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December 13, 2009
Times Sq. gunman held weapon like rapper causing it to jam
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/side_show_doomed_thug_vct6JLQrWau8DRZpdvdaFO
A Times Square bloodbath was narrowly avoided because the machine-pistol-toting thug who fired at a cop flipped the gun on its side like a character out of a rap video, causing the weapon to jam after two shots, law-enforcement sources said yesterday.
When scam artist Raymond "Ready" Martinez held the MAC-10-style gun parallel to the ground, it caused the ejecting shells to "stovepipe," or get caught vertically in the chamber, the sources said. The gun is designed to be fired only in a vertical position.
Posted by Rob Kiser on December 13, 2009 at 9:13 AM
Comments
For the proper way to hold a handgun, see "The Combat Grip" by Duane Thomas, and Todd Jarrett's video.
Duane did an excellent follow-up article called "How To Become A 1911 Expert" published in this year's edition of "The Complete Book of the 1911."
Also see "Jack Weaver: The Real Weaver Stance" for the evolution from the common one-handed pistol grip to the two-handed grip. It's amazing how much resistance there was to the idea of using two hands to hold a handgun.
Posted by: Robert on December 13, 2009 at 10:48 AM
Tamara at Books Bikes and Boomsticks has a different take:
Allow me to offer an alternative explanation: The gun malfed because it was a wretched, pulsating ball of crap.
The cheap, closed-bolt copies of the MAC-10 and KG-9 are made primarily to look cool; actually functioning is lower on the priority list.
Posted by: Robert on December 13, 2009 at 9:29 PM
(via a comment at booksbikesboomsticks.blogspot.com/2009/12/i-forgot-to-say-something.html )
Why Do Rappers Hold Their Guns Sideways?
Because it looks so Hollywood.
[snip]
While the New York Post reported that Martinez's side grip caused the gun to "stovepipe"—that's when the spent casing gets caught in the ejection port, jamming the weapon—it's unlikely that the horizontal orientation caused the failure. In theory, tilting a gun sideways—90-degrees counter-clockwise for a right-handed shooter—means that gravity works against the ejection of the spent casing. As a practical matter, however, gravity is so weak compared to the force of the ejection that jamming is no more frequent in the sideways position than in the customary one. The more likely cause of the jam was Martinez's choice of weapon and ammunition. The MAC-10 is prone to stovepiping—a problem that's exacerbated by the use of hollow-point bullets, which may become deformed and scrape the inside of the barrel, or underpowered ammunition, which can slow the slide and throw off the mechanism's timing.
Posted by: Robert on December 15, 2009 at 6:43 AM