Small arms on a yacht?

[[70521]]

In the past I've worked quite closely with the military and played with some of their toys, my favorite was a the Glock. I can't see how anybody is going to hit anything from the deck of a small boat without a lot of practice; the sort of practice that is usually given to our friends in Hereford and Poole.

Given that the "Jolly Pirate" is going to come in force and armed to the teeth with AK47s by the time you have gone below, unlocked the gun cabinet, found the rounds, loaded the weapon, crapped in your pants, come back on deck and waved the gun at them you will be full of holes.

 

[Daydream believer]

Given that the "Jolly Pirate" is going to come in force and armed to the teeth with AK47s by the time you have gone below, unlocked the gun cabinet, found the rounds, loaded the weapon, crapped in your pants, come back on deck and waved the gun at them you will be full of holes.

But you just said it would be difficult to hit anything. So how come they can hit you & would they still continue if they knew that the target could fire back?

 

[[70521]]

But you just said it would be difficult to hit anything. So how come they can hit you & would they still continue if they knew that the target could fire back?

The AK47 has a fire rate of 600 rounds a minute, lets say there are 5 of them. How fast do you reload?

 

[Daydream believer]

But an AK 47 does not carry 600 rounds so that is a little misleading. Plus firing at that rate is extremely inaccurate.
But there again it only takes one bullet
I only raised the question - I would not advocate carrying a gun. However, a grenade to lob in their boat as it came along side might give someone a little surprise

 

[snowleopard]

I thought someone had recently got off on a firearms offence for possessing a Verey piston on the grounds that the barrel was too short to count ?

Boo2

I don't think a verey pistol actually has a barrel. The cartridge comes right to the end so it could be regarded as a chamber. Certainly the flare doesn't travel down a tube, it just pops right out of the end of the cartridge.

I used to have a 1.5" bore pistol. I have also seen 1" bore in the UK. In chandleries across the pond I have seen 12-guage flare pistols which might take shotgun cartridges: a fearsome prospect.

 

[BobPrell]

I don't think a verey pistol actually has a barrel. The cartridge comes right to the end so it could be regarded as a chamber. Certainly the flare doesn't travel down a tube, it just pops right out of the end of the cartridge.

I used to have a 1.5" bore pistol. I have also seen 1" bore in the UK. In chandleries across the pond I have seen 12-guage flare pistols which might take shotgun cartridges: a fearsome prospect.

You ought to be ashamed of yourself for being interested enough to remember such vile things.

 

[Koeketiene]

Given that the "Jolly Pirate" is going to come in force and armed to the teeth with AK47s by the time you have gone below, unlocked the gun cabinet, found the rounds, loaded the weapon, crapped in your pants, come back on deck and waved the gun at them you will be full of holes.

Counter piracy - Somalia in particular - was my bread & butter for quite a few years.

- Where do you get the idea that 'Jolly Pirate' is always armed to the teeth and knows how to use his weapons well (or even know how to maintain them)? Whenever we captured pirate skiffs, they maybe had no more than one or two AK47s per skiff. And in more than half the cases, it did not even fire or would have injured whoever tried to fire it.

- If you happen to be sailing in an area where pirates operate, what exactly is your firearm doing locked away in the gun cabinet. If I were to find myself in such a situation and if I did carry a firearm it would be ready for use by the helm.

- 99% of the time, firearms aboard yachts are more trouble than they are worth; but if I were ever to consider cruising an area with known pirate activity I would not hesitate to carry some aboard and nor would I hesitate to use them.

 

[grumpy_o_g]

Never??? A damn sight better plan than letting the other bugger shoot first, I respectfully submit.

Indeed, right up to the moment you are arrested and charged for manslaughter or possibly murder and discover that you have just deprived a family of their Father.

 

[Daydream believer]

Indeed, right up to the moment you are arrested and charged for manslaughter or possibly murder and discover that you have just deprived a family of their Father.

I think depriving them of their father would be the least of my worries. I would consider him just scum.
As for murder , in some parts of the world it is perfectly legal to kill someone, in self defence, carrying out an illegal act. For instance in Kenya it is Ok to kill a poacher. In fact Robert - the retired harbour master from Ostend- claimed to have done just that. I recall that he was disappointed he could not do the same in Ostend. So I suspect similar laws apply elsewhere.
If you did kill a pirate would you actually go into the nearest port & start bragging about it?

 

[Jock89]

Indeed, right up to the moment you are arrested and charged for manslaughter or possibly murder and discover that you have just deprived a family of their Father.

....WHO HAD JUST TRIED TO ROB YOU.!!!
Yes, it would be hugely regrettable, but I & my family would still be alive.!
His mistake, not mine.

 

[macd]

I think depriving them of their father would be the least of my worries. I would consider him just scum.

I think grumpy was suggesting a scenario where a trigger-happy yachtsman shot someone who may have looked like a pirate but was in fact something else. You can ignore this suggestion if you plan to sail only in areas where pirates wear eye-patches and a parrot on one shoulder under a Jolly Roger flag. Meanwhile, in the real world...

 

[Daydream believer]

I wonder if anyone realises that 4 years ago there was attempted piracy of a moving MOBO off Walton & Clacton.
Fortunately the attackers were unable to get aboard the MOBO but the crew ( Husband , wife & 2 kids) were seriously frightened
The attackers were dressed in black & were aboard jet skis. They made one attempt off Walton to board & another near the Wallet Spitway
In that instance I would not have shot them, but clumping them with a heavy blunt instrument may have been on the cards.
The chap concerned was far too frightened to do much other than weave about & go as fast as he could in rough water bouncing wife & kids about. Wife was screaming & kids bawling their eyes out. He could not let go of the helm to call the coastguard but admits he never thought of that. He phoned police when back at Fambridge & response was " If it happens again let us know sir"
He was extremely embarrassed about it all & only told me as he knew it was my sailing ground & a SH yacht would be an easy target.

 

[GHA]

I think grumpy was suggesting a scenario where a trigger-happy yachtsman shot someone who may have looked like a pirate but was in fact something else. You can ignore this suggestion if you plan to sail only in areas where pirates wear eye-patches and a parrot on one shoulder under a Jolly Roger flag. Meanwhile, in the real world...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-18263365

 

[macd]

Thanks, GHA: the very scenario I had in mind (and there have been other, similar cases).

 

[GHA]

Thanks, GHA: the very scenario I had in mind (and there have been other, similar cases).

Add to that in many parts of the world fishermen will have their heads and face fully covered up with scarves, scary sight to a paranoid yachtie with a gun when they come over for a look and to blag some water..

 

[[70521]]

Counter piracy - Somalia in particular - was my bread & butter for quite a few years.

- Where do you get the idea that 'Jolly Pirate' is always armed to the teeth and knows how to use his weapons well (or even know how to maintain them)? Whenever we captured pirate skiffs, they maybe had no more than one or two AK47s per skiff. And in more than half the cases, it did not even fire or would have injured whoever tried to fire it.

Some interesting pictures there, thanks for sharing.

In reply to your question "where did I get that idea", from talking to guys like you; guys whom I know their background and quite sure they are not full of bovine excretia.

 

[Blue Sunray]

Counter piracy - Somalia in particular - was my bread & butter for quite a few years.

- Where do you get the idea that 'Jolly Pirate' is always armed to the teeth and knows how to use his weapons well (or even know how to maintain them)? Whenever we captured pirate skiffs, they maybe had no more than one or two AK47s per skiff. And in more than half the cases, it did not even fire or would have injured whoever tried to fire it.

- If you happen to be sailing in an area where pirates operate, what exactly is your firearm doing locked away in the gun cabinet. If I were to find myself in such a situation and if I did carry a firearm it would be ready for use by the helm.

- 99% of the time, firearms aboard yachts are more trouble than they are worth; but if I were ever to consider cruising an area with known pirate activity I would not hesitate to carry some aboard and nor would I hesitate to use them.

:encouragement:

There are a lot of armchair experts on here whose contributions even a Daily Mail journalist might find embarrassingly ignorant.

 

[Heckler]

I don't think a verey pistol actually has a barrel. The cartridge comes right to the end so it could be regarded as a chamber. Certainly the flare doesn't travel down a tube, it just pops right out of the end of the cartridge.

I used to have a 1.5" bore pistol. I have also seen 1" bore in the UK. In chandleries across the pond I have seen 12-guage flare pistols which might take shotgun cartridges: a fearsome prospect.

We had a flare pistol offshore, it was used for lighting the flare at the end of a long boom. The stores bought all sorts before they got it right. Odd sized pistols, odd sized cartridges. The gun itself was made of zinc based monkey metal, as others have said, the cartridge was the barrel, I certainly wouldnt have chanced proper ammo in it. I actually made a pipe thing that the cartridge fitted in with a hole and a nail in the end to light the flare whilst we waited for the right stuff to come from the States to Angola. Good fun wallowing in the inflateable trying to point an inch and a half pipe cobbled together and trying to hit the nail in the end! It worked eventuall, a very satisfying WUMP as the gas caught!
One of the forumites had a proper Verey Pistol on board in Pwllheli, he had to have a proper fire arms ticket for it. I signed the form for him in my role as Cllr.
Stu

 

[Heckler]

But an AK 47 does not carry 600 rounds so that is a little misleading. Plus firing at that rate is extremely inaccurate.
But there again it only takes one bullet
I only raised the question - I would not advocate carrying a gun. However, a grenade to lob in their boat as it came along side might give someone a little surprise

I certainly would have ideas about lobbing the outboard jerry can in to the skiff with the top off. If nob decided to pull the trigger it should be enough to set the fumes off if the flare following it didnt!
S

 

[Woodlouse]

Counter piracy - Somalia in particular - was my bread & butter for quite a few years.

- Where do you get the idea that 'Jolly Pirate' is always armed to the teeth and knows how to use his weapons well (or even know how to maintain them)? Whenever we captured pirate skiffs, they maybe had no more than one or two AK47s per skiff. And in more than half the cases, it did not even fire or would have injured whoever tried to fire it.

- If you happen to be sailing in an area where pirates operate, what exactly is your firearm doing locked away in the gun cabinet. If I were to find myself in such a situation and if I did carry a firearm it would be ready for use by the helm.

- 99% of the time, firearms aboard yachts are more trouble than they are worth; but if I were ever to consider cruising an area with known pirate activity I would not hesitate to carry some aboard and nor would I hesitate to use them.

It is a little reasuring that pirates firearms are so delapidated. I'm still not sure I'd be willing to take the risk though. I think my best defence against piracy will still be to avoid going there.