WEAPONS OF THE WORLD: Silent Sniper Rifle

StrategyPage.com ^ | September 29, 2003

[John Jorsett]

The lowly .22 caliber long rifle round is becoming a favorite among snipers. Professional assassins (usually thugs working for organized crime) have long favored using .22 caliber (5.56mm) pistols for their work. While not a powerful round, if you shoot someone up close with a .22 caliber pistol several things are noted.

1- The victim is dead if you shoot him in the head, whish is what pros usually aim for (as these guys like to say, "two in the head and you know he's dead.")

2- There is hardly any sound if you use a silencer, and not much even if you don't.

3-A 22 caliber pistol is small, even with a silencer. That makes it easier to conceal, and easier to dispose of.

Then the Russians noted that Chechen snipers were effectively using .22 LR (long rifle, them little bullets kids use to hunt squirrels and rabbits with) weapons. Inside towns and cities, the .22 LR sniper was very effective, especially since the Chechens would improvise a very workable silencer by putting a plastic bottle on the end of the rifle's barrel, with a hole in the bottom of the barrel for the bullet to exit. Using a cheap scope, Chechen snipers were very deadly at ranges of less than a hundred meters. Such ranges were pretty common in built up areas. And since you usually did not hear the shot (to the head or face, of course), you had a hard time finding the shooter. Having suffered from these low tech .22 caliber Chechen snipers for ten years, the Russians have come out with their own professional .22 LR sniper rifle, the SV-99. This is a little heavier (at 8.3 pounds) than your usual .22 LR rifle, but is built for professionals. It has a heavier barrel, a bipod, silencer and scope. It's 39 inches long and can accept five, eight or ten round magazines. There is a compartment in the butt stock for two five round magazines. With the SV-99, at a hundred meters, a skilled shooter can consistently put all rounds in a half inch circle. This is a specialist weapon, most likely used by commandos. But any trained sniper can quickly adapt to using it. And snipers like not being heard.

[Yo-Yo]

Then the Russians noted that Chechen snipers were effectively using .22 LR (long rifle, them little bullets kids use to hunt squirrels and rabbits with) weapons.

Of course, for years and years one of the few rifles that the Soviets let civilians keep were .22LR target rifles, for Olympic style shooting sports such as winter Biathlon. You use what you have, and a well tuned .22LR target rifle by definition makes a decent sniper rifle.

[RogueIsland]

Oh, great. Now Chuckie Schumer can say I've got a half-dozen "sniper rifles" in my safe.

You joke, but I think we both know that that's the antis' end-game.

[SVTCobra03]

I think you mean mercury fulminate.

[ExSoldier]

Some folks didn't pick up on a few things here, plus I have some humble observations.

The lowly .22 caliber long rifle round is becoming a favorite among snipers. Professional assassins (usually thugs working for organized crime) have long favored using .22 caliber (5.56mm) pistols for their work. While not a powerful round, if you shoot someone up close with a .22 caliber pistol several things are noted.

Thugs working for the mob aren't usually good enough to put a placed shot where it needs to go with a .22 which is through an eyeball. MOSSAD TRAINS FOR THIS, and so do a lot of other organizations, but not the mob. ALSO when was the last time you saw a hitter using a 5.56mm round in a handgun? That's the .223 Remington round, folks...what is used in the M-16! Somebody not familiar with guns, nomenclature, and ballistics wrote this article...which is another reason to discount the entire thing.

1- The victim is dead if you shoot him in the head, whish is what pros usually aim for (as these guys like to say, "two in the head and you know he's dead.")

Ooooooh I LIKE that little turn of the phrase...I might use it as my tagline! But two in the head...HAS to mean two through the eyes with a .22 or even two into the cranial vault (the forehead) with a bigger caliber like a 9mm subsonic.

2- There is hardly any sound if you use a silencer, and not much even if you don't.

Hey a .22LR will still crack the sound barrier and produce some noise. But a little .22 short is really quiet, but that brings back the issue of shot placement, and skill.

3-A 22 caliber pistol is small, even with a silencer. That makes it easier to conceal, and easier to dispose of.

Maybe, but any silenced pistol that is not factory made is going to be a BEAR to aim effectively because there will not be a decent sight radius to take advantage of the legthened barrel. In fact there might not even be a sight picture to speak of because (again assuming a "homemade hushpuppy") the "can" tends to be a larger diameter than the original weapon's specs. Something manufactured by Gem-Tech for a specific gun and registered etc is a different story!

[Phsstpok]

I think you mean mercury fulminate.

Probably. Hey, I'm impressed that I remembered the mercury part. I saw the movie in the theater when it was new - 30 years ago!!!!! 7;^>

[Axenolith]

Wouldn't the shock of firing detonate the fulminate in the barrel? Seems like with the liquid metal you'd get a fragmentation (squirting) effect while cutting down some of the energy previously wasted ripping apart the round.

[CHICAGOFARMER]

Hey a .22LR will still crack the sound barrier and produce some noise

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Not true, breaking the sound barrier stuff for assination will not occur if done correctly. The soft tissue behind the ear can easily take two and never crack the sound barrier. With the pistol tucked neatly behind the ear lobe. In is all in the technique.

[Travis McGee]

Great movie, a classic, a trainig film.

[Travis McGee]

It's SOP for reporters to bungle gun facts. .223 = .22 is just a classic example. Reporters don't know rifles from shotguns, and are proud of their ignorance.

[Just another Joe]

I knew I had seen that quote somewhere. LOL

[Joe Brower]

"Will this "sniper rifle" be banned along with the .50BMG "sniper" rifles? Which one is more likely to be used in a crime?"

Hey, they're all "sniper rifles", and either one could be used in crime, ergo, ban them all.

Ban, ban, ban.

[Leatherneck_MT]

I never saw him use it no. But in the 23 years I have known him I have never known him to lie to me. So the only conclusion I can come to is that what he said was true. No, I have no idea on how he did it, he just said he "Stuck a tater on the end". That's how he put it.

[neverdem]

"I never saw him use it no. But in the 23 years I have known him I have never known him to lie to me. So the only conclusion I can come to is that what he said was true. No, I have no idea on how he did it, he just said he "Stuck a tater on the end". That's how he put it."

I seem to remember from training that if a weapon became immersed in water, that you needed to open the action and break any seal to insure that any water in the barrel would drain, or you risk having the action or barrel explode when you fire the weapon. Maybe that's the case only with centerfire rounds, not rimfires.

That's was the thinking when I asked about boring out the spud. Are you still in contact with your friend? If so I'm still curious.

[Leatherneck_MT]

I wish I was. I haven't seen him in quite sometime. I can try to get in touch with him and see if he can explain how he did that. You've got me thinking now lol, now I want to know.

[neverdem]

Thanks for the prompt reply. Keep on thinking. Don't stop, they say it reduces the risk for Alzhiemer's. I hope you remember me if you make contact, assuming I can still think.

[Leatherneck_MT]

lol if I don't have Alzheimers by then and forget to respond to you I'll let you know :)

[Duke809]

The IDF used custom 10/22's to take out known Pali terrorists. They would aim for the leg, hip, and area's like that to wound them and remove them from the action, usually from 50 to 100 meters.

Then some of the snipers started aiming for the upper back, neck, shoulders and such and ended up killing the Pali's. For some reason, either the politico's or IDF command stopped it.

This is one of the sites where there is info on the IDF using 10/22 rifles. I'll see if I can find the other.

IDF 10/22 Sniper Rifles

[BCR #226]

Interesting article. Point of correction though, no suppressed weapon is without noise. The reason for this is the impact noise on the target. If the Russians were smart, they could use this to their advantage.

Mike

[MHGinTN]

Sweet Potato works better than an Idaho ... core out a slot to insert the barrel ... the suppression works by dissipating/blunting the shock wave coming out the end of the barrel. Plastic coke bottles work better, but you have to retrieve the bottel after each shot.

[Leatherneck_MT]

Sounds like a man who's done it before :) Thanks for the heads up :)