Silencer for 12 gauge shotgun. Silent weapons, or everything about silencersThe history of the creation and development of silent weapons

In order to deal with the sound of a shot, it would be logical to understand what is the source of the sound when fired. There are several such sources:

1. 1. The sound of the mechanism of the weapon, the impact of the striker on the primer, the clang of the shutter, etc. On a quiet night in an open area, the sound of the impact of the metal parts of the AK mechanism is clearly audible at a distance of up to 50m. That is why, when one absolutely silent shot is required, single-shot weapons are used.
   2. The sound created by the air in the barrel before the shot, and displaced by the bullet and powder gases; sound created by expanding (from a pressure of about 200 kg / cm 2 to the usual atmospheric 1.9 kg / cm 2) and cooling (from hundreds of degrees to air temperature) powder gases at the time of exit from the barrel, and these gases mostly follow the bullet , but some of them still break through into the gap between the barrel and the bullet, and, therefore, ahead of the bullet. It is with this cause of sound that the silencer allows you to fight.
   3. Acoustic shock wave that forms behind a bullet if it exceeds the speed of sound (~330m/s). It arises due to the fact that a bullet, passing through the air, creates waves in it, similar to those that arise on the water when a boat floats; the loudness of these waves is not great if they move faster than a bullet; however, if the bullet moves faster, it seems to accumulate the energy of the wave following it, and therefore it is perceived by the human ear as a blow, something like thunder during a thunderstorm. The only way to get rid of this cause of the sound is to reduce the speed of the bullet, which can be achieved by using special cartridges with a smaller charge of gunpowder or by shortening the barrel of the weapon.
   4. The sound of a bullet hitting a target.

Now that we know the reasons for the sound of a shot, we can consider the principle of the silencer. The main task of the silencer is to reduce the pressure and temperature of the powder gases. In order to reduce the pressure, it is necessary that the gases have the opportunity to expand before contact with atmospheric air. This is the purpose of the silencer chambers. The powder gases that escaped from the barrel after it consistently lose energy in each such expansion-cooling chamber. It is clear that with an increase in the number of chambers, the pressure difference between the outgoing gas and the outside air becomes smaller and, accordingly, the sound is attenuated. However, these reasonings are correct only for gases following the bullet. And as it was said, part of the gases is ahead of it. Since the diameter of the bullet holes in the baffles is larger than its own diameter, this part still flows out of the silencer at supersonic speed, creating a ballistic shock wave. To cut off and slow down supersonic gases, instead of diaphragms with holes, for example, membranes made of elastic material with slots are used, which let the bullet through and close again, or blind gaskets are installed - obturators.

The simplest homemade silencer is an ordinary plastic bottle taped to the barrel with electrical tape. At the moment of the shot, all the powder gases will be in the bottle, and the bullet, having broken through the bottom, will fly out. Despite the bulkiness and decrease in shooting accuracy, such a silencer makes the sound of a shot with a small-caliber cartridge no louder than a crack from a broken plastic ruler.

There are many different muffler designs that use different tricks to reduce the temperature and pressure of propellant gases. For example, the legendary "Bramit" in the version for the "three-ruler" was a cylinder with a diameter of 32 mm and a length of 140 mm, inside divided into two chambers, each of which ends with an obturator - a cylindrical gasket made of soft rubber 15 mm thick. The cutter is placed in the first chamber. Two holes about 1 mm in diameter were drilled in the walls of the chambers for bleed-off of powder gases. When fired, the bullet pierces both obturators in turn and exits the device. Powder gases, expanding in the first chamber, lose pressure and slowly bleed out through the side holes. Part of the powder gases, which broke through the first obturator together with the bullet, expands in the same way in the second chamber. As a result, the sound of the shot is extinguished. A similar silencer with a large number of chambers was also developed for the Nagan revolver of the 1895 model.

A fairly typical example of a modern silencer is the domestic PBS, that is, the Silent Shooting Device, which is screwed onto the muzzle of the barrel of AKM or AK-47 assault rifles. At some distance in front of the barrel is a thick rubber washer. Leading gases are retained by it and through special channels are sent to the expansion chamber, from where they flow smoothly into the air. When the bullet pierces the puck, most of the gases follow it; but, having successively passed through several expansion chambers, these gases escape into the atmosphere, having lost a significant part of the energy. PBS reduces the volume by 20 times. Therefore, a shot from an AKM is practically inaudible already at a distance of 200 m. special weapons quite acceptable. The disadvantage of this design is the aging of rubber, and after all, spare plugs also age - not even being used in a silencer. Currently, there are literally innumerable options for multi-camera devices. Here is the device of one of the foreign silencers for a Kalashnikov assault rifle.

But along with the increase in the number of cameras and the complication of their configuration, the improvement of designs goes in a variety of ways. The bulky body of the silencer often covers conventional sights, so it is placed eccentrically - the axis of the device is much lower than the axis of the barrel. But, of course, the channel for the passage of a bullet must be strictly coaxial with the barrel, because even with its light touch on the internal partitions, the accuracy of fire is sharply reduced. And the weakening of the attachment point of the device body on the weapon can generally lead to firing through its front wall.

The flat partitions of the expansion chambers are often replaced with convex ones - cone-shaped or of another shape, which deflect the flow of powder gases to the peripheral part of the muffler, which prevents it from overtaking the bullet. The same effect is generated by a helical baffle that runs along the entire length of the device.

Sometimes the expansion chambers are partially filled with heat-absorbing material - a fine aluminum mesh or simply shavings, copper wire. By heating them, the gases are cooled more actively. But these fillers are difficult to clean from powder deposits, and they have to be changed periodically. The damping efficiency is also affected by the material of the baffles themselves: for example, replacing steel with aluminum, more thermally conductive, results in a noticeable decrease in volume. However, with frequent firing with such a silencer, as the pressure in the chambers increases and the heat sink heats up, the device's performance decreases sharply; if a dozen or two shots are fired from it in a row, the "silent" weapon turns into the most common one. Therefore, it is recommended to fire with single shots and with long pauses to allow the entire structure to cool.

Sometimes, to improve the performance of the muffler, it is pre-moistened with water. Just a tablespoon is enough. At the same time, the muffler is cooled due to the evaporation of water (the principle of operation of freon in a refrigerator). Also, adding water to the muffler slightly changes the sound of the shot, from a metallic "melon" to a more deaf "tan". Water is usually enough for 10-20 shots.

Silencer efficiency is also increased by complex and rigorous internal gas dynamics calculations. For example, due to the use of shaped partitions of a certain profile, countercurrents and turbulent gas eddies are created in the chambers. As a result, its molecules, repeatedly colliding in different directions, extinguish each other's energy.

Original designs have been developed that provide for the reflection of the gas flow from the inner surface of the front wall of the muffler. After that, the energy of the gases drops due to repeated reflection and counter damping of shock waves inside the housing. Such devices can also be multi-chamber.

A completely exotic device has also been invented, outwardly looking ridiculously primitive: just a muzzle cone-diffuser enclosed in a tube with open ends. But a very significant reduction in sound is provided here by a virtuoso calculation of the interference of shock waves inside the cone, and most importantly, by a surprisingly ingenious way of cooling the powder gases. Breaking out of the cone, they intensively eject external air, as if instantly sucking it out of the internal volume of the tube, which causes its pressure and temperature to drop sharply. And the gases, mixing with this rarefied cold air, immediately lose energy. So, probably, a shot would have sounded somewhere at a twenty-kilometer height.

We are talking about a firearm that allows you to shoot secretly and does not give out the shooter with the sound of a shot and a flash of flame. The so-called "silent" samples or, more precisely, samples with a low sound level of a shot are the most numerous in a number of special-purpose weapons. Various types of so-called firearm silencers have been known for over 100 years. But the limited use and special secrecy gave rise to a lot of rumors and tales about these devices. And these devices are indeed very curious, at least from an engineering point of view. They have a very rich history.

Silent, as a rule, refers to any weapon equipped with a device that reduces the sound of a shot. Currently, the term "silent" (Silenced) is gradually being replaced by the term "with suppressed sound" (Noise suppressed). This term is conditional, since absolute jamming, as will be shown below, cannot be achieved. But it is accepted that if the sound level when firing does not exceed the sound level when firing from an airgun, then such a weapon can be considered silent. And a shot with a sound level not higher than 6 dB can be considered almost completely silent.

Firearms have been around for centuries, but their "loudness" until our century was considered simply their characteristic feature and an inevitable evil, quite tolerable and appropriate on the battlefield. "Music of battle" traditionally consisted of cannonade, smoke and flame of shots and was even considered a positive quality, because. had a huge intimidating effect on the enemy. For example, the Spanish conquistadors conquered entire peoples of the New World with one rifle salvo, spewing fire, thunder and clouds of smoke. And later, there was no special need for a "quiet" shot.

Work on devices for "muffling the sound of a shot" began at the end of the 19th century. - following the introduction of smokeless powders. At the same time, two main methods of solving the problem were immediately revealed, coexisting to this day: the first is the cut-off of powder gases and their "locking" in the bore or sleeve, the second is the preliminary expansion and cooling of gases before their release into the atmosphere.

W. Griner, a well-known weapons specialist of that time, wrote in his memoirs that he developed a silencer long before the beginning of this century, but did not bother to patent it, because "at that time there was no conscious need for silencers" and they were perceived rather as an idle game of the engineering mind than the requirements of harsh reality. But to date, neither a full-scale sample, nor even a drawing or diagram of a silencer designed by Griner has been preserved. In 1898, the French colonel Humbert created the mechanical design of the silencer. The first patent for a multi-chamber silencer was issued in 1899 to the Danes J. Borrensen and S. Sigbjornsen.

The first silencer to be commercially successful was designed by Hiram Stevenson Maxim and developed with Hyrum Percy Maxim (son of the famous machine gun maker). Various variants of its design were patented in 1908, 1909 and 1910, and in 1910 a company was created for the serial production of its devices - industrial production of the most advanced version began. Silencers were even sold privately in various countries, including Russia. A somewhat more successful design was presented in 1914. firm "Stevens". But still, this area of ​​\u200b\u200bmilitary equipment for the time being developed rather sluggishly.

In Russia, silencers were successfully developed by the designer A. Ertel, who proposed his design in 1916. But he was primarily concerned with silencers for guns, since at that time the method of sound detection of artillery positions had just entered into everyday combat practice and the problems of counter-battery combat came to the fore. In addition, the tactics of conducting combat operations did not provide for the covert destruction of enemy manpower at short distances. This explains the absence of silent weapons in the Red Army until the mid-thirties, although the designs of various "sound suppressors" are described even in a textbook for schools of weapons technicians for 1934.

Interestingly, it was not the military or special services who were the first to use the silencer, but hunters, who quickly appreciated the advantages of a silent shot when hunting an animal or bird, when a miss did not frighten the prey and the hunter could calmly aim again. At the beginning of the century, there were even silencers for smoothbore guns on the open market. In Russia, Maxim silencers before the First World War were freely sold in specialized stores. But the advantages of silent weapons were quickly appreciated by criminals. Therefore, in the United States in 1934, the sale of such devices was legally restricted. This ban is valid to this day, and the fact that a citizen has a silencer today is a true article of the Criminal Code.

There was no shortage of proposals for various "jamming devices" during the First World War, but then they practically did not attract attention. Any idea is truly realized only when it is necessary. Between the first and second world wars, silencers were mainly interested in "criminal elements" and special services. In addition, they were offered to hunters in order not to "scare away the game" - such as, for example, the Parker silencer for small-caliber rifles and hunting rifles. In the USSR, silencers for various types of weapons were developed by Markevich, Korlenko, Gurevich, and later by the Mitin brothers (the Bramit device).

The "military" career of silencers actually began during the Second World War. With the start of large-scale hostilities on the fields of the Second World War, interest in the problem of jamming the sound of a small arms shot was somewhat revived, although these devices were still used quite a bit. The reasons for this are understandable - the growing importance of reconnaissance and sabotage operations behind enemy lines led to the emergence of appropriate subunits and units and the rapid development of various types of weapons and special equipment for them. Traditionally, saboteurs quite effectively wielded quite silent knives, clubs and strangleholds. But when the allies launched extensive covert and sabotage operations, the usefulness of silent weapons quickly became apparent. At first, all the same knives and crossbows were used in such operations. But it immediately became clear that silent firearms are much more effective and better suited for these operations. Characteristic was the adoption in these years of "silent" models of special design. The effective use by German agents of Parabellum pistols with silencers during sabotage operations forced them to reconsider the attitude towards silent weapons and their opponents.

Soviet partisans, reconnaissance and sabotage groups of the Red Army and the NKVD in the rear German troops successfully used during this period a sniper version of the Mosin three-line rifle with the Bramit device, named after its developers - the Mitin brothers (MITIN BROTHERS). The device was a cylinder with a diameter of 32 mm and a length of 140 mm and was produced in several thousand pieces monthly.

The rapid development of designs for muffling the sound of a shot began in the 60s. This coincided with the development of various special services and "forces special operations"many countries. This is not surprising: the Cold War was raging in full swing in the world, small and rather large, albeit local, military conflicts and "undeclared" wars were blazing in different parts of the world - suffice it to name Indochina, liberation movements against the colonialists in countries Asia and Africa, the Middle East, insurgencies in Central and South America, fighting in Afghanistan, Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia, Tajikistan and Chechnya.

Silent weapons, or all about silencers

Sources of sound when fired from a firearm and methods for suppressing it

Before proceeding to consider the design of various silencers, it is necessary to dwell on the main sources of sound when fired from a firearm.

First of all, this is the sound of the action of the mechanism of the weapon itself: the blow of the trigger on the striker and the striker on the primer, the clang of the moving parts of the automation when reloading the weapon, the bolt hitting the barrel and the butt plate. When shooting at night in an open area, the sound of colliding metal parts is clearly audible at a distance of 50 meters. Therefore, in special cases, they use single-shot non-automatic weapons with manual reloading.

Then, even before the bullet leaves the barrel, the sound is emitted by air displaced from the barrel by the bullet moving along the barrel, and powder gases that have broken through into the gap between the bullet and the barrel and are ahead of it at supersonic speed. In revolvers, additional noise is created by powder gases breaking through between the drum chamber and the barrel.

The main sources of sound are a bullet (if its speed exceeds the speed of sound), which generates a head shock (ballistic) wave, and, finally, a muzzle wave created by powder gases following the bullet.

The sound level from a bullet's ballistic wave can be comparable to the volume of the shot itself. Therefore, the first categorical requirement for a silent weapon is that the bullet speed must be less than the speed of sound (310m/sec). A decrease in the muzzle velocity of a bullet is achieved either by shortening the barrel, or by drilling a plurality of radial holes in the barrel through which powder gases flow when fired (in fact, this is the same shortening of the barrel), or by using special cartridges with a reduced powder charge (so called "subsonic" cartridges).

In all these cases, the effective firing range (100m) decreases slightly and there are no problems with the stability of the bullets on the trajectory either. However, there are difficulties with the operation of automatic weapons. With a reduced recoil momentum, its reliability is not ensured. In this case, the mass of moving parts and the force of the return springs are reduced (i.e., completely redesigning the weapon), or they put up with it and make the weapon with manual reloading.

But all of the above applies only to pistol cartridges. With rifles, the situation is more complicated. In this case, transonic initial speed can only be obtained at the expense of special cartridges - after all, even if you completely cut off the barrel of a rifle and shoot from one chamber, the speed of the bullet will still exceed the speed of sound).

Creating a cartridge with a reduced charge of gunpowder, of course, is not difficult. However, this results in whole line specific problems. The first - when the bullets are reduced to subsonic speed (and this is about 3 times!) The effective firing range is sharply reduced. This can be partially compensated for by increasing the mass of the bullet. With a larger mass of the bullet, its lateral load increases (the ratio of mass to the cross-sectional area), the loss of bullet speed on the trajectory decreases (in addition to the fact that they decrease due to the bullet speed being lower than that of regular bullets) and, therefore, the effective firing range increases. The mass of bullets is increased (compared to the mass of bullets of regular cartridges) in all rifle cartridges without exception, designed for silent shooting.

The second problem is the stability of the bullet on the trajectory. It is solved by enhancing the gyroscopic effect. The required rotation speed is achieved by the steepness of the barrel rifling, the pitch of which is determined based on the aerodynamic characteristics of regular cartridges. In cartridges for silent shooting, all the aerodynamic parameters of the bullet differ from the regular ones. Therefore, there is always a danger that the barrel of a regular rifle may not be suitable for silent shooting. Therefore, in silent weapons, the steepness of the barrel bore is increased.

The third problem is the loading density of the cartridge. The weight of gunpowder, for example, in 5.56-mm rifle cartridges for silent shooting is only 1/14 of the weight of gunpowder of regular cartridges. In this case, with a standard sleeve, the loading density is very low (gunpowder fills only part of the internal space of the sleeve). At the same time, the stability of the combustion of the powder charge is not ensured, and when firing at large declination angles (steeply down), there may be misfires (the powder in the sleeve is poured to the pool and is not near the primer). It is necessary either to reduce the free volume of the sleeve or to use another gunpowder with a lower gravimetric density.

The sound of the shot is explained by the high pressure and temperature of the powder gases at the muzzle of the barrel, which are much higher than the pressure and temperature of the surrounding air: the pressure of the powder gases at the muzzle of the barrel of a small arms is about 200 kg / sq. cm, the temperature is about 1000 C. The rapid expansion of the powder gases after departure from the barrel, the formation of a shock wave and is accompanied by such a sharp and loud sound. The volume level (intensity) of sound is determined in logarithmic units - decibels (dB). The decibel is a relative unit. For the "zero" value in acoustics, the intensity pJ / (sq. m x s), approximately equal to the lower limit of audibility at 1000 Hz, is taken.

There are two main sources of the sound of a shot:

powder gases breaking through the gap between the bullet and the walls of the bore; the volume level of the sound generated by this source reaches 100-125 dB;

gases flying out of the barrel after the bullet and overtaking it; sound level - 115-135 dB.

At a supersonic bullet flight speed - over 320 m / s at sea level - a shock ("ballistic") wave is formed in front of its toe in the air, which is also a source of high-level sound. The initial velocity of a bullet in pistol cartridges usually does not exceed the sound velocity.

Note that not a single scheme for muffling the sound of a shot completely eliminates it - we are talking about reducing the volume to a value that is poorly distinguishable at a certain distance. The most common device for lowering the sound level is an expansion type silencer, which we call a "silent firing device" (SBS). In the chambers of this powder gases gradually expand and lose their speed and temperature. The action of most of them is based on the consideration of the flow of powder gases as an ideal gas, subject to the laws of Boyle-Mariotte and Gay-Lussac. The Boyle-Mariotte law is expressed by the equation of state for an ideal gas. According to him, the product of pressure and volume of a given mass of gas is directly proportional to its temperature. Thus, reducing the pressure of the flow of powder gases - and hence reducing the sound level of the shot - can be achieved by increasing their volume and lowering the temperature before entering the atmosphere.

PBS in the form of a muzzle attachment is used, say, in an APB pistol. Expansion-type "silencers" for domestic and foreign pistols and revolvers have become common products of underground "home-made" workers.

Sometimes the sound generated by the shock wave of a supersonic bullet is completely ignored: it is believed that it is difficult to localize the location of the weapon by the sound from the bullet. This may be acceptable on the battlefield, but it is completely unacceptable for weapons designed for special operations. Moreover, a device has recently appeared, developed in France, which determines the point from which the shot was fired, precisely by the sound of a flying bullet. A system of 4 microphones, arranged in a certain way, registers the sound of a bullet flying, and a computer, based on the data received, calculates the trajectory of the bullet and the position of the sniper, which is immediately displayed on the monitor screen. Teams of "hunters for snipers" have proven themselves well in Yugoslavia, promptly destroying ceasefire violators.

The pressure of powder gases (200 kg/cm2) and their temperature (1000*С) at the muzzle are much higher than the same parameters of the surrounding air. Instantly expanding upon exiting the barrel, they produce the same deafening roar. The task of the silencer is to extinguish the muzzle wave: to reduce the pressure of the powder gases before their release into the atmosphere to 1.9 kg / cm2, and the temperature - to 15-30 * C.

Significantly affects the volume of the shot and the sound of the bullet hitting the target. For example, a bullet hitting a live target creates a loud and distinct slap sound, which can be clearly heard in an open area with a slight sound background within a radius of several hundred meters (!). If a bullet hits a car tire, then the sound of a burst tire is heard very far away - and if, for example, into a drainpipe, then the roar can be simply deafening. Basically, you can't fight this sound. You can only mask it with extraneous sounds on the ground, choose the place where the bullet hit (the target is "softer") and use the composition of objects located behind the target, the presence or absence of reflective (cobblestone pavement or brick wall) or absorbing (grass, shrubs, trees) objects.

It is useful to recall that the threshold of hearing for a person is 0 dB, a quiet conversation has a volume of about 56 dB, a shot from an air rifle is 101 dB, a shot from a small-caliber rifle is 131 dB, hearing injuries begin at a noise level of 140 dB, a pain threshold is 141 dB, a shot from a pistol -machine gun - 157 dB, from large-caliber pistol- 165db, from a 122mm howitzer - 183db, and a noise level of 220db can already cause death.

Modern designs for suppressing the sound of a shot are divided into four classes: muzzle-mounted (multi-chamber), integral, mechanical, special weapons with the expansion of gases in a variable-closed volume.

The very first effective "silent and flameless firing devices" were developed in the form of a muzzle multi-chamber silencer, which was practically an inflatable nozzle on a standard weapon. Later, the design of a more advanced so-called integral silencer was developed, which already constituted a single constructive whole with the weapon. But a truly revolutionary idea in the field of silent shooting was the development of systems with the expansion of powder gases in a variable-closed volume. Mechanical systems for muffling the sound of a shot and quite exotic devices were developed.

At present, multi-chamber expansion and integral mufflers are most widely used. Systems of a "closed" type stand somewhat apart, the development priority of which and world leadership today, undoubtedly, belong to domestic gunsmiths. Mechanical systems of the "silent and flameless firing device" are used extremely rarely. These devices are based on mechanical suppression of the sound of a shot, while the energy of the powder gases is spent on the deformation of springs or other elastic damping elements, or on the movement of any parts of the muffler itself.

In addition to special operations units and covert agents for whom silence is more important than efficiency, a growing number of law enforcement agencies are equipping "silent" weapons, armed not only with pistols, submachine guns and sniper rifles, but also with smoothbore shotguns.

Such weapons are now used much more widely than one might think: they are used by anti-terrorist groups of the police and other special forces, army special forces, secret agents in the commission of terrorist acts, and even public utilities to shoot stray and rabid animals within the city ("without causing panic among the inhabitants" - as delicately stated in the brochure of one of the foreign arms firms). In Europe, silencers have long been popular among athletes because they reduce the "noise pollution" of the environment and prevent damage to the hearing of the shooters themselves during long hours of training, especially in indoor shooting ranges.

Silencers are gradually finding more and more use in the army. Modern wars, in contrast to the wars of the past, when huge armies of many millions met in head-on clashes, are increasingly taking on the character of a semi-guerrilla-semi-terrorist struggle. In this case, combat operations are reduced to tactical skirmishes of small groups, and the presence of "silent" weapons becomes vital.

But a "full-sized" silencer is expensive enough to equip every soldier with it, and it significantly reduces the combat capabilities of the weapon, in particular, the rate of fire (with intensive shooting, the effectiveness of almost all modern silencers decreases sharply). Therefore, Russian gunsmiths have developed a design for a cheaper three-chamber muzzle device that absorbs part of the recoil energy and is called a "shot sound reducer." It got its somewhat clumsy name "reducer" because it really only slightly reduces the volume of the shot, but its main advantage is sound dispersion, which makes determining the position of the shooter a rather difficult task. In addition, the use of this device allows the commander to easily control the fighters with his voice, and when firing indoors, the sound of the shot does not deafen the soldier himself. This device is much cheaper than a classic silencer and can be used much more widely.

SHOT - SILENT AS A SNAKE BITE

As you know, the sound of a shot arises from the rapid expansion of powder gases after leaving the barrel. Their pressure and temperature at the muzzle (for small arms - about 200 kg / cm2 and 1000 ° C, respectively) far exceed these parameters of the surrounding air. Experts identify three sources of sound: due to powder gases breaking through the gap between the bullet and the wall of the bore, flying out after it, and overtaking it. And at a supersonic speed of a bullet (over 320 m/s), a shock (ballistic) wave is formed in front of it in the air, which is also a source of high-frequency sound. It can be eliminated only by making the speed subsonic or by using silencer for weapons.

Revolver with silencer

Work on silencers for weapons began at the end of the 19th century - following the introduction of smokeless powders. The first more or less effective device was created in 1898 by the French Colonel Humbert, who installed a cylinder with a valve at the end of the rifle barrel that cut off the gas flow after the bullet took off. And due to the removal of gases back, he hoped to achieve a reduction in recoil. But he could not cope with the breakthrough of gases to the outside even before the release of the bullet. The American P. Maxim (the son of the creator of the first machine gun) turned out to be more successful, in 1907 he finalized the Humbert scheme and hurried to organize a company for the serial production of his devices. However, both of them managed to only reduce the volume.

Many projects of silencers for weapons different kind appeared during the First World War. So, in Russia, a very simple and rational design was proposed in the summer of 1916 by A. Ertel. Like others, he was primarily concerned with the silencer for guns, which is quite understandable, given the enormous role of artillery at that time and the method of sound detection of its positions that was already being introduced. But this also let the inventors down when they turned to rifles: the devices came out too cumbersome. And the need for them for small arms has not yet come to light so clearly as to be massively introduced into the troops. Also, quite a few silencers were used during the Second World War. Note that the limited use and special secrecy gave rise to a lot of rumors and tales about these devices in the 40s. Their rapid development began in the 60s. No wonder - it coincided with the development of various special services and "special operations forces." Those tasks that turned out to be too tough for Humbert, Maxim and Ertel are trying to solve today by designers. As calculations show, the shot could be made almost silent (with a sound level not higher than 6 dB), by reducing the pressure of the powder gases before their release into the atmosphere to 1.9 kg / sq. cm, and the temperature to 15 - 30 ° C. Expansion-type mufflers, which are now most widely used, perform this task best of all.

Weapon Silencer Sample

Protozoa gun silencer sample consists of an expansion chamber installed at the end of the barrel. Its outlet is covered with an elastic membrane with a hole slightly larger in diameter than a bullet. Gases, before finding themselves outside, expand in the chamber, while their pressure and temperature drop. The effectiveness of the muffler increases with the sequential arrangement of several chambers separated by partitions (they are made of cork, leather, plastic, rubber, and even thick cardboard), also with holes. So that the gases do not have time to overtake the bullet, these holes can be covered with deaf membranes (plugs). But their penetration will take additional energy - the speed of the bullet will decrease. In addition, the accuracy of fire will worsen, so that weapons with a silencer are used mainly for hitting close targets, and even then, since the membranes wear out instantly (many are essentially disposable), only with single shots. The pre-expansion and cooling of the gases not only reduces the sound, but also eliminates the flash of the shot, so the silencer also plays the role of a flame arrester. When the muffler is on, the shot is heard like a dull bang and is difficult to distinguish even in relative silence - on a sparsely populated street, in an entrance, a corridor. So, in an advertisement for the German AWC silencer for the ASP-9 pistol, it is indicated that the sound level does not exceed 33 dB, that is, no stronger than “when closing the door of a Mercedes sedan.”

The work of a silencer for weapons

How does a modern silencer work? Consider silencer for weapons on the example of the domestic "Silent firing device" (PBS). PBS is screwed onto the end of the barrel of AKM or AK-74 assault rifles. At some distance in front of the barrel is a thick rubber washer. Leading gases - breaking through between the bullet and the barrel wall - are retained by the membranes, and through the corresponding channels are sent to the first expansion chamber, from where they smoothly "flow out" into the air. The bullet penetrates the puck and the bulk of the propellant gases follow. Sequentially passing through several following expansion chambers, they break out into the atmosphere with significantly lower pressure and temperature. PBS is very effective: the sound level is reduced by 20 times. For example, a 7.62 mm AKM assault rifle equipped with one of the PBS-1 modifications fires no louder than a 5.6 mm sporting rifle. It is not audible already from 200 m. The survivability of the PBS without changing the rubber washer is up to 200 shots. The muzzle velocity of AKM bullets loaded with standard intermediate cartridges of the 1943 model is 715 m / s, that is, much more than the speed of sound. Therefore, in order to avoid a shock wave, special cartridges with a weakened charge are used. The head of their bullets is painted blue color, and they fly at a speed of 195 - 270 m / s. PBS and "subsonic" cartridges, produced in limited quantities, are in service with reconnaissance units and special forces. The straight partition of the expansion chamber is often replaced with a curved one that deflects powder gases to the peripheral part of the muffler, which prevents them from overtaking the bullet. The same can be achieved with a helical partition that runs along its entire length.

In fact, there are a lot of engineering "highlights" here. Thus, the expansion chambers of the muffler can be partially filled with heat-absorbing material. In one of the designs, gases are directed through funnels to the outside of the cylinder, where they expand and cool ... with ordinary aluminum shavings! The silencer is quite bulky, it noticeably changes the balance of the weapon, making it difficult to aim. True, this can be eliminated by an eccentric arrangement, when its axis is below the axis of the bore. Designs related to integrated (they have a silencer completely or partially covers the barrel) are very common, because they increase the rigidity and durability of the weapon. But of particular interest, of course, is the "elite" - a silencer for sniper rifles. A specially designed sample was adopted, for example, for the M-21 (USA). A muffler 180 mm long and weighing 750 g can be attached to the M36 barrel (Israel), as they say, it reduces the sound level of a shot by 80%. A model has been developed for the SSG-69 Steyr-aimler-Puch (Austria), which practically does not affect the balance of the weapon, due to its maximum approximation to the forearm.

Some muffler diagrams:

Some muffler diagrams:

Some muffler diagrams: a) with several expansion chambers; b) with "deflecting" chamber partitions; c) with a rubber washer that traps gases ahead of the bullet and a heat-absorbing layer; d) integrated option; e) with two washers and separate chambers for gases ahead of the bullet and gases following it; e) a variant with a wad that “locks” the barrel after the bullet has taken off.

True, for firing from such rifles it is necessary to use “subsonic” cartridges, which reduces the effective range: for example, the Grendel SRT (USA) with a conventional 7.62-mm cartridge (muzzle velocity 780 - 840 m / s) has this the value is 700 m, with a “subsonic” - 300 m. Effective sniper rifles with an integrated silencer, designed for special forces, were created in Russia (the already mentioned 9-mm Air Force is a special sniper rifle), Great Britain (8.58-mm "Ecury International Super Magnum), Austria (7.62-mm SSG Polis), Finland (two-caliber SSR Waime), and other countries. And the French company NOCOTRA, which presented a 5.6-mm silent rifle chambered for the .22 LR sports cartridge at the Milipol-89 Paris exhibition, vaguely explained - "for shooting wild and rabid animals within the city without panic among the townspeople."

Some muffler diagrams: a) with several expansion chambers; b) with "deflecting" chamber partitions; c) with a rubber washer that traps gases ahead of the bullet and a heat-absorbing layer; d) integrated option; e) with two washers and separate chambers for gases ahead of the bullet and gases following it; e) a variant with a wad that “locks” the barrel after the bullet has taken off.

Silenced pistol

However, what are we all about rifles? But what about the favorite "toy" of any man - silenced pistol? His bullet flies out at a speed of 250 - 320 m / s, that is, not higher than the sound. In addition, it (and hence the powder gases) has less energy than rifle or bullets of intermediate cartridges. Therefore, reducing the sound level of a shot is achieved more easily here. Except, of course, that the silencer reduces its already low penetrating ability. Since most modern pistols have a casing-bolt that completely covers the barrel, it was necessary to find a non-trivial solution for attaching silencers, for example, to change the design of the shutter, as, say, on the Italian 9mm Beretta 92 SF. And the silent modification of the APSB of the domestic automatic Stechkin has a special protrusion on the barrel with an external thread for screwing on the silencer. For the 5.6-mm American ".22 Colt", "High Standard", its integrated "brother" 75 mm long and weighing 140 g was developed. The designers are not without humor: the silencer created for the "Beretta 70" was named .. "Archangel". And most of these devices used on pistols are classified as so-called ... "yapping puppies", referring to the sound level of the shot. As a classic example of a special-purpose pistol, the Chinese 7.65 mm "Type 64" can be cited: the barrel is placed in an integrated silencer, one chamber of which is around it and the other is below it. Inside each there is a wire mesh that plays the role of a heat sink. Later, a similar 9-mm PB (“silent pistol”) with a removable barrel and an integrated silencer was created in our country.

Silence the sound of a revolver shot much more difficult, since their gases break through between the drum chamber and the barrel. As for submachine guns, their mufflers and handguards are one piece, like the German 9mm MP-5. The British came up with something similar - "Sterling Mk 5" - was used in 1982 during the military conflict in the Falkland (Malvinas) Islands by both the British and the Argentine side. And the pioneers in this business were the Chinese. Back in the mid-60s, they created a 7.62-mm submachine gun "64" for their own special forces.

Silencers for shotguns

The increasing spread of smoothbore shotguns as military weapons prompted designers to develop silencers and shotguns. The most successful example is a silencer for the American Escort Mossberg for bodyguards. Today, the main areas of research are further sound reduction, reduction in the weight and dimensions of silencers, and reduction of their effect on accuracy and accuracy of fire. Published reports note that they also have disadvantages such as low reliability (especially when using elastic membranes or washers), the need for careful individual fit. Therefore, they remain a special tool, and silent small arms do not yet have prospects of becoming mass-produced for armies. Recently, to reduce the volume of a shot, it is increasingly recommended to use special cartridges. It is possible to introduce a kind of “wad” into their design, which would push the bullet out, but cut off the powder gases, preventing them from leaving the barrel. Another method of achieving noiselessness is the creation of combat pneumatic weapons. Even in the era of the Napoleonic wars, the Austrian arrows terrified the brave French with their quiet and well-aimed "air fittings" with a cylinder in the butt. For more than a decade, work has been going on on pneumatics - so far, however, without significant results.

MULTI-CHAMBER MUFFLERS

The very first mufflers (so to speak, classic ones) were exactly muzzle expansion-type multi-chamber devices, which were muzzle attachments for standard weapons, in which transverse diaphragms divided the internal volume of the device body into separate compartments - expansion chambers. "Expansion type silencers" have become the most common. The action of most of them is based on the consideration of the flow of powder gases as an ideal gas, subject to the laws of Boyle-Mariotte and Gay-Lussac. The Boyle-Mariotte law is expressed by the equation of state for an ideal gas. According to him, the product of pressure and volume of a given mass of gas is directly proportional to its temperature. Thus, reducing the pressure of the flow of powder gases - and hence reducing the sound level of the shot - can be achieved by increasing their volume and lowering the temperature before entering the atmosphere.

Powder gases, moving after the bullet, successively expanding and cooling in the silencer chambers, gradually lost their energy, significantly reducing the sound pressure at the output of the device and reducing the flash of the shot. Therefore, the silencer plays the role of a flame arrester at the same time.

It is believed that with an increase in the number of cameras, the effectiveness of jamming also increases. However, part of the powder gases always outstrip the bullet, and since the diameter of the holes in the transverse partitions is greater than the diameter of the bullet, part of the gases flow out of the muffler at supersonic speed, which somewhat reduces the effectiveness of these devices. Their design has now reached a high degree of perfection.

Such silencers are located around the barrel or attached to its muzzle. Although they are quite bulky, they are very widespread. The task of typical silencers is to limit the speed of propellant gases exiting the barrel. Designers strive by all means to reduce the energy of outflowing gases. This can be achieved by their expansion, swirling, flowing from chamber to chamber, collision with oncoming flows, and also by using various heat sinks.

The simplest example consists of an expansion chamber mounted at the end of the barrel. Its outlet is covered with an elastic membrane with a slit or a hole, which is slightly larger in diameter than a bullet. Gases, before finding themselves outside, expand in the chamber, the volume of which is much larger than the volume of the bore, while their pressure and temperature drop. In theory, gases should flow out of the muffler body only after the bullet has taken off. However, in fact, this happens earlier, when the pressure has not yet decreased sufficiently (it is necessary that it be below two atmospheres).

The effectiveness of the silencer increases with the sequential arrangement of several chambers separated by partitions (they are made of cork, leather, plastic, rubber, and even thick cardboard), also with holes coaxial to the barrel. So that the gases do not have time to overtake the bullet, these holes can be covered with deaf membranes (plugs). But it will take additional energy to penetrate them - as a result, the speed of the bullet will decrease. In addition, the accuracy of fire will worsen. The membranes wear out instantly (many are essentially disposable), so silenced weapons are only used for single-shot fire.

The shot is heard like a dull pop and is difficult to distinguish even in relative silence - on a sparsely populated street or in an entrance. For example, in an advertisement for the German ABC silencer for pistol ASP-9 it is indicated that the sound level does not exceed 33 dB, that is, no stronger than "when closing the door of a Mercedes." Sometimes these devices are called "yapping puppies", referring to the low volume of the shot.

Legendary domestic "Bramith" , already mentioned above, structurally consists of two chambers, each of which ends with an obturator - a cylindrical gasket made of soft rubber 15 mm thick. The cutter is placed in the first chamber. Two holes about a millimeter were drilled in the walls of the chambers for bleed powder gases. When fired, the bullet pierces both obturators in turn and exits the device. Powder gases, expanding in the first chamber, lose pressure and slowly bleed out through the side hole. Part of the powder gases, which broke through the first obturator together with the bullet, expands in the same way in the second chamber. As a result, the sound of the shot is extinguished. A similar silencer was also developed for the Nagan revolver of the 1895 model.

The straight partitions of the expansion chambers are often replaced with curved and funnel-shaped ones, which deflect the powder gases to the peripheral part of the muffler, which prevents them from overtaking the bullet. The same effect is achieved by using a helical baffle that runs along the entire length of the muffler.

Sometimes the expansion chambers are partially filled with heat-absorbing material - absorbent fine aluminum filler mesh or even just shavings, copper wire. Gases, heating the filler, cool themselves, reducing their own pressure. But the nets are difficult to clean from powder deposits and have to be changed periodically. Even the material of the partitions significantly affects the effectiveness of the jamming: a simple replacement of steel with aluminum, more thermally conductive, gives a noticeable effect of reducing the sound of a shot. But with prolonged firing, as the pressure in the expansion chambers increases and the cooling elements and the entire structure heat up, the efficiency of the device drops sharply, and after a dozen or two shots fired in a row, the "silent" weapon turns into the most ordinary noisy. Therefore, it is recommended to fire with single shots and with long pauses to allow the entire structure to cool.

The effect of muffling the sound of a shot is increased by the presence of a small amount of water in the silencer body. In this case, part of the thermal energy of the powder gases is spent on the conversion of water into steam. But you won’t dip the barrel of the weapon into a jar of water before each shot ...

The bulky silencer housing often covers conventional sights, so it is placed eccentrically to the barrel when its axis is significantly lower than the axis of the bore. The channel for the passage of a bullet must be strictly coaxial with the barrel, because. even a light touch of the internal partitions by the bullet sharply reduces the accuracy of fire. And the weakening of the attachment point of the silencer body on the barrel of the weapon leads to firing through its front wall. And here there is no need to talk about accuracy ...

The efficiency of the muffler is increased by complex and rigorous calculations of its internal gas dynamics, when due to the use of figured partitions of a complex profile, a turn of the gas flow, counterflows and turbulent eddies are created in its body. Gas particles colliding rapidly lose their energy.

In a silencer with obturation, the inter-chamber partitions are made of an elastic material and have slots for passing a bullet. In this design, the gases do not lead the bullet, but slowly flow out of the expansion chambers after it. But the disadvantage of such structures is the rapid failure of the inter-chamber partitions.

Sometimes killers, for a single sure shot, put on an ordinary empty muzzle of a pistol. plastic bottle, which serves as the simplest disposable single-chamber expansion type muffler. The bullet freely shoots through it, but the powder gases, having previously expanded in the volume of the bottle, somewhat reduce their energy and, accordingly, the sound effect.

They tried to use other improvised means and even very curious ways of muffling the sound: for example, by putting on the muzzle of the weapon an ordinary baby nipple, tied to the barrel with wire. When fired, the rubber product was inflated with a ball, retaining powder gases in a limited volume. The gases then exited through a torn hole in the nipple, which was formed after the passage of the bullet. This primitive device slightly reduced the sound of a shot and was also disposable, but captivates with its simplicity and cheapness.

If priority in the use of short-barreled silent weapons can be given, apparently, to the German (still fascist) special services, then the palm in mass application in those same years, rifles with silencers definitely belong to the USSR. After the Second World War, multi-chamber expansion silencers were actively improved in the USA, which today is the leader in this area (at least they themselves think so).

Today's best designs provide a firing sound reduction ratio (unsuppressed/suppressed) of more than 500:1 (for pistols). When fired, only a metallic clang is heard from the movement of the shutter. The indicators for machine guns and rifles are much more modest. Today, the main areas of research are further sound reduction, reduction in the weight and dimensions of silencers, and reduction of their effect on accuracy and accuracy of fire. They also have disadvantages: low reliability (especially when using elastic membranes or washers), the need for individual adjustment. Therefore, they remain a special tool and silent small arms cannot yet become widespread for armies.

INTEGRAL WEAPONS

The natural development of the "classic" multi-chamber muzzle silencer of the expansion type was the so-called integral ones, which form one constructive whole with the weapon. Their action is based on the principle of preliminary removal of powder gases from the bore. In a similar design, a series of holes are made in the barrel of the weapon through which the gases following the bullet exit into the rear expansion chamber of the silencer housing. Its front part is a conventional multi-chamber muffler, in which there is an additional expansion and cooling of the powder gases that followed the bullet from the muzzle of the barrel, that is, the loss of their energy.

Preliminary "power take-off" of gases allows to reduce the speed of the bullet to subsonic, which allows the use of conventional, "supersonic" ammunition in silent weapons. The length of silent weapons is also reduced, since the silencer is mostly located around the barrel and protrudes rather slightly beyond the muzzle. But the main thing is that the efficiency of sound suppression increases in comparison with a multi-chamber silencer. But, at the same time, the damaging effect of the bullet as a result is reduced very much.

The most significant effect of reducing the sound of a shot is achieved with the simultaneous use of several principles of silencing, in particular, integrity, multi-chamber and heat absorption. To do this, the rear chamber and part of the front expansion chambers are filled with heat-absorbing material - aluminum or copper mesh or even just shavings, sometimes porous metal. Simply replacing steel baffles with aluminum baffles also produces a noticeable sound reduction effect.

But with intensive shooting, as the heat sink heats up, the efficiency of the device decreases sharply. So the problems here are the same as with multi-chamber muzzle silencers.

In 1969, the Swiss Edwin Roh of Hammerly AG proposed a design in which the gas outlets in the barrel were located almost immediately behind the chamber (that is, the entire barrel actually consisted of a chamber). Through them, gases entered two longitudinal chamber-channels located parallel to the barrel and covered from the inside with sound-absorbing material. In the region of the muzzle, the chambers had holes to the outside, through which, ultimately, the gases, having lost their energy, slowly escaped into the atmosphere.

Of the latest domestic developments in this area, it should be noted the special sniper rifle VSS "Vintorez" and the special machine gun AS "Val", created at the Central Research Institute Tochmash (Klimovsk, Moscow Region). Tests of this weapon took place during the period of hostilities in Afghanistan and at present it has been adopted by the special forces of the Russian army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This weapon uses special subsonic 9-mm cartridges, which were originally created as a weapon-ammunition complex.

The muffler is integrated (but not integral) with the barrel, of the usual type, with gas flow swirlers and a heat-absorbing (absorbing) filler mesh. Powder gases enter the silencer cavity through a series of fan-shaped holes in the barrel wall. In the expansion chamber, pressure is released, then the gases are separated into counterflows and finally cooled on the filler grid.

The disadvantage of "integrals" is the small real length of the barrel with its large geometric dimensions. After all, the effective length of the barrel, where the actual acceleration of the bullet takes place, is actually its segment from the chamber to the first hole in its wall. As a result, not only the speed of the bullet of a generally powerful cartridge is reduced, but also its penetrating and damaging ability. And in general, from an engineering point of view, the concept itself looks vicious: take a good powerful ammunition, and then diligently spoil its brilliant characteristics ...

The idea of ​​"integration" is especially popular at present in the UK and the US. When fired, almost only a quiet hiss of powder gases escaping from the muffler is heard. Until recently, integral mufflers of the sound of a shot were the most effective of all existing similar designs, and only recently gave the palm to mufflers of a closed (insulating) type.

MECHANICAL MUFFLERS

There is a special type of design "silent and flameless firing device", which is used extremely rarely. This device is based on the mechanical suppression of the sound of a shot, while the energy of the powder gases is spent on the deformation of springs or other elastic damping elements, or on the movement of any parts of the muffler itself.

One of the first more or less effective devices of this type was created in 1898 by the French Colonel Humbert, who installed a cylindrical device at the end of the barrel with a cylindrical channel continuing the barrel bore, a chamber with a valve and outlet channels for powder gases. In the "gun" version, a massive plate hinged on the transverse axis served as a valve. After the projectile left the barrel, the following powder gases lifted the platinum and pressed it against the muzzle. The gases cut off in this way were discharged into the atmosphere through narrow outlet channels back, so that the device also had to serve as a muzzle brake. In the "shooting" version, instead of a plate, a ball was used, which was lifted from its specially profiled nest by a gas stream and also blocked the muzzle. In other words, in such a design, the principle of locking powder gases in a variable-closed volume is actually applied, on which modern Russian developments are based, unsurpassed by anyone so far ... Among the advantages of Humbert's invention was the possibility of its use on standard samples. However, tests conducted by the Hotchkiss company showed that although the sound level and muzzle flame were noticeably reduced, the breakthrough of gases to the outside even before the projectile (bullet) left the barrel did not allow reaching the desired goal, and the recoil did not decrease at all.

There are other disadvantages as well. Firstly, the valve quickly becomes clogged with powder deposits and stops working. And in the field, it is very difficult to disassemble and clean the silencer after each shooting. Secondly, the shock wave of the propellant gases flowing back unpleasantly "hit the ears" of the shooter himself. Thirdly, automatic firing of weapons is impossible, since the locking ball has a large inertia. And fourthly, weapons in combat are not always horizontal. And if you need to shoot steeply up or down? After all, then the valve ball blocks the bullet hole. And just when a soldier rushes and crawls on the battlefield, the ball rolls freely in the silencer case, periodically blocking the path of the bullet. A shot at such a moment is fraught with a rupture of the barrel and the failure of the weapon.

The American P. Maxim in 1907 significantly improved the Humbert scheme and even tried to organize mass production. He managed only to slightly reduce the volume of the shot, but he still could not eliminate many of the organic flaws of this design.

But the inventors did not give up. German engineer Jozef Rudolf Smatsch in 1984 proposed an original design of a muzzle mechanical silencer. At first glance, its device is very reminiscent of a conventional multi-chamber expansion-type silencer, but the whole highlight is that the device was almost completely put on the barrel of the weapon, only slightly protruding beyond its muzzle. That is, the root defect of all similar structures was eliminated: bulky dimensions. In this case, this muffler had the ability to move forward along the barrel. When fired, the powder gases, hitting the transverse partitions, moved the body of the device forward, compressing the spring and sharply increasing the volume of its rear chamber. The muffler is returned to its original position by a spring.

It would seem that the benefits are obvious: the device is compact and almost does not increase the dimensions of a standard weapon (which cannot be said about conventional muzzle devices), and the fact that expanding gases additionally expend their energy on mechanical work to move the silencer and compress the return spring makes it possible to increase its effectiveness, that is, to further reduce the sound power when fired.

But the disadvantages, unfortunately, outweigh the advantages. After all, an additional rather massive mechanical device moving along the barrel reduces both the reliability of the weapon as a whole and the accuracy of fire, causing additional vibrations of the weapon. In addition, the very constructive principle of the device does not allow automatic fire. For these reasons, this seemingly so promising muffler never got a start in life.

As you can see, there is still work to be done on these muffler designs. But the engineering idea itself is very interesting and promising, promising new, even more original solutions in the future.

RUSSIAN SHEPOT - SILENT CLOSED WEAPON

A truly revolutionary idea in the field of silent shooting was the development of systems with the expansion of powder gases in a variable-closed volume. Domestic designers went this way and achieved amazing success here. There are no analogues to similar constructions in the world.

This is a fundamentally new and radical way to eliminate the sound of a shot - to "cut off" the powder gases, leaving them in the barrel or a small nozzle. In this case, the gases do not go outside at all. A kind of "wad" was introduced into the design of a special cartridge, which pushes the bullet, but cuts off the powder gases, preventing them from leaving the barrel into the surrounding atmosphere. This, perhaps the oldest, idea of ​​"silencing" is not so easy to implement, since it requires a special design of the cartridge and weapon, which allows you to lock the muzzle of the barrel after the bullet has left. Advantages - such design solutions significantly reduce the size of the "silent" weapon and allow it to look like an ordinary one, that is, they serve the purpose of effective camouflage.

Undoubtedly, the pioneers in this area are our compatriots brothers V.G. and I.G. Mitiny, therefore the world priority of our country is indisputable. In 1929, already far from us, they filed an application and received a patent for "a revolver for silent firing using a large diameter pan that guides the bullet and remains in the channel."

The Mitin revolver has one original design feature that immediately catches your eye at the first glance at the weapon: it has two (!) Drums - one combat, in the usual place, and the second additional, located coaxially with the first at the muzzle of the weapon. Both drums are fixed on a common axis. Cartridges, as usual, are loaded into the war drum. In this case, the bullets are in trays (or "pallets" - in the terminology of the authors). In the muzzle drum there are nests similar to the combat one, but each of its nests consists of a bullet-through hole and a bottom nest. In other words, the Mitins proposed a silent "special weapon - special ammunition" complex.

When fired, a bullet with a pallet under the action of powder gases move together along the barrel, while the pallet “sits” (i.e. gets stuck) in the nest of the muzzle drum, while the bullet freely passes through the bullet hole and flies to the target. The presence of special glands-seals eliminates the possibility of a breakthrough of powder gases to the outside. After a shot, when the war drum rolls back to its original position, the powder gases that have already had time to cool and expand significantly are released into the atmosphere. During the subsequent cocking of the hammer, the combat and muzzle drums synchronously rotate by one slot, while the chamber with the cartridge and the bottom slot are installed on the same axis with the barrel.

It is very difficult and time-consuming to reload a weapon, since for this it is necessary to knock out with a ramrod both spent cartridges from the war drum and pallets that have settled in the sockets of the muzzle drum. But for weapons of this type, a high rate of fire is usually not required. Unfortunately, the author was unable to find data on whether a full-scale, working model of the Mitins' weapons was created, as well as on its testing. But, on the other hand, the design seems to be easily realizable and there are no fundamental design and technological difficulties that prevent its implementation in metal. The Mitins' weapons should be attributed to the world's first example of a structurally detailed, efficient, truly completely silent weapon, and, moreover, quite feasible. Later, the brothers became interested in the development of classic muzzle mufflers. In particular, they developed the Bramit device, famous in our troops during the war years (that is, the muffler of the MITin BRATS) and widely used both on revolvers and rifles.

The Soviet engineer Gurevich worked on the creation of such a "closed cycle" weapon during the war years at the Tula Arms Plant. He used the principle of a liquid pusher, i.e. between the piston and the bullet was a liquid that pushed the bullet through the bore. The volume of liquid corresponded to the volume of the bore. The piston, having moved to the mouth of the sleeve, rested against it and locked the powder gases inside the closed volume of the sleeve. At the same time, the wad displaced water from the sleeve, as a result of which the bullet moved along the bore at the speed of the fluid flow. Due to the fact that water, like any liquid, is practically incompressible, the speed of the bullet will be as many times greater than the speed of the wad, how many times the cross-sectional area of ​​the bore is less than the cross-sectional area of ​​the sleeve (the principle of the hydraulic gearbox).

As a result, there was no sound shock wave, and the low initial velocity of the bullet (189-239 m / s) excluded the occurrence of a ballistic wave. Thus, almost complete noiselessness of the shot was ensured, but the shooter gave out a large cloud of water spray. In addition, the use of water as a bullet pusher made it difficult to use weapons in winter, freezing temperatures. The disadvantages include a large loss of energy of the powder gases to overcome the resistance during the flow of liquid and to give it the speed of a bullet.

Samples of small arms designed by Gurevich were tested at the research range of small arms of the Red Army in November 1943. Gurevich developed several samples of single-shot pistols, but only his 7.62-mm five-shot revolver went into small-scale production at the end of the 40s. Apparently, the design of Gurevich can be considered the world's first silent weapon, brought to the current model, passed state tests, put into service and produced in a small series. But with the end of the war, interest in this issue decreased.

They seriously returned to the development of these cartridges at the end of the 50s, when work began on the study of other designs of special cartridges. In particular, a cartridge with a stepped bullet for a pistol with a conical bore of 9 / 7.62 mm caliber was tested. Noise reduction was achieved by locking the powder gas in the barrel with a piston located in the sleeve behind the bullet. The piston from the previous shot was pushed out by the next bullet. At the same time, the Americans created several prototypes of similar cartridges, but closed this program for economic reasons, since the technical and technological problems that arose in the development of such weapons seemed to them insurmountable.

In 1969, the Americans Irwin R. Barr and John L. Kreicher of the "AAI Corporation" developed and patented a six-barreled aquarevolver - that is, a weapon adapted for firing under water. Each cartridge was actually a loose barrel equipped with a harpoon arrow. The arrow is ejected by powder gases with the help of a wad-piston, which remains in the sleeve, isolating the powder gases in it. Silent, flameless and smokeless shooting is thus achieved. But this weapon is effective only under water, in the air the arrow quickly loses its stability and begins to randomly (though silently) somersault. Belgian "commandos" and divers are equipped with similar weapons.

But the most effective was the domestic cartridge SP-2, similar to the Gurevich cartridge described above, but the liquid pusher in it was replaced by a light metal one attached to the bottom of the blunt bullet. After the shot, the bullet, together with the pusher, flew out of the bore, and the piston remaining in the sleeve locked the powder gases in it. This 7.62-mm cartridge, together with a firing device, was adopted for army intelligence in the mid-50s.

In the early 60s, the cartridge was modernized: the bullet was replaced with an ordinary 7.62-mm submachine gun PS. The telescopic piston-pusher after the shot remained in the sleeve. The new ammunition received the index SP-3. It was assumed that the automatic bullet would make it difficult to identify the type of weapon used, but the steeper rifling of the barrel gave out a special weapon. The SP-2 and SP-3 cartridges were most often used in the small-sized double-barreled non-automatic pistol MSP and the NRS reconnaissance knife. But it is almost impossible to create an automatic or semi-automatic weapon for this cartridge, since when firing, the piston (pusher) that pushes the bullet out of the sleeve almost half of its length.

In 1972, a double-barreled non-automatic pistol MSP was developed in the USSR for a special 7.62-mm cartridge SP-3. The block of two vertically arranged trunks is made swivel - for loading and unloading. A special 7.62-mm cartridge SP-3 (weight 15g, length 52mm) provides noiselessness, flamelessness and smokelessness of the shot due to the blocking of gases in the sleeve. The effective firing range is 15m. The weapon was widely used both by army special forces units and by domestic special services.

Due to the peculiarities of the design of these cartridges, they can only be used for short-range short-barreled weapons, since the acceleration of the bullet in the barrel occurs at a length equal to the length of the piston (or rod) stroke. And it usually does not exceed the length of the cartridge case itself. Their main advantage - the use of such special cartridges allows you to create a silent pistol in the dimensions of a conventional combat pistol.

It should be noted the increased danger when handling all such cartridges. When loaded, each cartridge is actually a loaded single-shot pistol. And in the "shot" form, it is no less dangerous, since it contains powder gases under high pressure in a closed volume, moreover, they are also red-hot.

On the principle of locking powder gases inside the sleeve, the design of a number of samples of silent weapons adopted by domestic special forces is based. These include a 30-mm silent underbarrel grenade launcher that pierces a three-centimeter steel sheet at a distance of 800m, a double-barreled silent S-4M pistol. Heavier and more powerful weapons were also being developed: in the first half of the Great Patriotic War, the silent mortar of the Design Bureau of Plant No. 58 was tested in the Soviet Union.

In Belgium, in the early 1970s, a portable silent weapon system, the Jet Shot, was developed. More precisely, this is a whole family of infantry weapons, which includes: a single-barreled mortar, a disposable mortar, a 12-barreled grenade launcher. It should be noted that the Jet Shot weapon system ensures stealth and surprise in combat use and can be successfully used in infantry and special sabotage units.

It's nice to know that in this - silent weapons - area we were the first and are leaders to this day. And what is interesting: in the very first design of silent weapons - the Mitin brothers - the same principle of isolating powder gases in a closed volume with the help of a piston-pan was implemented, as in the newest and most secret Russian cartridge SP-4 of a similar purpose. In other words, the development of modern silent weapons goes exactly along the line of development of the design proposed by the Russian engineers Mitin.

But here's the most interesting thing: in the patent formula of their invention, Mitins in the first, restrictive part of it speaks of "silent firing using a leading bullet and an increased diameter tray remaining in the channel," that is, as an already known and implemented constructive principle of muffling the sound of a shot. Therefore, this allows us to assume the existence of an even earlier prototype of the invention and that in fact we are, and even more so, the first ... And not for nothing abroad similar weapons known as "Russian whisper".

SILENT EXOTIC - CUSTOM AND EXOTIC MUFFLER DESIGNS

The development of silent weapons is currently taking place in quite traditional directions. But there are some very unconventional and even simply exotic muffler designs that do not fall under the classical classification. For example, in 1970, Siegfried Hübner from Karl Walter (Germany) developed a design based on the principle of gas reflection from a concave parabolic inner surface of the muffler front wall. The decrease in the energy of gases occurs due to the repeated reflection of the shock wave inside the muffler housing and the oncoming damping of the shock wave by the oncoming wave.

The device is extremely simple in its design, but requires a rigorous calculation of internal gas dynamics for a specific weapon and a specific cartridge: a simple replacement of ammunition (at least for a more powerful one, at least for a less powerful one) dramatically changes the whole picture of internal gas flows, and as a result, the effectiveness of muffling the sound of a shot sharply falls.

In Japan, an exotic device for reducing the sound of a shot has been developed, which at first glance is quite elementary and consists of a muzzle cone-diffuser and a tube with open ends covering it. But due to the careful calculation of the complex process of shock wave interference inside this device and the effect of ejection of external air by powder gases (when intensively mixed with it, the gases cool rapidly), the effect of reducing the sound of a shot turned out to be very significant.

In 1975, Dipl R. Holser from Taylor (England) patented a similar design: a muffler-ejector, in which a jet of powder gases ejects the surrounding cold air, intensively mixes with it and actively cools.

For a number of reasons, these devices have not found any wide application in practice. But these examples clearly show that there are no beaten paths in technology, and success can be achieved in a variety of, sometimes very unusual ways.

Let us now consider in more detail some more examples of "silent" weapons.

SAMPLES OF "SILENT" WEAPONS

Colonel Humbert's Project

Work on devices for "silencing a shot" began at the end of the 19th century. - following the introduction of smokeless powders. The first more or less effective device was created in 1898. French Colonel Humbert, installing at the end of the barrel a cylindrical device with a cylindrical channel continuing the bore, a chamber with a valve and outlet channels for powder gases. In the "gun" version, the valve was a massive plate, pivotally mounted on a transverse axis. After the projectile left the barrel, the following powder gases lifted the platinum and pressed it against the muzzle. The gases cut off in this way were discharged back into the atomosphere through narrow outlet channels, so that the device also had to serve as a muzzle brake. In the "shooting" version, instead of a plate, a ball was used, which was raised from its specially profiled nest by a gas stream and also blocked the muzzle. Among the advantages of Humbert's invention was the possibility of its use on regular samples. However, tests conducted by the Hotchkiss company showed that although the sound level and muzzle flame were noticeably reduced, the breakthrough of gases to the outside even before the projectile (bullet) left the barrel did not allow reaching the desired goal, and the recoil did not decrease at all.

Lots of muffler projects different principles actions appeared during the First World War. So, in Russia, a very simple and rational design was proposed in the summer of 1916. A. Ertel. Like many other inventors, Ertel proposed a silencer primarily for artillery pieces, which is quite understandable, given the enormous role of artillery and the already introduced method of sound detection of positions. But this also let the inventors down: silencers for guns came out too bulky, and the need for them for small arms had not yet come to light so clearly as to introduce them into the troops.

Great Britain

It is worth noting that during the Second World War, the British made a significant contribution to the development of "silent" weapons. Defeat 1940 forced Great Britain to look for new ways to fight Germany, one of which was the deployment of subversive operations behind enemy lines. In 1941 in Welwyn, north London, an experimental laboratory appeared under the direction of D.M. Nevitt, an explosives specialist. The task of the laboratory, nicknamed "Churchill's toy store", was the development of weapons and special means of sabotage.

Among other things, the first "silent" pistol and carbine of a special design appeared, which went into mass production.

To begin with, in the laboratory in Velvin, a single-shot silent device was created for a 7.65 mm pistol cartridge.32 ACP or 9 mm Parabellum. It consisted of a barrel with a cylindrical receiver, an integrated silencer, a bolt-cover and a firing mechanism. The cartridge was inserted into the chamber, after which the bolt was screwed into the receiver. Two levers protruded from the side of the receiver - the cocking of the drummer and the fuse. Ahead, on the muffler casing, a release button was mounted, connected to the percussion mechanism by a rod laid along the casing. Side "lugs" protected the button from accidental pressing. The device was named velrod"(WELvin-ROD). It was assumed that it would be worn in a sleeve on a cord attached to the eye of the lid, and for a shot it would be pulled out and wrapped around the palm so that the trigger was under the thumb. After the first tests, it was found useful to supplement the weapon with a magazine. Soon the barrel and the integrated silencer "Velrod" were supplemented with a holding handle, and then - a magazine and a longitudinally sliding bolt.This is how the 9-mm silent pistol "Velrod" MkI appeared, which, unlike the "sleeve" prototype, found practical application.

By that time, the British Special Operations Administration (OSO) had already chosen a 5.6-mm single-shot sports "Webley-Scott" with a muzzle silencer, but the 9-mm magazine "Velrod" promised better prospects.

Four right-handed cuts were made in the barrel. The "integrated" silencer, 127 mm long and 35 mm in diameter, consisted of two chambers. The first was located around the barrel, limited to a steel sleeve in front and a receiver in the back. Powder gases were discharged into it through holes drilled in the wall of the thickened part of the barrel in front of the chamber. In front of the muzzle of the barrel there was a second chamber, covered in front by a sleeve with a muzzle recess. In front of the chamber and in front of the barrel, the powder gases were blocked by solid rubber washers mounted on steel washers; between them, on the continuation of the axis of the barrel bore, there was a tube with four rows of holes that discharged the powder gases to the periphery of the chamber. It is mentioned that in the experimental Velrod models, leather solid washers soaked in oil were also used in the muffler.

The muffler fitted tightly to the receiver, made of a steel cylinder. A shutter was placed in the through channel of the box. A rotary bolt head with two lugs was attached to the frame in the rear with a screw. The barrel bore was locked by turning the larva, and the notched bushing of the larva served as the bolt handle. The longitudinal movement of the shutter was limited by a screw in the right wall of the receiver, which was included in the longitudinal groove of the shutter. The screw, with which the larva was attached to the frame of the shutter, also served as an emphasis on the mainspring of the drummer placed in the shutter channel. When sending a cartridge into the chamber, the drummer stood up with a combat stop on the sear of the trigger mechanism. The sear was connected with the descent. The latter was a tube with a hook, mounted on a rod, and shifted back when pressed. The automatic safety of the trigger mechanism looked like a key behind the base of the handle and turned off only when the handle was completely covered by the palm. The ejection of the spent cartridge case was carried out by a bolt ejector through the upper window of the receiver. The base of the handle was attached to the bottom of the receiver with four screws.

The magazine itself served as the handle - an ordinary metal box magazine for 6 rounds, "packed" in a rubber case. The magazine latch in the form of a spring plate was placed on the back wall of its case. Sights included a front sight mounted on a muffler and a rear sight with a slot, fastened with a "dovetail" in the groove of the receiver behind its upper window. For shooting at night, the sight and front sight could be supplied with luminous dots (!).

For incomplete disassembly, it was necessary to disconnect the magazine, unscrew the screw on the right side of the receiver with a slotted screwdriver or a suitable blade and remove the bolt. The muffler could also be detached. When disassembled, the Velrod could be worn in a special underarm cover under outerwear.

The mass of the 9-mm "Velrod" MkI with a silencer and a magazine was 1.545 kg, length 365 mm, height 140 mm, muzzle velocity - 300-305 m / s. The pistol was designed to be fired by a trained shooter at ranges up to 45 m during the day and up to 18 m at night, but beyond 10 paces, the shooting was ineffective, and the instructions recommended short ranges. without muffler ( incomplete assembly) the pistol could be used point-blank for self-defense. The silencer turned out to be quite effective, and the magazine locking scheme excluded mechanical sounds during and after the shot.

During the production process, the details of the pistol changed. The most significant changes were made in 1944. The trigger mechanism received a second fuse in the form of a rotary lever at the bottom of the receiver behind the handle. A trigger guard appeared on part of the pistols, fastened in front with a loop to the silencer, and in the back - with an axis to the base of the handle.

Dimensions trigger guard allowed to shoot with gloves. The magazine latch was moved within the trigger guard and could be controlled with the index finger of the shooting hand - convenient for a combat pistol, but insignificant for a "silent" special-purpose weapon. At the same time, the pistol began to be chambered for the 7.65 mm Browning cartridge (7.65 Auto) and the silencer was significantly modified. Now powder gases were discharged into its rear chamber through 24 holes with a diameter of 3.2 mm, made in the walls of the barrel along the bottom of the rifling. The part of the muffler in front of the barrel was divided into several chambers by rubber and tin washers, between which thrust rings were placed.

For better passing blunt-pointed pistol bullet through rubber washers, narrow conical channels were made in them, opened towards the muzzle of the barrel. Such a 7.65 mm pistol with an old magazine latch and without a trigger guard was designated the Velrod MkII. With a barrel length of 110 mm, the total length of the MkII was 305-310 mm, weight 0.91 kg, muzzle velocity 213 m/s. It is no coincidence that Velrod was chambered for Parabellum and Browning cartridges - in Europe, where British agents were supposed to operate, these were then the most common pistol cartridges.

The absence of brands and inscriptions is quite understandable for special-purpose weapons. The rough exterior finish of the Velrod seems to indicate semi-artisanal manufacture, although the Velrod MkII (MkIIA) was produced by the Birmingham Small Arms. Concealed carry holsters were manufactured by Mappin & Web in London.

The Americans also showed interest in Velrod. In 1944 The 9mm Velrod MkI was included in the catalogs of the US Office of Strategic Services. In 1945 in the United States itself, the USS Naval Gun Factory began producing such a pistol for the OSS. Later in the USA, they also began to produce the 11.43-mm Velrod model chambered for .45 ACP (This model is known as the Hand Fire Device MkI). Note that the Americans used the Velrod much longer than the British. The 11.43-mm model, "late" to World War II, was used during the Korean War. And in the early 70s, 7.65-mm Velrods ended up with the fighters of special American groups SOG ("research and observation groups"), which carried out covert operations in Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam. And this was due not only to the characteristics of the Velrod itself - SOG tried to make the most of the "non-American" weapons.

Repeating carbine "De Lisle Commando"

One of the best examples of "silent" weapons during the Second World War is the British "De Lisle Commando Carbin" (De Lisle Commando Carbin - remember that the British "commando" units began to form as early as 1940). It is interesting that this carbine was developed on the initiative of a private individual. William Godfray De Liesle worked for the British Air Ministry at the start of World War II. At the age of 16, carried away by weapons, he, together with friends, developed the design of a silencer for a sporting rifle chambered for a 5.6-mm cartridge.22 LR rimfire. With the outbreak of war, he returned to his idea and proposed a "silent" 5.6-mm weapon based on the Browning self-loading carbine.

Realizing the low penetrating and lethal effect of a small-caliber cartridge at the range of a carbine, De Lisle experimented for some time with a 9-mm Parabellum pistol cartridge, but the best result was obtained with an American cartridge. 45 ACP (11.43x23) - his bullet with a mass of 14, 9 g had an initial velocity of 260 m/s (noticeably below the speed of sound) and a transverse load of 14.5 g/sq.cm. This allowed her to maintain lethal force at a sufficiently long range. As a result, the 11.43-mm magazine "De Lisle Carbine" appeared, which interested the British USO.

The De Lisle design was a combination of the butt, bolt and trigger mechanism of the regular Lee Enfield MkIII repeating rifle, the shortened barrel of the Thompson submachine gun, the M1911 Colt pistol magazine and the original De Lisle silencer. The rotary bolt engaged with the receiver with two lugs, had a flat knurled trigger and a comfortable handle deflected downwards, the fuse was mounted on the receiver. The barrel was threaded into the receiver. A pipe (casing) of an integrated silencer was also threaded onto the front ledge of the receiver, the longitudinal axis of which was below the axis of the bore. The "asymmetric" position of the muffler casing made it possible to "stow" the weapon in small dimensions and not raise the aiming devices unnecessarily above the butt.

Inside, the muffler was divided into two parts - a separator was located in the front, the rear, surrounding the barrel, formed a single expansion chamber. The expansion of powder gases was carried out, as it were, in several stages. A coupling was screwed onto the muzzle of the barrel. The gases were vented from the barrel through four rows of holes made along the bottom of the rifling, first into the space between the barrel and the sleeve, and from there into the rear silencer chamber. In front of the muzzle of the barrel, the sleeve formed a bell, which contributed to the expansion of most of the gases, both ahead of the bullet and following it and not diverted through the holes in the walls of the barrel. These gases entered the separator, which was a series of split copper washers, put on two longitudinal rods and forming a series of chambers. The cuts of the washers were made at the top, and the edges of the cut were bent in different directions. This not only opened the way for the bullet, but also contributed to the "twisting" of gases, their braking and removal to the periphery of the chambers.

The separator could be removed from the muffler for cleaning or replacement. Although it would hardly have been necessary to replace washers during service - they could withstand up to 4500 shots, which, by the way, was a noticeable advantage over silencers with rubber washers. Such a scheme made the silencer very effective - according to British data, the sound of a shot was very difficult to distinguish even at night at a distance of 50 yards (about 46 m). With a range of aimed fire up to 200-275 yards (183-251 m), this was an excellent indicator. The loudest source of sound is said to have been the impact of the striker on the primer of the cartridge. True, the knock of parts during reloading was as loud as that of a regular rifle, so the shooter had to count on hitting the target from the first shot. But a convenient buttstock with a protrusion of the neck, a descent with a "warning" and a relatively long barrel for this cartridge contributed to the accuracy of shooting. In order to "not make noise" when preparing a shot, the shooter could carry a carbine with a cartridge in the chamber and a fuse turned on. Before the shot, the fuse was turned off, and the bolt trigger was manually pulled back, cocking the drummer.

To install a pistol magazine, the lower receiver window was covered with a special cover with an insert, the magazine latch was redesigned. An 11-round magazine was also developed, but it turned out to be almost twice as long as a standard pistol magazine and did not go into series.

From below, a wooden forearm and a front swivel were attached to the silencer, from above - the base of the front sight and the block of the sector sight. The bar of the sight had notches from "1" to "6". The interchangeable front sight was attached at the base to the dovetail, its rear cut did not allow glare towards the sight and provided a clear visibility of the front sight in any direction of illumination (except for "backlight", of course).

The first batch of 17 carbines was produced by Ford Dagenham. "Serial" production was supplied by "Sterling Armament Company", which produced 500 pieces. "Sterling" ("Sterling", ibid. in Dagenham) made a number of changes to the design: replaced the steel muffler casing with aluminum to reduce weight, eliminated the front bushing of the casing, made the notch of the sight in yards - 50, 100, 150 and 200 (about 45, 5, 91.5, 137 and 183 m). A small number of carbines for "commando" paratroopers were equipped with a pistol grip and a folding butt, in accordance with this, the sling swivels were moved to the left side of the weapon. It is curious that the design of the folding stock was similar to the Sterling submachine gun, which was only developed during this period (later the Sterling itself received a silencer according to the De Lisle Commando scheme). Details of carbines were ordered by individual London firms.

The length of the carbine "De Lizl" was 945-960 mm with a barrel length of 190-210 mm, weight without cartridges - 3.7 kg. The magazine capacity is 7 rounds, the cartridge in the chamber increased their supply to 8. In terms of the degree of muffling of the sound of a shot, the accuracy of fire, the damaging effect of a bullet, the De Lizl carbine surpassed such weapons for commandos as the "silent" submachine guns "Stan "Mk2S and Mk6. However, it required careful processing and fitting of parts. For wartime, this was a serious drawback, so the release turned out to be small - in any case, fewer carbines were made than the "Stan" Mk2S.

The De Lisle carbines were practically not used in Normandy - the need for a "silent" weapon turned out to be small here. But they found work in the jungles of Southeast Asia. For example, in Burma, "commandos", infiltrating into the depths of the Japanese defenses, fired on transport columns and convoys from "silent" carbines. In Malaysia, carbines came in handy during operations against the rebellious local population. Shortly after the war, most of the De Liesle was destroyed - the British authorities feared that in the post-war confusion such an effective weapon could fall into criminal hands.

As a result, a few "De Lisle Commando Carbin" have survived to this day. True, in the early 80s they tried to revive their release. So, "Low Enforcement International Ltd." along with other samples of "silent" weapons, it presented the De Lisle Mk3 and Mk4 models already chambered for 7.62x51 NATO with a correspondingly redesigned silencer and magazine, a bolt and trigger mechanism of the Lee Enfield No 4 type, as well as with a mounting bracket optical sight. Although such weapons were offered for "special operations forces", they were more likely to be designed for modern collectors - fortunately, with a small release, "De Lisle" managed to gain considerable fame for itself. The changes made to the design, apparently, are not accidental. Firstly, this is no longer pure "plagiarism", and secondly, with rifle cartridges, the "silencer" becomes more like a "reducer" of the sound level of a shot, which means that the weapon can be allowed for commercial sale, and thirdly, accuracy and accuracy have slightly increased shooting, which gives the weapon and "sports" interest.

Submachine gun "STEN" Mk2S

Appeared in the middle of 1941. The 9-mm STEN submachine gun was a response to the urgent need to equip the army with light automatic weapons. Its name is an abbreviation of "Shepherd-Turpin-ENfield" from the first letters of the surname of the head of the Birmingham Small Arms Company, Major R. Shepherd and the chief designer of this company, G. Turpin, as well as the city of Enfield, in which Royal Small Arms assembled the first batch of new weapons. Due to the extremely simplified design, "STEN" was produced in large quantities - until 1945. more than four million pieces of several modifications were produced. About half of them were submachine guns of the Mk2 modification, which appeared in 1942.

The automation of the weapon operated due to the recoil of a free cylindrical shutter, the shot was fired from the rear sear. The trigger mechanism, mounted in a separate housing, allowed a single and continuous fire, determined by a push-button translator. Power was supplied from a 32-round direct box magazine attached to the left. Sights - the simplest. The butt on the "STEN" Mk2 was first made in the form of a pipe with a shoulder rest, then in the form of a simple stamped frame.

A small number of second variant Mk2s were converted to a "silent" variant, commissioned by the USO and MI-6. This modification received the index S (Silence). A muffler of the classic expansion scheme was rigidly attached to the barrel. To reduce the speed of the bullet below the sound speed, a 9-mm cartridge with a slightly weakened charge was used, and the barrel was shortened to 91.4 mm (against 197 mm for conventional Mk2). Accordingly, the weight of the shutter had to be reduced to 454 g.

From "STEN" Mk2S it was recommended to conduct a single fire, but even at the same time the silencer was very hot, and to protect the shooter's hand from burns, a canvas cover was put on the silencer. Fire in bursts was allowed only in extreme cases. To improve the accuracy of shooting, the trigger pull was reduced from 2.6 to 2.2 kgf. But when fired from the rear sear, great accuracy did not work. The silencer was effective, but the clanging of metal parts was distinctly different at 20 m.

The Mk2S was used by British commandos in amphibious operations in Europe and Singapore, was handed over to the American allies, and the French "Poppies" successfully used them in ambushes and raids. This weapon was also chosen by the German paratroopers in the operation to steal Mussolini.

Apparently, given such success, the British in 1944. decided to resume the production of "silent" submachine guns, now taking as a basis "STEN" Mk5 with a permanent wooden butt and pistol grip. He also shortened the barrel and installed a silencer of the Mk2S type - this is how the Mk6 or Mk6S modification appeared. At the end of the war, illuminated night sights were placed on it experimentally. Mk6s were officially in service until 1953.

Here are the main characteristics of silent "STEN"

STAN Mk2S Mk6
Weight without magazine, kg 3.5 4.32
Weight with equipped magazine, kg 4.14 4.96
Weapon length, mm 857 857
Barrel length, mm 91.4 95
Muzzle velocity, m/s 305 305
Muzzle energy of a bullet, J 350 350
Sighting range, m 135 135
Rate of fire, rds / min 575 575

Submachine gun "Sterling" L34A1

The Sterling submachine gun system was developed by J.W. Patchet back in 1942, and by the end of the war, the Sterling Armament Company had prepared its production. But then the cheaper "STEN" blocked the way for other samples. Only in 1953 The Sterling Mk3 was adopted under the army designation L2A1. Model L2A2 replaced in 1955. year, and since 1956. produced L2A3 ("Streling" Mk4).

The scheme as a whole continued the "STEN" line (and in fact was the development of the Schmeisser's MP18 line) - automatics based on free shutter recoil, a shot from the rear sear, a cylindrical bolt box that passes in front of the perforated barrel casing, magazine mount horizontally on the left side of the box. On the surface of the shutter, spiral grooves are made, which play the role of a cleaner. In combination with large clearances, this increases the reliability of the system in the event of clogging.

In the early 1960s, specialists from the General Staff formulated a requirement for a compact, silent weapon chambered for the standard 9x19 cartridge of the Mk2 Z type with the main single-fire mode and firing bursts when necessary. In accordance with this, Patchet developed a variant of the Sterling Mk5 with an integrated silencer, which was adopted under the designation L34A1 (in the commercial version - Patchet / Sterling Mk 5). It was also produced in a version with only a single fire ("Sterling Police Carbine" Mk 5).

The integrated silencer is made according to the "De Lisle Commando" type and consists of two chambers. The first chamber surrounds the trunk. Through holes, full in several rows along the bottom of the rifling of the barrel, part of the powder gases is discharged into it, which reduces the initial velocity of the bullet to 300 m / s (i.e., below the speed of sound). The removal of gases made it possible, unlike the silent "STEN", not to shorten the barrel. The discharged gases are cooled by a wire mesh rolled into a roll, enter the diffuser tube, then into the expander, from there into the barrel casing, and slowly seep out. Ahead of the muzzle of the barrel, the muffler body forms a diffuser chamber in which a spiral diffuser is installed. Powder gases swirl, reflect from the bottom of the diffuser and mix with the gases that have already passed through the holes in the barrel. As a result, their pressure is reduced. During the tests, 60 thousand shots were fired from the prototype, after which the wear on the inner surface of the barrel was found to be satisfactory. The silencer showed good survivability, although it is rather difficult to maintain. A front sight and forearm are attached to its body.

The reduction in the working pressure of the powder gases made it possible to lighten the shutter from 481 to 420 g and put a single return-action spring for the normal operation of the automation. The striker is rigidly fixed on the shutter mirror.

Both holes of the sight are designed for up to 100 m, one of them is used for shooting at dusk - the hole has a larger diameter and is surrounded by small holes to increase the amount of light entering the periphery of the eye.

The large mass, the center of gravity shifted forward and the lengthening of the sighting line somewhat improved the accuracy of fire of the L34A1 compared to the L3A4. "Sterling" Mk5 was supplied to the British army and to many countries, including Ghana, India (manufactured under license), Libya, Malaysia, Nigeria, Tunisia, the Gulf countries, etc. But although in general he showed good results, the British SAS, for example, preferred the German MP5SD. True, during the fighting in the Falkland (Malvinas) Islands, the Sterling Mk5 was used by both sides.

The weight of the unloaded L34A1 is 3.54 kg, with an equipped magazine - 4.25 kg, length with the butt folded down - 857 mm, with the butt folded - 654 mm, barrel length - 198 mm, muzzle velocity - 293-310 m / s, rate of fire - 700 rpm. Magazine capacity - 34 rounds.

PRC / "Silent" pistols Type 64 and Type 67

The Type 64 pistol was produced as a weapon for reconnaissance and special units. To achieve the greatest noiselessness, the protrusions of the sliding rotary bolt, which is located in the casing, must enter the grooves on the receiver, the shot is fired with a "deaf" locking of the bolt. The release of the shutter and the extraction of the sleeve after the shot is carried out manually. When the selector is moved to the right, the bolt protrusions do not enter the grooves on the receiver, and the pistol operates in semi-automatic mode on the principle of recoil. However, the movement of the shutter and the ejection of the sleeve are accompanied by significant noise. The pistol uses cartridges of caliber 7.65x17 mm with a sleeve without a rim. A special cartridge with a reduced muzzle velocity limits the firing range to 40-50 m, but this is more than enough for a "silent" pistol.

The effect of sound suppression is achieved by a significant silencer in front of the receiver, this device protrudes far forward beyond the muzzle. Powder gases leave the bore and expand inside a cylinder filled with wire mesh. The cylinder itself is located inside a three-dimensional metal case. The bullet passes through a series of rubber membranes that trap propellant gases. When firing single shots with manual reloading, the pistol becomes almost silent, but the low initial speed of the bullet to a large extent affects its destructive power. Food - from a box magazine for 9 rounds.

The Type 67 is an improvement over the Type 64 pistol, with the exception of the cylinder-shaped silencer, which makes it easier to carry in a holster and gives good balance. There are some changes in the silencer device, but the principle of operation remains the same. The characteristics of Type 64 are as follows (in brackets are the characteristics of Type 67): weight without cartridges - 1.81 (1.02) kg, length - 222 (225) mm, barrel length - 95 (89) mm, muzzle velocity - 205 ( 181) m/sec. Shot sound level - 80 dB.

Type 64 and Type 85 submachine guns

The Type 64 submachine gun of Chinese design combines components of various systems: the principle of operation of automatics with blowback recoil and the features of the action of the shutter are similar to the best submachine gun of the Second World War - the Soviet PPS-43; the trigger mechanism with a change in fire mode was taken from the British Bren model (a large number of which were captured during the Korean War), although technologically simplified.

In general, the sample is a variant of a silent automatic weapon for special purposes. The old Soviet pistol cartridge 7.62x25 TT is used. Well suited for submachine guns due to its ballistics, however, it is not very suitable for silent weapons due to the supersonic muzzle velocity. But this problem was easily solved. The store has a sector shape and is located in front of the trigger guard. To facilitate the extraction of the spent cartridge case, three longitudinal Revelli grooves 0.1 mm wide and 0.075 mm deep are made on the chamber walls, starting at the chamber entrance and having a length of about 10 mm - somewhat equalizing the pressure of the powder gases inside and outside the cartridge case, they reduce the risk of its breakage when extraction. The trigger mechanism allows single and continuous fire.

Silencer - classic expansion type. A 200 mm long barrel over approximately 157 mm has four rows of holes with a diameter of 3 mm located along the bottom of the rifling (36 holes in total). Due to the outflow of powder gases through the holes, the initial velocity of the bullet decreases below the speed of sound. The solid casing surrounding the barrel has a length of 165 mm and is attached to the receiver with a sleeve. Inside the casing there is a package of partitions with holes connected by two rods. The powder gases that have entered the casing expand in the chambers formed by the partitions and then slowly flow out through the holes of the last partition at the front cut of the casing. The silencer, despite its simple design, very effectively suppresses the flash of a shot and significantly reduces the sound level.

A simplified and lighter modification intended for export is designated as Type 85. Its mechanisms are similar to those of the Type 64 submachine gun. With the Type 64 cartridge, the sound of the shot is reduced to less than 80 decibels. A variant of the 7.62x25 cartridge produced in China with a weighted pointed bullet and subsonic muzzle velocity can be used.

The mass of the Type 64 submachine gun without a magazine is 3.4 kg, the length of the weapon is 843 mm with the butt extended and 635 mm with the stock retracted, the barrel length is 244 mm, the muzzle velocity is 313 m/s, the rate of fire is 450 rpm . Effective firing range - 135 m. Magazine capacity - 30 rounds.

USSR/Russia

PB pistol

An original example of a weapon in which an integrated silencer is combined with a removable silencer is the PB ("silent pistol", index 6P9), developed by designer A.A. Deryagin using elements of the PM and put into service in 1967.

PB has a two-section "silencer". Directly on the barrel of the pistol extended to 105 mm, a casing is put on - an expansion chamber with a diameter of 32 mm. The camera is fixed on the front process of the frame, the powder gases are discharged into it through the holes made along the bottom of the barrel rifling. Between the barrel and the casing, a metal mesh is laid in a roll, which selects the temperature of the powder gases. A removable muffler unit - "nozzle" is attached to the front of the chamber with a rusk connection. A separator is placed inside the body of the nozzle, including several washers installed at different angles of inclination to the axis of the bore. Washers crush and redirect gases.

The bullet passes freely into the holes of the washers. On the body of the nozzle, a basting is made for the fingers. Such a "silencer" scheme has become typical in domestic weapons - we can see it in the Kedr-B submachine gun, VSS rifle, and AS assault rifle. The muzzle velocity has been reduced to 290 m/s, i.е. below the speed of sound. Many users, however, note the insufficient degree of "silencing" of the sound of a shot due to the breakthrough of gases from the "nozzle".

The shutter is significantly shortened. The return spring is vertically mounted in the handle and interacts with the bolt through a swinging lever - akin to the English "Webley-Scot" scheme. The shutter delay is controlled by a button. The pistol has a relatively high front sight and a constant sight.

The PB entered service with the special-purpose company of the army reconnaissance battalions, the special-purpose groups of the KGB "Alpha" and "Vympel", is in service with the special forces of the FSB and the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Of the analogues, one can name his peer - the Chinese special-purpose pistol "Type 67". However, unlike it, PB can be used both in the "full" and in the "shortened" version. In addition, the removable nozzle allows you to carry the gun in a compact belt holster. The holster is made of leatherette, equipped with a valve fastened to the peg and a compartment for a nozzle.

PB weight without cartridges - 0.97 kg, with an equipped magazine - 1.02 kg, length without nozzle - 170 mm, with nozzle - 310 mm, height - 134 mm, width - 32 mm, muzzle velocity - 290 m / s , muzzle energy- 251 J, effective range - 50 m, magazine capacity - 8 rounds.

Automatic pistol APB

In the early 70s, the designer A.S. Neugodov, based on the Stechkin automatic pistol, developed the "silent" model APB (AO-44, product 6P13), which was put into service in 1972. Recall that the APS has automation based on the recoil of a free shutter-casing. completely covering the barrel, to reduce the rate of fire, an inertial retarder was introduced, the percussion mechanism was a trigger, the sight was a sector.

The device of the "silent firing device" here is fundamentally similar to a self-loading PB. The elongated barrel is surrounded by an integrated expansion chamber, into which powder gases are vented through holes in the barrel walls - 4 holes are drilled along the bottom of the rifling about 15 mm from the chamber and another 8 at 15 mm from the muzzle. Due to the removal of gases, the muzzle velocity of the bullet falls below the sound velocity. After the bullet leaves the bore, the gases from the expansion chamber return to the barrel and flow out through the muzzle with reduced temperature and pressure. The muzzle of the barrel protrudes slightly in front of the shutter-casing and has a shallow cut for attaching a cylindrical "nozzle"-silencer 230 long and 35 mm in outer diameter. Inside the "nozzles" is divided into a series of successive expansion chambers. It is built according to an eccentric scheme: its axis of symmetry passes below the axis of the bore, so that the silencer does not overlap the aiming line. The original feature was the literal "fitting" of the integrated camera into the contours of the shutter-casing. To hold the entire structure, the pistol frame in front is slightly lengthened.

Instead of a holster-butt, the APB received a removable wire butt. The butt is mounted on the same grooves of the handle, has an adjustment in length. When carrying a weapon, the removed "nozzle" is fastened with a screw on the butt. The APB model was widely used in Afghanistan by special forces units. "Spetsnaz" literally reanimated the APS and its "silent" offspring.

Double-barreled pistol MSP

In the USSR, they ventured to create special silent pistol systems based on the principle of "cutting off" powder gases and leaving them in the sleeve. This, perhaps the oldest, idea of ​​"silencing" is not so easy to implement, since it requires a special cartridge design that allows you to lock the muzzle of the barrel or sleeve after the bullet has left. In this case, the problem arises of reducing the pressure to a value that allows the cartridge case to be removed from the chamber, and the removed cartridge case itself turns out to be dangerous. In addition, the distance at which the gases accelerate the bullet is reduced and the initial speeds are reduced - this makes heavy bullets more advantageous. Such solutions, however, are attractive in that they can significantly reduce the size of a "silent" weapon, fit the pistol into the size of a "pocket" one, and practically eliminate the breakthrough of gases. In terms of the effectiveness of "silencing" the sound of a shot, the "cut-off" of gases is much superior to devices of an expansion type.

The special cartridge SP-2, created on such principles in the USSR back in the late 40s, included a pusher piston, the back of which locked the gases, and the front (metal pusher) flew out with the bullet. SP-2, together with a shooting device, was released in small quantities for army intelligence in the 50s. At the same time, a scheme with a stepped "compressed bullet" and a conical bore of a 9 / 7.62 mm caliber was tested.

On the idea of ​​cutting off powder gases in the sleeve with the help of a wad-piston, the device of the MSP and PSS pistols, created at TOZ in collaboration with the Central Research Institute Tochmash, is also based.

The 7.62 mm MSP ("small-sized special pistol") was developed in 1965, initially chambered for the special SP-2 cartridge. Later they switched to a similar in design, but more advanced SP-3. The MSP in combination with the SP-3 was put into service in 1972. Cartridge length - 52 mm, weight - 15 g. Inside the cylindrical sleeve, the following are sequentially assembled: a pointed shell bullet, a wad-piston, a charge of granular powder, a tray with a primer. Bullet weighing 7.9 g is a bullet PS submachine gun cartridge 7.62x39. They say that this was supposed to "disguise" the fact of using a special weapon, however, in which the barrel had to be increased - in comparison with the machine gun - the steepness of the rifling, which is clearly noticeable on the shot bullet. In order to ensure the acceleration of the bullet in the bore, the wad piston has a telescopic scheme and is equipped with a rod. Behind the wad-piston has a recess that contributes to the obturation of powder gases. The constriction at the front of the sleeve slows down the piston and rod. The thick walls of the sleeve are designed for high pressure powder gases. The pallet screwed into the sleeve includes not only the primer, but also the firing pin. The internal ballistics of a weapon is significantly different from the usual one - both the barrel and the bullet "work" in completely different conditions. The mandatory collection of shell casings established by the authorities after firing is explained not only by the secrecy of weapons, but also by their explosive nature. It is clear that there is no marking on the cartridge case. At a distance of 25 m, the bullet is capable of penetrating a steel sheet 2 mm thick.

SME is a type of non-automatic double-barreled pistol with a folding block of trunks. The trunks are paired in a vertical plane and are attached to the frame on the front hinge. The block of barrels is locked by the trunnions with a special lever on the left side of the frame. An extractor pin is placed between the trunks. The pistol is loaded with two cartridges at once in a pack (clip). After the shot, when the block of barrels is turned forward and upward, the extractor runs around the copier located in front and moves back, pushing out a pack of cartridges ("shot" in the usual sense, these cartridges cannot be called). A through window in the block of barrels and the frame of the pistol opens the breech of the barrels and allows you to visually or by touch assess whether the weapon is loaded.

The trigger mechanism with two triggers and helical cylindrical mainsprings is entirely located inside the handle. It has several degrees of protection: a flag non-automatic fuse, a latch of the barrel block that automatically locks the trigger when the barrels are not fully locked, safety cocking of the triggers ("hang up"), an inertial trigger safety device in the form of a heavy pusher. The latter is associated with a light trigger and its inertia ensures the locking of the sear of the triggers in the event of an accidental impact or fall of the weapon. When pulling the trigger, you must first overcome the inertia of the pusher. The safety lever is placed on the left in the frame window behind the trigger guard. It remains to be added that the hammers are cocked by a special cocking lever located at the trigger guard (so that the middle finger of the hand can work with it). The self-cocking mechanism was abandoned for obvious reasons - a pre-cocked trigger provides better accuracy, and the specifics of using silent pistols give the shooter time to cock the trigger. The rate of fire is reduced, but weapons of this type do not require especially "fast" shooting. Moreover, after one shot, the barrel chamber is very hot.

Aim is permanent. The cheeks of the handle are fastened with a screw. As with a conventional pistol, the handle is equipped with a swivel for a strap or cord. The simple and streamlined external shape of the pistol allows it to be carried in a holster or pocket. The gun is controlled with one hand - turning off the fuses and cocking the hammers with some skill is performed with one movement of the brush.

Another example of a non-automatic pistol with a cut-off of powder gases is the double-barreled S-4 and S-4M "Groza" for more powerful PZ, PZA and PZAM cartridges. The cartridges are loaded with the same pointed bullet, which is also pushed out by the piston. Loading and unloading of S-4 and S-4M pistols is also carried out using a pack (clip). SMEs and S-4M "Groza" were used by the Soviet "special forces" in Afghanistan.

From the MSP, equipped with SP-2 cartridges, you can fire underwater. So, on the basis of the Tula Artillery Engineering School, Colonel Yu. The mass of SMEs without cartridges is 0.53 kg, with cartridges - 0.56 kg, length - 115 mm with barrel length - 66 mm, height - 91 mm, combat rate of fire - 6 rds / min, aiming range - 50 m.

The 7.62-mm PSS ("special self-loading pistol", product index 6P24, had the code "Vul" in the development process) was created at the Central Research Institute Tochmash by designers A. Levchenko and Yu. Krylov chambered for SP-4 developed by V. Petrov. This weapon complex was put into service in 1983.

Bottle flangeless sleeve SP-4 completely hides the bullet. The long wad-piston is replaced by a small moving part in the form of a cap. It slows down at the mouth of the sleeve and - unlike the SP-3 - does not protrude beyond its limits. Cartridge SP-4 is equipped with a cylindrical bullet weighing 9.3 g, made of hard alloy, with a brass leading belt in front and a small recess in the back. This shape of the bullet somewhat worsens the ballistics and reduces penetration, but increases the stopping effect at short ranges. However, a heavy bullet, as they say, from 20 m pierces a steel helmet, body armor of the 2nd class of protection (stopping an ordinary bullet 9x18 PM) or equivalent bulletproof glass, and from 30 m - a steel sheet 5 mm thick.

The sound level of a PSS shot is somewhere between a 4.5mm air rifle shot (corresponding to 101 dB) and a hand clap. Self-loading mode of operation was no small achievement, given that the automatic removal of the cartridge case from the chamber is hindered by high pressure inside it. Therefore, in addition to the special device of the cartridge, the PSS is also distinguished by the original solution of the barrel device - the rifled part of the barrel is separated from the chamber, the latter departs some distance along with the rolling bolt, and the rifled part of the barrel is slightly shifted forward under the action of a moving bullet.

The design of the PSS, at first glance, is quite common for self-loading pistols. The barrel is placed inside a special frame sleeve. Shutter-casing covers the barrel front and top. The return spring is put on the frame sleeve. In front of the shutter there is a latch in the form of a sleeve turning to the left with bevels for fingers. The ejector is made open on the right side of the shutter. The percussion mechanism is a trigger, with a semi-hidden trigger and a lamellar mainspring. The lower end of the spring forms the magazine latch. The trigger mechanism here provides a self-cocking or pre-cocking shot. A lever fuse is mounted on the shutter-casing on the left-rear. There is a shutter delay.

The handle is formed only by the rear process of the frame, to which plastic cheeks are attached with a screw. A replaceable single-row magazine for 6 rounds with side windows in the walls is inserted into the handle. "Pocket" dimensions and concealed carrying is quite consistent with the weapons of "secret shooting". The PSS is gradually replacing the PB in service. The production of PSS and SMEs was established by the Tula Arms Plant. There are no serial analogues of such weapons in the world, as we have already indicated.

The mass of the PSS with an equipped magazine is 0.85 kg, length is 170 mm, height is 140 mm, width is 26 mm, aiming range is 25 m.

PBS devices for Kalashnikov assault rifles

Many admit that silent weapons, night devices and portable communications equipment made the "special forces" truly effective. The Soviet silent and flameless firing device (PBS) was created for use with 7.62 mm AK and AKS assault rifles. The muzzle velocity of a bullet when firing from an AK with an ordinary intermediate cartridge, model 1943. is 715 m/s, i.e. greatly exceeds the speed of sound. Therefore, to eliminate sound from a "ballistic" wave, a subsonic cartridge with a weakened charge and an initial velocity of a US bullet (the head part is painted black with a green belt) of 295-310 m / s is used complete with PBS.

Action (PBS) is based on the principle of preliminary expansion of gases, and its scheme provides for various chambers for the expansion of gases escaping from the barrel before the bullet exits and gases following the bullet. At some distance in front of the muzzle of the barrel is a relatively thick rubber plug. Gases that break through between the bullet and the walls of the bore are retained by an elastic barrier and are directed through the corresponding channels to the "peripheral" rear expansion chamber, from where they smoothly flow into the atmosphere. In addition, the powder gases, cut off by a rubber stopper, create pressure in the bore that is sufficient for the automation to work - this is how the weakened charge of the US cartridge was compensated. A bullet, flying out of the bore, penetrates a layer of rubber, behind it a part of the powder gases breaks through. These gases sequentially pass through several expansion chambers and exit into the atmosphere with significantly lower pressure and temperature.

Structurally, this scheme was solved differently. The PBS device for the AK assault rifle included a case, on the back of which a head was screwed. The body consisted of two semi-cylinders, pivotally connected by axles in the front. The head fastened the half-cylinders, while twelve jumpers made in the cavity of each half-cylinder formed transverse partitions with holes for the passage of a bullet. The head included an obturator with a rubber stopper in the cage, the nozzle on its base had an internal thread for mounting on the muzzle of the barrel, and a Belleville spring prevented self-unscrewing.

The design of the PBS case was easy to manufacture and maintain, but did not provide proper tightness. And since 1962. - already for AKM and AKMS - PBS-1 was produced. In it, apparently, under the influence of foreign designs, a separate separator inserted into the cylindrical body was introduced. The separator was assembled on three longitudinal rods fastened with front and rear rings. Ten partitions were attached to the rods; bushings put on the rods kept them from moving. Rings and partitions had holes for the free passage of a bullet.

Since the ballistics of the US bullet is significantly different from the usual one, the aiming bar of the sectoral sight of the machine gun was replaced with a special one with a clamp and completely adjustable in direction. Depending on the installation of the clamp heads, the bar was used to fire a US bullet (sight settings up to 400 m were applied on swivel heads for it) or an ordinary cartridge model 1943. (settings up to 1000 m are marked on the bar itself). However, firing with an ordinary cartridge with PBS devices (PBS-1) was not allowed, and they should have been removed.

The aiming range of the US bullet was up to 400 m. PBS and PBS-1 had a fairly high efficiency: the degree of sound level reduction was about twenty times. The sound level of a shot from a 7.62 mm AKM assault rifle with PBS-1 is no higher than when fired from a 5.6 mm sporting rifle. The sound of a shot is indistinguishable from a distance of 200 m. The survivability of the PBS without changing the rubber washer is up to 200 shots. For the 5.45 mm AK-74, PBS-3 and the corresponding cartridge with a US bullet were developed.

The AKS74-UB looks interesting - a "silent" modification of a shortened 5.45-mm AKS-74U assault rifle. A PBS is attached to the muzzle of its barrel, and a silent BS-1 grenade launcher can be mounted under the barrel, operating according to a gas cut-off scheme. Thus, in one compact automatic-grenade launcher complex, two main principles for reducing the sound level of a shot are combined.

Silent sniper and automatic systems

A sample of a special-purpose sniper weapon - a silent sniper complex (BSK) - was created at the Central Research Institute of Precision Engineering by designers P. Serdyukov and V. Krasnikov and put into service in 1987. By "complex" is meant a newly created combination of "weapon-cartridge". BSK includes a special sniper rifle (VSS, at the testing stage it was called "Vintorez") and a special 9-mm cartridge SP-5 (7N8).

The rifle has automatics based on the removal of powder gases, the barrel bore is locked by turning the bolt with six lugs. The shutter movement is controlled by the bolt carrier. The use of a double return spring softened the operation of the automatic and reduced its noise. The percussion mechanism is of the percussion type, with a separate mainspring and a light impactor. Such a striker, after descent from the cocking, introduces a smaller perturbing effect than, say, an AKM trigger. Fire modes - single and continuous. Fuse - flag. The fire mode translator is located inside the trigger guard behind the trigger, so that the sniper can operate it with his index finger without taking his hand off the butt.

The "integrated" cylindrical silencer is attached to the barrel with two crackers and a latch, completely covering it in front of the short forearm. Gases are discharged into the muffler through six rows of holes made in the walls of the barrel along the bottom of the rifling. In the muffler, gases are successively dispersed, pass through expansion chambers, a separator (the separator can be easily removed from the muffler for cleaning), are broken into mutually extinguishing flows, and are cooled by a special mesh-radiator rolled up. The separator includes several baffles installed at different angles to the axis of the bore. The sound level of a shot does not exceed a sports small-caliber rifle (about 130 dB).

The SP-5 cartridge was created by N.V. Zabelin and L.S. Dvoryaninov in the mid-80s on the basis of the cartridge case of the intermediate cartridge model 1943, has a 16.2-g "heavy" (transverse load of 24.6 g / sq. .cm) a pointed full-shell bullet with a bimetallic jacket. The steel core is shifted to the bullet tip, behind it the cavity inside the shell is filled with a lead jacket. Bullet elongation - 4:1. Thanks to this design, the subsonic bullet maintains sufficient stability on the trajectory, gives good penetrating action (at 150 m it penetrates both walls of a standard US Army Kevlar helmet) and high stopping power due to its caliber, mass and buckling inside the target. At 400 m, a bullet hits a target in a bulletproof vest of class 2-3 (according to the domestic classification). The dispersion diameter of hits in a series of 4-5 shots is 75 mm at a distance of 100 m and about 200 mm at 200 m. The total mass of the cartridge is 56.2 g. The relatively soft recoil of a low-velocity cartridge contributes to accuracy.

VSS can also be used in combination with the SP-6 cartridge weighing 56 g (designed by N. Zabelin, L. Dvoryaninov and Yu. Frolov). A bullet weighing 16 g (the head is painted black) has a hardened steel core with a bare head, so that when it hits the bullet, it does not have to spend energy on breaking through the shell. Penetrating action is increased, but accuracy is reduced.

The PSO-1 (PSO-1-1) sight with a correspondingly modified remote scale with settings from 50 to 400 m, any regular night sight (NSPU-3 with a range of up to 300 m is preferred), as well as sights of the PO type are mounted on the VSS -3x34 with a special adapter; an open sector sight, notched up to 420 m, and an adjustable front sight are also installed on the silencer casing.

Shops - interchangeable, plastic for 10 or 20 rounds, with a staggered arrangement. The store can be equipped directly from the clip.

A permanent wooden stock of a frame shape is provided with an elastic nape. The narrow buttstock does not support the shooter's head, is not adjustable in length - a clear tribute to the desire to reduce weight and size. Another disadvantage that contributes to a decrease in the accuracy of the shot is the long stroke of the trigger and its noticeable "failure" after the descent. A case is used to carry the VSS in assembled form.

The mass of the VSS without cartridges and sight is 2.6 kg, with a magazine for 10 rounds and a PSO sight - 3.41 kg. The sighting range, like most "silent" samples, is limited to 400 m. The small length of the VSS (894 mm) corresponds to its special purpose. VSS is easily disassembled into large units: a barrel with a receiver, automation parts, a trigger mechanism and a forearm, a silencer with sights, a stock. All this, together with sights and magazines, fits into a "diplomat" measuring 450x370x140 mm. The assembly of weapons, depending on the preparation of the shooter, takes from 30 to 60 seconds. The BSK was created for counter-terrorist groups in the KGB system and the army "special forces". Its release was established by TOZ. Today, the BSK, together with the BAK, is mainly used by "special forces for internal use - ODON, the Presidential Security Service, etc., although it is also available in the "special forces" of the Airborne Forces, deep intelligence units. Combining the properties of sniper weapons and melee weapons, it is adapted for work as part of small units, especially on rough terrain, in settlements, when disembarking from helicopters.

70% of the parts and assemblies of the sniper rifle are unified with the "silent machine gun complex" (special machine gun AS + cartridge SP-6), with which it forms one "family". The machine has a left-folding skeletal metal butt, plastic pistol grip. In the case of an assault rifle, noise reduction serves not only for stealth use (in close combat, the sound of this level becomes distinguishable for the enemy), but also to reduce the acoustic load on the shooter himself and provide the possibility of voice communication when fighting in a cramped room, underground passages, tunnels and etc. The weight of the AC without cartridges is 2.5 kg, the length with the butt folded out is 875 mm, with the butt folded - 675 mm. BSC and LHC were actively advertised at international exhibitions.

"Sniper machine" VSK-94

Strange as it may sound, the phrase "sniper machine gun" itself sounds quite official in Russia. Apparently, the experience of the VSS and the fact that TOZ was forced to curtail its production prompted the Tula Instrument Design Bureau to develop a similar model. The quality of the 9x39 cartridges prompted the KBP designers to create, first, a small-sized 9A-91 assault rifle, adopted in the Ministry of Internal Affairs system, and then a rifle sniper complex that was maximally unified with it. In 1995 here was created a "silent" 9-mm sniper rifle VSK-94 with an effective range of up to 400 m. The rifle entered the family of weapons developed on the basis of 9A-91. For firing from this rifle (or "sniper machine") you can also use SP-5, SP-6 cartridges, but they are quite expensive. Therefore, the Tula Cartridge Plant began production of a cheaper cartridge PAB-9 (9x39) with an armor-piercing bullet weighing 17.3 g. Such a cartridge is more suitable for small-sized machine guns. 9A-91 has automatics based on the removal of powder gases with a long stroke of the gas piston, locking the bore by turning the bolt, a trigger mechanism with a flag translator-fuse. The bolt frame is distinguished by a folding cocking handle, the translator-fuse box has an almost inaudible (compared to AKM or SVD) click.

The conversion of a shortened machine gun into a "sniper machine" resulted in the installation of a removable silencer, a permanent frame plastic butt with a rubber shock absorber, mounts for several types of sights also created in the KBP. The 7x daytime PKS-07 has a field of view of 3.5 degrees and - like collimator sights - a red dot as an aiming mark. Night PKN-03M with a magnification of 3x and a field of view of 8 degrees is made on the basis of an image intensifier tube of the II generation, and allows you to work on a growth target at a distance of up to 200-350 m, depending on the light of the moon and stars. The muffler - without replaceable elements. With the silencer removed, the VSK-94 can be used as a shortened assault rifle.

The weight of the VSK-94 without magazine and sight is 2.7 kg, with the magazine equipped with the PKS-07 sight - 3.87 kg, length - 900 mm, rate of fire - 700-900 shots / min. Shops are used direct box-shaped for 10 and 20 rounds. Like the VSS, the VSK-94 rifle can be easily disassembled for carrying in a special case (it is divided into an "automatic", a silencer, a butt, a sight, a magazine). It is unlikely that this weapon should be considered a full-fledged "sniper" - rather, it is a typical "ersatz" that can be useful to police assault groups in urban areas. It is curious that the Central Research Institute Tochmash previously made a "reverse move" - ​​it created a shortened "noisy" machine gun "Vikhr" on the basis of VSS and AS.

USA / Silent "tunnel" revolver

During the infamous Vietnam War, the "tunnel tactics" used by the Vietnamese guerrillas, cursed by the American troops, became the talk of the town. Hastily dug tunnels, shallow underground, were used for covert movement, shelter, surprise attacks, and the like. The Aberdeen Proving Ground Ground Operations Research Laboratory has developed a range of weapons to fight the enemy in tunnels or underground warehouses. Among them was a "silent" revolver. The requirement for low noise was easily explained - the sound of a shot in a tight tunnel would not only attract the attention of the enemy, but also stun the shooter himself. Shooting was supposed to be short at a sudden meeting with the enemy. The revolver was remade from a revolver chambered for the 11.2 mm cartridge .44 "Magnum" by replacing the rifled barrel with a short smooth one and altering the drum for a special cartridge. The weapon was called the "Silent Special Purpose Revolver".

The cartridge consists of a sleeve made of alloy steel and has a diameter of 13.3 mm; length 47.6 mm. In the sleeve there is a percussion cap, a propellant charge, a piston and a pallet-container with 15 pellets. When the striker hits the cartridge primer, the propellant charge ignites and, under the action of expanding powder gases, the piston pushes the pallet-container with the shot charge out of the cartridge case and the barrel of the revolver. At the same time, the pallet-container is destroyed and the pellets (initial speed 228 m/s) ensure effective defeat of the enemy at a distance of up to 15 m. its energy, stops, blocking the powder and capsule gases inside the sleeve, excluding their exit to the outside - as a result, the sound, flame and smoke when fired are sharply reduced. It is reported that the sound of the shot is only slightly louder than the sound when the trigger is idle as a result of its impact on the frame of the revolver. There are 6 chambers in the drum. Revolver weight - 0.9 kg.

Since such cartridges are essentially loaded barrels, they are more dangerous than conventional cartridges if mishandled. During transportation, they are placed in steel containers with 3 mm walls. The revolver was used quite successfully during the Vietnam War.

Device "Bijot"

The original version of the transformation of a large-caliber pistol into a "silent arrow-thrower", operating according to a scheme with a cut-off of powder gases, was developed in the United States during the Second World War under the code name "Bigot" (Bigot - "fanatic"). "Bijot" was an "adapter" inserted from the muzzle into the barrel of an 11.43-mm pistol with a feathered arrow 175 mm long and 10.3 mm in diameter. At the head of the arrow was a heavy over-caliber tip with a diameter of 28 mm, in the tail - a blank 6.35-mm Browning cartridge and an obturator-cutter. A bushing with a 4-bladed plumage freely slid along the "pole" of the arrow, which occupied its normal position in the tail section of the shaft after the arrow left the barrel. The effective firing range using the M1911A1 Colt pistol was no more than 5 m. Although the Bijot device was intended to equip the OSS, New Products Corporation delivered its release after the end of the war. The Bijot was already remembered during the Vietnam War in connection with the "tunnel war", where clashes with the enemy took place almost point-blank, suddenly and in extremely cramped conditions.

"Silent set" for the pistol R.38 "Walter"

In 1958 for the CIA, a set of silent firing "Sound Moderator Pistol" was adopted for the German 9-mm pistol R.38 "Walter", which included a removable expansion-type silencer, a replaceable barrel with a thread on the muzzle and four rows of holes for removing powder gases into the silencer, a set for cleaning and lubrication. The kit was used in combination with a 9x19 Parabellum cartridge, but with a bullet weight of 10.2 g and a lower muzzle velocity. The length of the pistol, together with the silencer, was 356 mm, weight - 1.44 kg. Shooting had to be carried out aimlessly - the silencer blocked the line of sight. The whole set was packed in a small case.

The choice of a pistol for conversion is easily explained - the R.38 was the best combat pistol of the Second World War, and its field was widely spread around the world as trophies. Production line "Karl Walter" in 1945. the same Americans were the first to take it.

Pistol Mark 3 Model 0

Chinese "silent" pistols captured in Vietnam forced the Americans in the late 1960s to start developing self-loading "silent" pistols for powerful cartridges for special operations forces - before that they preferred 5.6-mm versions chambered for .22 LR . For the Special Operations Forces (SSO), the US Navy began developing a "silent" pistol chambered for 9x19 "Parabellum" based on the first serial "Smith and Wesson" Model 39, already purchased by the American MTR, and then Model 59 with a magazine for 14 rounds. The project was designated WOX-13A, and was also known by the nickname "Khash Puppy" ("Yelping Puppy").

In July 1972 the new "pistol-silencer" complex was patented, and soon put into service under the "naval" designation Mk3 Model 0. The main goal of the development was to create an effective "waterproof" silencer that a combat swimmer could use immediately after leaving the water on the shore . To do this, the "muffler" device itself was placed inside a cylindrical casing screwed onto the muzzle of an elongated barrel, and was pressed by a helical spring against its front wall with a hole for the passage of a bullet. Front and rear of the "muffler" had annular obturating bushings.

The "silencer" itself was a pipe divided by rubber plugs into three successive expansion chambers. The plugs were held and compressed by bushings and washers, and had cruciform incisions to facilitate bullet penetration. The silencer worked quite effectively, but its survivability was only 30 shots. In connection with the installation of the silencer casing on the rear-casing of the pistol, an increased front sight and an adjustable sight were placed.

In case the pistol and silencer were transported by the swimmer separately, the muzzle of the barrel was sealed with a rubber cap. In case of haste, it was possible to shoot through the cap.

For firing, a 9-mm "subsonic" cartridge Mk144 Mod 0 with a bullet weight of 10.2 g was used. The weight of the pistol with a silencer was 1.07 kg, and the length was 324 mm.

In the late 80s, the US Special Operations Forces Command (US SOCOM) announced a program to create an "offensive personal weapon" with the aim of obtaining a compact, holstered weapon for active close (up to 25-30 m) combat. Given the restrictions on the weight and size of weapons for special operations forces, it was a weapon that occupies a niche somewhere between a standard 9mm M9 pistol and a 5.56mm Colt Commando carbine. Since combat swimmer teams were supposed to be among the "consumers" of weapons, the main requirements of the JSOR program were presented in February and October 1990. Center for Ground Warfare of the Navy. A complex was considered, including a "family" of cartridges, self-loading pistol, silencer and "sight block". The modular scheme allowed the assembly of two main options: "assault" (pistol + aiming block) and "spy" (stalking) with the addition of a silencer. In connection with the requirement of the most probable defeat of a living target in the minimum time, an 11.43-mm cartridge. 45 ACP was chosen.

The muffler was required to quickly - up to 15 s -fastening, a small change in balance. The pistol had to withstand up to 2000 shots without delay and, regardless of the configuration, give deviations of hits (in a series of five shots) no more than 63.5 mm at a distance of 22.7 m (i.e. 25 yards).

At the beginning of 1993 30 "technological demonstration" samples were presented. At the same time, two major arms firms stood out - Colt Industries and Heckler und Koch. In autumn 1995 SOCOM chose the 11.43mm USP for the "third phase of the contract" for 1,950 pistols and 10,140 magazines. Since the customer was the US Navy, the gun received the "naval" designation Mk 23 Model 0 "US SOCOM Pistol". The release of the Mk23 Mod0 was handed over to Heckler und Koch Incorporated, the American branch of the German company. Although the Mk23 has been adopted, debate continues about its usefulness.

The Mk23 pistol is based on the new USP ("universal self-loading pistol") model, although the Mk23 is larger than the USP-45 model. The barrel is made by cold forging on a mandrel and has a polygonal cut. Cutting the chamber allows you to use the same type of cartridges from different manufacturers and with different types of bullets. The installation of a silencer allows an elongated barrel and cutting into its muzzle part protruding from the shutter-casing. Automation works according to the recoil scheme of the barrel with a short stroke and locking with a warped barrel. Unlike the classic Browning High Power scheme, the barrel is lowered not by a rigid frame pin, but by a hook equipped with a buffer spring at the rear end of the return spring rod. This allows you to mitigate the impact of recoil on the weapon and the shooter, extending the life of the system. Moreover, according to the developers,

such a scheme makes the automation system less sensitive to the variation in the power of the used cartridges of various equipment. A rubber ring is fixed on the barrel 12.5 mm behind the muzzle, ensuring the constancy of its position inside the shutter-casing from shot to shot. When worn, the ring can be replaced without the use of special tools. Although, according to the company, the survivability of the ring reaches 20,000 shots.

The shutter-casing makes up the bulk of the weight of the weapon and is made as a single piece by milling from chromium-molybdenum steel, the surfaces are subjected to nitrogas treatment and blued. To this is added a special treatment that allows the pistol to withstand immersion in sea water. The frame is made of molded plastic. The guides of the shutter-casing are reinforced with steel strips. On the front of the frame there are grooves for mounting the illuminator, which is put on the frame from the front and fixed with a screw or a rod in the hole on the front of the trigger guard.

The percussion mechanism is trigger. The head of the trigger is made in the form of a ring. Trigger force with pre-cocking the trigger is 2 kgf, self-cocking - 5.4-5.5 kgf, i.e. common for a combat pistol. The presence of a self-cocking and constructive separation of the safe trigger lever and the safety flag allows you to carry the pistol in two positions - "loaded and cocked, on the safety catch" and "charged, with the trigger released." A double-sided safety lever locks the trigger and separates the trigger and sear. When the trigger is released, the fuse is blocked in the "fire" position and vice versa - when the fuse is on, the safe descent lever is blocked. There is also an automatic fuse that blocks the firing pin until the trigger is fully pressed. There is no magazine fuse, and a shot is possible with the magazine removed.

The double-sided magazine release lever is located behind the trigger guard and is hidden from accidental pressure. Double row, staggered magazine holds 12 rounds. In the upper part, the magazine smoothly turns into a single-row one, which gives it a convenient shape for loading and improves the operation of the feed mechanism. An extended delay lever is placed on the left side of the frame. P The front and back sides of the handle are corrugated, the side surfaces are rough. Combined with a well-thought-out balance and a 107-degree angle of inclination of the handle to the axis of the bore, this makes holding the pistol very comfortable. The trigger guard is enlarged and allows you to shoot with tight gloves. With such dimensions of the bracket, its forward bend becomes not entirely clear - for a rare shooter, when shooting from two hands, the index finger of the second hand will stretch so far. In the grooves on the low ledges of the dovetail-casing, an interchangeable adjustable sight with a rectangular slot and a front sight of a rectangular section are attached. Sights can be supplied with white plastic inserts or tritium dots.

The detachable silencer with an expansion circuit designed by R. Naitos reduces the sound level of the shot to the level of the "silent" model of the 5.6 mm Ruger MkII pistol, also used by special operations forces. Although the inertia and vibration of the muffler during recoil complicate the work of the automatic pistol, the initial momentum of the cartridge is quite enough for reliable reloading. Silencer installation must not shift the mid-point of impact by more than 50 mm at a range of 25 m.

Weight Mk23 Model 0 without silencer - 1.2 kg, with silencer and equipped magazine - 1.92 kg, length without silencer - 245 mm, barrel length - 152 mm, pistol height - 150 mm, width - 39 mm. Magazine capacity - 12 rounds.

Self-loading pistol "Emphibian"

The low gas pressure and subsonic bullet velocity of 5.6mm rimfire cartridges make them almost ideal for creating "silent" weapons. It is not surprising that the basis for such weapons is often sports samples chambered for the widely used 5.6 mm cartridge type.22 LR.

Among such samples is the popular American Ruger Mk2 self-loading pistol (Sturm, Ruger and Co.). The automation of this pistol works due to the recoil of the free shutter. The design features include the movement of the bolt inside the cylindrical bolt box, a relatively heavy barrel, a short response time of the firing mechanism, and a magazine with a capacity of 9 rounds. The gun is characterized by a comfortable handle tilt and reliable operation of the mechanisms.

The Ruger Mk2 scheme was just asking for an integrated silencer. The most successful options were created by AWC System Technology, which has been quite successful in the market for devices to reduce the sound level of a shot. For the special operations forces of the US Navy, showing an ongoing interest in personal weapons for combat swimmers, the company made a series of Emphibian pistols based on the Ruger Mk2. To ensure corrosion resistance of the weapon, it is entirely made of stainless steel. The design of the integrated silencers is designed to open fire immediately after leaving the water, when there is no time to shake the water out of the weapon.

The muffler body is made as a single piece with the bolt box. Shortened to 50 mm (in the standard version of the pistol - 122 mm) the barrel is equipped with gas outlet holes near the bullet entrance. The high pressure of powder gases in this section of the bore allows you to remove a significant amount of gases, limiting yourself to four holes, and not worry about the accumulation of soot in them. The separator is a welded unit and contains a number of specially profiled partitions. In the Emphibian-II model, it has 11 conical baffles with holes for the passage of a bullet and radial slots. When a small amount of water enters the separator, it does not interfere with the shooting. On the contrary, according to the manufacturer, it helps to reduce the sound level by absorbing some of the energy of the powder gases.

The sound level when fired from "Emphibian"-II, depending on the model of the .22LR cartridge, reaches 113-115 dB (between the sound level of an air rifle shot and a small-caliber sports rifle). Choice of cartridge variant different meanings the initial velocity of the bullet is associated with one drawback of the conversion "Emphibian" - the shortening of the barrel and the discharge of part of the powder gases does not always provide pressure sufficient for reliable operation of automation. Length "Emphibian" -II - 324 mm, weight - 1.243 kg. A replaceable front sight and an adjustable sight are attached to the bolt box - the silencer body.

Submachine gun M10 "Ingram"

In 1971 the newly created company "Military Armament Corp." (MAC) introduced the Ingram small submachine gun in two versions - the M10 chambered for .45 ACP or 9x19 Parabellum and the reduced M11 chambered for 9x17 Browning (.380 ACP). When developing weapons, J. Ingram sought to satisfy a certain set of requirements - small size, allowing concealed carry, simplicity, low cost, short-term efficiency, the ability to install a silencer. The submachine gun had an automatic system based on the recoil of a free bolt running in the forward position on the barrel, a layout with a magazine in the pistol grip, and a retractable butt. The trigger mechanism allowed single and continuous fire. Early unlocking of the bore, a small bolt stroke and a shot from the rear sear gave a high rate of fire. Simplicity of design, massive shutter, "hung" on the guide rods, large gaps make the weapon resistant to contamination and water ingress.

"Muzzle" mufflers for M10 and M11 were developed by M.L. Werbell, former owner and chief designer of the Sionix company, who provided considerable assistance to Ingreiu in the installation of his weapons. Silencer "Sionix" - expansion type with transverse baffles reduces the sound level by 17 dB, canvas casing allows you to use it as a handguard. The silencer is longer than the weapon itself. The MAC type silencer does not have baffles and washers that reduce the speed of the bullet. Spiral channels leading forward from the muzzle of the barrel meet the same channels from the front of the muffler. Opposite flows of gases extinguish each other, their speed drops sharply, the sound level decreases by 38 dB. Outside, the muffler has a heat-insulating coating of Nomex A. Silencer length for M10 - 291 mm, for M11 - 224 mm, weight respectively - 0.545 and 0.455 kg. Later, Wilson Arms Co. offered the MAC9 muffler, 267 mm long and weighing 0.566 kg, which reduces the sound level by 30 dB. For sale abroad, the US State Department banned the threads for attaching silencers, not without reason believing that the weapon would fall "in the wrong hands." This reduced export opportunities.

"Ingram", although it attracted wide attention at first, did not succeed in the market, although it was supplied to Israel, Indonesia, Jordan, Spain, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, South Korea, Thailand, a number of Latin American countries. A small number were purchased for US and UK special forces units.

The weight of the Ingram M10 (chambered for 9x19 Parabellum cartridge) without a silencer and magazine was 2.84 kg, the length with the butt extended was 548 mm, with the stock retracted 269 mm, the barrel length was 146 mm, the weight of the loaded magazine for 25 rounds was 0.69 kg.

Self-loading carbines "Winchester" Model 74

Among the weapons chambered for .22 LR, which attracted the special services for conversion into "silent", was the American self-loading sports carbine "Winchester" Model 74 with a magazine for 14 rounds. During the Second World War, on its basis for the British USO, a "silent sniper rifle" with a "Maxim type" muzzle silencer and an optical sight was made. The aiming range of such a rifle was limited to 100 yards (91.4 m), and the rifle was rather bulky - 1321 mm long with a silencer, 1118 mm without a silencer.

A quarter of a century later, for the CIA, on the same basis, they completed a rifle with an integrated silencer and the same effective range. The length of the rifle with the new "barrel-silencer" block was reduced to 1029 mm, the weight was 3.2 kg. True, here they limited themselves to a simple open sight with an interchangeable front sight.

Finland / Silent SSR "Vaime" sniper rifles

An interesting example of a silent sniper rifle is the "silent" rifle SSR "Vaime", developed jointly by the companies "Sako" and "Oi Vaymenimetalli AB". Based on the magazine rifle "Sako". The rifle is available in two versions: SSR Mk1 chambered for 7.62x51 and SSR Mk3 chambered for 5.6 mm cartridge .22 LR. In the latter case, almost complete "noiselessness" of firing is ensured. The Vime SSR Mk3 is advertised as an "urban sniper and counter-sniper rifle".

The barrel of the SSR Mk1 is made integral with an integrated silencer developed by Wymenimetalli. The barrel has a length of 465 mm, silencer - 660 mm. An effective reduction in the sound level of a shot is achieved using a subsonic sniper cartridge with a heavy bullet developed by Sako. Sighting range - up to 300 m.

The stock with a developed pistol neck bend is made of plastic. Behind the pistol protrusion in the butt there is a recess for the palm. Foldable, height-adjustable bipods are attached to the bed. The rifle does not have an open sight, only a bracket for mounting an optical sight is provided. The mass of 7.62 mm Mk1 is 4.1 kg, 5.6 mm Mk3 is 3 kg, the length of the samples is 1180 and 1010 mm, respectively.

Germany / MP-5SD submachine gun

The 9 mm MP5 submachine gun was created by the West German company Heckler und Koch on the basis of its own 7.62 mm G3 assault rifle and fairly shared the "parent" success, becoming the most popular and revered in its class. In 1966 MP5 began to enter service with the police and the Border Guard of Germany, and soon began to be purchased by other countries. Now its modifications are used in more than 30 countries around the world. Of the German users of the MP5, the most famous anti-terrorist group GSG-9 of the Border Guard and the KSK team similar to it. The famous British SAS also chose the MP5 and even made an excellent advertisement for it during the operation to liberate the Iranian embassy in London in 1981. In France, the MP5 is in service with a similar GIGN group of the gendarmerie, in the USA - with the Delta group, SWAT teams of the police and the FBI. MP5s are also used by special forces - the "commandos" of the French marines, the parachute regiment of "commandos" in Belgium.

The submachine gun is arranged according to the scheme with the magazine located in front of the trigger guard. The automation system of the submachine gun operates according to the recoil scheme of a semi-free shutter with a slowdown in the retreat of the shutter with the help of two rollers that redistribute the recoil energy between the light combat larva and the heavy stem of the shutter. The percussion mechanism is trigger. Shot from a closed bolt, a barrel with 6 grooves, a good balance provided the MP5 with high rates in terms of accuracy of fire.

The handle moves along the groove on the left side of the over-barrel tube, while shooting remains stationary. The flag of the translator-fuse is located "like a pistol" - on the left side above the pistol grip - and is accessible to the thumb of the shooting hand. It has three positions: "S" - safety, "E" - single fire, "F" - continuous fire.

Sights include a front sight with an annular fence and a variable diopter sight. It is possible to install optical sights on a bracket mounted on the longitudinal grooves of the receiver. Typically, an optical sight with a magnification of 4x and fixed settings at 15, 25, 50, 75 and 100 m is used. The night 4x non-illuminated sight "Orion 80" is just as "typical".

Food is made from a box magazine for 15 or 30 rounds. Sector shaped magazines provide reliable feeding of 9mm cartridges with various form bullets - after all, the weapon had a "police" purpose, and the use of various types bullets. When using a weapon, the hands of the shooter almost do not come into contact with metal parts, which makes the weapon more comfortable.

On the muzzle of the MP5 barrel, three radial protrusions were initially provided for mounting various devices, including silencers. However, within the MP5 family, special "silent" models with the SD index (SсhallDampfer) appeared, equipped with a very effective integrated silencer.

In the walls of the shortened barrel along its length, 30 holes with a diameter of 3 mm were drilled along the bottom of the rifling. The silencer is mounted on the barrel and consists of two chambers. Powder gases are discharged into the rear expansion chamber through the specified holes, while the gas pressure decreases, and the bullet speed decreases below the sound one. The second chamber is located in front of the muzzle of the barrel and is a separator that swirls and slows down the flow of gases escaping through the muzzle. Early MP5 SDs were equipped with mufflers from the American "Military Armament Corp." (MAS), but soon the German experts finalized their own version. In this embodiment, along the axis of the anterior chamber, two box-section tubes are installed in series, on the walls of which holes are stamped in pairs. The stamped material is bent inwards and forms pyramidal funnels. This design allows you to break the gas flow and deflect it to the periphery of the muffler. Lack of membranes and heat-absorbing elements that need frequent shift, increases the life of the muffler. The outer diameter of the muffler is 40 mm. The barrel with a silencer is surrounded by a heat-insulating plastic casing-forearm.

Created six variants of the SD model: MP5 SD1 does not have a butt; The SD2 is fitted with a permanent plastic stock; the SD3 has a retractable buttstock in the form of a shoulder rest, mounted on two pins sliding along the sides of the receiver (similar to the MP5 A3); SD4, SD5 and SD6 differ from SD1, SD2 and SD3, respectively, only in the presence of a 3-shot burst mode. It should be noted that the last three models, like all MP5 models of new releases, are equipped with a slightly modified hollow pistol grip - without a thumb rest and front notches, but with a rougher surface, the stock is made of the same plastic.

Apparently, due to the significantly increased size, SD modifications have not received much popularity, although they are used by the police units of Germany and Great Britain. Many users - such as the FBI and the US Marine Corps - prefer the basic MP5 models with a detachable silencer. The Marine Corps and US Navy SEAL teams use a submachine gun under the designation MP5N (Navy) in a variant with a fixed or retractable stock. Since the 3-prong mount does not ensure full alignment of the muffler with the bore, the N model has a muzzle thread added to them.

A very popular "shortened" MP5 model - the MP5K ("kurz") small submachine gun, developed in 1976, also has options with removable silencers. So, according to the "American" requirements, a modification of the MP5K-PDW (Personal Defense Weapon) was created, which can be considered a "German-American" weapon - a number of structural elements were developed by American firms. These include a lightweight plastic stock that folds to the right, a double-sided fuse-translator flag, and a Knights Armament detachable silencer. The silencer is used in combination with a cartridge loaded with a 9.5-g subsonic bullet. The sound level of the shot is reduced by 30 dB.

Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic

Silent pistol CZ91S

The self-loading silent pistol was created in the Czech Republic chambered for 9x19 "Parabellum" based on the well-known small submachine gun CZ61 (Vz.61) "Scorpion". The design of the weapon, with the exception of the trigger mechanism and the barrel, does not differ from the standard "Scorpion" of the M. Ribarge system, which has gained considerable popularity in the world: a classic layout with a magazine in front of the trigger guard and a bolt behind the barrel, automatic recoil-based free shutter, barrel swivel and a bolt box with a trigger housing, the presence of a mechanical retarder of the rate of fire to increase stability and accuracy. However, for the CZ91, the retarder is not so important, since this model is self-loading.

The weapon has a hammer percussion mechanism, due to which the automation cycle is still stretched, and the shot occurs with the shutter closed. The sear in the CZ91S model is made in such a way that the release of the bolt, held in the rearmost position by a special hook, is possible only by pressing the trigger again. On the muzzle of the barrel, a thread is made for attaching a silencer.

Sights include a front sight and a reversible L-shaped rear sight, designed for 75 and 150 m, placed on top of a stamped bolt box. Shops - box-shaped straight for 10, 20 and 30 rounds.

The CZ-9L "Scorpio" variant is a submachine gun with a folding metal or permanent plastic buttstock, it can also be equipped with a silencer, laser designator, collimator sights (for example, OKO 21).

Chapter from the book: "WEAPONS OF SPECIAL PURPOSE. UNUSUAL WEAPONS"
(special, non-standard, unique and exotic weapons)
Ardashev A.N. (engineer), Fedoseev S.L. (associate member of AIS AXA)

SmarterEveryDay/YouTube

The SmarterEveryDay YouTube channel, in collaboration with the American company Soteria Suppressors, made a time-lapse video of the operation of silent, flameless firing devices specially made with transparent cases. The video shows three different "silencer" designs for a .308 Winchester rifle.

AT small arms, the initial speed of the bullet in which does not exceed the speed of sound, the sound of the shot is created mainly by powder gases. During the shot powder charge quickly burns out in the cartridge, and the resulting powder gases push the bullet along the bore. In this case, high pressure is formed in the barrel. After the bullet leaves the barrel, the gases are released and the pressure is sharply equalized.

A "silencer" is a device attached to the barrel of a small arms weapon (sometimes it is part of the design), which should significantly attenuate the sound of a shot and hide the flame of powder gases. For the most part, "silencers" are assembled from several parts: a cylindrical body with attachment to the barrel and an internal insert that forms the chambers.

When fired, powder gases push the bullet along the bore, after which it enters the central channel of the muffler, and then leaves it. The powder gases, following the bullet, expand in the "silencer" and fill the chambers, where they cool and lose energy. Then, following the bullet, the cooled powder gases leave the “silencer” at a much lower speed.

It should be noted that there is no silent flameless firing device capable of completely extinguishing the sound of a shot, although some such devices make it possible to make it significantly quieter than the sound of the automatic weapons operating during a shot. For example, the sound of the automation of the VSS self-loading rifle, better known as the Vintorez, is heard better when fired than the sound of the shot itself.

On small arms, the muzzle velocity of which exceeds the speed of sound, "silencers" are not used because of their uselessness. In such weapons, a significant proportion of the sound of a shot falls not on powder gases, but on shock waves generated on a bullet in flight. Supersonic speed when fired are, for example, the bullets of the SVD sniper rifle.

Shooting from a rifle caliber .308 SmarterEveryDay filmed with a special camera with a frequency of 110 thousand frames per second. For installation on weapons, “silencers” with an acrylic body were used, which, after a shot, were torn off or completely broken, since such material does not withstand heavy loads.

Despite the fact that three different designs of noiseless flameless firing devices were used for the experiment, their internal equipment in all cases performed the same role - to give space for the expansion of powder gases and their cooling. When firing for a long time, the “silencer” gets very hot and begins to dampen the sound of the shot worse.

In June of this year, the American company Magpul provided thermal protection for “silencers”, which shooters may need when firing for a long time, for example, during competitions. The device, patented by the Americans, can be installed on any type of silent, flameless firing device for small arms.

According to the patent, thermal protection consists of two metal rings with "ears" and clamps, two heat-insulating gaskets and a casing painted with heat-resistant paint. The rings must be fixed on the sides of the "muffler", after which heat-insulating gaskets are installed in the "lugs". A casing is placed on top of this entire structure.

Vasily Sychev

Firearms have many disadvantages: recoil when firing is formed not only by the momentum of the projectile, but also by powder gases; difficult-to-manufacture ammunition; the need to clean the weapon itself and so on. But all this can be put up with, given that there is not much choice, but gunshot sound is often one of the biggest flaws in firearms.

Silent use of weapons provides a lot of advantages:

Firstly, in certain circumstances it becomes practically impossible to know exactly where the shooter is located, especially at long distances.

Secondly, in the case of the use of firearms near groups of people who are usually rarely deaf, there is no panic and other manifestations of the herd instinct that can prevent the successful completion of the tasks assigned to the shooter.

Thirdly, if there are several opponents, then from the silent shooting device installed on the weapon, the probability of detecting active actions on your part ahead of time is sharply reduced, well, of course, if they are not in the field of view of each other and within hearing of the sound of a falling body, and items it can drop as it falls.

In other words, there are only pluses from the use of silent shooting devices, if you do not remember that the PBS itself wears out. In addition, the silent shooting device masks not only the sound, but also the flash from the shot, which is important in the dark. However, not only the light of the flash and the sound of powder gases escaping from the barrel can unmask the shooter, and this must also be taken into account. I would divide into four sources, what can give out the use of firearms with the sound, and, accordingly, attract attention that is not needed at all.

First of all, these are naturally powder gases. This is the most powerful sound source in this situation, let's look at what exactly creates this sound. When fired, the gunpowder ignites and begins to burn, while pressure is built up inside the sleeve by the combustion products of gunpowder, we will not delve into their chemical composition, this is not important for us in this situation.

Naturally, with an increase in pressure in the sleeve, gases will look for a weak spot that can be broken through and increase the volume of the area occupied by powder gases and such a place is a bullet. It is pushed out by powder gases, while the gunpowder still continues to burn, increasing the volume of its combustion products, while the expanding gases push the bullet out of the barrel, setting it a certain speed.

After the bullet has flown out of the barrel, then it flies on its own by inertia, and the powder gases finally get the freedom they want. But at the same time, it should be borne in mind that the pressure of powder gases and atmospheric pressure are very different from each other, and at the moment when they begin to equalize, and this happens very quickly, a shot sound is formed. Actually, any sound is formed due to the pressure difference, the only question is the scale of this phenomenon.

Shot with PBS

The second component of the sound of a shot is the sound of the flight of the bullet itself.. It would seem that such a small projectile as a bullet cannot produce a sufficiently loud sound in its flight, but this is not true if the speed of the bullet is greater than the speed of sound. Constantly ahead of the speed of sound, a point projectile, which can be taken as a bullet, creates disturbances in the air, that is, it forms sound waves.

Diverging from the source of perturbation (from the bullet), these sound waves form a cone - the Mach cone. In the photo, you can clearly see the sound wave from the powder gases and the sound waves diverging from the bullet. Thus, the bullets can actually "whistle".

The third component of the sound of a shot is the sound of the weapon. The clanging of the shutter and all the other charms of the operation of automation perfectly betray the location of the shooter at short distances and medium-range distances, unfortunately, the only possible way out is to use a weapon with manual reloading, since the operation of automation cannot but make sounds at all.

Even for those types of weapons that are specially designed for silent shooting, after firing a couple of thousand shots, the noise from the operation of the weapon becomes apparent, while initially the sound of the automation was practically not audible to the shooter himself.

And finally, the fourth component, in which you can combine the sound from a bullet hitting a target, and the actual sounds that the target itself emits, including the sound of a falling body if the shot immediately hits the target.

Thus, for an absolutely silent shot, it is necessary to eliminate all four sources of sound, but let's start in order with the most powerful one. As we have already determined, sound forms a pressure difference, and in the first case with powder gases this is most clearly seen.

It turns out that in order to reduce the sound volume, it is necessary to make the pressure of the powder gases and atmospheric pressure approximately equal, or to somehow force the powder gases to uniformly increase their pressure when they enter the atmosphere. Actually, most mufflers are built on this principle.

So the simplest muffler will look like several successive chambers that are filled with powder gases, reducing their pressure due to an increase in volume, which means that the sound from powder gases entering the atmosphere will be less, but this is looking ahead, for now I propose to consider the most common instrument options silent shooting.

Silencer with elastic membranes

The simplest and most inefficient and unreliable is a silencer with elastic membranes installed inside its body. The principle of its operation is very simple: inside the muffler body with a certain internal volume, one or more rubber membranes are installed with slots for the passage of a bullet; after a shot, the bullet passes through the membranes, which can be made, for example, from hard rubber, and the powder gases slowly exit after bullets.

But this is only in theory, in practice everything looks a little different, since the powder gases are always ahead of the bullet, it turns out that high pressure is already established in the chamber in front of the membrane at the moment when the bullet passes through the membrane, the powder gases escape. Naturally, such a device reduces the sound of a shot, but it is very inefficient, even in the case when there are a large number of membranes. Plus, you need to take into account that the membranes wear out very quickly, which naturally cannot be a plus for PBS.

Double chamber eccentric muffler

Two-chamber eccentric silent firing device, shown in the picture, is, from a technical point of view, the simplest version of the shot sound suppression device. So it is based on the fact that the powder gases, having expanded, have a certain volume, the value of which is close to the volume of the muffler, in other words, the expansion of gases occurs inside the muffler, and they get outside, having a completely different pressure, which reduces the sound .

The disadvantages of such a device include massiveness, on the other hand, such a PBS is very durable, but its effectiveness will directly depend on the volume.

Multi-chamber silencer

Multi-chamber silent shooting devices are several chambers inside the PBS body, formed by a set of washers, which can even be made of cardboard or rubber. The effectiveness of such silent shooting devices will directly depend on the number of cameras, as well as on the material serving as a partition.

In the production of such a PBS, it is important that the holes in the baffles correspond exactly to the diameter of the bullet, this is necessary so that the powder gases do not overtake the bullet as it passes through the muffler channel. Nevertheless, despite the fact that the effectiveness of partitions made of leather, cork wood and other sound-absorbing materials is higher, for the sake of a longer service life of a multi-chamber PBS, its partitions are made of metal, and sometimes they are simply cast immediately with the body.

Silencer with reflector-reflector

In addition to temporarily blocking powder gases in the chambers of silent firing devices with a decrease in their pressure, there is another way to suppress sound during firing. Using various deviations of the flow of powder gases, their turbulence, and so on, it is possible to increase the time of their locking in the PBS chambers. The simplest example of this would be silent shooting device with a reflector-reflector. This device is the simplest single-chamber PBS with the difference that its front wall is hemispherical, that is, powder gases entering the device chamber create a reverse flow that traps them in the PBS chamber.

Multi-chamber silencer with a swirl of powder gases

A more advanced design, although completely similar in principle to the previous version of the silent firing device, is multi-chamber PBS with a swirl of powder gases. Each partition of this PBS creates a counterflow of powder gases in relation to the main flow, which makes it possible to reduce the speed of propagation of powder gases through the chambers, as well as to release them more smoothly from the silent firing device.

It should be noted that such partitions do not always have the shape of a reflector in the form of a hemisphere, but more often of a completely unimaginable design, however, each bend is accurately calculated in order to most effectively distribute the powder gases and direct their flows at the right angle to slow down the main flow following the bullet.

Perhaps the most interesting design of the silent shooting device is PBS with a split flow of powder gases. As such, this version of the silent shooting device does not have cameras and is a double-walled tube in which a tape is placed spirally around the axis of the bullet's flight, of course, taking into account the space for the passage of the bullet itself.

Holes are made in the inner wall of the silencer, so the powder gases are delayed due to the fact that their path is limited by a spiral, plus, part of the volume of powder gases exits through the inner wall of the silent firing device and, being distributed in this cavity, exits through the front wall of the silencer, the remaining powder gases significantly lose their volume and speed of movement, which suppresses the sound of a shot.

PBS with the principle of heat absorption of powder gases

As you know, when heated, the body expands, respectively, in order to reduce its volume, and in this case we are talking about powder gases, it is necessary to lower the temperature. It is possible to argue about the effectiveness of this method for a long time, since a silent shooting device based on the absorption of heat from powder gases is only suitable for firing at a very low rate, as it simply heats up and stops reducing the sound of a shot.

That is why this principle of operation of silent firing devices is practically never used as the main one and is combined with other more effective ones. So widespread is the combination of a multi-chamber PBS with temperature absorption elements that fill individual chambers. Most often, copper and aluminum are used to absorb temperature, naturally they do not completely fill the chamber, but most often they are used in the form of large chips or even powder.

Silencer with membranes

In view of its simplicity, the design of silencers with membranes having a slot for the passage of a bullet was further developed, so in order to increase the durability of such a device, it was necessary to first reduce the volume of powder gases so that they would not only overtake the bullet, but would not break the membranes themselves.

The solution to this problem was the preliminary removal of powder gases into a separate chamber. This increased the service life of such silent firing devices, but not so much as to become competitive even for the simplest multi-chamber PBS.

Silencer with obturation (disposable)

And finally, the simplest in design is the “disposable” silent shooting device - muffler with obturation. It is a one or two-chamber muffler in which powder gases are locked after a shot, naturally, they subsequently smoothly exit the PBS body, however, each shot reduces the effectiveness of such a muffler, so the most effective sound reduction will be at the first shot.

Sometimes the design of such a silent shooting device really makes it disposable and unsuitable for subsequent use, since the layer that blocks the powder gases that overtake the bullet is pierced by the bullet itself and through this hole, during the next shot, the powder gases will escape. Naturally, the sound will be much lower compared to the sound without PBS, but the reduction efficiency will be insufficient.

The listed muffler designs are far from all ways to reduce the sound of powder gases emitted during firing. In addition to reducing pressure, another way to make shooting silent is to change the frequency of sound. At first, the goal was to change the frequency of the shot sound, so that this sound would resemble any other, but not the sound of escaping powder gases, but the idea developed and got an even more interesting look.

So the purpose of such silencers was not to hold and slow down powder gases, but by creating flows and turbulences, using chambers of various sizes, oscillating elements, and other things, lowering the frequency of the sound of a shot to the limits inaudible to the human ear. It must be said that it is completely in vain that PBS with a “classic” approach to lowering the sound of a shot is separated from devices that change the frequency of sound.

In essence, these are all the same multi-chamber mufflers and the principle of operation is still the same - the distribution of powder gases in series in the chambers of the silent firing device, but now, in addition to this, the effect of changing the sound frequency is also used. Thus, such PBS are not separate devices, but rather another stage in the development of silent firing devices.

The disadvantages of silent firing devices include, first of all, the fact that over time the alignment of the barrel bore and the channel for the passage of a bullet in the device itself is violated, this leads to the fact that the efficiency of the PBS is lost at first, and subsequently it simply fails. If thin-walled elements are used in the design, they gradually burn out, which also negatively affects the effectiveness of the PBS, this is especially noticeable in the integrated silencers of automatic weapons, when conducting a high rate of fire. In other words, any silent shooting device is a wonderful thing, but, unfortunately, short-lived.

Silent firing devices, even if they were so perfect that they would completely remove the sound emitted by powder gases, would still not make the shooting silent, because there are still three, albeit not the loudest, components of the sound of a shot. The bullet itself in flight creates a sound wave, which is quite clearly audible.

Yes, it is quite difficult to accurately determine the location of the shooter from it, however, this is also a significant unmasking factor in the use of weapons. As I wrote before, sound wave, formed by the bullet, is a consequence of the fact that the bullet is moving above the speed of sound. So, in order to suppress this sound, we need to either reduce the speed of the bullet, or change the environmental conditions so that the sound propagates in it more quickly. Why the second option is not suitable, I think, it is not worth explaining, so only a decrease in bullet speed remains.

Cartridges SP-5 and SP-6

This in turn causes the bullet to lose momentum at short ranges and become ineffective. However, there is a way out of this situation, so by reducing the speed of the bullet, you can increase the second component of the bullet's momentum - its weight. It is this principle that is used in subsonic cartridges, for example, such as those used in silent automatic weapons. At the same time, it is worth noting that the effective range of such ammunition still leaves much to be desired, however, reducing the speed of the bullet is the only option possible to reduce the sound given to it in flight.

The third component of the sound of a shot is the sound of the weapon's automation.. Such a problem has many solutions, but none of them can completely get rid of the sound of moving parts of the weapon inside. A wide variety of sound suppression systems are used, up to the fact that all movements occur in a soundproof compartment, which naturally leaves its mark on the complexity of servicing such models, apparently therefore they remain only prototypes.

There are even such exotic options when moving parts float in a liquid medium, but basically the damping of the sound of automation is achieved by installing all kinds of seals, which at least get rid of the clang of parts in contact with each other. Naturally, all this wears out over time and the sound intensifies, but on the other hand, the operation of automation is not so loud that it would accurately determine the location of the sound source, but at long distances the sound of the weapon simply will not be heard.

The last component of the sound of a shot is the sound of a bullet hitting a target, unfortunately nothing can be done about it at all, except that expansive bullets will behave a little quieter, and even then, depending on which target they hit.

It is also necessary to take into account that the target itself can make certain sounds, so, for example, in the event of a hit on a metal sheet, the sound of the hit itself will practically not be heard, since it will be blocked by the rumble from the vibration of the sheet itself, not to mention the fact that if the target is a living organism, then it is also capable of making sounds, of course, if the shooter does not deprive it of such an opportunity with his shot.

It should also be taken into account that even in the case when the affected person does not have the opportunity to shout or somehow attract attention, this can be done by the sound of a falling body, or objects that will be dropped from any height. In other words, this sound source cannot be eliminated with a 100% probability, although the experience of the shooter will most likely tell him the right moment of the shot and the aiming point, so that there are as few sounds as possible.

As you can see completely silent shooting is still an unattainable barrier to firearms. Although, of course, the process of developing silent shooting devices does not stand still, the automation of weapons is being improved, the aerodynamics and design of bullets are changing to increase their efficiency at subsonic speeds, but all this cannot make the use of firearms completely silent, and apparently this goal will never be achieved, well, except in the case of shooting in a vacuum.

However, compared to the noise that a shot makes without the use of means to dampen its sound, even the most primitive and ineffective device for silent shooting looks like a completely tolerable way to protect the shooter and hide his location, thereby giving him time for a few more shots or for position changes. However, one cannot rely only on technical means without experience in their application, since the result may be completely different from the expected one.

Well, in the end, it should also be added that for civilians, the use of silent shooting devices is strictly prohibited, as well as their storage and manufacture, even without the purpose of marketing. So you can forget about silent hunting.

In a number of developed capitalist countries, in particular in the USA, silencers are allowed, and vice versa, it is considered a sign of good taste not to injure your ears and others with the sound of a shot. In Ukraine, they found a loophole in the form of PSVUZ, which is not a “silent shooting device”.

In other words, there are only pluses from the use of silent shooting devices, if you do not remember that the PBS itself wears out. The resource for modern multi-chamber tactical silencers is about 10-30 thousand rounds, i.e. often even exceeds the barrel resource.

Another minus of the muffler not named here is that almost all mufflers affect ballistics to one degree or another. Sometimes you need to re-sight the weapon. And some types of silencers, in particular PBS-1, even require replacement of the sight.

Despite the generally negative test results, by a joint decision of the GRAU MO and Mminoboromprom, the development of silencers PBS "s continued. It took 8 months to eliminate inconsistencies with the requirements of the TTT and comments on the results of the first field tests of silencers for the Kalashnikov assault rifle. In December 1955. on the basis of the Research Institute -61, factory tests of the silencer for the PBS Kalashnikov assault rifle were carried out, which, as expected, went without a hitch.

In January 1956 Three PBS silencers were delivered to the test site for each type of weapon (SKS, AK and RPD), 100 obturators for them and 20,000 US cartridges of the OP-04 batch.

The principle of operation of the PBS mufflers remained the same, but they were structurally redesigned. To facilitate cleaning, the steel case was made of two hinged half-cylinders. In the cavity of each half-cylinder, there were 12 steel semi-circular partitions. semi-cylinders with a head were made using a threaded connection.

A leaf spring was riveted to one of the semi-cylinders, which interacted with the fixing notches of the head to ensure tight clamping of the obturator and prevent self-unscrewing of the body. Obturators for all mufflers had the same design and consisted of a solid rubber plug enclosed in a metal clip.

When assembling the muffler, the protrusion of the clip enters the groove of the head, which runs perpendicular to the thread for attaching the body, which ensures a stable position of the plug in the muffler (when screwing in and unscrewing the body, the plug does not scroll, which ensures the stability of the weapon’s battle). The muffler heads of the SKS and RPD differed only in the attachment point to the weapon: the SCS has a clamp with a clamping screw, while the RPD has flats for a wrench.

The muffler head for the AK due to the elimination of the central hole of the obturator (to reduce the speed of moving parts of automation in order to ensure a given resource of parts and eliminate delays in firing such as skipping a cartridge when feeding) received an additional expansion chamber in the form of a cover screwed onto the head nozzle connecting the PBS to the barrel machine.

Diametrically located in the branch pipe were 4 holes with a diameter of 2 mm, through which the powder gases entered the cavity of the cover and flowed out of it into the atmosphere also through 4 holes with a diameter of 2 mm. The composition of frost-resistant rubber for the manufacture of obturators (mixture 4RI-304A based on SKBM rubber) and instructions for determining frost resistance were developed by the Moscow Tire Plant of Glavshinprom of the USSR Ministry of Chemical Industry.

To ensure aimed firing with US cartridges, each muffler was attached to the sight pads, which were installed on the base of the aiming bar by introducing the axes of spring clamps into the holes of the axis of the aiming bar from the outside. SKS, AK and RPD sight pads are structurally the same and differ only in size, due to the dimensions of the weapon sights and the working profile, made according to the ballistics of the sample.

Just like I did in previous tests. The PBS for the RPD was equipped with a clamp attached to the barrel and nozzle to increase the time the gases act on the piston in order to increase the reliability of the pressed moving parts. The collar was suitable only for RPD machine guns manufactured since 1954. (modernized).

The refinement of the US cartridges consisted in changing the design of the bullet (to ensure the required penetrating action, a steel core made of U12A steel was introduced), adjusting the diametrical dimensions (in particular, the diameter of the leading part decreased by 0.01 mm and became equal to 7.94-0.02) and masses (12.40-12.70 g).

The speed of bullets V10 cf. = 270-295 m/s with the difference between the lowest and highest bullet velocities in the group not exceeding 35 m/s. Accuracy of US cartridges was checked by shooting from a certified SKS carbine in three groups of 20 shots each at a distance of 100m.

At the same time, the average radius of the circle with the center at the midpoint of the impact, containing 50% of the holes, should have been no more than 3.5 cm (a fairly stringent requirement, when accepting cartridges of the 1943 model with a Ps bullet firing from an accuracy ballistic barrel g50, no more 2.5 cm, and the modern drawing requirement for the US cartridge when firing from the MTs-14-1 ballistic rifle under the same conditions is no more than 3.5 cm).

Details of the silencer PBS-1. 1 - housing, 2 - head, 3 - separator assembly, 4 - obturator, 5 - head cover, a - gas outlets d=2mm

The second ground tests were carried out from February 13 to April 14, 1956. The conclusion of the report on the test results read: “7.62-mm cartridges with a reduced bullet speed (OP-04 batches) and silencers for silent and flameless firing from SKS, AK and RPD, as if basically satisfying TTT GAU No. 006029 and draft drawings, may be allowed for military tests for a fundamental assessment and determination of the place of these cartridges and silencers in the weapon system.

Options for fastening the belleville spring to the cover of the PBS-1 muffler head

Again the magical "mostly satisfying". How were things really?

Undoubtedly, most of the previously noted shortcomings have been eliminated. So, the US bullet with a steel core confidently pierced at the maximum aiming range (400m) not only 4-6 inch pine boards and any projection of the SSH-40 army helmet (even through penetrations of both sides were noted), but also a promising protective vest designed by NII- 3 (steel plates made of steel 30 FGN, 2 mm thick, covering the chest; plates 1.2 mm thick, covering the stomach and back, laid on 10 layers of nylon).

The survivability of obturators in any conditions was more than the established 200 shots. There were also no complaints about noiselessness and flamelessness, regardless of the shot at the obturator, but it has not been possible to defeat smoke to this day. The place of firing from AKM with PBS-1 is clearly recognizable from a distance of 50m, and with intensive firing from one firing position, aimed shooting is difficult due to tearing and suffocation.

1 - silencer for AK, 2 - silencer for SCS, 3 - silencer for RPD

Further. Although it was possible to slightly increase the stability of bullets in flight and reduce the percentage of holes with an ovality of more than 1.3, holes in the entire range of aiming ranges still have an ovality, which, however, practically does not affect the accuracy and penetrating effect of bullets.

In addition, unlike previous tests, the instructions of the "Service Manual" on the prohibition of firing with a silencer with cartridges of other nomenclatures had to be strictly observed - silencers definitely failed, losing partitions that damaged the hull.

The main "pitfalls" were the instability of the battle and the discrepancy between the contour curves of the sight pads (worked out aiming angles) and the aiming ranges. So, the largest spread of the average points of impact reached (in thousandths of the distance in height and lateral direction) at the SCS - 2.1 and 3.7; for AK - 5.7 and 3.2; RPD has 2.4 and 2.5.

The discrepancy between the aiming angles and the firing range generally led to almost zero results. So, when firing from an AK at a distance of 300m, bursts without a silencer (cartridges with a Ps bullet) hit an average of 6 targets No. 6.8; with a silencer (US cartridges, zeroing in at 100m) - 1 target, and after zeroing in at 300m - 13 targets.

Disassembled silencer for AK rifle. 1 - muffler body (a - half-cylinders, b - partition), 2 head body, 3 - head cover (c - holes for the exit of powder gases), 4 - obturator (plug)

In addition to the shortcomings, the report also presented the results of studies of the ballistics of the US cartridge. It was found that the presence of an obturator in the silencer reduces the initial velocity of bullets by 12 m/s with a new obturator and by 4 m/s when 200 shots are fired at the obturator. A revelation for the testers was the fact that with increasing barrel wear, the speed of the US bullet increases, which in turn inevitably leads to an increase in the sound pressure of the muzzle wave.

Sight pads for AK (1), SKS (2), RPD (3) and a collar that is put on the RPD gas chamber (4)

From a physical point of view, this fact is explained by the fact that with a sufficiently long barrel in the area close to the muzzle, the frictional resistance to the movement of the bullet is greater than the pressure force of the powder gases on the bottom of the bullet, as a result of which the bullet speed decreases in this area, and it is sharper in a little worn barrel, where the frictional resistance is greater. This assumption was confirmed practically by successive trimming of the barrel of a ballistic carbine with a step of 50mm.

When firing cartridges with a Ps bullet, a decreasing series of bullet velocities was obtained: 715, 701, 686, 669 and 659 m/s. For US bullets, an increasing series was obtained: 276, 289, 294, 299 and 299 m/s. Thus, when the carbine barrel was shortened by 150 mm, the speed of the Ps bullets decreased by 49 m/s, and the speed of the US bullets increased by 23 m/s. Apparently, each generation of PBS developers and testers rediscovered this phenomenon, and for some it is still unknown today.

How else to explain the requirement for the speed of US bullets of the current drawing No. 4-027027 V10 cf. = 285-300 m/s? Isn’t it otherwise that they were going to shoot only from new weapons at normal temperatures? By the way, the Mitin brothers undoubtedly knew about this phenomenon, having set the bullet speed of the UZ cartridge to no more than 260 m / s - this was required by a sufficient “park” of worn-out three-rulers.

Each PBS silencer is equipped with an aiming bar installed on the machine instead of the standard one. On its front side there is a scale for setting the range for Ps cartridges, on the back - for US

In the early 1970s, the creation of PBS-2 failed precisely because of this same phenomenon. The problem was aggravated by the fact that the force of pushing a 5.45-mm bullet through the barrel is much greater than that of a 7.62-mm one, and when firing from the new barrel of the AK74 assault rifle, the bullet flew out at speeds of only 70-120 m / s, which is clearly is not enough not only for any acceptable lethal and penetrating action, but also for effective shooting further at 100m.

On worn barrels, when firing the same cartridges (5.45x39 US), the speed of the bullets significantly exceeded the speed of sound, and there was no need to talk about any noiselessness of the shot. When firing from the new RPK74 machine guns, US bullets generally got stuck in the channel without leaving the barrel. For these reasons, the birth of the BS-2 silencer for the 5.45-mm complex did not take place and the 7.62-mm LKM (S) with the PBS-1 silencer is still in service.

But back to the events of 1956. To ensure the possibility of conducting military tests of a silent complex (according to modern terminology), it was necessary to clarify the aiming angles in the entire range of aiming ranges. Shooting was carried out at the GRAU and NII-61 range until the end of 1957. Along the way, the problem of self-unscrewing of the muffler on the AK was solved - a Belleville spring riveted to the end of the cover was introduced into the PBS design.

Military tests conducted in 1958 showed the high efficiency of the new weapons of the reconnaissance units. In addition, it turned out that equipping the PBS with the RID machine gun was not practical for tactical reasons, and the PBS for the SCS was considered a rudiment (since the SCS did not fall into the new infantry weapon system and were replaced by machine guns) and did not recommend it for production.

The dissenting opinion of the military representative at NII-61, engineer-lieutenant colonel Makarenko, turned out to be prophetic in the act of 07/23/1957: “In case of a positive conclusion of the troops, it is considered necessary to finalize the design of the sight. Military shooters unanimously rejected the presence of a sight lining. It is painfully troublesome in a combat situation to change the pad when changing the type of cartridge and at the same time manage not to lose it.

In the end, the problem was solved quite simply - the aiming bar of the machine gun received two aiming scales (for the Ps bullet and for the US), as well as a mechanism for taking into account corrections in height and on the side to bring the machine gun to normal combat with US cartridges relative to combat with the PS cartridge.

In 1959 The modernized Kalashnikov assault rifle was adopted by the army, during the development of which experienced US cartridges and a PBS silencer were used. In the same year, the PBS was also put into service, officially intended for manning the AKM (although nothing prevented it from being equipped with the AK). It is noteworthy that the name of the silencer in the “Service Manual” and the “Firing Tables” published by the Military Publishing House is different from the name in the design documentation - “for silent shooting” and “for silent shooting”. But let's leave it on the conscience of the proofreaders.

Initially, PBS "s were produced by NII-61 (apparently, several thousand pieces), which clearly did not cover the need for them. In 1962, it was decided to expand their production at the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant. Izhevsk residents were horrified by the low-tech muffler and offered their own design , retaining all the parameters. The changes affected the body and separator. The body was made of a pipe, and the non-separable separator was assembled from washers fastened with three screws. The upgraded silencer was successfully tested. It turned out to be not only cheaper to manufacture, but also stronger - when firing cartridges with Ps was not destroyed by the bullet.The modernized silencer received the abbreviated name PBS-1.

7.62 mm cartridges mod. 1943 with a US bullet (GRAU index 57-N-231U) were originally manufactured at NII-61, and then their production was transferred to plant No. 711 (Klimovsky stamping plant). Already at the design stage, the US bullet received a black and green distinctive nose color, and metal boxes and wooden boxes received two stripes of the same colors. 1200 pieces were packed in an old-style box. cartridges and 6 obturators in two metal boxes; after modernization of capping - 1360 pcs. and 6 obturators.

For almost 50 years, the PBS-1 has been in service. Attempts to create PBS "s of a new generation failed. So, in 1979, after the adoption of the 5.45 mm AKS74U assault rifle with a short barrel, it seemed that it was technically possible to create such a silencer. TSNIITOCHMASH developed two versions of the silencer - PBS-3 and PBS-4 , differing from each other only in the possibility or impossibility of firing automatic fire with US cartridges. But these were no longer PBS in the classical sense: both required alteration of the regular AKS74U. As a result of the work, the AKSB74U appeared (later renamed AKS74UB) - a special-purpose model that did not receive wide distribution.

Yuri Ponomarev