Exclusively for killing How silent rifles and pistols were created

Yarygin pistol

Produced in Russia to replace the obsolete PM in the armed forces of the Russian Federation, the Yarygin pistol (aka “Rook”) received automation in the image and likeness of Browning systems. The barrel bore is locked when the protrusions on the breech of the barrel interact with the cuts on the inner surface of the bolt casing. The barrel is also made using foreign technology and is equipped with six right-hand rifling. The 9×19 mm Parabellum cartridge or its Russian equivalent 7N21/7N31 can be used as ammunition. The magazine holds 18 rounds.

The all-metal design of the Yarygin pistol, although it negatively affects the overall weight of the weapon, gives a serious head start to foreign models in terms of overall strength and reliability of the mechanisms.

Pistol GSh-18

Created by two legendary designers of artillery weapons - Gryazev and Shipunov, the GSh-18 pistol is technologically based on foreign weapons. When creating the body, the designers used the same polyamide plastic alloy as in Glock pistols, and the barrel bore was locked when it was turned - this system was used by the Austrian company Steyr. Having used a polyamide frame, the designers also used a striker-type trigger to generally reduce the weight of the pistol. The use of armor-piercing 7N31 cartridges specially developed for the GSh-18 allows you to confidently hit enemy personnel protected by body armor up to the third class of protection at distances of up to 20 meters.

The widespread use of this model in the armed forces was prevented by the low-tech and difficult-to-maintain design of the pistol.

Quiet Advantage: Unique Russian Silent Weapon

Invented at the end of the 19th century, the firearm silencer did not immediately find a place on the battlefield. Despite the fact that the production of low-noise shooting devices was established on the eve of the First World War, the military was not interested in the new product. Silencers of various designs were sold freely - as a device for hunters, allowing, in case of a miss, not to frighten off the game with the roar of a shot.

However, with the outbreak of World War II, the situation changed: special operations forces entered the theater of operations. The technical potential accumulated between the wars made saboteurs a real and formidable force: it became possible to covertly deliver them to enemy territory - by landing them from the air or submarines, maintaining radio contact with groups and coordinating their actions. Daring raids behind the front line began to cause significant damage. The weekly Zvezda tells the story of the “quiet advantage” of Russian weapons.

The prototype of modern special forces desperately lacked silent weapons. So, in the first years of the war, British commandos were armed with crossbows. This archaic weapon was tested by both the German Abwehr and the American Office of Strategic Services, which was noted for the creation of the remarkable Little Joe slingshot pistol.

Your word, comrade “BrahMit”

At that time, perhaps, only domestic gunsmiths were not interested in slingshots and crossbows. In the 19 years that passed from the end of the Civil War to the start of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Union was able to develop and introduce into service a number of impressive new products in the field of small arms, for example, the absolutely revolutionary Tokarev self-loading rifle (SVT). Indeed, the advanced military thought of the USSR at that time correctly defined the role of low-noise firing devices - as belonging to reconnaissance officers and saboteurs. In 1940, the BraMit complex for the Mosin rifle was adopted - a silencer and a special “silent” cartridge.

This silencer (or PBS - a silent, flameless shooting device - editor's note) was developed by Vasily and Ivan Mitin, hence the abbreviation "BrahMit", that is, "Mitin brothers". The device was a steel cylinder divided into two chambers, the exit from which was blocked by seals - cylindrical gaskets made of rubber. When fired, most of the powder gases remained locked in the first chamber, from where they were released through holes in the body. The remainder of the gases that broke into the second chamber after the bullet expanded and lost pressure. The rubber “washers” could withstand up to 200 shots, after which they had to be replaced.

The use of “BrahMit” was prescribed with a special cartridge, which was called “Low-charged” or simply “Silent”. It was distinguished by a reduced weight of gunpowder and was equipped with an “L” type bullet (9.6 g, “light”). For visual distinction, “silent” cartridges were marked with green or black varnish.

The total circulation of the BraMits is unknown, but the muffler was not some rare item. According to surviving documents, in September 1941 alone, two Leningrad factories produced over 5,000 Brahmits ordered by the Lenfront intelligence department. Despite the secret status of the product, during the war silencers were widely supplied to the partisans. “BrahMits” were used not only by scouts and saboteurs, but also by army snipers, however, quite limitedly, since the effective firing range with the device was small due to the significant spread of hits.

In Germany, captured Soviet silencers were modified for the Mauser rifle and used under the designation Schalldampfer 254(r). Later, the BraMita design was copied for the StG 44, the odious Sturmgewehr, but the Germans did not have time to organize mass production of the devices.

PBS-1: without noise and flame

The war ended, and work on new models in the West stopped; moreover, the British (having apparently forgotten the history with crossbows) without a second thought sent their silent carbine “De Lisle” to be melted down. They looked at these things differently in the USSR, no longer imagining the structure of infantry weapons without “quiet” machine guns and rifles for reconnaissance - the colossal experience gained during the war had an impact.

In the early 1950s, NII-61 (TsNIITOCHMASH) received an order to develop a single silencer for all new types of standard platoon weapons - the Kalashnikov assault rifle, the Simonov carbine (SKS), and the Degtyarev light machine gun (RPD). Development of the complex, consisting of a subsonic cartridge 7.62X39 US (“reduced speed”) and a multi-chamber muffler, took about 5 years - a considerable period of time. During this time, for example, the SKS managed to leave the “scene”: in rifle units it was replaced by the AK. But the task was also difficult - a universal tool was required that would ensure the actions of soldiers in ambush, reconnaissance, and in night combat conditions.

The customer placed increased demands on the accuracy of the fire and the bullet's penetration ability - as a result, the effective firing range was 400 meters, and at this distance a subsonic cartridge bullet pierces a steel helmet. Note that during testing the new muffler was compared with the product of the Mitin brothers.

PBS-1 entered service almost simultaneously with the modernized Kalashnikov assault rifle. And, interestingly, the AKM is still extending the century in the army: the 7.62-mm machine gun in combination with the PBS (designated as AKMB) is the main silent weapon of the Russian troops. NATO countries do not have such a functional complex in service. The fact is that it is pointless to “slow down” light high-speed bullets of the 5.56X45 NATO cartridge below the speed of sound - they will lose all lethality (as well as domestic 5.45X39). “Tactical silencers” (TMS), common in NATO, dampen the flash and reduce the volume of the “exhaust” of powder gases. But the shock wave of a bullet traveling at supersonic speed remains. And this is the second most important unmasking factor of a shot. Any Western machine gun with a “tactical silencer” is perfectly audible for hundreds of meters. While the “work” of AKM with PBS-1 is indistinguishable from tens of meters away.

The US Armed Forces rushed to catch up with lost time only in 2010, adopting the .300 AAS ammunition (7.62X35 mm in the metric system) - in fact, an analogue of the Soviet 7.62X39 mm, developed by order of American special forces. Inferior in ballistics to the domestic cartridge at supersonic speeds and roughly equivalent in the subsonic version, the .300 AAS finally allowed US special forces to obtain a silent complex based on a modified M4 carbine, equal in capabilities to the “grandfather” of the AKMB.

However, with reservations: firstly, AKM with PBS-1 is a mass complex for army reconnaissance officers, while there is no need to talk about the prevalence of M4 in .300 AAS caliber. Secondly, the AKM is a full-fledged general-arms assault rifle, and if there is a need to make some noise, the silencer is removed and the entire range of ammunition is used, including armor-piercing incendiary ammunition. While the M4 in .300 AAC caliber is a highly specialized weapon that cannot replace a standard machine gun. In this respect, it is similar to the domestic special systems VSS Vintorez and AS Val, however, their 9X39 ammunition significantly exceeds the characteristics of both 7.62X39 US and subsonic .300 AAS.

Not having the advantages of AKMB and VSS, but having their disadvantages, weapons for the new American caliber clearly show how far ahead the domestic defense industry has come.

Secret matters

Despite all the advantages, the PBS-1 is not an ideal “tool”; the inherent disadvantages of the complex are, for example, severe gas pollution at the shooting site, up to tearing when shooting several magazines in a row. In clear weather, an accumulating cloud of powder gases can unmask a position. The shutters can withstand 200 shots - a little less than 7 magazines. After replacing them, the machine needs to be zeroed again.

In the early 1980s, TsNIITOCHMASH began work on the third generation of silent weapons, devoid of the above disadvantages. The work was carried out under the code "Vintorez". Who would have thought then that an absolutely secret development, a couple of decades later, would become a symbol of Russian special forces abroad, as well as a “style icon” for weapons fans: the attractive “appearance” of the Vintorez would make the rifle the heroine of countless computer games.

The heart of the new complex is the 9X39 mm cartridge, which has outstanding characteristics for subsonic ammunition. If the 7.62X39 US, as we remember, is capable of penetrating a fragmentation helmet at a distance of 400 meters, then the “nine” will penetrate light body armor. And at 100 meters, the SP-6 armor-piercing cartridge will make a hole in an 8-mm steel sheet - enough to “deal with” any personal protective equipment. “Extracting” armor-piercing qualities from subsonic cartridges is an amazing know-how of domestic gunsmiths.

The "silence" of the complex is ensured by an integrated silencer, which contains a perforated barrel of the weapon. During a shot, hot gases are released into its body, where they swirl and are divided into opposite flows, due to which they are slowed down and extinguished. At the same time, the channel for the bullet remains open - it does not penetrate the rubber gaskets, as in PBS-1 or BraMita, which has a positive effect on accuracy. In addition, this design allows for prolonged firing, including bursts, without reducing the noise reduction effect.

VSS "Vintorez" and special automatic machine (AS) "Val" are unique complexes. Usually, when they say that a weapon has no analogues, it means that the tactical and technical characteristics of competitors are lower. But in this case there are no analogues even by design: there is simply nothing to compare this complex with, it is the only one.

Despite the fact that the priority of the domestic arms industry in this area is ensured for decades to come, Russian designers do not think of resting on their laurels: VSS and AS have already undergone modernization, and a new 7N12 cartridge has been created. New samples for the 9X39 ammunition are on the way: in 2022, it became known that work was being done on a small-sized AMB-17 assault rifle at the Kalashnikov concern.

The opinion expressed in this material is the author's and may not coincide with the opinion of the editors.

Stechkin pistol

The Stechkin automatic pistol was created as a cheap replacement for bulky PPSh and PPS for soldiers and officers in “hot spots”, as well as as a standard weapon for armored vehicle crews. The automatic pistol operated on the principle of using the recoil energy of a free shutter and allowed firing in both bursts and single shots. At the same time, the military department considered the APS a worthy replacement for submachine guns, while not noticing the grumbling of the military about the dimensions of the weapon. The fact is that the APS was supplied with a wooden holster, which also served as a shoulder rest. The situation was resolved by the appearance of a modification of the pistol - APB. His stock became a metal frame, making it possible to mount the PBS. However, they couldn’t do anything about the dimensions.

The large dimensions of the pistol quickly removed the weapon from widespread use, leaving it only in service with special forces.

Features of the PSS "Vul" pistol

military weapon,

The main feature of the presented device is that it has small dimensions, in particular the short barrel length. This structure was achieved through the use of special SP-4 cartridges. The PSS “Vul” pistol does not require a silencer, as it operates very quietly even without one.

The only drawback of the presented weapon is that producing ammunition for it is quite expensive. The principle of operation of the device is quite simple: during a shot, the bullet leaves the cartridge case and moves along the barrel, which has cuts on it. The gases that are inside the barrel create a certain pressure. It promotes the separation of the sleeve and its movement backwards. After this she is pushed out.

Thanks to the smooth braking of the shutter, the device operates silently, since the clanging of metal structural elements is practically inaudible. After the bullet leaves the barrel, it is depressurized. Thanks to this, the gun has no atmospheric cotton. These are all the features of the use and structure of the presented weapon.

Pistol "Gyurza" SR-1

The Serdyukov self-loading pistol was developed in the mid-90s at the request of the FSB to replace the already obsolete APS/APB. Designed to chamber one of the most powerful 9-mm Russian-made cartridges, the Serdyukov self-loading pistol allows you to confidently hit targets protected by third-class personal armor at distances of up to 50 meters. “Gyurza” is currently in service with the FSB, FSO, as well as army units and prosecutors.

Due to the use of powerful ammunition 9x21 mm SP-10, SP-11, SP-12 and SP-13, the Gyurza pistol is prohibited for circulation in the United States.

PSM pistol

A special small-sized pistol was created to arm the generals of the armed forces of the USSR, as well as the special services of the KGB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR. Since 1991, the pistol has been used as a standard weapon for employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as well as as a self-defense weapon for general officers of law enforcement agencies. The PSM automation operates using the recoil energy of the free shutter. The design of the pistol is quite simple, and only one mechanical fuse, located on the left side of the bolt casing, is responsible for safety. The ammunition used is 5.45x18 mm MPTs cartridges developed for PSM with increased bullet penetration.

The increased penetration ability played a cruel joke on the weapon - the small-caliber cartridge easily penetrates body armor of the first class of protection, while having a very weak stopping effect of the bullet.

How it works

The sound of a shot consists of several components: a shock (muzzle) wave created by hot gases escaping from the barrel along with the bullet; then the ballistic shock wave of the bullet itself if it flies faster than sound and, finally, the clang of moving weapon parts. But the main thing is the muzzle wave, so the two main ways to suppress a shot involve weakening or eliminating it. The first way is to reduce the pressure and cool the powder gases before they leave the barrel; the second is to lock them in the trunk altogether. In addition to this, it is assumed that slow, subsonic bullets will be used and manual reloading will be used if it is necessary to make the weapon as silent as possible.

The first principle - pressure reduction - is implemented in mufflers, when hot gases, before entering the atmosphere, expand and cool in the enclosed space of a special nozzle. As a rule, this is a hollow metal cylinder that is mounted on the muzzle of the barrel (sometimes it covers the entire length of the barrel), inside it there is one or more chambers for removing powder gases. These chambers are separated by partitions with holes or membranes made of soft materials like rubber, which prevent powder gases from “overtaking” the bullet. There may be special heat-absorbing elements inside the cylinder, such as metal shavings.

Soviet cartridges with powder gas cut-off

Photo: forum-antikvariat.ru

The second method - cutting off powder gases - involves the use of a complex of weapons and a special cartridge, usually with a sub-caliber bullet. A powder charge of reduced power is separated from the bullet by a wad-piston, which, when fired, accelerates the bullet, and then jams, resting against the slope of the cartridge case or against the protrusion of the barrel, locking the powder gases. The piston impulse is transmitted to the bullet directly or through a liquid, which accelerates the projectile down the barrel. This technique is more effective at eliminating sound, but makes weapons and ammunition too expensive and complex. In addition, gas shut-off cartridges are very difficult to use in automatic systems. Silencers are simpler and cheaper, but they do not completely eliminate the sound of a shot - with most systems it resembles the pop of an air rifle or small-caliber rifle. Small silencers - now called tactical - simply “smear” the sound of a shot, making it difficult to detect the shooter. In addition, weapons equipped with such devices do not suppress their own, which simplifies the action of fighters in a group, especially indoors. Therefore, the Americans, for example, are actively promoting tactical silencers in their law enforcement agencies.

The Makarov pistol

One of the most recognizable Soviet pistols, the Makarov PM, was created as a replacement for the Tokarev pistol (TT) that was in service. According to GRAU requirements, the pistol must be compact, have ammunition with increased stopping power (against the TT cartridge), and also differ from the previous pistol in reliability and ease of use. At that time, the still young designer Nikolai Makarov managed to create a truly practical and modern weapon.

Satisfactory technical characteristics, increased reliability, and ease of operation have allowed the pistol to be in service with the police of Russia and the USSR for 74 years.

Domestic mufflers

The next unique invention belongs to the Soviet engineer E. S. Gurevich. He made a real breakthrough in the development of a silent shot, using the cutoff of powder gases in the cartridge case, using the “liquid pusher” principle. Between the piston and the bullet there was a liquid that pushed the bullet through the bore. The volume of liquid corresponded to the volume of the barrel bore and the piston, having moved to the muzzle of the cartridge case, rested against it and locked the powder gases inside the closed volume of the cartridge case. In this case, the wad displaced water from the cartridge case, as a result of which the bullet moved along the barrel bore at the speed of liquid outflow. 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 barrel bore is less than the cross-sectional area of ​​the cartridge case (hydraulic gear principle). As a result, there was no sound shock wave, and the low initial velocity of the bullet (189-239 m/s) excluded the possibility of a ballistic wave. Thus, the shot was almost completely silent, but a large cloud of “water splashes” gave away the shooter. In addition, the use of water as a bullet pusher made it difficult to use weapons in winter at subzero temperatures. The disadvantages include the large loss of energy of the powder gases to overcome the resistance when the liquid flows.

Gurevich's design was tested at the Red Army small arms research site in November 1943. Gurevich developed several samples of single-shot pistols, but went into small-scale production in the late 40s. Only his 7.62 mm five-round revolver was used. Apparently, Gurevich’s design can be considered the world’s first silent weapon, brought to a working model, passed state tests, accepted for service and produced in small series. But with the end of the war, interest in these weapons decreased.

Only in the late 1950s did American developers begin research into other designs of special cartridges. For example, a cartridge with a stepped bullet for a pistol with a conical bore of 9/7.62 mm caliber was tested. Reducing the noise level 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. But the project was closed, since the Americans were never able to create a copy that would technically and economically satisfy the requirements for it.

The most effective cartridge for special weapons turned out to be the cartridge of the Soviet engineer Stechkin - 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 a blunt-pointed bullet. After the shot, the bullet, along with the pusher, flew out of the barrel, and the piston remaining in the cartridge case locked the powder gases in it. This 7.62 mm cartridge, along with a special firing device, was used in the mid-1950s. was adopted for army reconnaissance.

In the early 1960s. The Soviet cartridge was modernized: the bullet was replaced with an ordinary 7.62 mm submachine gun PS. The telescopic piston-pusher remained in the cartridge case after the shot. The new ammunition received the SP-3 index. It was assumed that an automatic bullet would make it difficult to identify the type of weapon used, but the steeper rifling of the barrel still gave away 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 and NRS-2 reconnaissance shooting knives. But it is almost impossible to create an automatic or semi-automatic weapon chambered for this cartridge, since when firing, the pusher that pushes the bullet comes out of the cartridge case by almost half its length. It should be noted that there is an increased danger when handling all such cartridges. When loaded, each cartridge is essentially a “loaded single-shot pistol.” And in its “shot” form, it is no less dangerous, since it contains powder gases under high pressure in a closed volume, which are also hot. The design of a number of other types of silent weapons adopted by domestic special forces is based on the principle of locking powder gases inside the cartridge case. These include a 30-mm silent under-barrel grenade launcher, piercing a three-centimeter steel sheet at a distance of 800 m, and a double-barreled silent pistol S-4M. Heavier and more powerful weapons were also being developed: in the first half of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Union tested a silent mortar from the design bureau of plant No. 58.

Some Western developments were also interesting. For example, the German engineer Jozef Rudolf Smatsch in 1984 proposed an original design for a muzzle-mounted mechanical muffler. The model differed from its predecessors in its compactness and method of use - the silencer was completely put on the barrel of the weapon, only slightly protruding beyond the muzzle of the barrel, while this silencer was able to move along the barrel. When fired, the powder gases, hitting the transverse partitions, moved the device body forward, compressing the spring and sharply increasing the volume of its rear chamber. The expanding gases additionally expended their energy on mechanical work to move the muffler and compress the return spring, increasing its efficiency. But, despite its compactness, the device was quite massive. Moving along the barrel, it reduced the reliability of the weapon as a whole, the accuracy of fire, and also caused additional vibrations of the weapon, so it did not gain much popularity.

Gun Thunder

In the early 60s of the twentieth century, the KGB of the USSR sent an order to the Tula Arms Plant to create a small-sized silent pistol for special operations. As a basis, the designers proposed using American Derringer pistols, which had been used as self-defense weapons since the mid-19th century. Light weight and a fairly powerful cartridge allowed the weapon to perform its tasks to the fullest.

When using SP-2 cartridges, it turned out that the SME could fire underwater, which was the impetus for the creation of a special weapon for combat swimmers based on this pistol.

Soviet special forces weapons. Silent pistol "Thunderstorm"

Silent pistol S-4M

Although the main methods of combating the sound of a gunshot were invented at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, intelligence services and the military showed increased interest in these developments only before the start of World War II. After the end of the war, interest in such developments did not disappear; on the contrary, the intelligence services of many countries around the world dreamed of acquiring silent weapons. By the early 1960s, the palm in the secret competition to create silent small arms was shared between the USA and the USSR. It was in the 1960s that a whole series of silent pistols was created in the Soviet Union, including the Groza pistols.

The appearance of the silent pistol "Groza"

The USSR has always worked on interesting and unusual models of silent weapons.
For example, already in the 1950s, the brilliant Soviet weapons designer Igor Yakovlevich Stechkin worked on the creation of such samples. It was he who developed, on instructions from the KGB, a unique three-barrel shooting cigarette case, known as TKB-506A. The “cigarette case” developed by Stechkin used special silent cartridges, which the gunsmith created on the basis of the widely used 9x18 mm Makarov pistol cartridge. The weapon was as unusual as possible, but ideal for intelligence officers. True, the range of action of the unusual pistol was small - no more than 7 meters. It is not surprising that work in the field of creating silent compact weapons was continued. According to the Kalashnikov magazine, in the late 1950s, employees of military unit No. 1154 of the KGB of the USSR designed a new 7.62 mm silent pistol, which received the index “Groza-58-M”. Subsequently, the pistol was modernized many times and reached the mass production stage. By design, the new silent pistol was a non-self-loading weapon model with a block of two barrels, which were paired together in a vertical plane.

For loading, the barrels of the pistol were folded upward, similar to many hunting rifles or pistols of the simplest “derringer” design. The new silent pistol was equipped only with a self-cocking trigger; it was loaded with a clip designed for two cartridges. To fire from the "Groza", specially created 7.62x63 mm "Snake" (PZ) cartridges with cut-off of powder gases in the pistol barrel were initially used, and later modernized versions of these cartridges were used under the designations PZA and PZAM.

PB pistol (top), S-4M (center) and SME (bottom)

Serial production of the new pistol was supposed to be launched at the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant (IMZ). The corresponding resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR was issued in November 1959. In Izhevsk, experimental workshop No. 28 was responsible for assembling weapons. At the same time, to ensure the required level of secrecy at the IMZ, the weapon received the symbol “C” product. For a long time, pistols were produced in extremely limited quantities. At the same time, the plant was undergoing a continuous process of improving and modernizing weapons.

So, already in November 1960 the S-2M model appeared, in 1961 - the S-3M, and in 1962 the S-4M model was created. The last pistol went into mass production and has been mass-produced in Izhevsk since 1965. At the same time, S-4M “Groza” pistols were used not only by KGB officers, but also by GRU military special forces. And even later, on the basis of the S-4M pistol, a small-sized special pistol (MSP “Groza”) was created, which was put into service in 1972. The pistol was created by TsNIITochmash specialists on behalf of the KGB and was even smaller in size than the S-4M pistols, which were also used by military special forces.

"Derringer" with cut-off of powder gases

They were a class of small pistols of very simple design, most often pocket-sized.
This weapon was perfect for concealed carry. The weapon received its name in honor of the American designer Henry Deringer, who lived in the 19th century. The pistols he created were often used as self-defense weapons. One of the most famous representatives of the class was the Remington Double Derringer pistol, which, like the Thunderstorm pistols created already in the 20th century, had a single block of two barrels located in a vertical plane. It is worth noting that over time, the term “derringer” itself has become widely used in the arms world to refer to almost all non-self-loading models of pistols of a compact form factor. The second interesting detail that applies to all Soviet pistols of the Groza family was the chosen method of combating the sound of a shot. The designers used the method of cutting off powder gases. Such a scheme involves the use of a whole complex, which, in addition to the pistol itself, also includes a special cartridge equipped with a sub-caliber bullet (in most cases). In similar models of firearms, a powder charge of reduced power is separated from the bullet by a wad-piston. At the moment of firing, such a piston first accelerates the bullet and then jams, resting against the protrusion of the barrel or the slope of the cartridge case, thus locking the powder gases in the barrel of the weapon.

Silent pistol S-4M

The method of cutting off powder gases has proven its effectiveness; it eliminates the sound of a shot better than traditional silencers. But the method also has its drawbacks - weapons and ammunition for them become more difficult to produce and more expensive. Also, this method imposes its own limitations on small arms; it is extremely difficult to use in automatic systems. But the scheme is suitable for pistols. Moreover, the ability to do without a silencer makes the weapon as compact as possible and convenient for concealed carry.

Characteristics of the S-4M "Groza" pistol

The creators of the S-4M “Groza” pistol managed to implement all the planned solutions in the model.
The development was promising and interesting, since a silent pistol was created without the use of a silencer or other massive devices designed to dampen the sound of a shot and hide the flash of a shot. Some experts call the “Groza” the first domestic silent pistol in the entire line of such weapons. The model was not only completely silent, but also developed from scratch, and was not an option for adapting existing barrels into a “silent” model. The scope of application of the new small arms were various kinds of special operations, which required completely silent and flameless shooting from intelligence officers and army special forces. The new pistol could only be used with the previously created PZ/PZA/PZAM line of 7.62 mm caliber, standard for the Soviet defense industry. At the same time, the size of the cartridge itself was not standard - 7.62x63 mm. The use of such cartridges provided the shooter with silent shooting, since the sound of the shot was suppressed by locking the powder gases in a cartridge case of increased size and increased strength. Since the gases were locked through the use of an intermediate piston, this determined the long length of the sleeve.

By its design, the S-4M pistol was a non-self-loading small arms model with a block of two barrels, paired in a vertical plane, that folded upward. To load and unload the weapon, the shooter had to use specially shaped metal clips that combined two cartridges. The pistol was equipped with a trigger mechanism with hidden triggers, single action (non-self-cocking). The hammers were cocked manually by pressing a lever located at the base of the pistol grip. During the modernization process, the weapon received a manual safety, which was placed on the left above the pistol grip. Behind the trigger, the designers placed a latch for the barrel block. The pistol used open sights.

The silent pistol S-4M "Groza" was distinguished by the following tactical and technical characteristics. The recommended target firing range from this model did not exceed 10-12 meters. At the same time, the weapon was very compact; the weight of the pistol without cartridges did not exceed 600 grams. The total length was 147 mm, height - approximately 104 mm, width - 27 mm. The practical rate of fire did not exceed 6-8 rounds per minute. This was quite enough, considering that the weapon had to be used to solve a very specific task and did not compete with standard small arms systems. The initial speed of the 7.62 mm bullet ranged from 150 to 170 m/s. At the same time, during tests of the S-4M pistol with the PZA cartridge in 1965, very good penetration results were noted. At a distance of 25 meters, the bullet was guaranteed to pierce a package consisting of two dry pine boards (each 25 mm thick).

Pistol P-96

The Efa series of small-sized pistols was developed under the leadership of the creator of the GSh-18 Gryazev and was intended primarily for arming members of the armed forces. However, the first experimental pistol never went into production due to the weakness of the unreinforced polyamide frame, which did not provide the necessary strength to the pistol. A total of four modifications of the P-96 pistol have been announced - a standard, service, version for law enforcement agencies and a projected traumatic pistol based on the P-96.

P-96 became the prototype of the GSh-18 pistol

Pistol OTs-27 "Berdysh"

OTs-27 was developed in the early 90s of the twentieth century to replace outdated PM and APS/APB under the leadership of I.Ya. Stechkin and B.V. Abramova. The pistol was distinguished by successful ergonomics, was made entirely of steel, and was designed for three types of ammunition at once - 9x18 mm PM, 9x19 mm Parabellum and 7.62x25 mm PS. Thus, it was proposed to unify the pistol for all types of ammunition included in the register of the RF Armed Forces. However, in 1994, “Berdysh” was withdrawn from the pistol development program for the army, remaining only in development for the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Disassembling the pistol is only possible when the weapon is cocked - otherwise it is impossible to dismantle the bolt group.

Silent special forces short barrel

To create a compact automatic silent weapon within the framework of the Buket R&D project, Soviet designers were given the task of developing a submachine gun that was as quiet as the PB pistol, and at the same time had the combat rate of fire of the APS pistol. However, two serious problems arose along this path - a standard 9-mm cartridge and an automatic silent pistol.

Silent pistol

By the beginning of the 60s in the USSR, the design of silent short-barreled weapons was proceeding in two different ways. The first and most effective means of sound suppression were cartridges that cut off the powder gases in the cartridge case. The second method of silent and flameless shooting was a weapon with a barrel perforated to discharge powder gases, on which a shot silencer was installed. It was the second option that became the basis for standard army 9-mm special-purpose pistols PB (silent pistol) and APB (silent automatic pistol).

Pistols PB and APB Magazine "Weapons"

At its core, the PB had a significantly modified PM pistol. In turn, the APB became a modification of the APS pistol. The first to be adopted in 1967 was the PB pistol under the index 6P9, the second was the APB in 1972, which received the index 6P13. Despite the similar principle of sound suppression, weapon designers implemented this task in different ways. Both products were developed at the Central Research Institute of Precision Engineering (TSNIITOCHMASH): PB (factory index AO-28) - A.A. Deryagin, APB (factory index AO-44) - A.S. Negodovym.

Although somewhat similar to the PM, the PB pistol has more differences from it than common parts. Only the firing mechanism (trigger mechanism) was practically untouched, but otherwise it was an original design. The PB self-loading gun for sound suppression has an integrated expansion chamber and a removable nozzle. The latter plays the role of a separator-type muffler that is familiar today, which means it is possible to fire a pistol without an attachment with more modest decibel values.

APS and APB pistols. Photo by the author

To install a muffler, a special tube protruding beyond the boundaries of the bolt is put on the barrel sleeve of an APB automatic pistol. Powder gases from the holes in the breech and muzzle parts of the barrel enter a separator-type muffler. All this required minimal alteration of standard APS parts, to which a muffler, bushing, pipe and wire stock were added. The APB retained the ability to fire in bursts, which allows this weapon to be classified as a submachine gun.

At the end of the 60s, almost in parallel with the development of the APB, the Main Rocket and Artillery Directorate (GRAU) of the USSR Ministry of Defense attempted to develop a full-fledged submachine gun for silent and flameless shooting under the standard Makarov cartridge.

Silent “Bouquet” for special forces

Tactical and technical requirements (TTT) for a “9 mm submachine gun for silent and flameless shooting under a 9 mm standard pistol cartridge” were approved in June 1969. Experimental design work (R&D) was assigned the code “Bouquet”. Contrary to the prevailing opinion about the development of only silent submachine guns, TTT provided for the development of an option for conventional shooting by replacing the barrel or barrel group. However, the designers elegantly circumvented this point of requirement by blocking the holes of the perforated barrel when firing without a silencer.

The requirements for weapons put forward by GRAU specialists cannot be called too stringent, since the methods for solving many design elements were left to the discretion of the designers. Thus, they were free to choose the operating principle of the automation; the widespread use of light alloys and plastics, standard and standardized parts and assemblies was allowed. The degree of sound attenuation was supposed to be no lower than that of a PB pistol, and in terms of combat rate of fire, the submachine gun was not supposed to be inferior to the standard APS.

Submachine gun PP-71 kalashnikov.ru, museum-mtk.ru, collage by the author

There were requirements for the weight and dimensions of the weapon (weight - no more than 1.5 kg, length with a silencer in the firing position - no more than 700 mm, length without a silencer in the stowed position - no more than 270 mm, width - no more than 35 mm) extremely difficult, but in the process of working out they could change in the direction of lowering the indicators. The survivability of the weapon, taking into account a set of four magazines (two each for twenty and thirty rounds) was supposed to be 6,000 rounds without breaking parts. In an attempt to meet such requirements, submachine guns were first submitted for field testing in 1972.

The first tests had to be stopped due to unsatisfactory results in terms of combat accuracy. The unacceptably large dispersion when firing both single and automatic fire excluded the possibility of firing standard cartridges with steel core bullets at distances over 50 m. Testers also had complaints about the reliability of operation and survivability of parts. All the products then went for revision, and the “cartridge makers” began to conjure up the ammunition, trying to return to the production of early-style cartridges with a bullet with a lead core.

Submachine gun TKB-0102 kalashnikov.ru, collage by the author

Despite the weapon's target range of 200 m, the TTT did not impose any requirements on the accuracy of fire at distances over 50 m. Only average dispersion rates from three series of twenty shots were allowed, not exceeding a radius of 10 cm in 100% of cases at a distance of 25 m , and at a distance of 50 m - 45 cm. Submitted for repeated field tests in 1974, all three samples of submachine guns (Izhevsk PP-71 E.F. Dragunova, Tula TKB-0102 N.S. Ryzhova and TKB-0104 N. M. Afanasyev) met the required shooting accuracy standards.

To evaluate the results of shooting at a distance of 100 m, we used data calculated mathematically according to a linear law in accordance with the shooting manual for the APS. In this case, the accuracy of firing with single shots was considered unsatisfactory, and when firing in bursts it turned out to be close to the specified parameters, but still unacceptable. Thus, when shooting at a distance of 100 m from a prone position from a rest position with single fire (according to the 1969 Shooting Course at targets No. 6 and No. 8), the probability of hitting a target with one shot in most cases was within 5-17%.

Submachine gun TKB-0104 forum.guns.ru

In parallel, for a comparative assessment of prototypes, automatic pistols APS and APB were tested. As a result, only the TKB-0104 submachine gun (future OTs-02 “Cypress”), which showed almost equivalent results with the APB and, in general, was only slightly inferior to the APS, provided a fairly high fire efficiency when firing with automatic fire at a distance of 75 m. The “culprits” were assigned to cartridges with a bullet with a steel core, which were unable to ensure the creation of weapons with acceptable fire efficiency over 75 m. A fresh batch of “sniper” cartridges manufactured in 1973 from the Yuryuzan plant could not correct the situation.

In addition, all samples did not satisfy the TTT in almost any weight and size parameter. The sound attenuation level of the experimental products turned out to be significantly lower than that of the APB. Shooting at steel sheets up to 2 mm thick and a package of pine boards (distance 100 m) and an SSh-60 helmet (distance 25 m) showed results equal to the APS for experimental products, which were significantly inferior in competition with standard weapons when hitting a steel helmet at a distance 50 m.

There were complaints about individual samples regarding the survivability of parts and reliability of operation under normal conditions, and complaints regarding service durability were made to all experimental products. The unreliable design of the stock has become a common problem for all designers. The final conclusion, approved in May 1975, was disappointing for all participants in the Bouquet R&D project, and further refinement of the products was considered inappropriate. At the same time, the N.M. submachine gun can be considered the informal winner of these battles. Afanasyev TKB-0104, the documentation for which was ordered to be stored at the Tula enterprise in case of need for its use with possible adjustments based on the results of field tests.

Special equipment for the Ministry of Internal Affairs

In the early 90s, a special design bureau was created at the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (Izhmash) to develop special equipment in the interests of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) of Russia. There, designers Alexei Dragunov and Viktor Kalashnikov, based on the remaining experimental PP-71s, created an original sample of a silent weapon under the designation PP-71M. It received replaceable modules provided for in the TTT OCD “Bouquet”, which made it possible to switch from a silent version of the weapon to a regular one.

Submachine gun PP-71M kalashnikov.media

At the same time, at the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant (Izhmekh), Mikhail Dragunov was developing a silent version of the Kedr PP-91B, borrowing parts from the PB pistol. Somewhat later, silent versions appeared briefly in the Bison family in various combinations with a framed side or top stock, as well as automatic or semi-automatic firing modes. They were designed for three variants of 9 mm caliber cartridges (9x17, 9x18 and 9x19 mm), which ultimately amounted to 12 variants of silent “Bisons” with an integrated silencer.

Submachine gun PP-19-01.Sb-05 Magazine "Melee Weapons of Russia"

Return to the classics

All these experiments of the 90s and 2000s remained only in prototypes, failing to interest either the Ministry of Internal Affairs or any other law enforcement agencies. The Ministry of Defense, faced with the need to update standard Soviet-style PB and APB silent pistols, did not find anything better than to start restoring their production. In 2003, more than twenty years after the cessation of production of the PB pistol, fresh samples of silent products appeared at Izhmekh. The differences between the Russian version and the Soviet one are minimal and are mainly of a technological nature. The most significant of them was the presence of a basic version of the pistol with sights without light elements in the front and rear sights.

Comparison of Soviet (bottom) and Russian (top) PB pistols forum.guns.ru

At the same time, TsNIITOCHMASH received an order for the production of new APB pistols. The first batches of new-made pistols were manufactured by converting standard APS using APS parts from existing warehouse stocks. By 2007, design documentation for the O1 letter APB was prepared in Klimovsk, which was planned to be approved by an interdepartmental commission with the participation of representatives of Molot OJSC. It was in Vyatskiye Polyany in the USSR that APS pistols, necessary for the manufacture of APB, were produced. How this story ended is still not clear, as is the fate of the promised restoration of the production of the APS itself at the Molot-Weapon LLC enterprise.

APB pistol produced in 2005 forum.guns.ru

The fact of the “reincarnation” of PB and APB shows that it is too early to write off the 9x18 mm cartridge, and the products themselves are still in demand among representatives of special-purpose units and are capable of effectively performing the tasks facing them.
However, both developers and customers of special silent weapons could pay attention to the implementation of systems with integrated silencers in other calibers. Conventional options with removable gunshot sound suppression devices are unable to provide maximum noiselessness. Specifications

* — with a magazine for 30 rounds

Sources and literature:

1. 9 mm self-loading pistol for silent and flameless shooting. Operating manual 6P9 RE
2. 9 mm automatic pistol for silent and flameless shooting. Quick Service Guide
3. Tactical and technical requirements No. 008233 of military unit 64176-E (for the 4th department). “9 mm submachine gun for silent and flameless shooting under a 9 mm standard pistol cartridge (code “Bouquet”)”, Moscow, 1969
4. Results of field tests of 9 mm submachine guns for silent and flameless shooting (code “Bouquet”), military unit 64176-E, 1975

TT pistol

Developed in 1930, the Tokarev pistol is considered a fairly effective weapon today. However, the obsolescence of the design, insufficient safety parameters and stopping power of the cartridge no longer allow the TT to remain in service. Tokarev created his pistol with an eye on the Browning pistols of 1903 and 1911, in connection with which many researchers claim that Tokarev copied ready-made copies from Browning (“Russian Browning”). Nowadays, traumatic and pneumatic pistols are produced on the basis of TT combat pistols.

These days, the TT has received a bad reputation due to the repeated use of weapons by criminal circles in the USSR and the CIS.

Korovin pistol

The small-sized Korovin pistol of the 1926 model is the first self-loading pistol in the USSR. The pistol, originally created for the Dynamo sports society, soon came into service with the NKVD, and also acted as a personal weapon for high-ranking members of the Communist Party. There are known cases when the Korovin pistol was awarded to particularly distinguished citizens of the USSR.

The small dimensions of the pistol allowed it to be carried secretly, but the frankly weak cartridge forced the leadership of the Red Army to abandon the TK in favor of the more powerful TT in the early 30s.

Pistol Vojvodina

In May 1938, by order of the People's Commissariat of Defense of the USSR, work began on creating a pistol that would best meet the requirements of modern combat. The weapon had to have powerful ammunition, but most importantly, it had to have a revolver-type barrel so that officers could fire from it through the loopholes of tanks. In March 1939, tests were carried out on samples presented by several designers, among which the Voevodina pistol was considered the best - combining the general shape of the Luger P-08, the trigger mechanism from the Mauser C-96 with some changes, and also had an 18-round magazine . But the work on rearmament of the army was never completed - the Great Patriotic War is to blame for this. And after it was over, other requirements began to be put forward for the weapon, and Voevodin’s pistol found itself “out of use.”

The rapid adoption of the Voevodin pistol was prevented not only by the war, but also by the complex technological production process.

Domestic projects of silent revolvers: limited success

Nagan system revolver with silencer br. Mitinykh. Photo Warspot.ru

Since the twenties of the last century, the Soviet military and gunsmiths have shown great interest in the subject of reducing the volume of a shot. They were going to find promising solutions that would make any existing weapon quieter, incl. revolvers. The first solutions of this kind appeared at the end of the decade, and later new projects were developed based on other ideas.

Revolver with silencer

The first domestic design of a silent firing device for a revolver was developed in 1929 by designers V.G. and I.G. Mitin. The BraMit product (Mitin Brothers) was intended for use on a standard Red Army revolver of the Nagant system. This design was subsequently developed and adapted for use with other weapons, including the Mosin rifle.

"BrahMit" in section. Graphics Nagant.info

"BrahMit" was distinguished by a fairly simple design. The main part was a cylindrical body just over 100 mm long with a diameter of approx. 20 mm with a set of internal partitions. Rubber washers with X-shaped slots were attached to the latter. The device was mounted on the barrel of a revolver; for shooting, a cartridge with a new pointed bullet should be used. Such a bullet could pass through the slot of the washer, leaving powder gases behind it.

Muffler br. Mitinykh showed himself well in the tests. It retained the powder gases and prevented them from forming a sound wave. The movable drum, in turn, eliminated the formation of noise due to the breakthrough of gases through the breech of the barrel. The only source of noise was the supersonic bullet.

Gurevich's revolver in the museum. Photo Zonwar.ru

Serial production of several BraMit devices for various weapons was launched in the early forties. Quite quickly it was possible to reach high production rates, and every year the Red Army received several tens of thousands of silencers. They were very popular among scouts, snipers and partisans. In addition, the enemy showed interest in the Brahmits.

Principle of hydraulic transmission

For all its advantages, the Mitin brothers' silencer had limited effectiveness and could not make the shot completely silent.
The search for alternative solutions led to the emergence of a fundamentally new rifle complex. Design engineer E.S. Gurevich proposed ammunition of an unusual design, and also developed a weapon for it. The basis of the complex was a “cartridge based on the principle of hydraulic transmission.” The oversized cartridge case contained a powder charge, a wad-piston and a bullet. It was proposed to fill the space between the wad and the bullet with liquid. When fired, the powder gases had to push the wad, acting through it on the liquid. The latter was intended to push the bullet out. Having reached the muzzle of the cartridge case, the wad stopped and locked the gases inside. Thus, the Gurevich cartridge was the first domestic gas-cut-off ammunition brought to testing.

The operating principle of "hydraulic transmission". Graphics Zonwar.ru

The first cartridges with 5.6 and 6.5 mm caliber bullets were made in metal. Single-shot pistols with a breaking design were made especially for them. Then a 7.62 mm cartridge and a revolver for it appeared. Its characteristic feature was a relatively long drum with capacity for five rounds. During the tests, three types of cartridges were used with the revolver, differing in weight and propellant. The latter was a mixture of ethanol and glycerol.

Revolver and cartridge E.S. Gurevich passed field tests, incl. with comparison with Nagan. The new weapon showed a number of advantages in key indicators, but did not fully suit the Red Army and needed improvement. Work on improving the revolver continued until the end of the Great Patriotic War, after which it stopped due to lack of interest on the part of the customer.

Modern approach

In the post-war period, a major rearmament of the army and other structures took place, as a result of which the number of Nagans in service sharply decreased, and their place was taken by new self-loading pistols. As a result, the issue of creating silent firing means for revolvers lost its relevance for several decades.

Revolver OTs-38. Photo of KBP

However, work on the topic of noiselessness has not stopped. In the fifties, a new gas cut-off cartridge SP-2 was created. In the following decades, several similar models with different characteristics were developed, as well as weapons for them. The appearance of such ammunition later again led to the appearance of a silent revolver.

A new weapon of this kind was developed only in the late nineties - it was the OTs-38 revolver, authored by I.Ya. Stechkina from TsKIB SOO. According to known data, at the turn of the decade this model passed all the necessary tests and in 2002 entered service with some structures. The first public display of the OTs-38 took place only in 2005 at one of the international exhibitions.

The OTs-38 is a compact weapon chambered for a cartridge with an SP-4 cut-off. In general it is similar to other revolvers, but has several interesting features. The shot is fired from the lower chamber of the drum, and the barrel is located below. There is a built-in laser designator above the barrel. The trigger mechanism is equipped with a double-sided safety. The five-round drum tilts forward and to the right for reloading.

Cartridges with SP-4 cut-off. Photo Vitalykuzmin.net

The OTs-38 revolver can be carried in a cocked state and fire the first shot as quickly as possible. The lower barrel reduces the toss and increases accuracy, and the SP-4 cartridge eliminates the formation of noise by escaping gases.

Weapons without a future

The advantages and benefits of silent weapons are obvious. For this reason, over the years, new silent systems and devices have been regularly developed to complement existing weapons. However, despite all the progress in this area, silent revolvers remain a rather rare class and are not widely used - both in our country and abroad. Self-loading pistols with silencers have become much more popular.

A fighter with OTs-38. Photo of KBP

Over the entire period of time, only a few silent revolvers were created in our country, and the last known design appeared after a break of several decades. It is curious that domestic projects, despite their small number, managed to use all the main methods of hiding sound. It all started with a device that prevented hot gases from entering the atmosphere, then they moved on to gas cut-off cartridges and later improved this idea.

However, the improvement processes did not have a fundamental impact on the issues of weapon operation. At one time, “Nagans” with “BrahMits” were widely used and were actively used by the army and state security, but modern OTs-38s are used extremely limitedly and only by certain structures.

The armed forces and special services preferred special pistols chambered for cartridges with a cut-off and self-loading systems with an installed silencer over revolvers. Such weapons turned out to be simpler, more convenient and reliable. Probably, the real history of silent revolvers in service is approaching its end, and all new projects of this kind will immediately fall into the category of technical curiosities without a future.

Revolver Nagant

The famous Russian revolvers were created by the Belgian designer Leon Nagan. Moreover, the revolver was created in two modifications - “soldier” and “officer”. The models differed in the design of the trigger mechanism - the soldier's required pre-cocking of the hammer for each shot, the officer's had a self-cocking mechanism. Created in 1895, the revolver went through dozens of military conflicts with honor, became one of the symbols of the 1917 revolution and, in the officer version, was in service with various units until 2000.

Several dozen sports, hunting and traumatic weapons were created on the basis of the Nagan revolver.

The order of firing a shot from the NRS/NRS-2

Goltyakov revolver

The Russian revolver of the Tula designer Goltyakov, model 1866, was developed for arming the Imperial Army and Navy, but was not widely used due to the purchase and localization of production of revolvers from foreign designers. However, Goltyakov’s design was not unique - he used an American Adams revolver chambered for a 44-caliber capsule cartridge as the basis for creating the weapon. It is worth noting that Russian officers, interested in the price, purchased Goltyakov revolvers, but there is no exact data on the number of revolvers supplied.

Revolvers of the Russian Empire, produced by Goltyakov, were released in the amount of 70 copies, the fate of which is unknown these days.

History of the invention of silencers

Over time, combat tactics began to change, the military began to make more efforts to disguise their location and movement from the enemy, to get rid of the “smoke screen” in order to conduct more accurate shooting at the enemy. First, the “sparkling and glare” surfaces on military weapons, which could have given away the shooters’ location to the enemy from afar, were eliminated. The advent of smokeless powder made it possible to get rid of the unmasking effect of combustion products of black powder. To improve camouflage, the color of the soldiers' uniform was changed to a protective one - khaki, ideally imitating the color of the general background or landscape of the battlefield. Then, for the first time, the need for a “silent” shot arose, and they considered the need for such not for special forces, but for large-scale introduction into the troops.

It was after the introduction of smokeless powder that work began on devices to suppress the sound of a shot. In 1898, French Colonel Humbert designed the first working model of a silencer. The device was installed at the end of the barrel and was a “cylinder” with a channel. Inside the nozzle there was a ball lying below the muzzle; when fired, the bullet flew freely, but the powder gases moving behind it picked up the ball, it rolled along the inclined wall of the nozzle and tightly plugged the outlet of the muffler. The gases were locked in the barrel; they could only be slowly released through the holes in the rear wall of the muffler.

During tests carried out by the French industry, it was revealed that although the sound level and muzzle flash were noticeably reduced, the breakthrough of gases outward, even before the bullet exited the barrel, did not allow the desired target to be achieved, and recoil did not decrease at all. In addition, there were other shortcomings: the valve quickly became clogged with powder deposits and stopped working; the shock wave of powder gases flowing back unpleasantly deafened the shooter himself; the silencer could only operate if the weapon was in a horizontal position; when shooting up or down, the ball covered either the barrel of the rifle or the outlet of the nozzle before the shot was fired, which could lead to a rupture of the barrel. And in general, the invention required serious modifications, so it never received widespread use.

In 1899, a new attempt was made to create a muffler. Two Danish gunsmiths Borrensen and Sigbjørsen received a patent for such a device, but were never able to bring the idea to life and create a well-functioning design. The first silencer, which was a commercial success, was designed in 1907 by the American inventor Hiram Percy Maxim and was further developed by him together with his father, the creator of one of the most famous machine guns, Hiram Stevens Maxim.

The “Maxim silencer” is a small tube made of sheet steel, 1.5 inches (3.81 cm) in diameter and 4 (10.16 cm) to 6 (15.24 cm) inches long, depending on the rifle model, for which it is intended for. For a 22 caliber rifle the silencer is about 4 inches long, and for a 30 caliber rifle it is 6 inches long. The weight of the invention ranges from 6 (170 g) to 9 (255 g) ounces. In order to attach the silencer to the rifle, it is pushed along the channel onto the muzzle end of the barrel, and then quickly turned three-quarters of a turn, while the screw threads should fit into the threads of the muzzle end of the barrel. When fired from an ordinary rifle without a silencer, powder gases, at the moment the bullet leaves the barrel, burst into the air at high speed and set air particles into rapid oscillatory motion, thus creating strong sound waves, which gives rise to a characteristic sound. The purpose of the muffler is to contain the powder gases escaping from the channel; turn their linear motion into rotational motion around the axis of the muffler; reduce the speed of movement of the powder gases and force them to gradually and calmly flow out of the muffler so that when they enter the atmosphere they cause a barely audible sound.

The first information about the silent “Maxim rifle” appeared in the Scientific American magazine. The journalist who attended the presentation of this device described in detail how the newest invention was presented to the public. Those present at this test were amazed by the results; there were rumors that the muffler absorbed up to 90% of the sound from the shot.

The inventor very clearly and simply explained to the audience the basic principle on which he built the silencer, comparing the phenomenon that occurs during a shot Apple Watch 2 buy in Kyiv with a pool filled with water. If you remove the drain plug, the water will rotate quickly, and the centrifugal force that develops causes the water to press with great force on the side walls of the pool. As soon as the speed of the rotational movement decreases, the water decreases under the influence of gravity and flows out of the drain hole; the flow occurs slowly, and the pool empties gradually. In the channel of the “Maxim silencer”, powder gases at the exit from the barrel are captured by a number of spirally arranged partitions, due to which the rectilinear movement of these gases is converted into rotational. When the speed of movement of the powder gases, due to friction against the walls of the channel and the indicated partitions, is significantly reduced, the powder gases silently flow into the air.

Every year the inventor changed and improved his device; various versions of its design were patented in 1908, 1909. and in 1910 a company was created for serial production of mufflers - industrial production of the most advanced version began. A somewhat more successful design was presented in 1914. But still, this area of ​​​​military equipment remained not very popular. In various countries, including Russia, silencers began to be sold privately; there were even silencers for smoothbore guns on sale. Hunters were the first to appreciate the advantages of a silent shot - when hunting an animal or bird, a miss did not frighten the prey and the hunter could calmly take aim again. The invention was quickly appreciated by criminals, which is why, for example, in the USA in 1934 the sale of such devices was legally restricted.

In fact, the “military career” of suppressors began during the Second World War. With the outbreak of large-scale hostilities, interest in the problem of reducing the sound of a shot revived again, although these devices still remained quite rare. The growing importance of reconnaissance and sabotage operations behind enemy lines led to the emergence of corresponding units, units and the rapid development of various new ones and the improvement of existing weapons and special equipment for them. At first, “classic” knives and crossbows were used in such operations, but it immediately became clear to everyone that silent firearms were much more effective and better suited for such operations. German agents were the first to use weapons with a silencer; it was the Luger P08 Parabellum pistol.

The Parabellum model with an expansion-type silencer was produced only for special services; the pistol is considered the most labor-intensive and expensive, since the production of one copy took 12.5 man-hours, 778 separate operations, of which 136 were performed manually, and 6 were also needed, 1 kg of metal, while the mass of the weapon itself was 890 g. It was the high purchase price, high time costs and a significant proportion of manual labor in production that became the main reasons for the start of work on designing a new pistol for the German army to replace the Luger P08 Parabellum.

The effective use of Parabellum pistols with silencers by German agents forced their opponents to reconsider their attitude towards silent weapons. Soviet partisans, reconnaissance and sabotage groups of the Red Army and the NKVD in the rear of German troops began to use a sniper version of the three-line Mosin rifle with the Bramit device, named after its developers - the Mitin brothers. The device is a cylinder with a diameter of 32 mm and a length of 140 mm. “Bramit” consists of two chambers, each of which ends with a seal - a cylindrical gasket made of soft rubber 15 mm thick. A cut-off device is placed in the first chamber; two holes with a diameter of about a millimeter are drilled in the walls of the chambers to bleed off powder gases. When fired, the bullet pierces both seals in turn and comes out of the gases, breaking through the first seal along with the bullet, expanding in the same way in the second chamber, which is why the sound of the shot is dampened. A similar muffler was developed for the Nagan system revolver mod. 1895

Margolin pistol

The Margolin small-caliber pistol was created for sport shooting at a round target at distances of up to 25 meters. The pistol demonstrates a simple and reliable design and excellent shooting performance. It is for this reason that it has been in production and in service with various shooting clubs for 70 years. MC (Margolina Target) is produced in two modifications with a trunk length of 18 and 14 cm, and their subspecies.

There is also a less common traumatic version of the Margolin sports pistol.

The history of the creation of the presented weapons

At that time, the weapons presented had excellent fighting qualities. A special advantage of this device was its noiselessness. However, there were certain disadvantages: the bullet’s low lethal effect (a bulletproof vest could protect it from hitting the enemy), in addition, the effective firing range was not very high. Naturally, over time, these flaws were eliminated, as the pistol was repeatedly modified and improved.

To do this, developers began to experiment with the length of the weapon's muzzle and create new cartridges in which the powder gases were cut off in the cartridge case. This made it possible to abandon silencers.

In 1983, the special self-loading pistol PSS was improved as much as possible. To date, such weapons do not exist.