# Shoot me with a"Rubber" bullet **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 12, 2019, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427 "2019-06-12T14:13:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![2Bits](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e95f7d/32.png) [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/1 "2019-06-12T14:13:26Z")
…what would it feel like? Might it pierce the skin? … put out an eye? …leave a welt? Are they shot from “normal” guns? …shaped like “normal” bullets? …literally rubber? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/2 "2019-06-12T14:24:29Z")
It could feel like [being dead](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/dec/19/rubber-and-plastic-bullets-too-dangerous-for-crowd-control-says-study) if you were somewhat unlucky. Also note that some of those rubber bullets have metal in them. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/3 "2019-06-12T14:31:59Z")
> [@2Bits](#): > > …what would it feel like? Might it pierce the skin? … put out an eye? …leave a welt? > > Are they shot from “normal” guns? …shaped like “normal” bullets? …literally rubber? > **[Rubber bullet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_bullet)** > > Rubber bullets (also called rubber baton rounds) are a type of baton round. Despite the name, rubber bullets typically have either a metal core with a rubber coating, or are a homogeneous admixture with rubber being a minority component. Although they are considered a less lethal alternative to metal projectiles, rubber bullets can still cause fatal injuries as well as other serious injuries such as blindness or other permanent disabilities. > Like other similar projectiles made from plastic, w... The photo at top shows a 37-mm round, with its “brass” in the background. So it would appear to be available as a self-contained cartridge like those used in conventional modern firearms, but the diameter is such that we’re not talking about a handgun; it’ll be something like [this.](https://www.google.com/search?q=rubber+bullet+gun&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiFzePrk-TiAhXLV98KHWcKC2oQ_AUIESgC&biw=1280&bih=881#imgrc=zWtuASNfnqQfkM:) How would it feel? > [@Wikipedia](#): > > They are expected to produce contusions, abrasions, and hematomas. However, they may cause bone fractures, injuries to internal organs, or death. In a study of injuries in 90 patients injured by rubber bullets, 2 died, 18 suffered permanent disabilities or deformities and 44 required hospital treatment after being fired upon with rubber bullets. Items like this and tasers used to be categorized as “non-lethal”, but I think the category is gradually being renamed “less-lethal,” with recognition that these things do sometimes kill. If you follow the “See Also” links on the Wikipedia page, you’ll see a variety of other gun-launched projectiles besides bullet-shaped pieces of rubber. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/4 "2019-06-12T14:33:25Z")
Like getting beaten with a club. So yeah, can kill, put out an eye, break bones… Thankfully, the worst anyone I knew personally got was really bad bruising. Never got hit by one myself, although a couple came close. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/5 "2019-06-12T14:35:47Z")
IIRC from news reports, the rubber bullets typically used for “advanced” riot control (eg. Northern Ireland at demonstrations during the “troubles”) are fairly hard rubber , and then fired so they skip across the ground at a very fast rate of speed. They can cause severe bruising, and if you are hit right or in the wrong place, can cause brain injuries and broken bones. Except for the rubber bullets used by the IAF in Palestine for crowd control when they are not using live ammunition. These are apparently fairly large metal ball bearings with a not thick coating of rubber . These can definitely break bones and smash skulls, depending on where and how they hit. All in all, this is not a game of dodge ball. ETA - link shows better examples. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/6 "2019-06-12T14:58:37Z")
There are many cases of protesters having their eyes destroyed after being hit in the face by rubber bullets. They are not small. The ones used in Quebec are about 15 cm long, and about 8 cm in diameter. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/7 "2019-06-12T15:06:27Z")
> [@Barbarian](#): > > There are many cases of protesters having their eyes destroyed after being hit in the face by rubber bullets. > > They are not small. The ones used in Quebec are about 15 cm long, and about 8 cm in diameter. Did you mean mm? Or are Quebecois really using rubber bullets bigger than a soda can? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/8 "2019-06-12T15:12:04Z")
Missed edit: So upon googling, they really are that long, though the ones I found were more like [4cm in diameter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ901gQ0lC8). ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/9 "2019-06-12T15:17:11Z")
I thought I had read that the ones used in northern Ireland decades ago were the size of a tennis ball and fired by being stuck on the end of a gun barrel. they would (were supposed to) skip across the ground taking out shins, provided they were aimed right; but like any fastball, the bounces could be unpredictably dangerous. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/10 "2019-06-12T15:29:09Z")
Rubber bullets were invented by the British Ministry of Defence for use against people in Northern Ireland during The Troubles and were first used there in 1970. > **[Rubber bullet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_bullet)** > > Rubber bullets (also called rubber baton rounds) are a type of baton round. Despite the name, rubber bullets typically have either a metal core with a rubber coating, or are a homogeneous admixture with rubber being a minority component. Although they are considered a less lethal alternative to metal projectiles, rubber bullets can still cause fatal injuries as well as other serious injuries such as blindness or other permanent disabilities. > Like other similar projectiles made from plastic, w... ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/11 "2019-06-12T15:56:59Z")
[It’s a shame those slugs ain’t real.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyuwgPO2j8E) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/12 "2019-06-12T15:57:59Z")
I know a guy that got hit by one, he said a cross between being hit by a fast pitch hardball and a overpowered paintball at close range. Knocked his breath out, hurt, caused a deep bruise, but after a day or so of ice and scotch was fine. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/13 "2019-06-12T16:12:15Z")
I asked my son (a prison corrections officer) about rubber bullet use in his prison. Although he is trained and certified in its use, he told me they are not something typically worthwhile/needed/used. For something like an escape attempt, they use real bullets. For cell extraction (prisoner ordered to leave their cell and they refuse) they use a team of officers trained specifically for cell extraction with shields and clubs. For small scale rioting, teargas is used. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/14 "2019-06-12T16:39:45Z")
An additional question: what about the “beanbag” rounds? Do they have the same sort of impact or injury potential as a solid rubber round? ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/15 "2019-06-12T17:01:20Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > An additional question: what about the “beanbag” rounds? Do they have the same sort of impact or injury potential as a solid rubber round? [Yes:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bean_bag_round) > [@Wikipedia](#): > > A bean bag round can severely injure or kill in a wide variety of ways. They have caused around one death a year since their introduction in the U.S. A round can hit the chest, break the ribs and send the broken ribs into the heart. A shot to the head can break the nose, crush the larynx or even break the neck or skull of the subject…A strike in the abdominal area can cause internal bleeding or strike the solar plexus which can disrupt breathing or heartbeat… Pretty much anything travelling fast enough to cause pain (that is, enough pain to compel the target to disengage) carries the potential for injury. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/16 "2019-06-12T20:23:51Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > [Yes:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bean_bag_round) > > Pretty much anything travelling fast enough to cause pain (that is, enough pain to compel the target to disengage) carries the potential for injury. I’ve seen rubber slugs and rubber buckshot for shotguns as well. Along with beanbag rounds there’s a minimum distance required or else the round can cause serious or even lethal injury. I recall one case from Canada years ago where a beanbag round was fired from a shotgun at a suspect down a hallway, range IIRC around 10-15 feet. The range was too short for the beanbag to unfold all the way into a floppy square and it penetrated the suspect’s chest cavity, killing him. I’ve also heard of… pepperball (?) grenades used in prison. They’re like a flashbang, but spray out hard rubber balls as well. They toss them into melees to beak up fights. Saw them used in a behind the scenes show about prison guards to stop a brawl in a cafeteria. They were quite effective. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2019, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/17 "2019-06-12T21:17:59Z")
> [@2Bits](#): > > …what would it feel like? Might it pierce the skin? … put out an eye? …leave a welt? > > Are they shot from “normal” guns? …shaped like “normal” bullets? …literally rubber? The ones I am familar with, come in two varieties. The Rubber round, and then a hard plastic round. Both are about 4 inches long and have a diameter of a quarter coin. The weapon used to fire the projectile looked like an M-79 blooper, and SOP was to depress the weapon and induce a skip in the round from what I am told. What its actual purpose was eludes me, normally it was used in conjuction with CS gas and Smoke, but apparently never in salvo. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2019, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/18 "2019-06-14T14:11:48Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > Missed edit: > > So upon googling, they really are that long, though the ones I found were more like [4cm in diameter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ901gQ0lC8). I’ve seen ones that are larger than that. They look more mushroom-shaped. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2019, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shoot-me-with-a-rubber-bullet/835427/19 "2019-06-14T14:39:07Z")
“My kid was shot by a cop.” You have no idea how proud I am to be able to utter that phrase. Luckily, it was a beanbag. He posted a pic after a bit of rioting he was part of. Huge bruise that took up most of his stomach, maybe 8" in diameter. Couldn’t have hurt too bad: along with the photo was the caption “Best night of my life”.