Question about Zombies...the official zombie thread

[Johnny SixPack]

Wouldn't you be better off with a higher caliber semi-auto than either the 12 gauge or the .223?

Still have a modicum of knockdown power (which the .223 would be lacking in comparison to the 12 gauge), but also the higher capacity magazine and rapid fire of the rifle.

Isn't the M60 a .308 caliber machine gun?

Not saying the M60 would be a good choice for your everyday carry anti-zombie weapon, but isn't there .308 caliber based M16 variants?

Same general M16 frame, but naturally a little more weight.

And .308 is a relatively easy round to find, so when you are forced to salvage and scrounge for ammo you'd have a decent chance of finding it.

I'm just saying. 

[bull]

Sure, I'll take a .308 too if we can have all we want. Don't want to discriminate. I think if I could have only one though I'd take the shotgun.

[Mike DC]

 
Hey guys. 



I would think the zombie represents something of an "unconventional biological target" compared to a normal human.  Or even mosts animals.  It really doesn't get affected by firearms like a living creature.  I don't just mean the head issue, I mean there's also not much point in poking small-caliber holes through his limbs or torso either.  You've gotta try to really rip arms & legs off them with every shot. 

It seems like a case where you'd absolutely want stopping power and destruction of the target material.  The accuracy wouldn't matter as long as you were hitting it; the situation really just calls for making the dead meat fly. 

[bull]

That's right. What happens when a SWAT guy turns into a zombie? He's wearing a helmet and a bullet-proof vest so you have to knock his limbs off to stop him. Again, shotgun.

[Mike DC]

What happens when a SWAT guy turns into a zombie?

Ooohhh .  .  .  good question!  

All that Kevlar & stuff is gonna be a problem for the typical weapons.  You'd probably have to hit them a lot harder; maybe grenades would be your best bet if you can get 'em.  

The shotgun is good.  Like a sawed-off 12-guage pump.  On the other hand, by the time you're close enough to use it you're already in trouble.  IMHO the shotgun is really best for when you've been cornered indoors.  

I'd wanna be knocking them down with something like an SKS or an AK-47 before they get that close.  You could hit them with some big hollow-point rounds from a distance.

[ac_knight]

Ok, I have to weigh in on this.  I am a huge zombie freak; already have a plan if it all breaks loose. 

Now let's talk about the .223 or the shotgun.  This is kind of a mute point to me to be picking over the two.  You have to look at the intended use of the weapon first off.  I love both animals; they have great capabilities under the right circumstances.   

First the shotgun.  Now I am a Mossberg 590 fan, just to let you know.  I carry one in my car.  I know that the cop with the shotgun seems to be the cop that lives in the movies.  So I had to have a shotgun.  This being said, the shotgun is a close range weapon.  It was not designed to kill things at 300 yards.  It is a tactical short range urban weapon that is great for home defense and stopping bad guys 10 ft away from you, or killing zombies in the same room as you.  It has great stopping power, lots of pellets flying, very user friendly, but is heavy, slow, and limited on ammo capacity.  I have one, and would definitely use on in a zombie outbreak.

Now the .223.  I will call it the AR, because that is what most non-military people call it.  Ok, I love the AR as well.  It has it purpose, and that being to stop bad guys.  It has great penetration with the round; a bullet proof vest without a plate won't stop it.  A Kevlar helmet won't stop it; they are for deflections and shrapnel not straight on hits.  They can carry loads of ammo, are fast, reliable, and are quick to reload, but .223 ammo is hard to find, they have little to no actual stopping power, and are better for distant killing then up close killing of zombies.

Let me say this, I would take either one, but I would also keep in mind the uses for them both.  Sooner or later they both will just become heavy clubs.  Ammo will run out, and then you are stuck with big clumsy things that wont do you any good.  So you need to think smart, have a pistol if you can and a good club or sword.  A Tball bat works great for a club; small, light and can be swung one handed it need be.  Now a katana would be good to have as well.  This is because there are bunches out there you can get.  The medieval swords around are mostly crap and cheap, and so are the katana, but they are more readily available.  None of the swap meet swords are made for use, but the katana looks and feels more battle ready, imo. 

In closing I just want you all to think about it.  A shotgun will knock a zombie down, but it is still a slow beast.  The AR will kill a zombie, but wont necessarily knock it down.  Both will eventually run out of ammo.  So be prepared with a backup, be it melee or a pistol.  I have done lots of planning on this, so ifa nyone needs any advise or has any questions just pm me.  Always remember that if you cant run faster then the zombie horde, just run faster then the guy next to you.

[b5blue]

That's where a chainsaw comes in handy! 

[LeadfootBob]

I'd use an M1 carbine, para version with the folding stock, and a whole stack of the long mags. Bang bang bang, pistol size round with good penetration in a semi-automatic rifle size package = easy to shoot, easy to hit with.
Or better yet, one of the newer carbines from Ruger, the kind that can use standard pistol mags... 9mm? .45? Really exotic cartridges :-)
Sort of like the old west concept, using the same round in your sidearm as in the rifle to keep the backpack lighter. I hear a few PD's like this idea.
For a backup, anything with a big round. If you need to use it, you're already within spitting range so who cares about precision or recoil? Charter Arms Bulldog in .44 special, hell yeah! If your hands are hurting and your ears ringing, at least you're not a zombie, am I right? Am I right?!

[Johnny SixPack]

Or better yet, one of the newer carbines from Ruger, the kind that can use standard pistol mags... 9mm? .45? Really exotic cartridges :-)
Sort of like the old west concept, using the same round in your sidearm as in the rifle to keep the backpack lighter. I hear a few PD's like this idea.
For a backup, anything with a big round. If you need to use it, you're already within spitting range so who cares about precision or recoil? Charter Arms Bulldog in .44 special, hell yeah! If your hands are hurting and your ears ringing, at least you're not a zombie, am I right? Am I right?!

Speaking of .45 cal, a Tommy Gun would be an interesting choice.

Not like they're just laying around all over the place, but if you could locate one, it'd fill a nice niche.

AC is right though.

You'd definitely want a non-firearm back up, just for the simple fact that complex machines fail, or in the case of firearms also run out of ammo, quite often at the worst times, so having a hatchet/machete/sword-of-choice would be a very good idea.

Back to rifles, if there wasn't a very good chance you'd be screwed on finding ammo I'd take an AK47 simply for it's durability/reliability.

And 7.62x39 is very near .308. 

[bull]

What's the range on 12-gauge buck shot and slugs?

[dukeboy_01]

bull,  I'm gonna throw my opinion out there for what its worth...the distance you are accurate on slugs and buckshot depends on a lot of things...if you have a rifled slug barrel on your shotgun it will greatly improve your accuracy at farther distances...from my experience with my 12 ga. 870 Remington, I am comfortable at 50-60 yards...anything more than that and I'm better off throwing rocks...I don't have a rifled barrel and I don't use buckshot other than for home protection and I've never fired a round of that yet...but that's a good thing.    I used my slugs for deer hunting when I started as a kid...now that I have a little more money I diversified my collection to include .243 , 30-30, 8mm mauser, and a few others...but since we are killing zombies I would think the shotgun would be your best bet, unless you were picking them off from the top of a building, then I'd say .22-250 all the way, with ballistic tips (head/neck shots)  my

[b5blue]

My son has a great Zombie game, I was watching him and he changed from M1 to a shotgun.....the drop in rate of fire did him in in no time! There slow to reload, just thought I'd point that out. 

[Smokey Bear]

As long as you are smart enough not to get surrounded, you gotta like the shotgun. Zombies are slow, so there is plenty of time to reload. 
I also think ammo is key. Most of us are not prepared with crates of ammo. You gotta be able to handle a major event, and If I had to be scrounging for ammo house to house I think I'd have a pretty fair chance of coming up with 12-ga shells vs. any other particular caliber.  Throw in the fun factor of shotgun damage to rotting flesh and you just can't go wrong with 12-ga.

[Mr.Woolery]

Distance is a necessity but can end up being an impossible luxury when defending oneself from zombie attack.  I'd love to have some sort of firearm (especially one that's silenced to prevent attracting further zombies), but as it has been previously said, it'll just become another useless lump of metal as soon as the ammo runs out.

I would prefer to be equipped with three weapons:  A polearm (with a combo spear/axe/hook head), a mid length samurai sword, and a crowbar.  All three can be used against zombies at various close combat ranges.  A polearm would be incredibly efficient at taking down zombies out in the open while keeping you far enough away from them to lessen the risk of infection.  A simple stabbing motion would take one down at 10-15 feet.  The sword is good for chopping off limbs or heads if things get tight, and the crowbar works both as a stabbing and bludgeoning weapon.  The crowbar also allows you to break into buildings for foraging, shelter, etc.

I'd stay away from hatchets, baseball bats, machettes, knives, etc.

[mauve66]

i can't believe i sat here for over an hour reading all this and following all the links
but then it was almost as good as the 90+ pages of funny pics of the day


1.  if zombies get so bad that i'm having to defend myself instead of the military defending me then its over and i'm not using a sword on my self, too much long term pain if i mess up
2.  other than 5.56 rounds for the M16 from the largest most well equiped military in the world i figure the 9MM is the most basic round out there that would easily be found, of course some will say that the 7.62 is far more popular in the rest of the world i'm hoping to be in this country when it all goes to hell in a hat basket
3.  i love shotguns but honestly think that a 20 gauge is far more prevalent than a 12 gauge
4. now for sex with a zombie, ?? i guess she wouldn't complain about the after taste after eating dead rotting flesh all day, huh?

[Smokey Bear]

3.  i love shotguns but honestly think that a 20 gauge is far more prevalent than a 12 gauge .....  i figure the 9MM is the most basic round out there that would easily be found, of course some will say that the 7.62 is far more popular in the rest of the world

12ga shotguns outsell every other gauge combined. For brass, several sources I looked at say that 22LR is worlds most purchased ammo, though 9mm is a pretty good bet in urban areas.

http://www.firearmssite.com/shotguns.htm

4. now for sex with a zombie, ?? i guess she wouldn't complain about the after taste after eating dead rotting flesh all day, huh?

Ewwww     Glad I missed that reference ... and I'm not going back to read it!

[Ranger Max]

.

[Rolling_Thunder]

hmmmm      I would take a bladed weapon - as it will never run out of ammo...      but in the larger scene I would not take the M60...     the pig is a HEAVY mother...    but its low rate of fire makes it easy to control...       

There are .308 versions of the AR-15 series rifles but they are distance marksmanship rifles mostly...    if you want 308 and some mag capacity go with a M1A or something of that nature...     

My friend carries a .50 Desert Eagle - registered it as one of his conceal carry weapons ---  a bad ass gun with a ton of power but a lot of fouling issues...    I would take a proven and reliable system...    .45 is nice but 9mm is all that is needed if you're a good shot...      I'd take a Sig 226 or something of that nature...     

[Mike DC]

My friend carries a .50 Desert Eagle - registered it as one of his conceal carry weapons

if you want 308 and some mag capacity go with a M1A or something of that nature...     

My friend has one of those thing.  I've emptied a few magazines with it.  It's a little heavy but it's a badass piece of work overall. 

I would take a proven and reliable system...    .45 is nice but 9mm is all that is needed if you're a good shot...

Agreed.  

The 9mm has a bit of a "climbing" problem but other than that I don't see much not to like about it.  It's just a lightweight small gun that's good for fast shooting & reloading.   It's not a world beater but it would make a good last backup firearm on your body.  

     

[Mr.Woolery]

The only firearm I'd want is a bolt action rifle (which could be used for hunting or long distance sniping).  One of the major problems you'll have with any firearm during the coming Zombie Apocalypse is that firearms attract attention--all the wrong kind.  If you are foolish enough to take a shot at one zombie with a gun, you'd better be armed and prepared to take out any other zombies within earshot that will be attracted to the noise you make in using the gun.  You might shoot one, but you'll attract every other zombie for miles...and before you know it you'll be surrounded by a horde of them.  The noise you make could be more damaging to you than any gains made by using a gun to take out a zombie (or a small group of them).

Silence/stealth is one of the most underrated tools we'll have in dealing with the problem, which is why you'll be best served with non-firearm type weapons as personal defense tools in the long run.

[teamroth]

If you like to read and are into zombies, check out Patient Zero. I read it in like 3 days, couldn't put the damn thing down.

Here is some guys blog about it. Zombies as Bio-weapons...crazy

http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2009/03/patient-zero-by-jonathan-maberry.html

[ac_knight]

You want a good Zombie book, check this out...

http://www.tacticalunderground.us/

Great book, cant wait for the second one.  He is a military officer and wrote this whole book over a one year period.  He would post them on line, a day at a time before he joined them all together as a book.  So hence the day by day Armageddon.

[AKcharger]

Well guys I'm of the .223 crowd but you have made some convincing arguments for the Shotgun, namely knock down power/dismemberment. While the ideal zombie engagement is encountering a slow mover across a deserted parking lot at 100 yds, but being surrounded by packs of bloodthirsty undead will happen with frightening regularity...and those shotgun blasts, even misplaced, could make the difference between life and death!

I do have to disagree with use  of sword type weapons however. While undoubtedly effective is close quarters combat, the issue with a sword is you're also directly exposed to zombie blood as the edged weapons slices and dices through the decaying flesh of undead. So if we're dealing with with standard solanum outbreak or a T-virus infection, even a drop or two is enough for you to unwittingly join thier ranks!

Oh, I got my Zombie bumper stickers in the other day. Model Chargers are included in the photo becuase...well...it's a Charger site!

[mauve66]

dude where did you get those???

[AKcharger]

Cafe press,They have tons of good ones: http://bumperstickers.cafepress.com/zombies_stickers