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[h/t to FXG]

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47 COMMENTS

  1. I have no sound available at work, so I can only imagine what pearls of wisdom he shared before and after he shot himself. With the full coverage tats and the beard and belly, I assumed he was a “tough guy” , but he seemed a bit of a wuss after the shot (again, I have no sound here).

    • Some description (G20, 10mm, Hornady, Second Chance, etc), a bit of trying to psych himself up, followed by some colorFul descriptions of what it’s like to be shot.

      The intent seemed to be to convince himself that the vest would perform as advertised. This does not strike me as an inherently bad idea- people doing dangerous work need to have confidence in their gear- but the execution was a bit questionable.

  2. Where does one begin?
    The negligent handling prior to the self-inflicted gunshot? The “Why yes, I have done decades in prison” tattoos? The fact that a 10mm steps out at an alarming velocity and has defeated body armor? The way he (Idiot In Question) was pointing the charged Glock at his own jewels while finger-banging the hell out of the trigger?
    I guess I will just have to file this whole thing away in the “Do not try this at home” category.
    I wonder if his off camera assistant would have driven this fat fool to the hospital had the plate failed.
    Stupid IS painful…

    • “The fact that a 10mm steps out at an alarming velocity and has defeated body armor?”

      Hornady’s 10mm is pretty watered down. He basically shot himself with a .40. Still though, he just shot himself with a .40 … .lzxikxdck,lad-o[0pamkl;qaiozsehjk4rfc (bangs head on keyboard)

      • My mistake on the hard data, but the point is the same. Point blank is “No Miss” territory. This was zero distance territory. I have done some stupid things (mostly revolving around choices of ex-wives), but this is a prime example of how to end a perfectly stupid existence. One commenter noted that it was a shame he did not directly impact the liver, but in fact this IIQ likely did. And from the rotund proportions, this IIQ has not done a sit-up since he was kicked out of high school, so it is not as if a muscle structure exists to help disperse the shock of impact. The adipose tissue does a great job of absorbing impact, but not to the tune of (divide velocity by 1,000, square result and multiply by bullet weight, multiply result by 2.219= Ft Lbs of impact) freaking dead on arrival.
        Body armor is by design only used to protect life. When the forces of stupidity overtake that barrier, death is the logical result. Puncture wounds are only one way to die, hematoma is another. The loss of blood as his internal cavities fill up would only result in a situation incompatible with life. I am not certain this guy would be on top of that particular ball as he more than likely drank away the pain in some show of manly bravado. (Insert further insult to liver here)
        To be certain, I think we both agree on the severity of this IIQ’s stupidity, but the “watered down” ballistics of the Hornady load are hardly grounds for dismissal.

        • Body armor comes in different threat level ratings, from NIJ Level I to NIJ Level IV. Level IV is capable of withstanding an AP .30-06 round. A standard 10mm round is well within the ratings of NIJ level IIIa/III vests.

          All armor can be defeated with enough kinetic energy or a sharp enough projectile at high velocity. For example, typical LEO armor is IIa or II, and is supposed to withstand a .357 point-blank. Yea, OK, but what happens if your assailant is using a crossbow and broadhead? Guess what, today isn’t your lucky day. You’d have been much better off if the perp was using a .357.

          Similarly, it doesn’t take penetration to cause death to the wearer of vest. A center punch from a .375 H&H or heavier rifle round will cause a flailed chest in many instances on a III or higher rated vest, resulting in death without penetration of the vest.

          As for the physical condition of the subject: There’s plenty of LEO’s in the same or similar physical condition.

        • Precisely why I stated my point. Also stated, we agree. The argument lies in..
          Details. Yes, it is a survivable hit. No, it is not something that should ever be duplicated.
          No, no sane human would attempt this.
          One more time for the cheap seats…
          This Should (read that will) Kill You.

  3. Well, that is one way to make sure your ballistic vest works.
    Personally, I would have hung the vest on a pumpkin…you know…just in case.

    This really had potential for a Darwin Award. Maybe he can apply for an Honorable Mention.

  4. these people make me sick. “hey look i got body armor” hurp durp “I’m gone prove that NLECTC was right.” Durp – ow that hurt, but I guess they aint lying to ya.

    • That’s what I was thinking!

      From the Wikipedia article:
      In a suburban Detroit field, and wearing his creation, he turned a .38 Special revolver to his chest—and pulled the trigger. The vest worked and the Second Chance brand legend was born. Richard Davis would go on to shoot himself over 200 times in demonstrations around the world, mostly with .44 Magnums, while the technology he invented would save the lives of over 1,000 police officers wearing Second Chance vests.

    • Exactly. The “armed intellectuals” here seem to either be ignorant of the history of the body armor industry and Mr. Davis’ extreme testing standards, or they have a double standard.

      • If first saw him pulling this stunt in a video from the ’80s called “Deadly Effects”. To his credit, he did stick a phone book under the vest to distribute the impact.

        And it looks like that part of it is online now. Before YouTube, this VHS was actually quite good at debunking a lot of different gun myths. They not only tested bulletproof vests, they also showed accuracy on full auto, and shot car gas tanks to demonstrate what happens in the real world.

        • My mistake. This is from “Deadly Weapons”. “Deadly Effects” is another video in the series from Anite Productions. And apparently you can still get them on DVD.

      • Neither Mr Davis or anyone else has a reason to use themselves as a target for a handgun. Animal carcases are a better choice.

    • pulled this with my kid for the first time last week (sans the gun of course), he has been trying to do it on other people all week now.

  5. Unlike the IIQ in his videos, as has been pointed out, the illustrious Mr. Davis seems to have shoved telephone books up under his vest in the majority of these videos… as evidenced by the PAGES FLYING OUT FROM UNDER HIS VEST!
    So much safer test, go ahead and grab a telephone book for a city of… ohhh let’s say 200k or more. place the telephone book upright braced against something… lets say a container of wet sand shall we? Fire.
    The reasons why a telephone book will make that hurt a lot less are the same as were discussed in regards to why fat distributes impact less efficiently than muscle.
    Either way there’s no defense for anyone who voluntarily shoots themselves..

  6. To settle your confusion on Richard’s bravery, intelligence and the balls to put his money where his mouth is, perhaps you shld do a little more research on this man. We often mock what we don’t understand and I am here to tell you that you shld be so blessed to hv the opportunity to sit down and pick his brain. I have, I married into this family and there is not a day that goes by that this man doesn’t amaze me! He wld give the shirt off his back to any one of you whether he had the money to put a new one on his own back!

    I urge you to do a little more research before posting ignorant comments. You only make yourself sound incredibly uneducated!

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