#Silencers

Born and raised in Texas, Todd Huey grew up with a gun in his hand. It started out as a Red Ryder BB gun that he carried on family hunts, but he quickly graduated to a rimfire rifle where his father would hand him one round at a time. After using that Savage rifle for a number of years to hunt all types of game, including on-the-wing birds, Huey’s dad handed him a 20 gauge shotgun and he couldn’t miss. Now, almost 30 years later, he owns Lone Star Boars – a hunting and feral pig eradication company that uses advanced weapon technology to help curb the millions of dollars in losses suffered by Texas farmers every year.

Last week we discussed integral silencers and their potential resurgence as NFA ownership continues to climb and personal suppressor collections diversify. Similar arguments can be made for shorter and lighter silencers as well. Beginning buyers often often search for maximum sound suppression above all else. Later, after enough range or field time, many shooters are ready to sacrifice a few decibels in exchange for  a weight and length reduction. Enter the Rugged Suppressors Micro30.

Silencer design, manufacturing processes and materials have come a long way in just the last ten years. Once saddled with sealed cans and and limited options, shooters can now pick from a handful of industry-leading silencers that can be disassembled and cleaned with little effort. And with the evolution of silencer technology has come a shift of form factor – integrallly suppressed firearms that were once considered the pinnacle of noise suppression have been challenged by direct thread options. But as silencer ownership increases at a breakneck pace, collections are growing in parallel, allowing for a return to integrals that have also evolved in the last decade. Recently TFB visited TBA Suppressors, makers of integrally suppressed firearms and a traditional line of direct thread/mount silencers.

Rugged Suppressors has just announced the Obsidian 9 – a new edition to their already popular modular pistol caliber suppressor line. Besides obviously being built for suppressing the 9mm cartridge, the Obsidian 9 shaves a bit of length in each configuration compared to its .45ACP kin.

Previously, we compared the Russian 9x39mm subsonic sniper round to its Western counterparts, including the .300 AAC Blackout and the .45 ACP. As it stands now, the 9x39mm is a subsonic round only – no supersonic loads exist for it currently. But… What if they did?

SureFire have been awarded an additional contract to provide the Special Operations Command (SOCOM) with suppressors, muzzle breaks and blank firing adapters.

Today’s Modern Intermediate Calibers will handle something a little different. While virtually all rounds we have looked at so far were designed primarily for supersonic use, today we will be taking a gander at the Russian 9x39mm round – a dedicated suppressed caliber designed exclusively for the subsonic flight regime, with no supersonic option (yet) available. This begets a question, then: Is the 9x39mm truly an intermediate caliber? To answer this, we should consider a few facts about the 9×39: First, it was designed for carbines and rifles with cartridge overall lengths comparable to common intermediate calibers, like 5.56mm or 7.62×39. Second, it was designed to give substantially better performance than is possible with pistol rounds, including armor piercing effect above that which is normally possible with handgun rounds. Third, it is used more like an intermediate caliber than a pistol caliber, being issued with a whole host of sniper rifles, assault rifles, and other weapons comparable to any other intermediate caliber. Therefore, I would argue that it is an intermediate, albeit possibly the strangest one in common use.

With the recent appalling and horrific event that occurred in Las Vegas many aspects of the firearms industry have come under fire. Whether it is bump stocks or items that were never even utilized during the Las Vegas event, much of our industry has received an unnecessary, negative limelight. This includes silencers. Unfortunately, certain factions of the media cannot discern the difference between a flash hider, a silencer and one not being present at all. Finally, the American Suppressor Association (ASA), after a long period of silence, has made a public statement.

The US Marine Corps may soon be calling on the firearm industry for proposals for integrally suppressed firearms. The Marine Corps Times report that Colonel Mike Manning, the program manager for the Marine Corps Systems Command’s Ground Combat Element Systems program, discussed the Corps’ future for suppressors during a panel at the annual Modern Day Marine military expo at Quantico.

Let’s take a little trip into the world of qualitative testing – non-scientific, non-peer reviewed, completely subjective “testing”. In this segment we are going to talk about ablative media options and their characteristics in preparation for a quest to find the “best” overall substance to improve silencer performance.

Tea. Earl Gray. Hot. Someday I want to turn to a space in my kitchen wall and utter those words – and get results. In my barn, however, I someday want to turn a space in the wall and speak “Silencer. 5.56mm. Length six inches. Diameter 1.75 inches. Mount threading 1/2 x 28.” and come back to find a new rifle suppressor made in a few moments. Although this process is unlikely to happen in my lifetime, Additive Manufacturing is posed to make a leap within the firearms industry – specifically within silencer manufacturing.

With preorder shipments heading out to dealers across the country, Q’s Honey Badger is rolling into regular sales with a head of steam. Of course, the lightweight 300BLK carbine (and 5.56mm too) isn’t the only silencer on the Portsmouth, New Hampshire company’s menu. Alongside the Honey Badger, Q also offers the Thunder Chicken, Trash Panda, Full Nelson and Half Nelson. Not including their rimfire offerings.

Due to import restrictions, foreign manufactured silencers are only available to license holders as well as military and law enforcement customers. As of today, however, B&T can officially announce the U.S. manufacture of a variety of HK silencers available to the civilian market.

If you are a silencer aficionado, at some point you have been effected by the dreaded silent killer known as ‘First Round Pop’. (Get it, “silent killer”). Present primarily within rimfire and pistol caliber suppressors while shooting subsonic ammunition, FRP is the result of oxygen trapped inside the baffles creating a mini explosion when unburnt powder is introduced during shooting. The phenomenon only occurs upon firing the first round because the oxygen is evacuated and not present for subsequent follow-up shots unless enough time has passed for oxygen to make its way back into the silencer.

In the silencer world, there is nothing more sexy than a well made integrally suppressed rifle. Maintaining a near stock barrel profile, most designs are covert enough to pass as a stock firearm, that is until the trigger is pulled on a subsonic round. Georgia-based silencer manufacture KGMade is announcing a new suppressor model for the the CZ455 line of bolt action rimfire rifles. Designated the Ticho (Czech for silent) the new integral is available as a standalone option or a complete gun.