This highly anticipated second volume in the Silencer History and Performance series provides an unprecedented look into the evolution, tactical employment and performance of historic and state-of-the-art silenced firearms suitable for close-quarters combat, long-distance sniping and other professional applications. It chronicles the production of pioneering silenced weapons used during World War II and the Cold War as well as the more sophisticated low-signature designs and tactics that emerged from the Vietnam War and again during an explosion of creative development in the 1990s. The authors have combined recently declassified materials, numerous confidential sources and years of hands-on evaluations to reveal a wealth of information about today's incredible screw-on and integral suppressors.

This is the most significant book on firearm silencers in years. Find out the story behind and incredible capabilities of modern silencers used by elite military units and secretive government agencies. Author Alan Paulson has been called "the dean of the American silencer experts today."

Silencer industry insider N.R. Parker analyzes the most significant, historic and effective firearm silencer designs ever patented in the United States. Find out how suppressors from World War II to today's state-of-the-art cans are built, and learn about the many innovative techniques used to suppress the noise of gunshots from pistols, rifles and machine guns.

Explosive interviews with ex-CIA agents, U.S. Army Special Forces operatives and Marine snipers provide insights into the deadly role of the silencer in missions of intrigue and assassination. Read about the most devastating techniques in the arsenal of intelligence agencies and hush-hush military units. For academic study only.

"It's been twenty years since 9/11, two decades since the United States was attacked on home soil and set out to make the guilty pay with their lives. In the shadows, the enemy has been patient--learning, and adapting. And the enemy is ready to strike again. A new president offers hope to a country weary of conflict. He's a young, popular, self-made visionary...but he's also a man with a secret. Halfway across the globe a regional superpower struggles with sanctions imposed by the United States and her European allies, a country whose ancient religion spawned a group of ruthless assassins. Faced with internal dissent and extrajudicial targeted killings by the United States and Israel, the Supreme Leader puts a plan in motion to defeat the most powerful nation on earth. Meanwhile, a young PhD student has gained access to a bioweapon thought to be confined to a classified military laboratory known only to a select number of officials. A second-generation agent, he has been assigned a mission that will bring his adopted homeland to its knees."--Back cover.

A complete look at weapons—from the Stone Age and Bronze Age to present day—from spears and swords to handguns and automatic weapons. When did hunting weapons begin to be used against humans instead of animals? What is the difference between the Plains Indian War Club and the Fijian War Club? What weapon is common to peoples in every part of the world? The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weaponry is a comprehensive guide to arms and armaments throughout history. Beginning in the Stone Age, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weaponry travels through the Bronze Age to our present day, showing the tools humans have used to defend themselves all around the globe. There’s the Japanese tanto, or dagger, which have become identified with gangs known as yakuza. There’s the flaming arrow used when Swiss and Austrian forces clashed in the 14th century. And there’s the revolver that Samuel Colt made practical for both military and civilian use in Hartford, Connecticut. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weaponry will help readers better understand how—and why—the battles of history were fought.