Nail'Em: Difference between revisions

Nail guns are a common [[Improvised Weapon]] in fiction. Generally, they are portrayed as being analogous to firearms that shoot nails instead of bullets. In [[Real Life|reality]], nail guns have to be in direct contact with something to fire. Even if they have been modified to fire without being in contact with a surface, their accuracy at range ''sucks''. In other words, they make crappy projectile weapons. They make better melee weapons, since a nail gun is a blunt object that can stick out a long spike on contact, but this is hardly ever represented in fiction.

 

 

{{examples}}

* Near the beginning of ''[[Highschool of the Dead]]'', Kohta modifies a nail gun into an improvised rifle and consistently headshoots the infected with it.

 

* ''[[Blastosaurus]]'': At one point, raptors shoot at the title character with nail guns.

* [[Child's Play (film)|Chucky]] kills the lecherous Sugar Daddy with a nail gun in ''[[Hack Slash]] vs. Chucky''.

 

* A nail gun is used for a particularly brutal murder in ''[[Ill Met By Moonlight]]''.

* Xander/Xendra uses a high-powered nailgun to slow down and incapacitate Adam in the ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' fanfic ''[[Xendra]]''.

 

* In ''[[Small Soldiers]]'', a nail gun is used as a heavy machine gun.

* In ''[[Mousehunt (film)|Mousehunt]]'', one of the two heroes is using a nail gun, not knowing that the mouse is behind the wall.

* A character is tortured with a nail gun in ''Bunnyman''.

 

* In Lois McMaster Bujold's ''[[Vorkosigan Saga|Diplomatic Immunity]]'', an automated hot riveter is used (after bypassing several safety interlocks) as an improvised automatic slugthrower.

* In ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' novel ''Small Favor'', [[Action Mom|Charity Carpenter]] uses a nail gun against the gruffs in the opening chapter, followed by beating their skulls with a heavy contractor's hammer. Since the gruffs are Fae, they are extremely vulnerable to the touch of iron, and retreat very swiftly.

* Patrick Bateman from ''[[American Psycho]]'' uses a nail gun in quite a few of his murders, the most notable of which involves him {{spoiler|nailing a woman's hands to a wall so many times her fingers start to fall off}}.

 

* In ''[[CSI: Miami]]'', Ryan Wolfe is shot through the eye by a nail gun, although here they do at least point out that the safety that prevents the gun from firing unless pressed against a surface is broken.

* ''[[Reaper]]'' used nail guns in the first episode to capture the Baddie of the Week

* In an episode of ''[[Get A Life]]'', Chris gets a job with the ancient brotherhood of contruction workers [[Widget Series|(just roll with it)]] and by the end has gotten into a tool duel with one of them. The opponent seems to have the upper hand when he brings out the ultimate tool duel weapon, a staple gun, but Chris is able to force him to surrender by utilizing a construction worker's greatest weakness and {{spoiler|threatening to pour out the last beer.}}

 

* Staple guns were a staple (no pun intended) of [[ECW]] "garbage" matches.

** They were "used" correctly though, pressed against the target, as opposed to being used at range.

** They are still used today in "deathmatch" wrestling from time to time. This was shown in [[The Wrestler]] during Randy the Ram's hardcore match against the Necro Butcher. Necro, a [[Real Life]] deathmatch wrestler, is well known for doing stuff like this.

 

* The smart nail gun from ''[[GURPS]]: Ultra-Tech'' is more accurate than most pistols and is surprisingly effective at piercing armor.

* ''[[New World of Darkness|World of Darkness: Armory]]'' includes rules for using a nail gun as an improvised weapon. Notably, they have to be modified to use them at range, and in doing so, you lose any sort of accuracy.

 

* ''[[BioShock (series)]]'' uses a variation: The Big Daddies use a rivet gun as their primary ranged weapon. In the sequel, where you play as a Big Daddy, the first gun you pick up is a prototype version.

** One of the weapon options in the sequel's multiplayer is a nail gun.

* One of the many enemies in ''[[Ratchet and Clank Going Commando]]'' is a [[A.I. Is a Crapshoot|berserk construction worker bot]] with a rivet gun. It has horrible accuracy and range.

 

* Shakila from ''~Darwin's Soldiers~'' lures a [[Mook]] into an empty building that is under construction and kills him by placing the nail gun against his neck and shooting some nails into him.

 

* In the episode "False Start" of ''[[Code Lyoko]]'', XANA materializes some Kankrelats to the real world. One of the weapons the team uses is a modified nail gun, and it gives a [[Code Lyoko/Awesome|crowning moment]] to [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass|Jim]].

* In ''[[The Venture Bros]].,'' Brock Sampson uses a nail gun to save Dr. Venture from falling. The nail gun is shown firing with precise accuracy, though the third time he accidentally pinned Venture through his body instead of by his shirt. Brock also uses it to dissuade an approaching enemy who's actually bigger than he is.

* In ''[[Family Guy]]'', when a boy was faced with taking Meg on a date, he resorted to shooting himself in the stomach with a shop class nail gun to get out of it.

 

* Nail gun injuries crop up frequently in the [[Darwin Awards]] (including one attempted suicide).

* Bolt pistols, used in slaughterhouses to stun livestock and for in-the-field euthanasia of injured farm animals, operate on a similar principle to nail guns.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Improvised Weapon Tropes]]

[[Category:Weapons and Wielding Tropes]]