# Best weapon to use against zombies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 12, 2005, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317 "2005-09-12T20:16:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/21 "2005-09-12T23:37:37Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > I like the USAS-12. That’s one nasty shotgun. > > However, it is kind of hard to get ahold of. I think the best anti-zombie weapon would be a large vehicle. Something like a snowplow, fire engine, big rig, or even a school bus. Nah, you need an APC or a tank, depending on how many people are traveling with you. An M1 Abrams tank can do something like 30-50MPH depending on the traveling surface. As long as the zombies don’t figure out how to use anti-armor weapons, you’re golden. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/22 "2005-09-12T23:39:32Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > For that matter, one of the 5.45mm AK’s would work, but without the easy resupply of ammo (for Westerners) that the 5.56 offers. Thus, the AK-74/AKM would be ideal for our Eurasian friends when they need to fight off Zombies, yes? In Soviet Russia, You eat Zombies! (err… wait… that’s not quite right…) ---
**Author:** ![RyJae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@RyJae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RyJae)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/23 "2005-09-13T00:12:10Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Nah, you need an APC or a tank, depending on how many people are traveling with you. An M1 Abrams tank can do something like 30-50MPH depending on the traveling surface. As long as the zombies don’t figure out how to use anti-armor weapons, you’re golden. M1A1 tank would be sweet, with some old fashion beehive rounds in place of the heat/sabot rounds. Coax and loader M240s and the TC’s Ma Deuce outta keep you and three others around long enough to find the next fueling station. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/24 "2005-09-13T00:44:50Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > These O’Bannon zombies sound fucked-up scary. Is it possible to beat them? How did those movies end, dare I ask? In the first one They _did_ nuke the whole site. But they didn’t do it from orbit. In the second The zombies were for some crazy reason vulnerable to electric shock, so they baited them into the power plant and went zappy zappy. I guess a taser is what you’d want. In the third They had some tranquilizing gun thing that worked long enough for people to feel secure, and then the zombies attacked again. Actually, I think the zombies won in the third one. I should also note that the third movie is orders of magnitudes stupider than the other two. And that’s saying a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/25 "2005-09-13T01:26:28Z")
**Bubastis** , I’ve had similar dreams occasionally, ever since I first saw _Night of the Living Dead_ back in the '70s. The Romero movies always got under my skin because in a way it almost seems _possible_. Okay, it isn’t, which is good, but one can imagine an inexplicable force that reanimates freshly dead bodies, making them function just enough to get on their feet, shamble along, and eat the flesh of the living. Please note, though, that the O’Bannon “Return of the Living Dead” movies aren’t really horror flicks; they’re more in the way of absurdist comic satire. The “zombies” in those movies include both mounted medical specimens and years-old buried corpses that are basically skeletons, so let’s not take them too seriously. Anyway, with Romero zombies, although my heart says hand-to-hand weapon (since I’ve already some here in the room, and a machete in my truck), I guess I’d go with either a pair of good reliable semi-automatic pistols (say, Glock 9 mm; those have like a 15-round clip, right?) or a 12-gauge pump with a pistol grip. You don’t need a massively powerful gun; since only head shots will do the job, “stopping power” in the normal sense isn’t that relevant. (I’d really like some body armor, just in case; preferably SWAT gear with a shark suit over it.) Above all, keep your cool. Pick your shots; don’t empty your gun in random shooting and then collapse in hysterical laughter while the undead ghouls rip your intestines out. Then you’ll be dead too, and nobody needs that shit, Man. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/26 "2005-09-13T01:53:11Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Thus, the AK-74/AKM would be ideal for our Eurasian friends when they need to fight off Zombies, yes? > > In Soviet Russia, You eat Zombies! (err… wait… that’s not quite right…) In Soviet Russian, Zombies eat lead! ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/27 "2005-09-13T01:59:14Z")
> [@bubastis](#): > > If your back’s to the wall with a herd of zombies closing in, what would you like as protection? I had a dream last night I was in land of the dead, with that Big Daddy guy and friends closing in: I had a machine gun of sorts that just wasnt doing the job. I prayed for a flame-thrower, but in the cold light of day, even this doesnt seem like a good idea. Any suggestions? I’ll go with a Green Lantern power ring. It has the virtues of 1. Having an extremely long range so you can use it from a distance; 2. Allowing the user to fly, thus getting you out of the alley; and 3. Making you freaking nigh-omnipotent, thus pretty much solving the problem anywhistle. Unless one of the Zombies is Solomon Grundy, you’re golden. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/28 "2005-09-13T02:04:59Z")
A Boomstick (12 gauge DB) and Buzz (stump mounted chainsaw) combo ala Ash from the Evil Dead trilogy. > [@Ash](#): > > Remington- 12 Gauge double barrelled remington, S-mart’s top of the line. Retails for about 109.95. With a walnut stock, cobalt blue steel, and a hair trigger. You can find it in the Sporting Goods Department. > > Shop Smart, Shop S-Mart! ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/29 "2005-09-13T02:07:41Z")
> [@Fabulous Creature](#): > > I’ll go with a Green Lantern power ring. It has the virtues of > > 1. Having an extremely long range so you can use it from a distance; > 2. Allowing the user to fly, thus getting you out of the alley; and > 3. Making you freaking nigh-omnipotent, thus pretty much solving the problem anywhistle. > > Unless one of the Zombies is Solomon Grundy, you’re **golden**. And by “golden,” I mean “emerald,” of course. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/30 "2005-09-13T04:25:26Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > [The Gau 2 B/A Minigun](http://mail.guns.ru/Lists/firearms_r/Message/458-02-B/minigun.jpg) What, can you not afford a [Gau-19](http://navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_50cal-GAU-19_MG.htm)? 😃 Anyway, according to the [Zombie Survival Guide](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1400049628/qid=1126585309/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-2036334-3732937?v=glance&s=books&n=507846) (Which you’d probably enjoy reading), a semiautomatic rifle is one of the best anti-zombie firearms you can have. So…maybe an [SKS](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SKS#Civilian_use) with an [XM-26](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XM26_LSS) taped underneath. > [@iamthewalrus(:3=](#): > > In the second The zombies were for some crazy reason vulnerable to electric shock, so they baited them into the power plant and went zappy zappy. I guess a taser is what you’d want. I think it wasn’t so much them being “vulnerable” to electricity as much as the the huge amounts of electricity simply _cooking_ them. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/31 "2005-09-13T04:50:12Z")
> [@Ranchoth](#): > > What, can you not afford a [Gau-19](http://navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_50cal-GAU-19_MG.htm)? 😃 The problem with that is it weighs a good 139 lbs, whereas the mini only ways 35. Sometimes lighter is better. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/32 "2005-09-13T06:03:51Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > The problem with that is it weighs a good 139 lbs, whereas the mini only ways 35. Sometimes lighter is better. Oh, yeah, like a _35_ pound belt-fed electric chaingun is going to be a lot more practical to lug around? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/33 "2005-09-13T07:17:47Z")
> [@Ranchoth](#): > > Oh, yeah, like a _35_ pound belt-fed electric chaingun is going to be a lot more practical to lug around? 😉 … … … Touché ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/34 "2005-09-13T07:53:29Z")
Might I suggest this? Great protection from Zombies and should deal with them nicely. You might want to be wearing a bio suit when you get out of it after much use, though. [Sherman Crab](http://ipmslondon.tripod.com/armourreferencearticles/id32.html) ---
**Author:** ![Rainbowthief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4bbf92/32.png) [@Rainbowthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rainbowthief)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/35 "2005-09-13T09:47:18Z")
What? No other doper thought of the most obvious weapon, a 1940’s style death ray? ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/36 "2005-09-13T12:11:11Z")
> [@Rainbowthief](#): > > What? No other doper thought of the most obvious weapon, a 1940’s style death ray? Oh good, a scalar weapon that causes cessation of bio-functions in whatever it hits. _That’ll_ help. :rolleyes: I’ll take a Niven-style variable-sword, thanks. Bisect anything material within however many feet you like, and it’s light in weight and won’t run out of power. The “Soft Weapon” would be fun, but total-converting any zombie between you and the horizon smacks of overkill. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/37 "2005-09-13T12:21:15Z")
> [@Fabulous Creature](#): > > Unless one of the Zombies is Solomon Grundy, you’re golden. If you’re golden, the ring won’t work. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/38 "2005-09-13T12:23:35Z")
Obviously, the bio-weapon approach in killing zombies should be considered. A mold, spore, or fungus that accellerates decay seems right. ---
**Author:** ![thinksnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thinksnow/32/2849_2.png) [@thinksnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thinksnow)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/39 "2005-09-13T12:34:12Z")
[Franchi Spas-12](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franchi_SPAS-12), for all your zombie and police station infiltration needs. Available with the folding stock, it has a selector switch for pump or semi-automatic action. I had one back in the 90’s, and it was a very nice piece of weaponry. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317/40 "2005-09-13T13:06:12Z")
> [@Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor](#): > > If you’re golden, the ring won’t work. > > 😃 This is where you need to be Guy Gardiner. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-weapon-to-use-against-zombies/321317.md?page=3)