This study traces the design history of assault weapons from the 1944 Nazi Sturmgewehr (STG) 44 to the current Bushmaster XM-15, the assault rifle used by the Washington, DC-area snipers. Bullet Hoses shows how civilian semiautomatic assault weapons like the AK-47, UZI, and TEC-9 incorporate the major design features that were specifically developed by the military for laying down a high volume of fire over a wide killing zone, often called “hosing down” an area.