The Adair County news., 1909-03-03
SHOOTING IN SILENCE
Efficiency of Hiram'P. Maxim's
Sound Killer Proved.
DEVICE USED ON MANY GUNS
Report of an Army Rifle With "Si-
lencer" Attached No Louder Than
an Air Gun-Inventor Says the De-
vice Will Work Perfectly on Cannon.

an Air Gun-Inventor Says the De-
vice Will Work Perfectly on Cannon.
Hiram Percy Maxim gave the first
public demonstration the other day of
his new rifle silencer, the latest of bis
inventions, before a group of newspa-
per men in the offices of his firm of
cOunselors in New York city. The 81
lencer reduced the report from the
highest powered rifles of this and for
eign countries to the noise made by
the initial cleavage Of the air and the
puck" of the bullet as it struck in a
packed sand backstop. The whole
sound was no louder than that made
by the discharge of an air rifle in an
inclosed gallery.
There was on hand in the lawyers
Offices a collection of rifles running all
the way from the little Winchester
% repeater to the Springfield 80,
the United States army rifle and the
most powerful of it's kind in the world
Taking the Winchester % first, Mr..
Maxim fired shot from the naked
gun to give an idea Of the report
Then he fired with the silencer attach
ed. There was a click about as loud
as one would make by swapping the
trigger on an old fashioned musket.
'Now," said Mr.. Maxim, "if you will
analyZe that noise under proper condi-
lions you will find out that it consists
of two noises, one produced by the i'm
pact of the bullet, the other by the
cleavage of the air. You don't hear
the gun at all, although you may think
you do The proof Of this comes when
you make a test under military condi-
tons, with the target at sufficient
range so that the impact of the bullet
is not heard. Then you hear only the
swish that comes from the initial
cleavage of the air. At the target you
hear the bullet strike and wait in vain
for the report of the gun"
He went on next to test the Silencer
with 30 Winchester automatic. The
result was not as good with this
Der did not remain altogether closed,
and a certain report came from the
breech of the weapon. But the silencer
applied TO Winchester 80 high pow
er sporting rife reduced its report to
the puck" that an air gun might make
The same was the case with q six
millimeter Mannlicher military rife, a
seven millimeter Mauser, 3240 Ste
vens markSman's target rife and a
Springfield 30, the new United States
army rifle. The demonstration with
the last gun was particularly con-
vincing After firing it a couple of
times with the silencer Mr. Maxim
took little wooden frame to which
was attached. by metallic paper clip
one of his calling cards. This card
he held by means of the frame imme-
diately in front of the muzzle Of the
The explosion Of the gases not only
blew the card to pieces, but shattered
the wooden frame and put the paper
clip out of commission. Then Mr.. Max
i'm took another card and, having at
tached the silencer to the rife, held it
zle. The gun was fred Mr.. Maxim
exhibited a card with the "Mr." shot
out of it as cleanly as though the
bullet had Travelled its target distance
The card was not burned and only
slightly discolored by the gases
Mr.. Maxim explained also that the
silencer diminished by about so pei
/ cent the recoil of gun on which il
( was used. He was asked if it could be
/ applied successfully to larger ordnance
and replied in the affirmative. Mr.
! Maxim declared that it would be easier
to apply the silencer to cannon. up tc
the largest calibers, than to small
/ arms, for the reason that the element
! of weight would not be a problem tC
reckon with.
! The Maxim Silencer, which is at
tached to the muZzle Of the gun, has
4 the outward appearance of a thin stee
/ tube little longer and greater il
diameter than a box of stick shaving
soap. 1t weighs for the heaviest cali
Der guns about eleven ounces and fol
the lighter ones seven or eight ounces
Cut it open and inside one sees ten OF
tweleve little disks or chambers. pene
trated somewhat above the center by
hole slightly larger than the bullet
which is expected to pass through
The center of the disk is pressed back
and the outside edge is rolled over sc
as to make a thick ring hollow on the
inside.
When the disks are in place in the
chamber the effect is that Of a re
versed turbine fastened to the muzzl'
Of the gun. AS the bullet is fired
clearing the silencer without interfer
ence because the hole through the Sc
ries of disks is larger than the diam
eter of the bullet, the gases accom-
panying it are caught by the first disk
and by virtue Of its shape rotated very
rapidly Centrifugal force makes them
! fly out toward the periphery of the
disk inside the rolled over ring, and II
is only as they slow down that they
can escape into the next disk, where
the process is repeated Thence the
gases go into the third disk, then into
the fourth. and SO on until their force
is entirely dissipated.
"It is just like stirring around q
wash bowl full Of water" explained