Zombies are being used to “cleverly” market all sorts of mundane gun and survival related items. The original understanding of this device was that, like Zombie Squad, people were using a zombie apocalypse as a metaphor for any type of disaster and the zombies represent the looters and criminals that civil unrest produces. I fear that these days the metaphor is lost on companies who seem to think people are literally waiting for the dead to rise with a taste for people tar-tar.
But some of the products sold under this gimmick are surprisingly useful. Lightfield’s Zombie Blaster rounds seems to me to fall into that category. While most people don’t have a need for blanks there are situations where they are an important tool in maintaining safety and security. Small airstrips for example may need to clear bird flocks from the area, and some handsome gardener/blogger may need to scare away the foxes his rotten neighbors keep feeding before they start nibbling on his blackberry bush and his better neighbor’s cat. Sometimes you need some sound and thunder that signifies nothing in areas where discharging a firearm with live ammunition is unwise or illegal.
The Zombie Blaster round is essentially an overloaded blank. It has no projectile but produces enough concussive force to shatter windows (or as per the ad campaign, zombie skulls) at close range. A niche product to be sure but if you can’t scare away a fox or “zombie” the ability to injure it if charged could be useful. They can also be used as a safer way to shoot off door hinges but why you would be doing that is anyone’s guess. Mainly I’m sure they will be used for signalling as many a lost hunter fires off a round to alert searchers. Having a blank to do that seems safer to me.
The round is based on the NOVA-DR rounds they created a few years back which were marketed as an alternative to flash-bang grenades. So mall ninjas, here’s your new toy.
Here’s their nifty zombie themed video:
For some of us oddball caliber lovers it’s nice to see these offered in both .410 and 20ga. Personally I don’t really need any – but I’m buying some in .410 anyway.