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Suppressors anyone?


sendit223

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I'm a big fan of suppressors for predator hunting and recreational target shooting. I've also noticed that some matches do not allow suppressor use, which seems counterintuitive to me.

I realize that not everyone owns a suppressor, but suppose you did. Would you prefer to be allowed to run one in a match?

For purposes of this survey assume the timer will pick up the last shot even if it is suppressed.

Sendit

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How sensitive do the timers need to be to pick up shots? I know at Steel Challenge Matches where 22 lr rifles are allowed, we have many re-shoots due to timer not picking up shot. Usually the RO has to be very attentive to where he holds timer. This is after we adjust the sensitivity on the timers.

I was thinking a good suppressed CF would be as quiet or more so than a 22 RF.

Other than that , I liked suppressed weapons.

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Not a big deal if the RO knows what they are doing. Have to get close for the last shot, maybe 3 to 4 feet, to the side is easiest. Never missed the last shot myself, but have seen it happen. If you shoot suppresssed, be a good sport and talk to the RO so he is aware.

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I love them, have them, but they can be a pain with timers. Even some un-suppressed .22 rifles can be hard to pick up on the timer, as Mark_CO says, it depends on the RO being in the right place at the right time. At our local match, we tell shooters using suppressors that they will just have to put up with the RO flicking the timer after their last shot IF THE TIMER did not pick up the last shot (that requires the RO putting the timer in his line of sight for the last shot to see if the timer changes). Yes it is a LOCAL rule.

Mark K

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I'm a big fan of cans, but for Comp please leave them at home. The margin for error, i.e. distance from shooter to RO, isn't always optimal for suppressors. There are so many variables that using a can in comp just doesn't make sense. All it does is increase the odds of a reshoot.

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We have a guy work keeps trying to use his on a 22 rifle at steel challenge. Timers don't pick the shots up reliably and it is just a pain. I have a 22 silencer and have brought it out to SC before. It was for a new shooter that wasn't concerned about times.

I probably won't use one in Multigun, unless it is a prop gun. Too heavy, too long, and don't compensate well as a real compensator. Not to mention the timer issues.

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there is more felt recoil with them

Do you find that's the case with a standard gas block or adjustable?

Neither. A tad more recoil than a comp, but less than a flash-hider. Tune the load and gas and it is almost a wash.

Assuming that the timers could pick up the last shot every time then I would love to use them. The one I would run with is a bit heavy though :(

They can, and do! If the RO can't pick up the last shot, that RO should not be running the timer anyway because they are too far away for the competitor. Unless you are shooting a .223 sub-sonic, there is enough gas and the sound barier is still broken and they are louder than .22RF. It is about having fun and shooting your chosen gear, besides, chicks dig 'em! :cheers:

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there is more felt recoil with them

Do you find that's the case with a standard gas block or adjustable?

I don't run an adjustable. I run suppressed on my SBRs 10.5" & 11.5" as well as my KAC with their intermediate gas length system. It makes long range steel much easier to call/hear hits that's for sure. Down side is how freaking hot they get. My first time out with my can, ran a stage, tabled to rifle. Went to pick it up and 1/2 the table came with it, had a vinyl top... Since then all of the paint has been shot off :)

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there is more felt recoil with them

Do you find that's the case with a standard gas block or adjustable?

I don't run an adjustable. I run suppressed on my SBRs 10.5" & 11.5" as well as my KAC with their intermediate gas length system. It makes long range steel much easier to call/hear hits that's for sure. Down side is how freaking hot they get. My first time out with my can, ran a stage, tabled to rifle. Went to pick it up and 1/2 the table came with it, had a vinyl top... Since then all of the paint has been shot off :)

I only use adjustable and don't think my recoil is any worse than a good brake. I can see my hits on steel typically.

I also had a "melt down" on a stage where I could run one. They had astroturf or some green fake outdoor carpet on top of the spool. I came back after the stage to get my rifle and it had green goo all over the can. Just had to get a paper towel, get the can up to operating temperature again and it wiped off.

Edited by sendit223
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I have used them in a match for shits and giggles. No problems with timers if the RO is on the ejection port side as just the bolt slamming back and forth on an AR is loud enough to cause hearing damage.

There is no advantage to using a silencer though... Any recoil reduction is mainly from hanging a weight on the end of the barrel. I would rather use a comp and get zero recoil and a lighter rifle.

The disadvantage besides weight is that it is just one more thing to go wrong. 2 guys used them at our club match last weekend. Both of them shot loose and had baffle/endcap strikes that ended their stage prematurely. User error for sure, but it happens.

(And Hiram Maxim called it a "silencer" when he invented it. So I don't care what Tactical Ted calls it, "Silencer" is the correct term )

:sight:

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  • 1 month later...

(And Hiram Maxim called it a "silencer" when he invented it. So I don't care what Tactical Ted calls it, "Silencer" is the correct term )

I don't get too hung up on "silencer" versus "suppressor". I use the terms interchangably, along with "can".

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Even double plugged I get headaches after shooting my comped 3 Gun rifle. I'm looking to get a suppressor to at least practice with.

At local 3 Gun matches I've RO'd people with suppressed rifles quite a few times and only once had a problem picking up the shots. The actual rifles were no problem but there was a suppressed Scorpion style carbine in 32 ACP we allowed to shoot for fun. I had to be less than a foot from the bolt to pick up the shots on the timer. I got to be where I was tapping the case of the timer instead of reaching around him while he shot, as he wasn't shooting for score anyway.

Only negative incident with rifles was on a 50+ round stage the shooter used a plastic barrel as a rest. Suppressor started to melt down into the top of the barrel. Also had the suppressed stage gun at a major 3 gun match melt through the bottom of the dump barrel.

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there is more felt recoil with them

Do you find that's the case with a standard gas block or adjustable?

i agree more felt recoil and the gas block doesn't make a differentance. the trick seems to be have a 3 gun rifle and one set up for suppresser use. heavy bolt heavy buffer etc.

put the suppresser on my 3 gun rifle with lmos bolt etc and it kicks!

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