Talk:Taser

A TASER is NOT a firearm!

This is a prime candidate for DELETION. There are many other less lethal devices used by police and civilians. Stunguns, Pepper spray, beanbag rounds, rubber. Though the original Taser is classified by the ATF as a firearm, only because some of the models use chemical charges to fire the darts (some others don't) it's a pure technicality. MoviePropMaster2008 05:16, 31 January 2010 (UTC) Opinions from other members on the subject are requested.

I say let it stay. If you can hold it in your hand and use it to shoot a projectile out at someone, it's a firearm in my eyes, More so, even than some of the "fantasy weapons" allowed on here.--Spikemonkey 05:25, 31 January 2010 (UTC)

I suppose if you want to get pedantic, firearms are ranged weapons that rely on chemical explosives (where the "fire" in "firearm" comes from) to propel a projectile at something or someone to cause harm to it by breaking the target apart, and receives all of its propulsive energy at the start (unlike missiles or rockets which gradually accelerate). By this definition, a speargun is not a firearm (since it relies on tension rather than expanding gases to launch the projectile) and rail- or coil-guns don't count either, since they electromagnetically accelerate a projectile rather than using a chemical explosive (maybe the technical term should be "EMAC gun" and not rifle since they don't require any rifling in a barrel?).

I myself don't mind which way this wiki swings, since here we also list things that are not strictly man-portable firearms either (like the entries for rocket launchers, mines and vehicle-mounted weapons such as the Bushmaster chaingun). I would like this wiki to be on the inclusive side, so as long as it's within reason. One example is how I plan to include the "Less-Lethal Shotgun" on the S.W.A.T. 4 page since it's converted from a Benelli Nova shotgun and still uses chemical explosives to propel its beanbags, but won't include the Pepper Spray in the game since it's not a ranged weapon nor was it made from a conventional firearm. The Pepper-ball gun I've decided to include anyway for completeness' sake, despite using compressed air instead of chemical explosives.

Either way, whichever the decision the powers-that-be here on this wiki make, it should be clear and posted somewhere easily accessed and seen so that the policy of this wiki will be clear and easily enforced for all contributors. --Mazryonh 05:44, 31 January 2010 (UTC)