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Suppressors Why not to clean suppressors

jonaddis84

Gunny Sergeant
Commercial Supporter
Full Member
Minuteman
Jan 27, 2009
2,348
20
Toledo, OH
www.area419.com
Im sure this is going to start a shitstorm, but I figured some would be interested in this. Im not saying you cant ever clean your rimfire can, but dont do it until you notice it get louder.

Guns are Ruger MK II/III both with 4.5" paclite uppers, shooting Federal 525 bulk ammo.

Both cans are YHM Stainless Mites, brushed can is brand(ish) new, under 200 rounds fired. Black can has roughly 2-3k rounds through it without any cleaning. I do believe the difference was more noticeable in person, nonetheless you can still hear it on video.

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Re: Why not to clean suppressors

Yep, new or old those cans are loud.

At 4.5" you are running subsonic velocities, what you are hearing is the can struggling to suppress pure .22 blast. One way to not have to clean a .22 can is to have bore tolerances so sloppy that the gas/particulate isn't really efficiently stripped out in turbulence. it, like far too much sound, just follows the tail jet right out the can.

Much better..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4GFF6sdrGA&feature=related

Best....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZCa4AZmn4g

You are right though, cleaning a well designed .22 can should only come after tens of thousands of rounds.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

Yeah Im quite sure a 30cal bullet would fit through the Mites. That seems to be a constant with YHM is large bores, I can actually drop a 338 bullet through my 7.62 phantom. However, on that can it doesnt seem to matter because it is still extremely quiet compared to everything else Ive ever heard.

Also why I have such high hopes for when this TBAC gets dirty, its stupid quiet out of the box!

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Re: Why not to clean suppressors

I'm going to start a company that specializes in making suppressors very quiet using various proprietary fouling methods. Send me your can and $100 and I will return it absolutely filthy. This will save you a lot of time and energy.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ThrottleJ</div><div class="ubbcode-body">SS mite is a tough suppressor though. I have been running one a PS90 with 10" bbl and it is still in one piece. </div></div>

You are on borrowed time then....

I agree with rollingthunder. time is ticking
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

I noticed some posters here just make post after post in the suppressor forum saying something to the effect of "that's stupid and wont work". On this particular combo I was turned onto it by the YHM crew themselves. Yes they rate the can for 5.7. I have only run 500 rounds through the combo so maybe I haven't ticked it enough times.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: KYS338</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Maybe we post it because we know?

I only run the SWR Spectre on my 5.7
It is about the only thing that has not met its end.


Good Luck </div></div>

Have you blown up an SS Mite?

Oh, and this post was in no way advertising that SS Mite's are great cans, it was strictly an example of how suppressors get quieter as they get dirtier, this should go for any brand/style. We dont have any other cans that we have one brand new and one well used, so this was the only test possible.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

Yes, we have. A good friend is a local manufacturer, he has several hosts to test suppressors on. We test them to their fullest extent.

I have seen one take 10-15 baffle strikes on a full auto 22 upper. After they said it would handle it AND was rated to take the 5.7? No thanks.....
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

Not cleaning the stack...Ok. Not pulling the stack out of the tube...bad advice. If you want to leave the lead buildup in the stack, go ahead. I recommend that you pull the stack out and at least clean the excess build up after every few hundred rounds, especially out of a mite. If you do not break the can apart then you effectively have a sealed can. A manufacturer may be able to open the can and clean it once it is lead sealed, but why go through the mess?
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

What do I need it to come apart for if I dont want to clean it? I think take apart cans are a gimmick if you ask me, aside from maybe aluminum ones that you cant give the dip. 10k rimfire is probably just where they start to get nice and quiet, and 30-40k where they might build up enough to go backwards.

95% of guys arent going to shoot that through their cans in its lifetime.

Im sure youre wondering then why do I have a SS Mite to begin with, well it was my first rimfire can, I wanted magnum rating, couldnt afford a spectre at the time, and my dealer had it in stock CHEAP.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

I dont think the SS Mite is a "bad" can. It does fine but you get what you pay for with a 22 can. I also believe that a 22 can takes more abuse than the others out there. Think how much 22 you can shoot for the cost of 308 or 338 for instance. They see more use in someone's collection then you might think. I have a YHM Wraith in 22, it sits on a GSG rifle that is SBRed. Between me, my family and friends shooting it I bet it has seen over 5000 rounds. Its still going strong. You want a tank of a suppressor? Buy YHM, their cans are an EXCELLENT purchase for the price range. I have quite a few and never regret the money spent.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

I'd tend to agree with KYS338, my 22 suppressor is 2 weeks old and I put 750 rounds through it already, 500 rounds through it the day I built it. Both bolt action, semi auto pistol, and a full auto MAC conversion that a friend has.

My dad's 22 suppressor is 2 years old and he's got ~21,000 rounds through it (4 cases of ammo).

I agree that cleaning them all the time isn't a hot idea, but for a suppressor that can be disassembled to clean due to lead gunk keeping it in condition that it can still be broken down is a necessity as I see it.

At my dad's rate, in 4 years of ownership his suppressor will have about 40-45k through it and if he didn't pull it apart just to break the seals that the lead/lube/carbon fouling so that it was solid.

His is a Form1 suppressor so if he wanted to break the law he could dispose of it and build a new one, but that would be illegal. Properly maintaining the investment is important. For shooters that can lead-weld a can shut in a year (10k rounds) I think it is foolish to treat a device that takes 4-8 months of waiting to attain, just for what amounts to laziness IMO.
 
Re: Why not to clean suppressors

I guess better designed tear down cans are a good option if you will shoot that much, and parts are made out of aluminum. The SS Mite if you shoot 500 rounds through it in one outing you better have a vise and a bigass pair of channel locks to get it apart. To me I would rather let it seal itself and 30k rounds from now give it the dip.

As far as SS and Ti cans though, I still think tear down is pointless. Even if you dont intend to clean the tear down cans, but just to keep them from freezing, every time you break it loose you also break loose all the good sound deadening lead/carbon inside, so you end up having to clean it out anyway to keep from chunks of crap floating around in there and possibly causing a ricochet inside the can.

Al though, by all means keep them tear down, since theres no way to clean them well otherwise.