Suppressor vs. No Suppressor: What’s the Difference?
If you’ve never had the chance to shoot suppressed before, then you might be wondering what the big deal is with them. Why do people rave about them so much? Well, the short answer is to shoot one and see for yourself. It’s highly likely that you’ll be one of those raving converts yourself.
However, we understand that not everyone has that opportunity. If that’s the case, then we’re here to help you understand the differences between shooting with a suppressor and shooting without a suppressor.
NEVER MISS AN UPDATE!What Is A Suppressor Used For?
Before deciding if you should buy a suppressor, you should probably understand what they are and what they do.
When you fire a round, burning gas builds up pressure behind the bullet and thrusts it down your bore. When the bullet leaves, a burst of host gas exists behind it, releasing a loud noise.
In comes the suppressor (or silencer). A suppressor slows down the gas by redirecting it through a series of baffles before it can escape the silencer. This allows any unburnt powder to finish burning off, which reduces muzzle flash. It also gives the gas more time to slow down and cool, so that when it does escape the silencer, it’s moving slower and under less pressure, which means it’s also quieter.
What Are The Benefits of Suppressors?
There are a bunch of benefits to using a suppressor, but here are some of the best ones:
- Reduced Hearing Damage
- Reduced Noise
- Improved Accuracy
- More Enjoyable
- Reduced Muzzle Flash
- Reduced Recoil
Reduced Hearing Damage
Hearing protection can be uncomfortable, especially if you don’t like sticking things in your ears or if you’ve got an unusually large or small head that isn’t suited to over-the-ear hearing protection. A suppressor builds hearing protection into your gun. In most cases, using a suppressor will bring the decibel level down to a hearing-safe level that reduces hearing damage without extra hearing protection.
Reduced Noise
With the exception of the diminutive .22 Short, guns are loud when you shoot them. Suppressors bring down the decibels that you hear each and every time a gun is shot. Making less noise while shooting is beneficial if there are a lot of people at the shooting range if you’re out hunting, or simply if you’re trying to do everything possible to preserve your hearing.
Improved Accuracy
An extra benefit of suppressors is that they reduce the felt recoil when a gun is fired. Since there’s less recoil, both you and the gun are moving around less than you would without a silencer. That reduction in movement helps you to make more accurate shots.
More Enjoyable
Shooting suppressed is simply a ton of fun. Seriously, we’ve never met anyone who shot suppressed for the first time and then turned around with a frown on their face. It just makes the entire shooting experience a lot more enjoyable. If you don’t believe us, then you’ve probably never shot suppressed before. See if your local shooting range has suppressors that you can rent. If they do, it’s highly recommended that you try it. If they don’t, come on out to one of the many events that we set up at where range time is part of it, and try shooting a BANISH suppressor for yourself.
Reduced Muzzle Flash
In addition to dropping the decibel levels, a suppressor often reduces the muzzle flash that you see out of the end of a gun when it is fired. This can be helpful if you’re shooting in low light or no light situations where the muzzle flash can cause temporary blindness as your eyes struggle to let in light from the darkness and are then assaulted by a bright muzzle flash.
Reduced Recoil
As was mentioned above, shooting suppressed reduces recoil. This makes using a suppressor a common thing when it comes to introducing a new shooter to our love of shooting sports. Less recoil while shooting suppressed means you can shoot longer and shoot more comfortably. This benefits seasoned and new shooters alike, with the added benefit of taking away the scary aspect of shooting for the latter group above. In addition to making shooting more comfortable and accurate, it can also make follow-up shots faster.
Shooting Suppressed vs. Unsuppressed
Distance
It’s generally accepted that a suppressor will actually increase the velocity of your rounds. However, that increase is often negligible. We’re talking maybe 10-15fps. Unless you’re using a top-notch chronograph, you won’t notice that difference and it’s definitely not something to write about.
The same goes for a suppressor’s impact on a bullet’s range. You might see a slight deviation from the established norms of shooting unsuppressed, but it really isn’t enough to matter.
Recoil
Without a doubt, you’ll notice a difference in recoil when shooting suppressed versus shooting unsuppressed. It’s definitely a softer shooting experience with a suppressor on the end of your muzzle. While this might not be an issue with small calibers like the .22LR, it can make a world of difference if you’re shooting something like the .338 Lapua Magnum or .300 Remington Ultra Magnum. Less recoil while shooting suppressed means you can shoot longer and shoot more comfortably.
Firing Speed
No, using a suppressor won’t make you as fast as Jerry Miculek, but it will help improve the speed of your follow-up shots. Since a suppressor helps reduce recoil, that means you’ll experience less muzzle flip and your sight picture will experience less disruption. This will allow you to get back on target faster and reacquire your sight picture more quickly so that you can get off your next shot.
Weight
While most suppressors today are made of lightweight materials such as titanium, they still have weight to them. As a result, shooting suppressed is going to add some weight to your overall gun setup. In most situations, you won’t notice the weight difference between shooting suppressed and shooting unsuppressed. If you’re in a situation where even the smallest bit of weight makes a difference (like on an overland hunting journey or in a competition), you might not want to use a suppressor. Still, it’s worth doing a comparison since suppressors really don’t weigh that much.
3 THINGS TO HELP YOU CHOOSE WHICH SUPPRESSOR TO BUYSuppress Your Firearm Today!
If all of the benefits of shooting suppressed that we discussed above have intrigued you to the point where you want a suppressor of your own, then we’ve definitely done the first part of our job. Next, shop for a suppressor with us and order yours today.
Silencer Central is here to make your buying process as easy and cost-effective as possible. It’s hard to go wrong with free gun trusts, free thread protectors with barrel threading, and an eZ-Pay Plan that lets you break up your purchase into multiple interest-free payments while you wait for your application to be approved.
With more than 15 years of experience in the industry, we’re the nation’s largest silencer dealer. We’re also the only one licensed in all 42 suppressor-legal states that can sell, process, and ship your new suppressor directly to your door. Our experts are ready to help you by phone or email. Contact us today to get started!
ORDER TODAY!