From: JonWienk@ix.netcom.com
Date: Tue, 6 Aug 1996 13:41:54 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Ballistics
Message-ID: <199608060242.TAA06198@dfw-ix10.ix.netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



On Sun, 04 Aug 96, dlv@bwalk.dm.com (Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM) wrote:

>Is there truth to the rumor that poking a file inside the barrel will
>alter the marks on future test firings?

A much better idea is to clean the barrel with a stiff wire brush. If you blue 
the inside of the barrel, and then brush the bluing off, that is enough. 
Alternatively/additionally, fire several hundred rounds with the weapon.  Either 
will change the microscopic pattern of grooves sufficiently to cause a mismatch. 
Poking a file around in the barrel is a good way to ruin a gun.

Changing barrels is a good idea as well. I can change the barrel on my Desert 
Eagle in about 15 seconds. A better idea yet is to fabricate a removable 
silencer (that can be attached/detached without modifying the barrel) with a 
wire brush surrounding the muzzle opening (similar to a batery terminal cleaner, 
but sturdier, of course) so that the bristles put their own marks on the bullet 
as it leaves the barrel. Even if the silencer is found, you will never be able 
to put it on aligned exactly the same way, and the marks will not line up 
exactly. Alternatively, you could mount the bristles on a bearing so they can 
rotate freely, so the patterns of marks constantly change as the brush rotates. 
Of course, getting caught with a silencer is a good way to go directly to jail 
without passing GO.

Of course, if you are serious about avoiding this kind of hassle, you will mount 
a bag to the receiver of your gun to catch the fired shells, so that they aren't 
lying around for curious people to find.

Jonathan Wienke

"1935 will go down in history! For the first time a civilized nation has full 
gun registration! Our streets will be safer, our police more efficient, and the 
world will follow our lead in the future!"
--Adolf Hitler

"46.  The U.S. government declares a ban on the possession, sale, 
transportation, and transfer of all non-sporting firearms. ...Consider the 
following statement:  I would fire upon U.S. citizens who refuse or resist 
confiscation of firearms banned by the U.S. government."
--The 29 Palms Combat Arms Survey  
http://www.ksfo560.com/Personalities/Palms.htm

1935 Germany = 1996 U.S.?

Key fingerprint =  30 F9 85 7F D2 75 4B C6  BC 79 87 3D 99 21 50 CB