Question for gun experts. If I hear a gunshot do I have time to duck?

[Jayburner]

I always hear gunshots outside my apartment. I live above a hair salon in a strip mall. I always duck because there is a brick wall on the flat roof connected to me. Is it pointless or a good thing to do?

[Rukentuts]

I always hear gunshots outside my apartment. I live above a hair salon in a strip mall. I always duck because there is a brick wall on the flat roof connected to me. Is it pointless or a good thing to do?

Depends on the range and muzzle velocity.

[Togasa]

Well most bullets travel faster than the speed of sound, so unless they are firing more than one not much point or if theres a possibility of richochet.

[GreatOak]

Depends on the range, calibre, angle, and a bunch of other factors. If it makes you feel better you should duck.

[Jayburner]

the brick wall surrounding the flat roof must be atleast 3 bricks thick.

[Ghâzh]

Depends on the range and muzzle velocity.

In other words, no. Unless you're a superman.

[Deleted]

What if you duck into the bullets path and would have been completely fine if you just stood still? Think about that the next time you duck...

[Jayburner]

What if you duck into the bullets path and would have been compleatly fine if you just stood still? Think about that the next time you duck...

jesus dude. I think about that all the time thats why I'm asking.

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The shots seem to come from 500 feet away most of the times judging by the sound of the report.

[Urobolos]

What if you duck into the bullets path and would have been completely fine if you just stood still? Think about that the next time you duck...

I think the point is that by the time his brain registers what it hears as a gun shot, the bullet has already gotten to where it's going before he's even started to flinch.

[DEATHETERNAL]

If you hear a single gunshot and duck behind cover, ducking behind cover will do no good against that first shot you heard as most bullets travel faster than sound plus your reaction time gives the bullet even more time to travel. On the other hand, if you hear a shot, duck behind cover, and then a half a dozen more shots are fired, ducking behind the brick wall was most certainly a good thing as you would have the cover of the brick wall for those other shots.

Even if it is mostly single shots you hear, ducking for cover would still be a good idea for those times that someone unloads a whole clip as you have cover for at least part of the clip.

[Jayburner]

Thanks for the replies. I guess I will stop trying to duck while in my computer chair. Seemed like a silly idea anyways.

[Rukentuts]

The shots seem to come from 500 feet away most of the times judging by the sound of the report.

Sound travels 500ft in about 0.5 seconds. The average human response time is an additional 0.25 seconds. The shot would have probably hit you 0.1 - 0.2 seconds after being fired.

[Solidsteel]

If the person shooting isn't aiming at you, ducking isn't going to do you any good.

[Themius]

I used to visit a friend who lived in a bad area of the Bronx.

If you hear a gun shot, duck. Because there could be multiple gun shots. It was quite crazy there were gunshots so often there... someone even shot someone at around 2am in the stairwell on her floor, and the apartment was right across from it.

[Jayburner]

If you hear a single gunshot and duck behind cover, ducking behind cover will do no good against that first shot you heard as most bullets travel faster than sound plus your reaction time gives the bullet even more time to travel. On the other hand, if you hear a shot, duck behind cover, and then a half a dozen more shots are fired, ducking behind the brick wall was most certainly a good thing as you would have the cover of the brick wall for those other shots.

Even if it is mostly single shots you hear, ducking for cover would still be a good idea for those times that someone unloads a whole clip as you have cover for at least part of the clip.

Its always just one shot for some reason.

[DEATHETERNAL]

Thanks for the replies. I guess I will stop trying to duck while in my computer chair. Seemed like a silly idea anyways.

The power of MMO-champ posters to give people the wrong answers can never be underestimated...

Its always just one shot for some reason.

Nothing you can do if its always a single shot then. Personally, I'd still advice going for cover due to the possibility of further shots even if it isn't the trend. Your choice.

[Deleted]

If you can hear it, it has already missed you. On the other hand, taking cover and hiding prevents then taking another shot at you.

[Eldar45]

If you heard it and weren't hit then he either missed or isn't shooting at you... yet.

A bullet moves faster than the speed of sound. You will hear the BLAP of the sonic boom before the report of the gun.

[Jayburner]

my bedroom overlooks a small flat roof of the phillipino food place beside me..the roof has maybe 6 courses of bricks surrounding it so I figure why not duck. But now reading these replies I have no time to duck my head below the brick retaining wall on the roof next to me. Oh well.

[Drungan]

Time to find a new place to live ?

On topic .. can you dodge a bullet if it is aimed at you if you start to duck when you hear the *bang* .... no