The AMB-17 (russian: Aвтомат Малогабаритный Бесшумный, translit=Avtomat Malogabaritnyj Besshumnyj, translation=Suppressed Small-sized Automatic Rifle, awaiting

GRAU The Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (), commonly referred to by its transliterated Russian acronym GRAU (), is a department of the Russian Ministry of Defense. It is subordinate to the ...

designation), is an integrally suppressed assault rifle that uses a heavy subsonic

9×39mm The 9×39mm is a Soviet rifle cartridge. History and design The 9x39 is based on the Soviet 7.62×39mm round, but with the neck expanded to fit a 9.3 mm bullet. Final design was completed by N. Zabelin, L. Dvoryaninova and Y. Frolov of the TsNI ...

SP5 cartridge and armor-piercing SP6 cartridge. It was developed and manufactured in the late 2010s by

Kalashnikov Concern JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ...

, based on the Yevgeny Dragunov MA Compact Rifle and unveiled at the Russian Army Expo 2017 alongside the AM-17. The weapon is intended for use as a close quarters weapon, primarily for special units of the

Russian Interior Ministry The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (MVD; russian: Министерство внутренних дел (МВД), ''Ministerstvo vnutrennikh del'') is the interior ministry of Russia. The MVD is responsible for law enfor ...

and the

Russian Army The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �В Sukhoputnyye voyska V, also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Gro ...

to replace the

AS Val The 6P29 and 6P30 ( GRAU Indices), commonly known as the VSS "Thread Cutter" (Russian: ВСС «Винторе́з» Винто́вка Сна́йперская Специа́льная, romanized: ''Vintóvka Snáyperskaya Spetsiálnaya "Vint ...

and

VSS Vintorez The 6P29 and 6P30 ( GRAU Indices), commonly known as the VSS "Thread Cutter" (Russian: ВСС «Винторе́з» Винто́вка Сна́йперская Специа́льная, romanized: ''Vintóvka Snáyperskaya Spetsiálnaya "Vint ...

firearms.

Design details

Operating mechanism

The AMB-17, unlike previous firearms in current use with the Russian military, differentiates itself by employing two receivers that connect on a hinge instead of a single stamped receiver with a lid. To do this, the upper receiver itself is made from polymer and steel reinforcements, while the lower receiver along with its magazine housing is made entirely from polymer, and connected to the upper receiver by two captive take down cross-pins, reducing the weight of the firearm significantly and allowing for easier access into the internal operation. The gas operated action uses a short stroke gas piston and rotary bolt which locks with three radial lugs on the bolt head, similar to previous 9x39mm carbines such as the

VSK-94 The VSK-94 (russian: Войсковой Снайперский Комплекс, translit=Voyskovoy Snayperskiy Kompleks, translation=Military Sniper Complex, GRAU designation 6В8) is a 9x39mm suppressed designated marksman rifle designed in 19 ...

. The bolt carrier within the upper receiver is almost streamline by design raising it towards the bolt group reducing both bolt friction and felt user recoil.

Features

The weapon has an integral

suppressor A silencer, also known as a sound suppressor, suppressor, or sound moderator, is a muzzle device that reduces the acoustic intensity Sound intensity, also known as acoustic intensity, is defined as the power carried by sound waves per unit ...

mounted on the front of the upper receiver which wraps around the barrel. In order for the suppressor to be integrated, the AMB-17 employs a wider opening within its handguard as compared to the AM-17, along with the front of the upper receiver which also allows for an integrated handguard half-length MIL-STD/1913 Picatinny rail. The integrated upper also includes a full-length MIL-STD/1913 Picatinny railing, polymer side-folding and adjustable (telescoping) shoulder stock, and longitudinal slots in the walls of the upper receiver allowing for ambidextrous controls in both the fire selector and charging handle. The firearm uses a subsonic 9×39 mm cartridge to avoid

sonic boom A sonic boom is a sound associated with shock waves created when an object travels through the air faster than the speed of sound. Sonic booms generate enormous amounts of sound energy, sounding similar to an explosion or a thunderclap to t ...

with detachable box magazines compatible with AS VAL, VSS, and SR-3 (SR-3M, SR-3MP) and other 9x39mm rifle systems Additionally, the bullet is very effective at penetrating

body armor Body armor, also known as body armour, personal armor or armour, or a suit or coat of armor, is protective clothing designed to absorb or deflect physical attacks. Historically used to protect military personnel, today it is also used by variou ...

. It is equipped with a hardened

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolat ...

tip and can penetrate a high-density steel plate at 100 m; a steel plate or a standard army helmet can be fully penetrated at 500 m; however, the rifle is typically employed under 400 m.

Users and service history

* : The AMB-17 is in limited use with FSB and FSO specifically for firearms testing and has yet to complete acceptance trials.

References

* {{reflist

External links