FL cop's "Elephant Guns" (C&P)
Sheriff's Office Buys 14 Elephant Guns
Orlando Sentinel
Kenneth Lewis of the Orange County Sheriff's Office displays a .499-caliber Alexander Arms Beowulf rifle Thursday. The Sheriff's Office is buying 14 elephant guns.
Orlando is safe from rampaging pachyderms now that the Orange County Sheriff's Office has bought 14 elephant guns.
The largest weapon in Sheriff Kevin Beary's armory fires a half-inch-diameter bullet with sharpshooter accuracy.
"The sole purpose for this weapon is large or exotic animals," sheriff's spokesman Jim Solomons said Thursday.
Each .499-caliber Alexander Arms Beowulf rifle has a laser sight to let shooters hit where they aim out to 300 yards -- a perfect tool to help the agriculture and marine unit deal with cattle that wander onto the BeachLine Expressway and Florida's Turnpike.
But the Sheriff's Office also is thinking bigger.
Orlando's theme parks are home to elephants, polar bears, lions, giraffes and hippos. Should any of them get loose, deputies need the right weapon to stop them if public safety is threatened, Solomons said.
If the worst happens, the Beowulf can stop it.
Essentially an assault rifle on steroids, the $800 weapon has "the power to kill anything that walks, swims or crawls!" according to a 2003 product review by gunblast.com. "Everyone who shot the gun was grinning like an idiot, and muttering phrases like, 'I gotta get me one of these.'"
When considering whether to buy the rifles, the Sheriff's Office remembered that an elephant ran amok and killed its trainer in Honolulu in 1994.
"They had to go through a whole lot of bullets, and all they did was aggravate the animal and put it through needless suffering before they were able to bring it down," Solomons said.
In the 1960s, an elephant escaped from a circus in Winter Park. It rampaged along Cady Way into Winter Park Pines, leaving large mementos of its presence along the street, until it was subdued and recaptured.
Orange County's toughest neighborhoods may not have elephants, but the deputies who work there are getting a shipment of 25-shot machine pistols.
"Matching firepower," said sheriff's spokesman Capt. Mark Strobridge, when asked why.
"Our tactical squads that are getting the weapons are dealing with the worst of the worst and those types of neighborhoods," Strobridge said of the new semiautomatic, .45-caliber Heckler & Koch machine pistols. "They're more accurate than their [regular] pistols, and they can stand back further from the bad guys."
The agency intends to buy 49 of the weapons at $1,660 each.The arms race in law enforcement dates back to the 1980s, when cops across America complained they were outgunned by criminals. So they traded in their old six-shooters for 16-shot, 9 mm pistols.
A couple of years back, Beary replaced those with more than 1,000 more-powerful .45-caliber pistols for his deputies. AR-15 assault rifles joined the 12-gauge shotguns in many patrol cars.
And then killers behind the county's skyrocketing murder rate over the past two years increasingly armed themselves with AK-47s and other high-powered, high-capacity weapons.
"When I started out, there was only a small SWAT team that had these nontraditional weapons," said Strobridge, a 26-year veteran. "Unfortunately, the criminals have evolved and the types of weapons they carry. And we should not be behind. We should be ahead."
Orlando Sentinel
Kenneth Lewis of the Orange County Sheriff's Office displays a .499-caliber Alexander Arms Beowulf rifle Thursday. The Sheriff's Office is buying 14 elephant guns.
Orlando is safe from rampaging pachyderms now that the Orange County Sheriff's Office has bought 14 elephant guns.
The largest weapon in Sheriff Kevin Beary's armory fires a half-inch-diameter bullet with sharpshooter accuracy.
"The sole purpose for this weapon is large or exotic animals," sheriff's spokesman Jim Solomons said Thursday.
Each .499-caliber Alexander Arms Beowulf rifle has a laser sight to let shooters hit where they aim out to 300 yards -- a perfect tool to help the agriculture and marine unit deal with cattle that wander onto the BeachLine Expressway and Florida's Turnpike.
But the Sheriff's Office also is thinking bigger.
Orlando's theme parks are home to elephants, polar bears, lions, giraffes and hippos. Should any of them get loose, deputies need the right weapon to stop them if public safety is threatened, Solomons said.
If the worst happens, the Beowulf can stop it.
Essentially an assault rifle on steroids, the $800 weapon has "the power to kill anything that walks, swims or crawls!" according to a 2003 product review by gunblast.com. "Everyone who shot the gun was grinning like an idiot, and muttering phrases like, 'I gotta get me one of these.'"
When considering whether to buy the rifles, the Sheriff's Office remembered that an elephant ran amok and killed its trainer in Honolulu in 1994.
"They had to go through a whole lot of bullets, and all they did was aggravate the animal and put it through needless suffering before they were able to bring it down," Solomons said.
In the 1960s, an elephant escaped from a circus in Winter Park. It rampaged along Cady Way into Winter Park Pines, leaving large mementos of its presence along the street, until it was subdued and recaptured.
Orange County's toughest neighborhoods may not have elephants, but the deputies who work there are getting a shipment of 25-shot machine pistols.
"Matching firepower," said sheriff's spokesman Capt. Mark Strobridge, when asked why.
"Our tactical squads that are getting the weapons are dealing with the worst of the worst and those types of neighborhoods," Strobridge said of the new semiautomatic, .45-caliber Heckler & Koch machine pistols. "They're more accurate than their [regular] pistols, and they can stand back further from the bad guys."
The agency intends to buy 49 of the weapons at $1,660 each.The arms race in law enforcement dates back to the 1980s, when cops across America complained they were outgunned by criminals. So they traded in their old six-shooters for 16-shot, 9 mm pistols.
A couple of years back, Beary replaced those with more than 1,000 more-powerful .45-caliber pistols for his deputies. AR-15 assault rifles joined the 12-gauge shotguns in many patrol cars.
And then killers behind the county's skyrocketing murder rate over the past two years increasingly armed themselves with AK-47s and other high-powered, high-capacity weapons.
"When I started out, there was only a small SWAT team that had these nontraditional weapons," said Strobridge, a 26-year veteran. "Unfortunately, the criminals have evolved and the types of weapons they carry. And we should not be behind. We should be ahead."
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Sorry, I would not take on an angry Nyati or a charging pachyderm with a Beowulf. It only moves a 350 gr bullet at 1900 fps for something in the range of 2200 lbs of energy. The minimum cartridge for either is the .375 H&H with ballistics of a 350 gr bullet moving at 2500 fps for 4500 lbs of energy, and that is considered the minimum! No, the Beowulf is not an elephant gun, but it does work real good on pigs. 0 -
"And then killers behind the county's skyrocketing murder rate over the past two years increasingly armed themselves with AK-47s and other high-powered, high-capacity weapons."
I love that line. I would like to see some statistics to back that claim up.
MK19 - +10 -
sounds like a waste of tax payers money to me 0 -
quote:"When I started out, there was only a small SWAT team that had these nontraditional weapons," said Strobridge, a 26-year veteran. "Unfortunately, the criminals have evolved and the types of weapons they carry. And we should not be behind. We should be ahead."
Great...
I generally like cops, but when I hear them say such idiotic things like that, implying that it's the gear, not the training that gives them an edge, it makes me think that someone needs to get these Deputy Dogs' heads screwed on right.0 -
quote:Originally posted by HandgunHTR52
"And then killers behind the county's skyrocketing murder rate over the past two years increasingly armed themselves with AK-47s and other high-powered, high-capacity weapons."
I love that line. I would like to see some statistics to back that claim up.
MK19 - +1
several cops have been killed/wounded with AKs this year...0 -
That article is a sarcastic spoof, isn't it? 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Txs
Orlando's theme parks are home to elephants, polar bears, lions, giraffes and hippos. Should any of them get loose, deputies need the right weapon to stop them if public safety is threatened, Solomons said. What a bunch of bull manure.
Truth is the PD has extra money in their budget. Around here its "use it or lose it". So, since they already have ARs and fancy new cruisers...some bright LEO decided to waste taxpayers dollars on this BS.0 -
quote:Originally posted by vicg1
quote:Originally posted by HandgunHTR52
"And then killers behind the county's skyrocketing murder rate over the past two years increasingly armed themselves with AK-47s and other high-powered, high-capacity weapons."
I love that line. I would like to see some statistics to back that claim up.
MK19 - +1
several cops have been killed/wounded with AKs this year...
And haven't been in all previous years? Check your numbers. And agenda while you're at it.0 -
Im pretty sure the so called arms race goes way back before 1980, with the "wild west", the advent of revolvers and repeating rifles/shotguns.
The browning BAR and thompson SMG were gangster weapons back in the 1920s/30s, etc.
This article is a bunch of BS0 -
Please refrain from making insulting comments. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Mk 19
Sorry, I would not take on an angry Nyati or a charging pachyderm with a Beowulf. It only moves a 350 gr bullet at 1900 fps for something in the range of 2200 lbs of energy. The minimum cartridge for either is the .375 H&H with ballistics of a 350 gr bullet moving at 2500 fps for 4500 lbs of energy, and that is considered the minimum!
I think the old 8 gauge rifles only moved at about 1500-1600 fps. It was considered adaquate for elephant,rhino,or anything else Africa could throw at it. Course with an .082 round ball and 200-300 gr BP I'd hate to stand up to it on a range without something getting the old adrenaline pumping! Even in a 16 lb gun!
The sheriff had better be careful mentioning theme parks!
The Rat owns Orlando!
Allen0 -
quote:I think the old 8 gauge rifles only moved at about 1500-1600 fps. It was considered adaquate for elephant,rhino,or anything else Africa could throw at it. Course with an .082 round ball and 200-300 gr BP I'd hate to stand up to it on a range without something getting the old adrenaline pumping! Even in a 16 lb gun!
That old 8 Bore threw a 1250 Gr conical at 1500 fps with 325 gr of blackpowder, it may have been slow but it still packed near 7000 lbs of energy.0 -
Name-calling and altering usernames to unflattering forms are not allowed. Please maintain civlity. 0 -
????
How about the .450 Hornady Thumper? Just drop an upper onto your AR chassis, change the mag follower and you are there. Haven't seen a test report on it though.0 -
I believe a standard .45/70 levergun would do just as well as the Beowulf.
For instance a Marlin 1895 GuideGun in .45/70Govt or .450Marlin.
It would even fit nicely in a squad-car, even with a scope mounted.0 -
this round is ok i guess, but why not arm the cops with the same weapons as the law breakers have? fight fire with fire... give the cops the "edge" they want...if they fear the "assualt rifle" ak47 so much, then arm then with it and make the odds alot more even....ive never hear of a gang banger carrying 1 of these "exotic" buewolf weapons before...but hell im just a dumb citizen who dont know squat...:) 0
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