|
 Many moons ago while visiting a small town in Arizona, I met my first blowgun owner. He was working as a clerk behind the counter of a local gun shop where I had stopped to look for a decent hunting knife.
Shortly after arriving, I asked the clerk to show me one of the knives in the display case. While I was admiring the craftsmanship of the knife he had pulled out, I glanced up and noticed that the clerk had also brought out a 3 or 4-foot blowgun from below the counter where he was now seated.
With a dismissive shooing gesture he asked me to step to my left a little then proceeded to shoot a dart approximately 30 or 40 feet across the room into the wall of the store. I was quite surprised by his actions until I noticed the dart had impacted inside a small dark circle about 2-inches wide that looked like it had been placed there specifically for target practice.
I was very astounded to witness just how accurate a blowgun could be at such a substantial distance. I instantly became curious and asked if I could see one of his darts up close. He handed me what looked like a 4-inch long needle with a bright yellow funnel shaped plastic cone attached to one end.
I explained that I'd never seen someone actually shoot a blowgun before and was very impressed with his brief demonstration. With a mischievous yet condescending smirk on my face, I commented on how creative a salesman he was by providing live demonstrations in front of his prospective customers, however, I assured him that I was not interested in purchasing a blowgun.
He laughed then explained that he was not doing a demonstration to solicit my business and did not even sell blowguns in the store. His comment shocked me at first as I saw no other reason why he would purposely ask a customer to move out of his line-of-fire simply to target practice with his own blowgun during business hours.
While still feeling a little annoyed and confused by this revelation, he then had the nerve to ask me if I'd fetch his dart from the wall across the room. Not wanting to be overly confrontational with this complete stranger who was still holding a weapon, I quickly determined that I was very curious anyway about how deep that 4-inch dart had penetrated into the wall at that distance.
What I discovered next, changed my life forever ...
I was about 10 feet away from retrieving the dart from the target when I stopped dead in my tracks, at this closer distance I could clearly see the 2 or 3-inch spot on the wall was actually a large cockroach. The dart was sticking dead center into the bug, which currently resembled the specialized mounting I'd seen done to butterfly collections in high school. I was both horrified and inspired at the same time, I hate
roaches and would not touch one with a 10-foot pole, which it might use to its advantage to crawl up and get me. My aversion to roaches is another story in itself, which I won't elaborate on further.
With a shiver of revulsion and disbelief I spun back around (jaw agape) and looked the clerk straight in the eyes, he laughed again and said, "I hate them too". I feel I should mention that I did "not" retrieve his dart nor did I get close enough to learn how deep the dart penetrated the wall, mainly because his target had not died instantly and was desperately trying to scurry away with no success. (nuff said?)
This once-in-a-lifetime experience left me with a sincere desire to learn more about blowguns and to eventually own one myself. I truly would have purchased a blowgun right then and there; unfortunately he assured me again that he did not have any for sale.
Now some 20 years later, I find myself selling blowguns to others in an effort to help educate and preserve their place in history rather than allow people to readily dismiss their usefulness and practicality in our 21st century society. I've shot many types of weapons over the years, however, blowguns and BB guns have turned out to be my favorites for pure recreational FUN within city limits.
Modern blowguns offer a diverse variety of useful applications and accessories, unlike other lethal weapons. Real guns only shoot real bullets, bows only shoot arrows, and knives can only be thrown a short distance
accurately. However, blowguns can shoot many types of objects or different dart types (target, spearhead, broadhead, stingers, mega spike, stun rounds, super stun, soft tip, paintballs, syringes, bamboo cooking skewers, even explosive and combustible devices to name a few projectiles). One of my favorite accessories is a rapid-fire
"gatling gun" attachment which can deliver 8 shots in under 10 seconds.
Another blowgun owner once documented shooting a 3-pound rat in the lobby of a hotel. The rat was killed with a single 6-inch spring steel dart at a distance of 30 feet while the animal was on the run. The dart went all the way through the rat, which ran another 50 feet before expiring.
Using a stun dart ONLY, my neighbor has even used his blowgun to drive away stray cats, which come into his home through the doggy door looking for a cozy place to get warm and to eat their own pet's food. A real hazardous situation because of the beloved family parrot living there as well.
I even know of a local Maaco collision repair facility that relies on a blowgun to
scare pigeons off their property and their clients freshly painted automobiles.
The use of an explosive party snapper can be using for such a purpose.
The diversity of applications and useful benefits offered by a blowgun is only limited by someone's own imagination.
Quality firearms are not cheap and are seldom useful in the city, indoor gun ranges cost money or have yearly membership fees, plus, ammunition is expensive and quickly expended. On the other hand, blowguns are relatively inexpensive, easy to use and maintain, offers ammo that is reusable and deadly accurate, yet is safe enough to shoot inside your home or even take to a party for "loads of fun". I don't think I'd get asked back to many parties if I took out my .45 caliber handgun and started target shooting in someone's back yard or garage for entertainment.
A lot of people have "standard or electronic" dartboards at their homes, even bars or taverns have them. Fortunately, a blowgun is versatile enough to be able to play on either kind of dartboard by simply switching to the appropriate dart.
With a little imagination, it's possible to create your own darts or accessories. I personally created a "combustible dart" that could be used to start a campfire if needed. I've also designed a "pyrotechnic dart" that ignites in a flash of light on impact. My latest innovation is a low-cost laser pointing system that I specifically designed for blowguns users and the diverse trajectories and muzzle velocities inherent with different age groups and genders. A laser sight properly tuned for the shooter and the correct distance can have an amateur shooting like a pro in a few minutes.
The "custom blowgun packages" I offer are not only designed with real hunting in mind but are for good clean wholesome FUN as well … shoot an explosive party snap near a cat to see how high it jumps and how fast it scurries off your property … drive away a flock of messy pigeons … play a dart game in your local pub … have a paintball war in your neighborhood … or simply target practice at home with family or friends. I have actually taken my blowgun to parties and had great fun target shooting with the other guests. Blowguns are a great conversation piece as well !
If you find yourself in the market for a unique gift idea for a person who seems to have everything, look no further.
For more information, call:
RJTaylor Enterprises
Phoenix, Arizona (623) 930-9949
|