Programmable Projectiles: Carrying Technology Too Far?
When digging deep within this thing we call the internet, defeating several levels of security from probing eyes, there’s no discoverable limit on what is available. One night, I had reached the outer limits of the World Wide Web, entering the crevices where spooks and goblins call home. I’d only heard rumors of this dark place, never knowing if it existed. But here I was …
Special Projects Editor
How was I, a basic computer illiterate, able to enter this world consisting of catacomb conspiracy theorists? This is where FMG’s Special Projects Editor Roy Huntington comes in. Many don’t know this, but Roy worked for the CIA in a previous life. Who knew? Shhhh, this is hush-hush information! It was only after plying him and myself with the most common truth serum known to man — bourbon — that he admitted this dark secret. I wasn’t trying to prod Roy for information; we were just enjoying a bottle of Eagle Rare, talking guns, upcoming projects and other shooting stuff when it slipped out.
After all the usual questions about missions, assassinations, weapons systems, the state of the union, and other stuff, Roy told me about accessing the Deep Dark Web (DDW). Then he surprised me, offering a large stipend from FMG’s “special account” to do whatever I please, to find something interesting to write about. Wow! I was both excited and a little afraid of such a huge assignment.
Exploration
Putting on my miner’s hat, I start probing the DDW. Roy told me to first buy a new computer with the money, to make any possible tracking harder from nosey eyes. He also gave me a few older secret passwords and websites to begin the journey, along with an alias code name, Jug Johnson.
When I started my journey, I admit to being scared. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to negotiate all the secret gates, walls, and even Windows firewalls. But somehow, I managed to breach the system, stumbling headfirst into the deep depths of this underworld.
Naturally, my attention was drawn to the secret shooting world containing new equipment, powders, brass and bullets. But boy, was it expensive! Even with the healthy stipend of $50,000 Roy gave me, it was only scratching the surface of what I could afford.
Now, if one had unlimited income and could negotiate the complex labyrinth of super-secret security walls, there’s no telling what one could purchase.
Bullets?
One of the things that caught my eye was infrared-guided bullets. With the popularity of red dot sight systems today, the DDW had infrared-capable sighting systems that communicated with bullets synchronized to the wavelength of the red dot sighting system.
Just hold your dot steady on whatever you want to hit and SQUEEEEZE your trigger. The bullet hits wherever the dot is plastered by the shooter, working much like today’s regular guns. Go figure? The problem was a box of 100 bullets cost the $50,000 I had. Who would pay shipping? Not me! Plus, you had to buy a red dot system synchronized to your bullets.
Further down the list, they sold just the circuitry plus the red dot system for $40,000. If I had the right mold, I could always cast a bullet around the circuitry to shoot. Again, Roy was just the man for the job. He designed a cast bullet mold that held the complex, microscopic circuit board in place as I poured molten alloy around it.
I experimented with both clear and copper wash powder coat, finding that the copper wash was better for receiving the red dot signal and, hence, more accurate. We would be using a Taurus G3 TORO as the launching system.
Seeing is Believing!
Initial testing couldn’t have been better! One-hole groups for 15 rounds at 50 yards was the norm! This system seems to be invincible. Even non-shooters were capable of half-inch groups using this system. Admittedly, this system is out of reach for most people!
Roy has decided to use the Taurus G3 TORO, along with the rest of the loaded rounds (70), as the raffle giveaway prize on April 1, 2024! Some of you may know this date is more commonly called April’s Fools Day. Hey, we like to have a little fun, just like everyone else! Besides, Tank could never pull off such a complicated endeavor as the one depicted here.