is unique only because WE hadn't thought to ask
it first.

Here's my response:

I'm wondering if a zombie body is moisture laden or desiccated...hummm.

If the zombie's body is desiccated, I'd choose a weapon with a heavy
projectile - like a 12-gauge shotgun slug. An impact by such would have the
greatest physical footprint as it goes through the man-sized target,
transferring its momentum to all it touches, and destroying anything in its
direct path. The good old .45-70 would also be high on my list for mid-range
zombie work.

If the zombie's body is moisture laden, then a more-or-less standard,
hunting bullet like a .30 caliber Hornady V-Max would do. Fast delivery of
kinetic energy would be the best bet in that case. The projectile would lose
its energy to the target in as fast a manner as possible, taking out any and
all bones and connective tissue it may encounter.

If I had to use a pistol or revolver, then it should be one of the magnum
calibers with enough kinetic energy available at the target to insure
complete penetration of the zombie target. A .357 certainly has the required
energy for this task, but I'd be more comfortable with a revolver caliber
that started with a "4" or a "5."

It's all about destruction of a man-size target.

Rick
Colorado
List Owner - and long time swimmer in the firearms database.
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++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
-----Original Message-----
From: Combat-Handgun@yahoogroups.com On Behalf Of zombiecsu
Sent: Saturday, August 04, 2007 8:40 AM
To: Combat-Handgun@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Combat-Handgun] Stopping Power -An Open Question for Gun Experts

Guys, I'm new to this board.

I'm a professional writer and I'm working on a nonfiction book built
around speculation on how real-world law enforcement, science, and
the military would respond to something like a zombei attack (like
they show in movies like Night of the Living Dead and 28 Days
Later). It's a little far-out, but the book is already scheduled for
release next August from Citadel Press.

One of the experts I'm using, Mike Witzgall (ex-Force Recon, former
SWAT officer) gave me some great technical advice on how SWAT might
react in such a situation.

What I'm looking for now is some practical information on a couple of
points (see question below). Anyone who provides useful information
will be quoted and thanked in the book.

First, here's the scenario: The fictional zombies we're talking
about here are the recently raised dead. They don't breathe, they
don't bleed. The only way to kill them is either a head shot that
destroys the brain, or severe trauma to the brain stem.

My SWAT expert said that even if headshots can't always be guaranteed
the responding officers (or soldiers) could use heavy fire to chop up
their legs.

I need to know the follow:

What kinds of rounds would do the most damage to limbs (particularly
legs and lower trunk)? I'm talking about loss of limb, shattered
bones, etc.

Any suggestions? You can post here or email me at
zombiecsu@....

Thanks!
Jonathan Maberry
Author website: www.jonathanmaberry.com