What do you think?
Rate this book
Zips, Pipes, and Pens: Arsenal of Improvised Arms
In this book, J. David Truby demonstrates why gun control simply doesn't work. Features rare photos of remarkably ingenious and very deadly improvised weapons made by guerrillas, secret agents, criminals and freedom fighters, all collected from prisons, police departments and Third World countries. For information purposes only.
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
82 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 13, 2026
A photo-heavy, narrative/argumentative book about improvised and disguised weapons. Truby frames the material as evidence that gun prohibition control doesn’t keep weapons out of circulation, because truly focused people can fabricate functional weapons from common materials and distribute them through the black market.
The book is organized as a mix of historical anecdotes, law-enforcement/field context, and illustrated examples, with chapters that explicitly include topics like the “CIA’s deer gun” and “pen” weapons. It is very explicit about its political position with 2nd amendment quotes about and "Freedom in our never-ending war against tyranny.”
3/5
This was written in 1993 when the incompetence of authorities during Ruby-ridge and Waco breathed new life into the survivalist 'prepper' movement. The neo-conservativists treated the constitution as non-interpretable, and adopted an anti-statist attitude (to say nothing of the racial undertones associatable with the Turner Diaries) fits the majority of Paladin press target audience and the libertarian anti-statist wing commonly associated with todays 3 percenter and sovereign citizen movements.
2 years later you would see such attitudes culminate in the Oklahoma city bombing, and arguably, the modern school shooting epidemic.
If anyone has heard the classic rebuttals against fire-arm control, whatever their opinion this book is one of the first modern sources to make the arguments.
The book is organized as a mix of historical anecdotes, law-enforcement/field context, and illustrated examples, with chapters that explicitly include topics like the “CIA’s deer gun” and “pen” weapons. It is very explicit about its political position with 2nd amendment quotes about and "Freedom in our never-ending war against tyranny.”
3/5
This was written in 1993 when the incompetence of authorities during Ruby-ridge and Waco breathed new life into the survivalist 'prepper' movement. The neo-conservativists treated the constitution as non-interpretable, and adopted an anti-statist attitude (to say nothing of the racial undertones associatable with the Turner Diaries) fits the majority of Paladin press target audience and the libertarian anti-statist wing commonly associated with todays 3 percenter and sovereign citizen movements.
2 years later you would see such attitudes culminate in the Oklahoma city bombing, and arguably, the modern school shooting epidemic.
If anyone has heard the classic rebuttals against fire-arm control, whatever their opinion this book is one of the first modern sources to make the arguments.
Displaying 1 of 1 review