Dealing with pirates

[capt vimes]

Originally Posted by Verytricky

Which should be sorted out by criminal investigation and procecution. Also I believe that the actual payment of the ransoms is what drives the whole issue. No pay, no piracy - no one to make money from it. I also advocate the use of deadly force to make this problem less of an issue. In the Second World War, the UK armed innocent looking merchant vessels and sailed them around the shipping lanes, These were spotted by UBOATS which would not waste a torpeedo on such a small unarmed vessle, but would surface to sink it with cannon. Then the innocent looking merchant ship would sudenly reveal itself as a fully armed ship and sink the UBOAT. I would like to see something like that established and would activley participate if it was possible!

i know that story of WWII...
you also know which it ultimately led to?
uboats did no longer surface but starting 'wasting' torpedos on any vessel the Kaleun (captain) thought of as a military ship and therefore being a threat...
sinking some unarmed civilian vessels in the process as well...

[yellow cat]

Kevlar is one option for bullet proof. It is expensive but it seems to do the job.

[Fanie]

Verytricky, I hope things are as you left it when you left here

[Fanie]

ScottK,

Why do you want to bullet proof your boat ? There will always be a bullet or granade or mortar that will bring you down. By the time you have bullet proofing in your boat the pirates will have an air force to bomb you with.

Not worth it. Forget about it and instead enjoy your water sport.

Oh, and stop smuggeling drugs. Only smugglers does these radical things

[chandler]

Originally Posted by ScottK

Hi all, not sure if I am posting in the right place but I am wondering how bullet proof can a boat be made. Are there any navel engineers here that could give a rough idea on how thick a person could build a steel hull for a sailing yacht that was made for circumnavigation? Say for lengths 30', 40' 50' and 60'?

I see the 40' Arctic Wander http://www.arcticwandering.com/the%20craft.htm has a 5/32 mild steel hull. And also see that the Ocean Master fiber glass boats claim to be bullet proof http://oceanmaster.net/articles/arti...llet-proof.htm by using 14 to 20 layers of fiber glass. How many layers does a normal sailing yacht use?

You might as well join the navy for 4 years because your pay might cover the cost of the epoxy and glass for 14 to 20 layers. Consider kevlar instead of glass but you'd still have to do the 4 years in the navy.
Better yet stay the f##k out of those areas, there's not much to see except starving people that need to be pirates to make a living.

Originally Posted by yellow cat

Kevlar is one option for bullet proof. It is expensive but it seems to do the job.

No it does´nt!

[Fanie]

People who steal and rob are usually just too lazy to work for a living. If this wasn't true no one would take the easy way out and every one will work.

Richard is right, very few materials are capable of effectively stopping bullets, and kevlar is not one of them. Getting shot in a bullet proof vest is not a joke. It's like someone hitting you with a baseball bat but without the vest.

Moral of the story, be on the right side of the bullet The rear

[masalai]

Or out of range by an ocean's width from where the bullets are being fired...

[masalai]

Don't be such a pessimist.... range is relative to net value of target... Don't look like a highly prized electronics warehouse and armoury, Do not fly boldly the biggest USA flag you can find - go quietly, in peace and very politely seek permission from the locals, as well as bearing traditional gifts that are appropriate, not overdone... be appreciative of their hospitality, but do not become overbearing or gushy... get to know the customs and social mores and some of the local language, before making an embarrassment of yourself... This is in part what I have learned over time...

[masalai]

be always alert and prepared to DUCK - - - there are lots of angry people on the distant shores... at least show the local flag more prominently and not smaller as custom demands...

[kistinie]

Pirate activity has been reported is Marseille.

Please report immediately to authorities any abnormal behaviour

[capt vimes]

Originally Posted by masalai

Don't be such a pessimist.... range is relative to net value of target... Don't look like a highly prized electronics warehouse and armoury, Do not fly boldly the biggest USA flag you can find - go quietly, in peace and very politely seek permission from the locals, as well as bearing traditional gifts that are appropriate, not overdone... be appreciative of their hospitality, but do not become overbearing or gushy... get to know the customs and social mores and some of the local language, before making an embarrassment of yourself... This is in part what I have learned over time...

this!

may i add - treat anyone with the same amount of respect you are expecting for yourself...

[rasorinc]

Reactive armor draped over the sides of a boat will stop RPGs. Of course you would want a thick steel hull. Also a broad beam as it is heavy. It is used to protect older tanks not built to withstand artillary.
Basically, unless your a Navy with big bucks, your wasting your time trying to bullet proof a boat. That is why tanks weigh over 45 tons.

The solution is to have a presence and reach out farther than they do. At this point, I wouldn't even report anything - just aerate and keep on goin'.

[Verytricky]

Originally Posted by yellow cat

Kevlar is one option for bullet proof. It is expensive but it seems to do the job.

Kevlar is part of a bullet proof jacket, but the design requires some give. Using kevlar in resin looses about 60% of the individual sheet resistance.

For example, if you were shot in a bullet proof jacket with a 45 acp - nice slow round with large surface area, three sheets of kevlar cloth would stop the bullet, provided it had another three sheets as backing. (The kinetic energy would probably break several ribs in your body , but you would not have penetration.) So you would think that six sheets of kevlar laminated up would definately stop the bullet, but it would not do so. Go straigh through.

If you go for a smaller diameter bullet, with a faster speed, then six layers of kevlar cloth will not work, you need a ceramic plate to assist.

So if you were thinking of some form of bulletproof superstructure, I guess the best would be a composite, with an outer ceramic plate, a double inner kevlar CLOTH, with probably sand pockets then an inner layer of lightweight resin based material. The plates would break up the largest part of the energy of the bullet, fragmenting it or tumbling it. The kevlar cloth/sand composite layer would hold the fragments, and the final layer would provide the backing. This would probably hold back all common ball amunition from the AK series and NATO series, except the heavy caliber. Armour piercing rounds are very expensive and I do doubt pirates from somalia have them.