Sniper May be Using These: "Silent Cartridges" of USSR & Russia

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[icantbleaveit]

Ex-TopSecret "Silent Cartridges" of USSR & Russia.

They have no give-away muzzle flash when fired - and there is no recoil. The bullets are designed to be used in rifles CIA armourers have developed. They have twice the range of ordinary sniper weapons and a killing accuracy of a mile.

http://www.world.guns.ru/ammo/sp-e.htm

[icantbleaveit]

Any gun experts out there?

[Enterprise]

Fascinating if true. I hope someone can shed further light on this.

[elhombrelibre]

We know the round recovered is a .223 Remington or as the military says 5.56 mm. I didn't go to the Russian web site, so I don't know if they even made this bullet. I believe the lethality of a .223 isn't very good at modest ranges let alone at a mile. I'd say the effectiveness so far is largely do to well-placed shots on unsuspecting targets. In other words, a .22 caliber long rifle could do that at the right ranges. That's my two cents.

[LibKill]

Any gun experts out there?

I'm just semi-expert.

He is not using a silenced weapon or cartridges. A Cop was working a traffic accident accross the street from the last victim and heard the shot.

[Rifleman]

Most unlikely. The cops have been emphisizing the .223/5.56mm bullet. I think a projectile fired this way would have distinctive marks on it (dented base if nothing else. This is also a VERY low performance way to fire a bullet. It would be hard to kill someone with a 40 or 60 grain bullet moving at the low velocities that this gimmick would produce.

There is a principle of thought called Occam's Razor. Meaning don't invent complicated scenarios when simple ones will do.

[icantbleaveit]

Is this the ONLY report of a shot that was heard?

[ALS]

nah, won't fly. here's an excerpt:
"Of course, such loads cannot be powerful, but they are strong enough to pierce standart steel helmet at some 20 meters (60 feets) and to kill person who wear that helmet. Good enough for almost any killer!"

[elhombrelibre]

Only subsonic rounds lend themselves to being silent. This round is travelling at around 3,000 feet per second. It's probably the 55 grain variety, but it may be the 70 grain weight. Still it's going to make a lot of noice.

[MediaMole]

According to the article you reference, the handgun version is effective to 20 meters and uses a 7.62mm bullet (.30 cal). The rifle version is a standard, subsonic round effective to 400 meters and is also a 7.62mm round.

It doesn't fit what we know about the shooter.

Additionally, one witness described the shot yesterday as "like a bomb..."

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

I know that the silent but deadly method has long been used in gas warfare...this would be a whole new development.

[LibKill]

Is this the ONLY report of a shot that was heard?

I honestly don't know. I got this one off of FOX TV news (a source I usually trust) but I don't watch the news too often.

Anyone with a little training and a scoped rifle could replicate this disgusting crime. Silence is not really a factor as all of the crimes have occurred very close to freeway on-ramps, providing quick escape.

I hope the S.O.B.s involved are struck dead, and right soon.

[icantbleaveit]

Israeli Snipers Provided With 'Invisible Bullets'

[Grut]

The Navy developed a 12 ga. shotgun load for its SEALs using the same principle back in the 70s, but from what I remember reading about it the MV was only around 400-500 FPS. At any rate, it was dropped.

[kcordell]

Is this the ONLY report of a shot that was heard?

It is the only one that any witnesses have reported hearing. I've been wondering why no one at the school has said anything about hearing a gun shot. Lots of stuff being kept close to the vest on this case. The 223 is a "small game" load. Max. distance of about 400 yds. but, not very accurate at that distance. At 100 to 150 yds. acuracy is is fairly good.

[LibKill]

Only subsonic rounds lend themselves to being silent. This round is travelling at around 3,000 feet per second. It's probably the 55 grain variety, but it may be the 70 grain weight. Still it's going to make a lot of noise.

It is possible to completely silence the sound of the cartridge from a much higher-powered cartridge.

What cannot be silenced is the sound of a bullet breaking the sound barrier. But, that sound is not very loud, about like a child's cap pistol. A firecracker is very much louder.

[P8riot]

I thought that someone had heard a shot on the first day of this rampage.

[CobaltBlue]

People at the scenes say they heard a loud bang. For example, the witnesses to the shooting of the guy mowing the lawn said they thought the lawn mower blew up.

[FreePaul]

With reference to the article mentioned:

If they can accelerate the piston to bullet velocity (or higher) in the length of the case and stop it instantly without making any noise I'd be very surprised. If you could hit a bullet with a hammer hard enough to get it out of the barrel with useful velocity there should be some noise. At least they didn't mention the 150 mile per gallon carburetor.

[apochromat]

Somehow I have the feeling that taxpayer money is involved in their training, perhaps even foreign aid.

[Double Tap]

They have no give-away muzzle flash when fired - and there is no recoil. The bullets are designed to be used in rifles CIA armourers have developed. They have twice the range of ordinary sniper weapons and a killing accuracy of a mile.

This statement is not supported by the information in the article. The article clearly states that the silent rounds are not for long range, and the long range rounds are pretty much the same concept that has been used for years. Heavy bullet moving slower than sound, with a suppressed firearm.