educate me about suppressors

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

I was at the range Saturday I got to fire a round thru a suppressed 308 bolt rifle , it was just factory Federal hunting ammo and it still had a crack but compared to the 308 rifle at the next bench , what a difference.

this suppressor belonged to a 03ffl and was a demo he had brought out to the range , I know that i can get one , that it requires a 200 dollar tax stamp and a wait of several months.

what i don't know is what is available , who makes serviceable ones vs sealed units , how is shooting lead thru them
what should one be looking for or looking to avoid


35 or 45 cal seem like there would make the most sense and shoot a big slow fat boolit at 1050fps in a rifle or pistol

I don't even have a gun with a threaded barrel so i am mostly just wanting to learn more , and it may be a some day purchase

a lever gun in a pistol cal like 44mag or 45lc seem like they would be a real hoot to shoot with little recoil and little noise

i barely noticed the recoil from the 308 , but the rifle was heavy

[felix]

A suppressor/silencer's function is to lower pressure/sonic/air waves to below the speed of sound, whatever the source, either gas or projectile. If the projectile is going past the speed of sound, the air in front of the projectile is cracking just like an anvil splitting firewood. This is a NEW sound, and has nothing to do with the gun. There is no method to stop the cracking noise. ... felix

[FISH4BUGS]

I have a Bowers CAC9 that I use on all my 9mm/380 guns. In my humble opinion, Bowers is the best quiet for the buck. For instance, I shoot my UZI without ear muffs it is so quiet. But then it is a closed bolt semi auto SBR. Open bolt subguns are much louder.
You will need to learn subsonic ammo loading.
Do not shoot lead through your supressor. period. End of discussion. Lead builds up and the lube and other gunk builds up. Lube is easy to remove. Lead is not.Go to www.subguns.com and post on the NFA section and you will be directed to many different places.
Be forewarned....everyone has their favorite. They will say theirs is the most quiet one made. Bowers is the best bang (quietly of course) for the buck. There really is no place where all supressors are tested to make sure they are in fact the most quiet one made. Much of it is subjective and dependent on ammunition.
Good luck.
By the way, the wait is easily 6 months for approval.

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

I understand that it uses an expansion chamber to allow unburnt gasses to finish burning but also hot gasses to expand without going strait in to the air somewhat like a cars exhaust

I am looking for bit more detail on design types one vs another

thanks fish for bugs.

[JeffinNZ]

I shoot lead through my suppressors all the time. I have disagree. I have yet to see evidence of lead on baffles. Lube yes, lead no.

I have two suppressors. One on my .223 that reduces the noise to that of a .22RF. The other is on my .32-20 Martini and with subsonic loads is very quiet and with supersonic loads the sound signature is that of a .22 magnum at best.

Suppressors are freely available in NZ and you can buy and fit them without any special coniditions.

[Love Life]

http://www.srtarms.com/

Titanium is preferred along with chopping the barrel to 18-20 inches for the 308. Full bore ammo will crack as it goes overhead, but it is harder to pinpoint where the shot came from. Subsonic ammo is better, but if I were planning to shoot only subsonic I would get the black out over the 308.

Get a trust
You buy
it arrives
send in forms
wait, and wait, and wait, and wait some more. 4-12 months later and you pick up your toy. You can use the suppressor on multiple calibers as long as they are smaller than the caliber the suppressor was made for.

Example: You buy a 308 suppressor. You can shoot it on .223 rifles.

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

You can use the suppressor on multiple calibers as long as they are smaller than the caliber the suppressor was made for.

Example: You buy a 308 suppressor. You can shoot it on .223 rifles.

does this mean i could buy a 45 and use it on 45, 44, 40, 35 ,9mm, 30 ,223, 22lr

what is the effect of having a smaller bullet , does it make it less efficient in noise reduction

is it basically having your rifle barrel removed put on a lathe and threaded

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

does any one know of a book that gets into the mechanics of one , i like to satisfy my curiosity for how they work in some detail

[MBTcustom]

Not so much. You need to stay as close to caliber as you can, but I have heard that a 30 cal does a fair job on a .22lr.
I just threaded a barrel and screwed a can on a Ruger MKIII last weekend for a client. I was a titanium Gemtech. Super sweet. About as load as hitting my workbench with a rubber hammer, and that was with full power loads!
Another nice thing with HP rifles is the recoil/flash/sound reduction, especially the recoil. Pretty awesome if you can afford it!
Therefore, it's the "green" thing to do.
Look for books and articles by Al Paulson. He wrote the book and lives here in my home town.

[Love Life]

The 30 cal SRT shadow TI does very well on both 308 bolt guns and 5.56 AR rifles. However it is not as quiet on the 5.56 as a caliber dedicated suppressor. Barely noticable, but it is stil noticable. True story, but still ear friendly. We have been using one for a bit out here since spotlighting and suppressors are legal for hunting the undesirable animals out here.. I'll see if we can get a video uploaded since we made some tacti-dumb videos not to long back.

[Artful]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0cMuEpVOuQ

Go to You-tube and start searching to get an idea

Using sub-caliber will work pretty darn well depending upon the combination.

[Artful]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnU8o53z-WE

[Artful]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDkp4a_f5Rc

[RugerFan]

There really is no place where all supressors are tested to make sure they are in fact the most quiet one made. Much of it is subjective.

Actually Small Arms Review magazine has done tests with various surpressors and posted the decible levels.

I'm partial to Coastal Gun (http://www.coastalgun.com/) suppressors. Excellent quality for the money and they fare very well in SAR testing.

[dbosman]

does any one know of a book that gets into the mechanics of one , i like to satisfy my curiosity for how they work in some detail

Youtube has videos, for instance, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-keuXw5xfRs
There are 12,000 more if that one doesn't cut it.

[Artful]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIlg89AC09A

You can find lots of information at various websites - I would suggest
Robert's site to start - read all that you can - keep in mind that Robert is now a suppressor designer for AAC
http://www.silencertalk.com/forum/
his other site is about the 300 black
http://www.300blktalk.com/forum/
another good one is
http://nfatalk.org/forum/

Testing data on nfatalk is at this link
http://nfatalk.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=5

Al Paulson has written several good books but the market is changing rapidly so for most current updated information
you must find it on the internet.

http://www.amazon.com/Silencer-Performance-Sporting-Tactical-Silencers/dp/0873649095

http://www.amazon.com/Assault-Rifle-Sniper-Technology-Silencer/dp/1581603231/ref=rec_dp_1

http://www.amazon.com/Weapons-Evaluations-Professional-Advanced-Collector/dp/1581605331/ref=la_B001JS2PT6_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1363645173&sr=1-3

And for collected patents on Suppressors
http://www.amazon.com/Firearm-Suppressor-Patents-Volume1-United/dp/1581604602/ref=pd_sim_b_2

[blademasterii]

I have a liberty mystic in the works. Bought and paid for just waiting on the stamp. http://www.libertycans.net/mystic.html I plan to handload the nagant and the 308 to subsonic levels. I have a contender with lots of barrels under a 357 caliber so they will all get threaded. The mystic is able to be taken down completely. It can be had with 5/8 by 24, 1/2 by 28 or quick adapters as well as boosters for .22 auto and 9mm auto. Full auto rated and made from stainless and titanium. It was the best for what I wanted it for that I could find on the market.

[Case Stuffer]

does any one know of a book that gets into the mechanics of one , i like to satisfy my curiosity for how they work in some detail

I have no idea if t is still in print /available however

Firearms Silencers Volum 1 by Donald B. McLean was one of the the Combat Bookself series published by
Normount Arament Company ,Forest Grove, Oregon

[felix]

You want details? Yes, there are plenty from days gone by. The drag and circle track racers want their exhausts as "tuned" as much as possible. This has to do with diameter and length of pipe(s) and how and where attached and to what. Just like a gun barrel(s), and absolutely no difference. Tuned means the vibes created in the pipe(s) are such that generated sound waves are reduced as much as possible. They alter lengths and widths of pipe(s) for the most part, change hanger positions, make appropriate bends in strategic places, and hopefully after all this MANUAL experimental work, there is little need for any kind of muffler. They have succeeded with honors if they find the final position of the pipes(s) where the horsepower of the whole car is maximized as measured on a dyno. ... felix

It took the Italians 9 months to realize the Viper from the ground up, and 18 months for Chysler to implement a muffler system. Just about impossible to simulate all the things in a finished car mathematically, plus the pipes, to design the pipes up front. Thus, designing a "muffler" system is a heuristic job. ... felix

[Artful]

If you don't have a 22LR set up suppressed that would be my first choice as it's quietest and any pistol with
4.5 or shorter barrel is going to use cheap bulk ammo and it will stay subsonic. Best bang/shush for the buck

9mm is quieter than 45 due to diameter of bore but you have to load/purchase subsonic (heavy bullet slower than speed o sound).

Some quality makers in no particular order
http://advanced-armament.com/Silencers_c_16.html
http://www.gem-tech.com/store/pc/home.asp
http://libertycans.net/
http://www.silencerco.com/
http://www.swrsuppressors.com/
http://www.thompsonmachine.net/

Also remember that browning tilt barrel designs will need a Booster / Neilson / Inertia Decoupler to operate or you can will
have to be extreamely light weight. And shorter tilt barrels have more issues in getting them to run correctly usually.
Other hosts - Beretta M9 (large but the barrel lock copied from Walther P38 works well with suppressors)
Sig's, FN's - First find the barrel for the gun you want then match the thread of the barrel to the suppressor.
You need to make sure it all goes together.

Most common in 22LR and 9mm in USA is 1/2x28 TPI - but in some european guns they make threaded barrels for metric (13.5mm) from the factory.

You can of course use a larger can on a subcaliber - (example 45 can with 9mm pistol, 308 can with 223)

Remember, better to buy quality once and cry a little up front than to buy cheaper and cry everytime you use it.

Some of my favorite toys

M38 Mosin scout with 308 AAC Cyclone Can
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/Misc/0612112302.jpg

243 WCF with 308 AAC Cyclone can
http://imageshack.us/a/img848/4231/p1010427.jpg

1969 Romanian as host for 22LR suppressor
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/FAL/Romanian196922LR.jpg

22LR High Standard with Tac-65 dedicated 22LR can that is cleanable
http://imageshack.us/a/img17/3604/dsc05940.jpg

Ruger 10/22 as host for 22LR suppressor
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/FAL/Ruger10-22.jpg

Inox 9mm with 9mm can and laser grip pointer
http://imageshack.us/a/img134/3720/dsc05918aa3.jpg

Sig 225 with same 9mm can
http://imageshack.us/a/img205/9159/dsc05912ig2.jpg

Walther P-38 with smaller 9mm can
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/Misc/P1050434.jpg

I actually use this can with the 22RF rifles and it works very well.

UZI with AWC Mk9 can
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/383-Copy.jpg

AR set up for night op's
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/rowdyfisk/278.jpg

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

thank you , this gives me lots to read

[Artful]

Some further links for you to look at on this site

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?172442-Shooting-cast-through-an-SMG-Suppressor&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?136650-Cast-and-Supressors&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?141272-New-Suppressor-Design/page2&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?126102-Enfield-303-conversion-to-44-mag-or-444-Marlin/page2&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?107510-Cast-boolits-thru-a-suppressor&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?96552-Cast-Boolit-safe-suppressor&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?35400-Suppressors-and-subsonic-Boolits&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?26649-Suppressed-308-mauser&highlight=suppressors

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?2060-My-Suppressed-308-Project-Which-Boolit-To-Use&highlight=suppressors