such as LA SWAT, NYPD SWAT and elite military teams saw a huge
benefit in practical field application special purpose .22 platform
weapons.
What I learned working on SWAT and Narcotics task force
was just how much preplanning and site scouting is needed in
preparing teams for high speed building take downs. Not only
does the team need to know how many doors / windows a
location has and the expected personnel inside but also if the
doors swing inward or out, what does the location look like in
the daytime versus the night, etc. Just as criminals like to use the
cover of night, tactical units can also use it to their advantage to
get closer to a take down location before being spotted.
Items most plans fail to consider if the planner isn’t a field
experienced operator are items such as overhead lighting to
illuminate the perimeter against surprise entry and the seemly
always, always presence of dogs. Dogs for early detection of
Police, dogs for security against unwanted entry, even weaponized
dogs such as a wild Pitbull with his voice cords surgically altered
so he can’t bark and give away his position lying in wait where
narcotics are stored. (Seen it, not pretty.) These items can easily
ruin even the best laid plans in a drawing room and MUST be
addressed with rapid, decisive solution prior to the take down
team’s arrival.
What progressive modern agencies and specialized military
units have employed to address these “X” factors mentioned
are integrally suppressed precision .22 rifles either purchased
already assembled by manufacturers or built by their “in house”
armorers.
While this may seem extreme to civilians, it is the cleanest
and quickest way take out perimeter lighting, security cameras
and sentry animals without alerting the intended onsite targets.
During my time in Law Enforcement working with other
Police, Private Contractor and Military unit snipers, these rifles
have been highly effective and contributed directly to operators
conducting operations safer and much more efficient. To get more
up to date experience with one of these tools, the PMCI Magazine
staff decided to build our own based on top products available in
the industry today that fall within the guidelines of the needs of
our Law Enforcement, Military and PMC end users.
There are tons of highly accurate .22 rifles on the market, so
choosing the right platform would be important. The build would
need to be semi-automatic for quick follow up shots and multitarget
engagements as well as feature an action well known for
its durability and performance. The heart of this specialized tool
would naturally be the integrally suppressed match grade barrel
we chose.
To start things off, we reached out to one of the premier
suppressor companies in the industry, Elevated Silence (www.
ElevatedSilence.com). This is an amazing family owned small
business that builds some of the best LEO and civilian suppressors
on the market. Having them involved in a project like this was
a “no brainer”. After explaining our concept to the owner, Jim
Hood, his simple three-word reply was, “Let’s do it!”. If there is
one thing those of us in the industry have come to know about
Jim, if he green lights a project, its going to be good!
A few short weeks after working out the paperwork, one of
Elevated Silence’s signature EOSXL suppressed .22 barrels arrived
at our office ready to begin the project. For those not familiar
ELEVATED SILENCE EOSXL .22
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