This probably isn't very practical for patrols, but it is a neat concept I came up with.

Get online and look up the schematics for building a potato gun out of PVC. (I'm not going to outline how to do it on this thread)

You can get bean bags from cheap bean bag toss games or make your own using cloth squares and airsoft bb's.

Use a light non-flash-flammable (won't burn under flash fire conditions) substance for wadding. I would use damp shop towels. They're cheap and hard to catch on fire with the propellant that most potato guns use.

Now you're set.

Load the "Bean Bag Cannon" with wadding, load the bean bag, spray the propellant in the chamber, ignite using the lighter or grill ignition (whichever the schematics call for) and watch the bean bag sail out of your less than lethal bean bag cannon.

The wadding not only seals the breach, but prevents the bean bags from catching on fire and launching a fireball at your assailant/target.

Bada Bing! Bada Boom!

Bada Bam.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_abaJ0xbRju4/Sd9IyRvy3iI/AAAAAAAABLc/62kAqcQG3IU/s1600-h/beanbag+gun.jpg

DarkShadow out

Or.
Negotiator CO2 Beanbag launcher

Darkshadow, I'd love to have that, but I was just thinking of a cheap alternative to buying bean bag canisters and a launcher.

Steel Fist, that would be awesome to carry on patrol. You wouldn't have to worry about priming like with a potato gun! What's that thing retail for?

Its called the Arma now and can be found here.