With a background in electronics, just looking at that gun, it seems very unlikely it would do more than give someone a bruise.
That appears to be a single coil which is chonky as hell, which means you need a high voltage to drive it. It looks like it also only has a single capacitor, the physical size of the which is too small to have enough energy to seriously drive a coil like that.
You can find videos on youtube of diy coil guns 5x the size that at best punch holes in 3mm particle board or one side of an aluminum can. There is no way that thing is actually going to kill someone.
So the suspect was arrested for possessing a coilgun, but it was only made illegal this June with the law taking effect in March next year? The timeline doesn't make any sense. Other news sources aren't helpful as they contain even less information.
Above all, how this was legal in Japan until very recently is beyond me. I thought Japan has strict gun controls in place.
Edit: Apparently coilguns are categorized as firearms, which is illegal today, if they're lethal enough.
So this is mostly a funny thing for the news cycle and a major inconvenience for the suspect, and he will be released once they realize this thing isn't actually lethal?
A "good" way for authorities to show how they are on top of this and that you shouldn't share videos on coil guns on the internet. Seems a bit authoritarian.
"Suspect Arrested for Possession of Electromagnetic Gun "Coilgun," Manufacturing Video Allegedly Published
November 19, 2024, 1:40 PM
A 29-year-old suspect has been arrested on suspicion of violating Japan's Firearm and Sword Control Law for possessing a deadly electromagnetic gun, commonly referred to as a "coilgun." Reports indicate that the suspect also uploaded videos showing the manufacturing process to a video-sharing platform. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the details.
The arrested individual has been identified as Nobuaki Usui (29), an unemployed resident of Nasu Town in Tochigi Prefecture.
According to the police, the suspect is accused of possessing a coilgun, a device that fires projectiles using magnetic force, at his home last month. The weapon falls under the suspicion of violating the Firearm and Sword Control Law.
Investigators discovered the videos during a "cyber patrol" and confiscated the content. Upon analysis, it was confirmed that the coilgun had a structure capable of firing live ammunition, making it a potentially lethal weapon.
The suspect reportedly stated during questioning, "I made it when I was in high school."
Regarding coilguns, a legal amendment was made in June of this year, and the possession of such devices will generally be prohibited by March next year. The police are currently conducting a free collection campaign, urging individuals to turn in coilguns at their nearest police station."
If you look at the picture, it’s clearly a labour of love. I’m glad they don’t have this kind of dystopic thought police watching citizen videos where I live
It looks awesome to be honest and is probably part of the reason it scared the authorities. Had it looked more like a miniature potato cannon, I'm not sure they would've thought it any more dangerous than a slingshot.
Kind of reminds me how California's assault weapon ban seems to be quite centered around how "scary" the firearm looks, and not the capabilities of the weapon.
Codified into law there can be some reason to it. A butterfly knife isn't a lot more lethal than a similarly sized Leatherman. But a self-respecting gangster is going to go with the much cooler butterfly knife, which for many countries is enough reason to ban one but not the other.
However this should be a matter of law, not enforcement decisions.
They are slowly getting better, but also much heavier. Here are a couple youtubers [1] hitting water balloons, watermelons, pineapples and soda cans. Demolition Ranch and Kentucky Ballistics
That thing is clearly not a thought, but a literal lethal weapon. You know what would actually be dystopian? Gun violence happening on a regular basis.
It's built to imitate the _looks_ of a lethal weapon. Given its build quality and size I have my doubts that it can actually accelerate those bullets to a harmful speed unless you're staring down the barrel without eye protection. The most danger this appears to present to society is scare value and an unprotected fairly large capacitor, as a shock hazard to whoever is holding it.
Eh... That is not clear at all. Given typical coil gun efficiencies (single digit percentages), there is absolutely no way that this thing is even remotely comparable to a typical 9mm handgun (in projectile velocity and just general lethality).
Just ask yourself-- how many people are killed by coil guns each year? Stopping their proliferation strikes me as utterly useless regulatory overreach that benefits exactly no one, and deprives many a nerd of a cool hobby project.
Just calling things "a labor of love" and suggesting if it is it shouldn't go against laws isn't really a good argument. I'm sure Ted Kaczynski was doing his actions out of a labor of love, he was just trying to make the world a better place (for his own definition of "better").
If criminals are openly talking about their crimes on the public facing internet, I'd hope the police would go after it.
I think the primary benefit of an electromagnetic coil gun in an environment like Japan would be the capability to build one using off the shelf and unmonitored equipment. In the US it would be much easier to generate 3d printed guns, because finding ammunition with gunpowder inside is much easier.
The translation of the article is a little rough. It looks like maybe it was used as a curiosity instead of a tool for violence. I suspect actual criminals get along just fine with melee weapons and the occasional smuggled firearm.
This whole thing is cool in that it feels very much like a 21st century style crime. It's scary because I imagine disassembly would be an effective method of disposing of the murder weapon. In most jurisdictions it's possible to get a conviction without a murder weapon but requires more supporting evidence.
I agree with that statement for this specific model. Maybe it's enough for lethal force, but probably less lethal than a kitchen knife. However larger and more powerful versions are possible. I think the lawmakers are correct in classifying this as a firearm, but perhaps the law should identify a minimum force threshold before it is classified as a weapon.
You would be surprised. I have seen coil guys about this size do significant damage to thin wood boards or cardboard.
Sure, it’s not going to do massive damage like a 7.62x51, but it’s still enough to seriously injure.
I think the larger question is proliferation and intent within a culture. For example, I’m of the opinion knives are a tool, but they can easily be used as a weapon. There’s a huge grey area between hobbies, tools, and weapons. I think it’s up to the collective groups to decide what’s appropriate.
>I think the primary benefit of an electromagnetic coil gun in an environment like Japan would be the capability to build one using off the shelf and unmonitored equipment. In the US it would be much easier to generate 3d printed guns, because finding ammunition with gunpowder inside is much easier.
Why 3d printed guns? A CNC machine is also "off the shelf and unmonitored equipment", and would make a better gun than a 3d printed plastic gun that'll probably explode on you with one shot.
The main point is that limited access to ammunition would encourage innovation in generating force to propel the projectile in a way that isn't true in North America.
Is there a reason firearm manufacturer's aren't pursuing the creation / sale of 'coil guns' as actual products? I get that you're introducing reliance on a battery, but you're also gaining (I assume) near silent operation. And most incidents involving a firearm don't extend past one or two magazines anyways.
Seems to me like a cleaner, more "futuristic" weapon. The "hobby" version of this weapon photographed in the article already looks quite clean.
The energy density and expense of capacitors, along with the efficiency of the electromagnetic coils makes them impractical.
Coil/rail guns that achieve velocities comparable to real firearms are actually quite loud, as the air is compressed and superheated in front of the projectile, which creates a report at the muzzle. However, most man portable variants are limited to around the energy of a .22 LR. Even air guns are more powerful and practical.
As an example of a weapon that's practical yet not portable, take a look at the Navy's 155mm rail gun. https://youtu.be/O2QqOvFMG_A
"Silent" is going to be relative. Yes there's no pop of the propellant, but you've still got to accelerate an interesting mass to interesting speeds in a very short barrel. That's going to make a noise in its own right just from the mass reaction.
Firearms need to be practical and reliable first (you only expect to use them in a worst case scenario), the technology required to make a coilgun lethal is neither practical nor reliable, and its more complex to operate and maintain.
It’s the same reason why we don’t use coilguns anywhere else, why fix what isn’t broken?
Not particularly powerful and it's unclear that any amount of engineering can make it deliver more power to each round while still keeping it man-portable.
That's interesting, I wonder if you could have a hybrid weapon that uses the first stage gas from gunpowder like a normal gun, but uses the rest to drive a cylinder that rakes a magnet down a coiled cylinder to supply the jolt to boost the projectile using EM force?
The advantage would be better efficiency, similar to how hybrids are more efficient than ICE, which are only 35% efficient on a good day.
Hybrids and trains don't get their efficience from the conversion. They both lose a lot in the conversion itself.
They get their efficiency from smoothing out upscs & downs and letting the power source run more steadily and spend more time in it's own sweet spot. IE the ice engine is less efficient when changing and when running at any rpm other than the peak of it's curve. The battery lets the the ice run steady at it's one best rpm and the battery does all the stop & go.
There is very very little opportunity for "flattening out peaks & valleys" in a single pulse, and no chance at all to do it enough times to regain so much energy that way that it more than pays for the conversion loss.
And in any event, coils are just super super fundamentally inefficient at bursts. The term is literally called impedance, because it litetally impedes energy flow. It's similar to resistance and is even measured in ohms. It's like a spring. You put the energy in and it doesn't immediately come back out, it eventually comes back out, slower and a bit less of it than went in. Converted to mechanical energy instead of picked up by another coil or bounced right back out the same wires where it went in and you you almost none of the energy back out.
I think there's at least one commercial maker (if still in business anyway), but they aren't anywhere near as accurate or powerful as traditional chemically powered guns while being a lot heavier, so more of a novelty than anything.
Readit News
That appears to be a single coil which is chonky as hell, which means you need a high voltage to drive it. It looks like it also only has a single capacitor, the physical size of the which is too small to have enough energy to seriously drive a coil like that.
You can find videos on youtube of diy coil guns 5x the size that at best punch holes in 3mm particle board or one side of an aluminum can. There is no way that thing is actually going to kill someone.
Above all, how this was legal in Japan until very recently is beyond me. I thought Japan has strict gun controls in place.
Edit: Apparently coilguns are categorized as firearms, which is illegal today, if they're lethal enough.
https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/1563487?display=1
A "good" way for authorities to show how they are on top of this and that you shouldn't share videos on coil guns on the internet. Seems a bit authoritarian.
"Suspect Arrested for Possession of Electromagnetic Gun "Coilgun," Manufacturing Video Allegedly Published November 19, 2024, 1:40 PM
A 29-year-old suspect has been arrested on suspicion of violating Japan's Firearm and Sword Control Law for possessing a deadly electromagnetic gun, commonly referred to as a "coilgun." Reports indicate that the suspect also uploaded videos showing the manufacturing process to a video-sharing platform. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the details.
The arrested individual has been identified as Nobuaki Usui (29), an unemployed resident of Nasu Town in Tochigi Prefecture.
According to the police, the suspect is accused of possessing a coilgun, a device that fires projectiles using magnetic force, at his home last month. The weapon falls under the suspicion of violating the Firearm and Sword Control Law.
Investigators discovered the videos during a "cyber patrol" and confiscated the content. Upon analysis, it was confirmed that the coilgun had a structure capable of firing live ammunition, making it a potentially lethal weapon.
The suspect reportedly stated during questioning, "I made it when I was in high school."
Regarding coilguns, a legal amendment was made in June of this year, and the possession of such devices will generally be prohibited by March next year. The police are currently conducting a free collection campaign, urging individuals to turn in coilguns at their nearest police station."
Kind of reminds me how California's assault weapon ban seems to be quite centered around how "scary" the firearm looks, and not the capabilities of the weapon.
However this should be a matter of law, not enforcement decisions.
[1] - https://youtu.be/RkCNq9yICJ8?&t=391 [video][16 mins, but I skipped to 6m in]
Just ask yourself-- how many people are killed by coil guns each year? Stopping their proliferation strikes me as utterly useless regulatory overreach that benefits exactly no one, and deprives many a nerd of a cool hobby project.
If criminals are openly talking about their crimes on the public facing internet, I'd hope the police would go after it.
There's no way this homemade coilgun has the muzzle velocity to do anything but harm squirrels and similar. This is way overblown.
The translation of the article is a little rough. It looks like maybe it was used as a curiosity instead of a tool for violence. I suspect actual criminals get along just fine with melee weapons and the occasional smuggled firearm.
This whole thing is cool in that it feels very much like a 21st century style crime. It's scary because I imagine disassembly would be an effective method of disposing of the murder weapon. In most jurisdictions it's possible to get a conviction without a murder weapon but requires more supporting evidence.
Sure, it’s not going to do massive damage like a 7.62x51, but it’s still enough to seriously injure.
I think the larger question is proliferation and intent within a culture. For example, I’m of the opinion knives are a tool, but they can easily be used as a weapon. There’s a huge grey area between hobbies, tools, and weapons. I think it’s up to the collective groups to decide what’s appropriate.
Why 3d printed guns? A CNC machine is also "off the shelf and unmonitored equipment", and would make a better gun than a 3d printed plastic gun that'll probably explode on you with one shot.
Seems to me like a cleaner, more "futuristic" weapon. The "hobby" version of this weapon photographed in the article already looks quite clean.
Coil/rail guns that achieve velocities comparable to real firearms are actually quite loud, as the air is compressed and superheated in front of the projectile, which creates a report at the muzzle. However, most man portable variants are limited to around the energy of a .22 LR. Even air guns are more powerful and practical.
As an example of a weapon that's practical yet not portable, take a look at the Navy's 155mm rail gun. https://youtu.be/O2QqOvFMG_A
It’s the same reason why we don’t use coilguns anywhere else, why fix what isn’t broken?
I'd hardly call ordinary sporting or pest control as "worst case scenario". Indeed, your comment betrays your nationality!
Not particularly powerful and it's unclear that any amount of engineering can make it deliver more power to each round while still keeping it man-portable.
The advantage would be better efficiency, similar to how hybrids are more efficient than ICE, which are only 35% efficient on a good day.
They get their efficiency from smoothing out upscs & downs and letting the power source run more steadily and spend more time in it's own sweet spot. IE the ice engine is less efficient when changing and when running at any rpm other than the peak of it's curve. The battery lets the the ice run steady at it's one best rpm and the battery does all the stop & go.
There is very very little opportunity for "flattening out peaks & valleys" in a single pulse, and no chance at all to do it enough times to regain so much energy that way that it more than pays for the conversion loss.
And in any event, coils are just super super fundamentally inefficient at bursts. The term is literally called impedance, because it litetally impedes energy flow. It's similar to resistance and is even measured in ohms. It's like a spring. You put the energy in and it doesn't immediately come back out, it eventually comes back out, slower and a bit less of it than went in. Converted to mechanical energy instead of picked up by another coil or bounced right back out the same wires where it went in and you you almost none of the energy back out.