Here goes, supresors are back on my radar. Got friend of mine looking to get 1. Did a quick demo of my thunderbeast and think got him hooked.finally my turn to be a bad influence. Did a quick search at silencer shop listed 34 manufacturers. That's more than just few years ago. Need to narrow it down to short list to point him in the right direction. I'm biased toward thunderbeast so that's top of the list, Need some suggestions on runners up. Will be moved around on ar and bolt guns, no full auto.300 wm and down.l This is a forever purchase so important advice to give.thanks in advance for suggestions and being a bad influence.
- Thread starter paulrem308
- Start date
TBAC is a pretty good choice of course. Abel Co makes very high quality suppressors as well.
Since you/your friend is going to be swapping between platforms, you'll need to consider a couple of things:
- Mounting options. You need to have have mounts that provide options that are compatible for ar15 (1/2x28 threads) and bolt guns (likely 5/8x28). And if you aren't going to be shooting suppressed at times, to consider what mounts will be optimal for that use.
- AR15 use and backpressure with the suppressor. There's more nuances to running a suppressor on an AR15 vs a bolt gun due to the gas system. Is a can with a lot of backpressure going to cause issues with the AR15's that its planned to be used on?
I purchased a suppressor for a similar use as your friend's, and went with an Abel Co Biscuit. It's 17-4 steel, so it's not as light as a titanium can. The recoil impulse is very pleasant on bolt guns, and it's much more pleasant to shoot on an AR15 compared to my wife's SiCo Omega, due to little backpressure. An Abel Theorem is another option, it's titanium and there's vented caps available for reduced backpressure.
There's a lot of routes your friend can go. It really depends on what he wants out of a suppressor and his budget.
Since you/your friend is going to be swapping between platforms, you'll need to consider a couple of things:
- Mounting options. You need to have have mounts that provide options that are compatible for ar15 (1/2x28 threads) and bolt guns (likely 5/8x28). And if you aren't going to be shooting suppressed at times, to consider what mounts will be optimal for that use.
- AR15 use and backpressure with the suppressor. There's more nuances to running a suppressor on an AR15 vs a bolt gun due to the gas system. Is a can with a lot of backpressure going to cause issues with the AR15's that its planned to be used on?
I purchased a suppressor for a similar use as your friend's, and went with an Abel Co Biscuit. It's 17-4 steel, so it's not as light as a titanium can. The recoil impulse is very pleasant on bolt guns, and it's much more pleasant to shoot on an AR15 compared to my wife's SiCo Omega, due to little backpressure. An Abel Theorem is another option, it's titanium and there's vented caps available for reduced backpressure.
There's a lot of routes your friend can go. It really depends on what he wants out of a suppressor and his budget.
People should stop with this "forever purchase" mindset. You're paying an extra $200 on a $500-$1500 suppressor; that doesn't mean it has to last forever or that you'll find the perfect can the first time. Unless you have the opportunity to hear and handle a lot of new suppressors in person, it's pretty hard to settle on what's best, so pick something reputable that works and go with it.
There's always new stuff coming out too; don't feel like a suppressor purchase has to be a one and done thing. Plenty of people who bought something 10-15 years ago are looking around at the options now and buying newer and better cans.
It makes a lot more sense to look at these like you would a computer or smartphone - the best you can get now will be obsolete in a few years, and you'll likely want to upgrade at some point. So don't stress too much about the perfect choice on a "forever purchase"; it doesn't need to be that way.
There's always new stuff coming out too; don't feel like a suppressor purchase has to be a one and done thing. Plenty of people who bought something 10-15 years ago are looking around at the options now and buying newer and better cans.
It makes a lot more sense to look at these like you would a computer or smartphone - the best you can get now will be obsolete in a few years, and you'll likely want to upgrade at some point. So don't stress too much about the perfect choice on a "forever purchase"; it doesn't need to be that way.
TBAC & Otter Creek Labs are my top 2 brand recommendations at the moment based on personal experiences. I am currently up to 4 of each brand for a sample size.
I have hope that the new Dead Air Nomad LTI XC cans (I believe they are sintered 3D printed now) will be much improved over previous models that seemed to have weld/QC issues, although none of my 4 older DA cans (2020/2021 production) have ever had any issues or manufacturing defects, so I have not had any bad experiences with them.
Rugged seems to build a good rifle can, and I never hear of any issues about them. My Rugged Obsidian 45 pistol can has been excellent.
Friends don't let friends buy anything made by Q... That's about the only brand I will strongly recommend NOT buying...Plus the owner is a drunk narcissistic self-righteous gaping dickhole. And there have been plenty of issues with SilencerCo cans in the past, so I won't own any of those suppressors either.
I bought the only 3 cans I SHOULD ever need that would cover all my bases.........13 cans ago, and counting...Not true
I bought my one and only can I was ever buying
6 cans ago
Wait…maybe….
I bought the only 3 cans I SHOULD ever need that would cover all my bases.........13 cans ago, and counting...
So true. Most new buyers seem to want one can that does everything - and then end up disappointed it doesn't do anything really well.
I did the same (with my second can, first was a .22 Outback II and definitely a good choice), got a Liberty Mystic back when those were pretty new - it's pretty quiet on 9mm but long and heavy, and because of thermal expansion it sometimes changes alignment when it's hot and affects accuracy. It's quiet with 30 and 35 cal subsonic rifle stuff, just pretty long after adding a mount. It's quiet with 5.56, but long and you have to watch the firing rate to not overheat it. In other words, it's a great can that does a lot of stuff, but I wish I'd bought a smaller & lighter 9mm can and something else for a dedicated 35 cal rifle can. And like most buyers, I've ended up buying those other dedicated suppressors anyway.
Speaking of that Obsidian 45, I just picked one up too. Nice quiet can, other than FRP which a little water mist from a nose spray bottle takes care of. Louder in the short config than I hoped but surprisingly similar in that configuration to an Omega 45K. Almost the same length, same baffle type with very similar spacing (from what I can see through the bore), and they can use the same pistons. Nice to have that additional module on the Obsidian to make it quieter though. I'm trying the Griffin EZ Lok* piston/mounts for this one; seems pretty good so far.
*I considered their Cam Lok system, since it's similar to the interrupted thread mounts I already make for my own stuff, but they screwed it up making it a triple start thread for convenience (so people can install it in any of the 3 positions) rather than a single start thread interrupted 3 times that can stay tight better. Downside of the single start thread mount is you can only install it in one orientation; upside is the thread pitch angle is shallower so it's less likely to loosen like the Cam Lok system does.
