Rock salt shotshells

[barnbwt]

"The idea was that the rock salt would penetrate the skin enough to cause extreme pain ("salt in a wound") without causing serious injury. The weight or the mass of the salt would be irrelevant as long as it created enough of a wound to really, really, really hurt.

Anyone who doesn't think that is a big deal, try rubbing some salt on your next shaving nick or finger cut."

I take it no one gets salt in wounds frequently anymore...

The phrase refers to something much more insidious; a salted cut does not hurt much more (a little, but only until the salt dissolves into the blood/tissue), but it does not coagulate. A much nastier form of aggravation, if you think about it. I cut myself on a piece of wire while rubbing rock salt on my Turkey last year, and while it was not a particularly painful or traumatic affair, it took a good half hour for a little paper cut to stop bleeding. The red just flowed out like water, like when you first cut yourself. Apparently the salt will dissolve into the tissue at the breach (since we are water based) and have a persistent effect until it dilutes into the rest of your body's lymphatic system (our flavorful juices ). Since my hands were already soaked in it (pickled, one might say), it took a longer time.

I think a salt-shotted wound would be pretty bad--environmentally safe and untraceable, though . But mostly because it'd be like getting blasted with high velocity saw dust. Salt water works great on wounds, though; it's the crystalline/concentrated stuff that interferes with healing.

TCB

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I always heard dried rice was better...

 

[Deltaboy1984]

It would bad on a barrel.

 

[Midwest]

Calcium Chloride is safer than rock salt

 

[Sentryau2]

I used to hear tales of it, never seen it except on the internet, never heard of anyone using it on anything. Not even the old timers around here. I dont think id use those for self defense, rubber bullets would be more viable,effective and less likely of a legal risk (check your state laws)

 

[medalguy]

I personally don't know of anyone who was shot with salt, but I did do my share of raiding watermelon patches when I was but a youth back in the deep south. And yes we did get caught stealing melons. Never stopped us from doing it again, though.

On a more serious note, shooting anything out of a shotgun runs the very real risk of doing some serious damage with the shot cup, just in case anyone is considering experimenting with rock salt at a close distance. Don't.

 

[Texan Scott]

True deal.... I had a service buddy who got caught as a teenager sneaking into his girlfriend's bedroom window at night. The girl's father was VERY displeased, and a seventeen yr old boy did not QUITE make it over the back fence before having his butt and thighs tore up with a shotshell of rock salt. Years later, there were still marks.

 

[Wolfsbane]

Okay maybe I should have been more specific as to what I'm looking for.

The current legal paradigm in most jurisdictions is that you discharge a firearm at someone as a lethal measure because you believe your life or someone else's life to be in mortal danger.

In said paradigm, using shells with rock salt demonstrates you don't believe you to be in a mortal danger and therefore is an assault with a deadly weapon or some such chargeable offense.

I'm looking for cases where people used rock salt and were arrested and charged. I'm not finding anything on google. I either get someone trying to sell me rock salt or someone arrested for a non rock salt firearms offense.

 

[crazyjennyblack]

Wolfsbane - I don't think you will find one. Because of the legal issues these days, people would rather just shoot each other with birdshot or buckshot because the consequences are the same.

In the old wive's tales, you find that rock salt is always meant as a nonlethal deterrent to pesky trespassers. We have other ways now, such as cameras, and the "rock salt" types would probably use tear gas or something like that.

Bottom line is I will be quite surprised if an actual news story comes up.

 

[Kuyong_Chuin]

I always heard dried rice was better...

Then the animal rights group would come after you too for "blowing up" the birds. That is why in it not legal in areas to throw rice at weddings anymore.

 

[DT Guy]

There was a case (can't remember the year or locale-sorry) many years ago of a woman who was acquitted of first degree murder charges after shooting her husband six times with a .38 special at point blank range.

Her defense (which apparently swayed the judge or jury) was that her husband had shown her how to use his gun, a .357 magnum, and explained its ammunition like this: "These .38's are for practicing, the .357's are for when you really want to kill the person you shoot."

The woman had unloaded the gun of its .357 ammunition and replaced it with .38, apparently thinking it would only 'hurt' her husband. A similar idea, though more extreme, to what you're suggesting, I think.

I would not rely on that working, myself.


Larry

 

[Frank Ettin]

There was a case (can't remember the year or locale-sorry) many years ago of a woman who was acquitted of first degree murder charges after shooting her husband six times with a .38 special at point blank range.

Her defense (which apparently swayed the judge or jury) was that her husband had shown her how to use his gun, a .357 magnum, and explained its ammunition like this: "These .38's are for practicing, the .357's are for when you really want to kill the person you shoot."

....

I would not rely on that working, myself....

Sound like an urban myth to me. I wouldn't rely on it even being true without some solid documentation.

...The current legal paradigm in most jurisdictions is that you discharge a firearm at someone as a lethal measure because you believe your life or someone else's life to be in mortal danger.

In said paradigm, using shells with rock salt demonstrates you don't believe you to be in a mortal danger and therefore is an assault with a deadly weapon or some such chargeable offense...

There are various types of less lethal munitions in use by LEOs today -- beanbags, rubber bullets, rubber shot, and the like. AFAIK, under standard procedures they are used only against potentially lethal threats and only when other officers are present with immediately available lethal force as back up. Such munitions are called "less lethal" because they are still capable of killing or maiming someone.

The thing is that less lethal munitions appear largely unsuitable for use by private citizens in the sorts of situations private citizens would generally have to deal with. We've had some extensive discussion of the use of less lethal munitions: here, here, and here.

 

[Midwest]

Okay maybe I should have been more specific as to what I'm looking for.

The current legal paradigm in most jurisdictions is that you discharge a firearm at someone as a lethal measure because you believe your life or someone else's life to be in mortal danger.

In said paradigm, using shells with rock salt demonstrates you don't believe you to be in a mortal danger and therefore is an assault with a deadly weapon or some such chargeable offense.

I'm looking for cases where people used rock salt and were arrested and charged. I'm not finding anything on google. I either get someone trying to sell me rock salt or someone arrested for a non rock salt firearms offense.

However the police can use bean bags for less than lethal force. But I guess the general public could not?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bean_bag_round


While people can be killed or seriously hurt from bean bags, they are considered less than lethal.

 

[Schwing]

I must be the only person here that watches "Supernatural". The two brothers Sam and Dean Winchester travel the U.S. hunting ghosts, vampires, demons, werewolves, etc. According the the show mythology, ghosts are repelled by pure iron or salt. They commonly shoot at ghosts with "Salt rounds" in the show to drive them off.

Pure entertainment.

 

[MtnCreek]

On a more serious note, shooting anything out of a shotgun runs the very real risk of doing some serious damage with the shot cup,

The only rock salt & beans I know of was from a paper Peters shell. There's some kind of compressed paper disc in there separating the powder from the charge. Due to shape vs a modern wad, the compressed disc may potentially lethal. This was mid to late 80's and I was NOT on either end of it.

 

[bmnloader]

I can tell you from 1st hand knowledge, it hurts! Me and my brother would sneak into a fish hatchery about a mile from our house to fish and when the old man would see us crawl over the small levee but we didn't see him, he'd shoot at us. I don't think he actually wanted to hit us but it did happen once. Momma was pretty mad about our jeans and shirts being all messed up even after we told her where the fish were coming from. This was in the mid 60's.

 

[Jorg Nysgerrig]

Then the animal rights group would come after you too for "blowing up" the birds. That is why in it not legal in areas to throw rice at weddings anymore.

Urban legend much?

As far the OP's question, I guess if you want to pay you can find out what this article says:http://www.thestarpress.com/article...d-after-shots-fired-Wednesday-night-Lafayette

 

[showmebob]

I remember my Dad telling me he used to shoot rats in the barn. Never said he killed any, just made them squeal real loud. Also, no damage to the barn.

 

[Sam1911]

However the police can use bean bags for less than lethal force. But I guess the general public could not?

The police are using firearms in situations where very grave force -- possibly with lethal results -- is authorized, but they are attempting to use a next-to-last ditch effort to control/stop a violent person or crowd (think prison riot) without having to end lives. The situations they are using those rounds in would otherwise be justified lethal force uses. (And they always have backup right behind them with the lethal force at the ready, should the less-than-lethal force not prove conclusive.)

Average Joe homeowner absolutely COULD use rubber shot, bean-bag rounds, baton rounds, or whatever other less-than-lethal or less-lethal rounds against an intruder. That's NOT against the law. However, s/he could only do so in situations where use of lethal force would be justifiable under the law.

As even lethal force isn't guaranteed to stop an attack, and less-than-lethal can only be LESS guaranteed to do so -- and considering that less-than-lethal rounds DON'T give a defender any additional latitude in using their weapons -- their employment outside of extremely limited law-enforcement and department of corrections situations is highly discouraged.

...

Further, having less-than-lethal type rounds on hand can make the less aware among us dangerously eager to discharge a firearm when they otherwise would not. Why not shoot at trespassers? I have non-lethal rounds in the gun! Why not fire my weapon at a nuisance animal within the town limits? It's just rubber shot (or rock salt)!

 

[Whacked]

When I was 10 I decided to ride my bike into town to go swimming at the public pool.
As I neared I heard gunshots.
Standing on opposite sides of the street at the park was 2 individuals so drunk they could hardly stand, shooting at each other with shotguns. The street was extremely wide but based on the amount of cussing, they were hitting each other.
Found out later the loads was rock salt.

Needless to say I did not go swimming that day.

back in them days, the police did NOT patrol that town. when they came they came in force with ambulance. We were not allowed to be there after dark unless with a adult. Few years later the county was allowed to hire more police and with streetlights installed the town cleaned up.

 

[DT Guy]

Sound like an urban myth to me. I wouldn't rely on it even being true without some solid documentation.

I'll dig. It was part of a police certification as a Use of Force Instructor course, so I suspect there is some basis for it. OTOH, it predates the interwebz by years, so not sure what will exist for it.

 

[SuedePflow]

There's a shotshell seller at the Knob Creek machinegun shoot every year that loads up just about anything in a 12-gauge shell. And he still offers rock salt shells. I can't imagine any practical use for them. I doubt he sells many of them.

But his flash-bang shells on the other hand... I couldn't pass up trying some of those.

 

[Zeke/PA]

I heard the same thing as a boy as in Watermelon Patches and Rocksalt.
Never knew anybody stopped a load of salt though.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

DT Guy's poast (Husband: "...38's are for practicing, the .357's are for when you really want to kill the person you shoot..." Wife replaced .357 with .38 ammo "thinking it would only 'hurt' her husband.")

That reminds me of a case years ago where a guy insisted a .38 wadcutter was a blank cartridge, "Look no bullet!", with bad results.

All guns deserve the respect due a lethal weapon, especially the unloaded ones and ones loaded with so-called less-lethal rounds.

It is my understanding that if a situation justifies lethal force, it justifies less-than lethal force too, whatever can help stop the incident. But you don't use a gun in an incident where neither life nor limb are at risk.

 

[tactikel]

Back in the 60s my buddy and I used a lee loader to make some rock salt loads for his 16ga Rem. 870. Made half a dozen, shot them, couldn't think of a use for them in Chicago . Never loaded more.