Range Report: Penetration Tests vs. HDs (.22, 9mm, .223, 7.62x39, 7.62x51, 12G -Pics)

[mk2ja]

Repped for the excellent report! As a student at an engineering college, I really enjoyed that you had everything so clearly laid out and documented. It's like you'd done this before... hmmm...

 

[bwframe]

I think this is your business excuse to buy a .50BMG.

Great report!

 

[ar15junkie]

Nice work, Thanks for sharing.

 

[Lars]

I think this is your business excuse to buy a .50BMG.

Great report!

[ThreadJack]A friend of mine works as the MAil administrator for a pretty good sized ISP. He could usually hand a purchase order to the boss, say "We need this" and the boss would sign off on it without any real questions.

A couple years ago he, my friend, submitted a purchase order for a "Barrett .50" with a description of "spam fighting tool." The boss stopped over at his desk and said? I don't mind signing off on this $12,000 purchase if we need it, but what exactly is a Barrett .50?" My buddy not being the type to lie told him it was a rather large sniper rifle used to disable vehicles, generators, and personnel from up to a mile and a half away. The boss said something to the effect of, I appreciate your desire to eliminate spam for our customers, but I'm going to have to turn this one down.



[/ThreadJack]

 

[r6vr6]

There is something about shooting electronics that really brings a smile to my face. Snickerdoodles FTW.

 

[Bastispah]

i have to ask, where those drives bad? or just old and small capacity?

 

[techres]

Here's your data in graphic form!

It just ain't results until there is a graph, Thanks!

Lars - these things are like chobham armor with layers of metal, fiberboard, plastic, and ceramics. I used two shots per (on most) to give the data a chance of being valid and given some rounds hitting platters and others hitting the hard spindle or motor I am kinda surprised at how little variation I had between shots. Oh, and you should have my phone number - if not then we can fix that.

hornadylnl - .308 or 30/06 with an AP core would have rocked. The layering of the drives is what really messed up the penetration. It caused pretty bad breakup and tumbling in nearly all of the rifle rounds EXCEPT the chinese steel core. Each one of those ended with the core pointed straight into whatever it hit.

Nizidramaniiyt - I considered strapping a few to my son's back and taking a pic about his new job at the mall, but my wife's fondness of my humor has it's limits.

IndyGunworks - A poll next time is a must. I simply did not think to do it!

Bastispah - They were bad, or at least bad enough to shoot. The pile of good used drives is in another box safe and sound.

Thanks all! It was fun and the only thing I need to change is a better table (a portable one) to hold up the test media for shooting. That would have made things easier.

And as for melons, they are just very dramatic. If they can use them in the Taurus Judge commercials, then I guess I can too. Call it "splashy science".

 

[jedi]

Lessons Learned:​

10. No one is getting data from these drives, so most important mission is complete.

Not completely true. Data recovery companies can still extract "some" of the data even if the platters are in parts. The only way to 100% ensure that no data is recovered is to "shred" the platters inside into a fine powder with industrial metal shredders. Otherwise given enough time and resources partial platters can be worked with. The data will be incomplete but still there.

 

[techres]

Not completely true. Data recovery companies can still extract "some" of the data even if the platters are in parts. The only way to 100% ensure that no data is recovered is to "shred" the platters inside into a fine powder with industrial metal shredders. Otherwise given enough time and resources partial platters can be worked with. The data will be incomplete but still there.

True, and even without the platters there is magnetic latency scanning that can be done. However, all of the drives with semi-ceramic platters (all of the laptop drives and ~20% of the desktop cones) had their platters turn to dust from impact. Those I have reduced exactly as you mentioned. That's what the boxes and buckets were for in part - to keep any mess contained and disposed of.

The other drive could get partials, but I am not really fretting it as none of these were HIPA drives. You simply cannot imagine what we do to those (strap a Glock 40 and wait for detonation, or a HiPoint and let the thermite heat of meltdown do the job, or put on a 1911 and put it in the safe for permanent storage since that is what you do with a 1911... I could do this all night...)

Effectively, no data will be coming off of them and I do not see anyone trying. If the FBI wanted that data, that bad, then they would already have it.

 

[k12lts]

I think this is your business excuse to buy a .50BMG.

I'll volunteer mine and I've got some AP ammo too.

I think it would take care of several of those drives real quick.

Great report.

 

[Indy317]

Not completely true. Data recovery companies can still extract "some" of the data even if the platters are in parts. The only way to 100% ensure that no data is recovered is to "shred" the platters inside into a fine powder with industrial metal shredders. Otherwise given enough time and resources partial platters can be worked with. The data will be incomplete but still there.

Where can folks get there old drives/USB drives turned to dust? What if one uses TrueCrypt and encrypt the data with 35 passes (takes days), then re-formats the drive? Or what if they just encrypt it and leave it encrypted?

 

[hotfarmboy1]

Very nice range report Techres. I have some of the 30/06 AP ammo, along with steel core in 7.62x54r, and some of the chinese steel core 7.62x39. Next time you get some more let me know and I'd be glad to give ya a hand destroying some hard drives

 

[hornadylnl]

62 grain green tip pulls behind surplus 844 powder will penetrate about 3/8" in 1" plate. Finding brass in 6" of snow sucks.

 

[hotfarmboy1]

A while back I was shooting at some heavy hanging steel plates with my M44 and some of my mil surp steel core ammo. They had 1/2" thick plates, 3/4" thick plates, and 1". It made it through the 1/2" thick, the 3/4" thick, and dimpled out the back of the 1" thick from around 50 yards.

 

[techres]

Where can folks get there old drives/USB drives turned to dust? What if one uses TrueCrypt and encrypt the data with 35 passes (takes days), then re-formats the drive? Or what if they just encrypt it and leave it encrypted?

Laptop drives are easy. Go out to the parking lot. Hold it in the palm of your hand. With a great arching motion throw the drive so that it hits the concrete flat and hard. Instant maraca!

 

[2ADMNLOVER]

Cool test !

 

[NateIU10]

Very cool! I really would have expected most of the ammo to penetrate more. Guess if you don't have any armor for your plate carrier, you can just fill it with harddrives

Oh and of course I volunteer to help you take care of any more drives in the future

 

[in_betts]

Everywhere across the State of Indiana desktops and laptops are chugging EVEN harder to give respectable data transfer rates to their owners in fear for their lives!! Any moment could be the END for them as they are pierced with 3200fps projectiles ripping them to shreds for "one too many crashes" during on-line poker games!

 

[Lars]

...Lars - these things are like chobham armor with layers of metal, fiberboard, plastic, and ceramics. I used two shots per (on most) to give the data a chance of being valid and given some rounds hitting platters and others hitting the hard spindle or motor I am kinda surprised at how little variation I had between shots. ....

So you weren't looking for an excuse to do it again.

Darn.

 

[jedi]

Where can folks get there old drives/USB drives turned to dust? What if one uses TrueCrypt and encrypt the data with 35 passes (takes days), then re-formats the drive? Or what if they just encrypt it and leave it encrypted?

Hard Drive Shredding | Hard Drive Destruction | Destroy A Hard Drive | Hard Drive Disposal is a vendor that can shred your drive. I have never used them just did a google search for hard drive shredding. When I was with DoD we did our own "shredding" of our drives in-house. The machines are scary beast that can eat just about anything!

As for using TrueCrypt and encrypting the drive that is a possibility as well.
Note that in theory TrueCrupt like any other encryption method "could" be cracked given enough time and resources. "Mathematically" speaking it's possible but "real world" it would take years/decades and the hard drive would probably suffer a hardware failure before it was cracked.

The other method to clean the drive is doing a low-level format.
Low-Level Formatting

Here is a free version that is OK
Active@ Kill Disk Hard Drive Eraser. Low Level Format.

Or use this fjerase.exe
Sluzhebka.com HDD Firmware Center.

It's an older application from Fujitsu hard drive make but it does the job.
You will need a bootable floopy or CD to put that .exe on and then nuke the drive. fjerase.exe takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r but it will get rid of everything.

If you are concerned about your current files and nuking those you can use UltraWipe. UltraWipe Freeware download and review - secure file deletion and cleanup from SnapFiles

It will nuke the stuff you send to the recycle bin when you empty it. Does 7+ passes on the data so it can't be recovered either.

Indy317 whatever you do does not matter since you are on I6BO's list for being on a gun forum so you have been tagged.