Conventional weapons can be created, and for self-defense, and to simply scare or stop the enemy. But the silent weapon is always created exclusively for murder. Two basic ways, place to deal with the sound of gunfire, It was invented and patented at the turn of XIX - XX centuries, but the military and intelligence agencies of different countries seriously paid attention to the details of the invention just before the Second World War.
So 1929 in the USSR brothers Ivan and Vasily Mitya received a patent for his revolver "for silent shooting", based at the Nagano Systems. Revolver Mitya Brothers used cartridges with bullets subcaliber, and the gap between the sleeve and a cylindrical bullet filled tray, who played the role of a piston. At the end of the gun barrel was mounted drum with an additional chamber, which passed a small-caliber bullet, but stopped pallet, locking a gun barrel the powder gases (after they shot etched through the gaps). Remaining in the second drum pallets were removed after a shot by hand using a cleaning rod. another invention, which also used the principle cutoff propellant gases, a revolver and cartridges silent Gurevich, It started in the years of the Great Patriotic War.
Gurevich suggested the following solution: the powder in the pocket closed steel wad, which is embedded in paraffin, and distilled water was poured on top and only then inserted into the sleeve with the bullet. When steel shot wad squeezed water, which broke up and a bullet in the barrel of a revolver, and he wad wedging inside the sleeve. This weapon was passed comprehensive tests, however, it proved to be not very reliable model. The testers noted liner breaks, loss sleeve with a bullet, and the fact, that water can freeze at just frosty weather. Many of these comments persists, for example, question with freezing liquid has been resolved. In any case, we can say that, that silent revolver Gurevich was quite unusual model of small arms.
Notably, that the author of the design was the engineer, pertaining to NKVD. The ratio was two-fold - he was able to visit and prisoners, while previously Samoylovich Yevgeny Gurevich himself for a long time worked in various structures of the Cheka, GPU, and was even personally acquainted with Dzerzhinsky. AT 1941 , he again went to work in the NKVD, this time as an engineer armorer. Initially, he was involved in finalizing the 50-mm mortars, but quickly I got a new job.
Yevgeny Gurevich Samoylovich
Designer himself later recalled. «AT 1942 year, working in the Archangel NKVD in the development and production of company 50-mm mortars my design, I received from Mr.. P. Shnyukova deputy head of the NKVD new task to develop silent ammunition, since different rubber mufflers and tips such as "Brahm" did not meet the needs of special-purpose weapons. As a result, it was necessary to smash his head firmly, having tried dozens of different options, to May 1943 year provide a cartridge, who shot without smoke, smell, impact and without noise. At work, I helped, what, beginning with 1936 of the year, I was an inventor, accumulated in this area a great experience. In Arkhangelsk three models of pistols were manufactured and ammunition.
At the end 1943 the year of the invention was reported to Malenkov personally and on his direct order samples were thoroughly examined and tested. As a result, GAU CA - Main Artillery Directorate of the Red Army has developed tactical and technical requirements, and Tula, in CDB-14, where I was sent on a business trip, it was produced 53 revolver, two pistols and order 1000 cartridges for them. A sample of new weapons and ammunition held in 1944 year field testing at the landfill Shchurovsky, where they received a positive response and were adopted».
Eugene Gourevitch himself received for its development thanks to an order from the Marshal of Artillery Voronov.
You can talk about, in May 1943 year Yevgeny Gurevich made a real breakthrough in the development of silent weapon, using cut-off of propellant gases in the cartridge holder, it has been in practice applied the principle of "liquid pusher". Between the piston and the bullet in its liquid was revolver, which pushes the bullet through a gun barrel bore. The liquid volume was comparable with the volume of the bore, and the piston, having made a motion to Dultsev sleeve, I rested on it and locking the propellant gases within the enclosed volume of the liner. Simultaneously wad displacing water from the liner, For this reason, the bullet moved through the channel Gurevich revolver barrel with liquid outflow rate. Since water, as well as other liquids, It is virtually incompressible, the movement speed of a bullet is as many times greater speed wad, how many times the cross sectional area of the gun barrel bore is less than the cross-sectional area of the sleeve (It implemented the principle of hydraulic gear).
As a result of the proposed design solutions with the shot lacked sound shockwave, a low initial speed of a bullet (189-239 m / s) also excluded the possibility of a ballistic wave. This ensures almost complete quiet shot, but forms a large cloud of "splash" could give arrow. Furthermore the use of water as the pusher arms bullet difficult to use at low temperatures in winter air. The disadvantages also include a large loss of energy of powder gases, energy is expended in overcoming the resistance when the fluid overflow. For its noiseless firing bullets Gurevich designed two single-charged 5.6-mm gun caliber 6.5 mm, who worked on the principle of conventional hunting rifle, five-shot revolver and 7.62 mm caliber.
Both singly pistols were not full-fledged combat samples of small arms, but rather experimental models for testing in practice the idea of "patron on the principle of hydraulic transmission ', as described the decision in the documents of those years. Both singly gun tested in November 1943 of the year, showing a number of problems with extraction and cartridge strength. Despite the shortcomings, Test-officers stressed, that the application of the principle of Eugene Gourevitch is quite suitable for the development of special purpose hand-held weapons.
The next step was the development of the designer of this combat system - revolver. It was a five-shot weapon with a trigger mechanism double action. It is worth noting, that the axis of the drum can get out revolver, This makes it relatively quickly replaced with a new drum fitted out, in that case, if in the first drum inflated sleeve are stuck in gap chambers. It should be noted, that the problem Gurevich and could not be solved without the performance degradation of ammunition used.
Gun turned out quite large, and its appearance was not exactly elegant. Looking for weapons, the feeling, that gun is too cluttered, I saw a very large contrast between himself and his revolver handle. Appearance revolver could be explained by the fact, that the weapons do not feed on the smallest size cartridges, which in turn causes the size of the drum, and hence the entire model as a whole.
On Shchurovsky landfill 7.62mm revolver Gurevich, along with special battle stuff for him was in July 1944 of the year. For comparative test was used full-time at that time Nagant revolver with a silencer system such as "Bram", and also with special cartridges (with a pointed bullet). At equal weight samples, Gurevich revolver different smaller dimensions and thus distinguished greater length sighting, Nagant revolver than a system with a silencer. By revolver Eugene Gourevitch there are three types of cartridges, which differed lifting powder and nozzle length. The mixture was used as the liquid, consisting in the 40 percent of glycerol and 60 percent of alcohol.
First revolvers checked "to sound" - from both samples had shot one drum. to the observer,, and more specifically, the listener, which was located in the 40 away from the shooter, the sound of gunfire from the Nagant silenced perceived as distant shots of small-bore rifle. At the same time the sound of shots from a revolver Gurevich was weaker, besides, he was not like the shot. The report indicated, he was more like the sound of a bottle opener. Two revolvers compared observers, were present at the target, We heard only the sound of a bullet and it hit the target itself. In this case, the bullet, fired from a revolver Nagant system, published a strong humming sound, a bullet from a revolver Gurevich - a quiet hiss, which was not heard at each shot. Also, observers noted, revolver that Gurevich was stable and fired heap, although at a distance 50 meters a second revolver showed a little better.
For revolvers and was tested for the ability of penetrating bullets. At a distance of the same 50 meters bullet fired from it consistently punched four rows of lead boards, and in some cases was fixed penetration and five boards. At the same time, a bullet from a revolver stuck in Gurevich third one board. However, as it recorded in the report, that was enough, the bullet at a distance 50 It has energy meters, capable incapacitate human.
But Gurevich presented silent revolver was able to play in the shooting in difficult conditions. During the firing tests at freezing weapon at the silencer "bartender" first shot knocked the front stopper - frozen rubber has lost its elastic properties. At the same time talk about some shooting accuracy it has been impossible - even bullets at a distance 8-10 meters left in the direction of approximately 60 centimeters, and inspection holes shown testers, that the target they flew sideways. At the same time the gun Gurevich and after freezing showed himself infallible weapon. A spent bullets experiments showed, that the mixture used 40/60 (glycerol / alcohol) It will be fully operational at temperatures of up to -75 degrees Celsius. actually the only, than the silent revolver Yevgeny Gurevich did not suit the military, were its weight and size characteristics. Then the army wanted to get more than a small and light weapons, good, prospects for improvements in this area are clearly distinguishable.
The final withdrawal of the Main Artillery Directorate of the results of ground tests stated that, that Artkom GAU SC considers it necessary to make in the CDB-14 IEC series of silent revolver Gurevich in the amount of 50 copies, and 5 thousands of rounds of ammunition to them to carry out extensive testing on NIPSMVO, as well as special units of the Red Army and shot courses. In addition it was proposed revolver cartridges to check for leaks during prolonged storage, and under different operating conditions.
However, with the completion of the Great Patriotic War, interest in this model of weapons disappeared. Seriously back to the development of these cartridges until the late 1950s, true, by liquid, which served as the pusher, It was abandoned. The USSR had created quite a number of rounds of samples, among which: 7,62-mm cartridges "Snake" from, PZA, PZAM for double-barreled guns C-4 and C-4M "Rain"; 7,62-mm cartridges SP-2 and SP-3 - compact pistol for firing ICP and LDC knife; 7,62-mm cartridge SP-4 - MSS for autoloading pistol and firing knife NRS-2 and several other samples.
revolver Gurevich
In any case, today we can talk about, that Gurevich design, likely, really it was the world's first silent patron, which had been brought to the active sample stage, passed state tests, It was adopted for mass-produced and, however small series.
