Zombie Survival - Choice of Firearm

[ManiacallyChallenged]

GM: Will you need permits and the like to fire blank guns?
And don't worry about acting, if you're half as good as Keanu Reaves then everything will be fine.
If you are using airsoft guns, I would recommend you use CO2 blowback ones, because they typically have the best slide action, which would enhance the realism. Make sure you don't fire them with an empty magazine because it will either lock empty after the first shot, or break the feeding mechanism in the magazine.

You probably know all of this don't you. You could always break from the zombie norm and go with something like the feral humans concept, or the crazy rabies people. That would save the trouble of makeup being applied, and it would give the people freedom to act crazy in different ways, instead of lurching slowly about arms forward like a one man conga line.

[Excalibur]

If you have the money there are many other varieties of blow back airsoft guns. CO2 blow backs aren't not used in a lot of variants of gas blow back airsoft. Usually they used a different kind of gas

[Gunmaster45]

I don't own any blowback guns but I'll look online for something cheap. I saw a $50 dollar Beretta Inox I liked, but I don't have $50 bucks. But my birthday is the day before shooting, so I could likely get it.

I guess they could be zombie people without makeup, but I never liked the feral human concept. It would just be too hard to survive. The cause of the zombies is a chemical weapon (which doesn't effect us because we were hanging out in the basement), so maybe it just effects the brain or something.

And I don't believe I need a permit to make some noise, I do it all the time and no one seems to care. My dad and grandpa own about 130 acres of land to film on, and sound doesn't bother too many people if you are in the right spot. Some scenes I have to film near a friends house in town though, so airsoft guns are all I'll be able to use. I don't live in a town, so I don't need permits, and I don't plan on shooting guns in town anyway, so permits won't be a problem. And the only blanks I can use are in shotguns and revolvers, so autos will be gas blowbacks and real guns with CG effects.

I hope it comes out alright.

[k9870]

Gunmaster, will your zombies be able to die from torso shots? please say yes. And can you make the effect of blood from a bullet hit?

[Gunmaster45]

Nah, I like the head shots concept. The first zombie encounter in fact will be when it is discovered, after I put a double tap in his chest and he's only taken back a step. So I walk up and put one in his forehead at point blank. But I also believe a Zombie that has a broken bone or so is down and alive but can't move, so a shotgun hit to the chest will still be a casualty.

I have no idea how to make bullet squibs or how to activate them, so good body acting or cuts to people with pre-made bullet holes will likely be all I can accomplish. Unless someone here knows how to make squibs?

[k9870]

Wait, there people whos minds are infected by a chemical attack, which makes it so you need to shoot the head?

Ive never liked the headshot concept. Now, i like the concept that they don't go down as easily since they probably don't feel pain, so a zombie may take a few shots to the chest and keeep running, like someone high on pcp. Headshots would be most effective.

However, to move you need ozygen and bloodflow, lungs and heart and blood. Destroy the heart and lungs or injure it so much it bleeds out, then yo have killed it....

Just trying to suggest a little realism to set you apart from the norm....

[ManiacallyChallenged]

I can see it now. You and some friends are playing X-Box in the basement.
1: Hey, let's get some pizza.
ALL: Yeah, great idea.
*go outside
*steady zoom out(crane shot?) of the neighboorhood. Burning buildings, dead bodies, lurching zombies.

130 acres.... DAAAAAMN that's awesome. You should invite me over. :\

So, squibs.
Ingredients:
1: Condoms
2: fishing line
3: ketchup
4: water
5: cardboard
6: rubber bands
7: tape

Put a big knot in the end of a piece of fishing line(or tie it around a small metal washer) and thread the other end through the bottom of the condom. tape it closed lightly, so it doesn't leak when filled. Then fill the condom with ketchup and water to get a good blood consistency. rubber band the open end very tightly. Tape the entire assembly to a small square of cardboard, making sure the end with the fishing line is facing down. Strap the cardboard to the victim, and have a small slit cut in their shirt(buying dozens of cheap white shirts works well here) over the base of the condom-assembly. When time comes to have them shot, you pull the fishing line, rupturing the condom.

This is good for two reasons.
1: cheap and easy(all though buying that combination of items will get you stared at and probably put on Homeland Security's watch list)
2: after the initial squirt of blood from the fishing line yank, the rest of the condom will leak out fairly quickly. Nice.

WALL OF FUGGIN TEXT.

[ManiacallyChallenged]

Forgive me for posting again, instead of adding to the above post. It seemed bloated enough.
If you are going to use spring airsoft guns, might I recommend a few?
You should check out shortyusa.com which is a very trusted dealer in your approximate area(cheap and fast shipping).
Try to get spring guns with LOCKING SLIDE and OPEN EJECTION PORT for realism. Since lock and load scenes are cool, you'll probably want people to do a lot of bad-ass reloads and slide release stuff.
Here are a few recent models at decent prices with slide lock, open ejection port, and good quality.

http://www.shortyusa.com/airsoft.htm...1&kiosk=&Show=

http://www.shortyusa.com/airsoft.htm...1&kiosk=&Show=

They can be found for similar prices at AirsoftAtlanta.com, maybe even a tad cheaper. I don't know what YOU know about airsoft, but some good trusted brands of spring pistols(on a budget) are KWC, UHC, and UTG.
UTG in particular makes an inexpensive, high quality MK23 SOCOM, if you want to have a joke scene where people make fun of you for trying to use it.


EDIT: Good lord you have got me as excited about this as a kid at Christmas. What's your stance on shotguns?

[Gunmaster45]

Originally Posted by k9870

Just trying to suggest a little realism to set you apart from the norm....

Not to split hairs, but how realistic are zombies in general? A corpse cannot walk around and function, and wouldn't want to eat people since its non-functioning stomache would eventually burst and its muscles would work and its blood would coagulate. But where's the fun in that? Even though the blood would be black, I'm making it red.

Thanks for the advise on squibs, but corn syrup and red dye looks more realistic, it is what the pros use.

For loading scenes, I'll use the real guns with dummy rounds (I have plenty of both).

Shotguns, I have plenty of and I like them. I just got a Mossberg Cruiser recently which I plan to use in the movie. I'm making shotgun blanks with a reloading press, but first I'm waiting for MPM to send me pictures on how to properly insert cardboard wads.

And don't get TOO excited, anything could happen, and the film only has a 75% chance of being done as of now.

[Spartan198]

Originally Posted by MT2008

I don't mean to change the subject, but...does this mean that I'm the only person on here who hasn't been planning for the zombies?

Why do you think I play Resident Evil and watch all the zombie movies? Training!

Originally Posted by MT2008