One silencer to fit most or different silencers to fit each?

This is a pretty great debate - the only issue is, there’s no concrete answer.

A lot of our customers have dealt with this discussion in one way or another while dealing with the process of purchasing a silencer (we wrote up an article on how to purchase a silencer if you already know what you want). What’s the better option? What makes the most logical sense for what you want to suppress and why?

There are a few things you might want to take into consideration before you pull that trigger.

Caliber Schmaliber

A lot of people get confused when they go to purchase a silencer because they assume the weapon’s caliber and suppressor’s caliber need to match, but that’s not necessarily the case. With suppressors, you should care less about the caliber and more about the bore size, pressure and type of firearm. Our suppressors are categorized by bore size and firearm type for this very reason.

Generally, the idea is that if the bore size is large enough to fit your bullet through it and it can handle the pressure, there’s a good chance that it will work with that particular firearm. There are certain combinations that won’t work (running .22lr through a sealed rifle silencer for instance), and if you have any questions or hesitancies, we’ll be here to help guide you through the process.

What Makes the Most “Cents”

So now you see that there might actually be way more options than you initially thought. It may be a little daunting or exciting depending on how you look at it. Now you’re able to consider running a single can on multiple weapon calibers and platforms – and it’s pretty sweet to have that kind of versatility!

But it comes at a cost…

Off the cuff, it’s easy to rationalize purchasing one suppressor to fit most firearms because this is a more economical choice. And for some folks, that does make the most sense. The cost that comes into play when you consider running one suppressor for most of your weapons is forfeiting efficiency.

What we mean when we say that is this: versatility is the ability to shoot firearms with different calibers using the same silencer whereas a higher efficiency suppressor is generally quieter than a lower efficiency suppressor of the same size.

We want to point out that 7.62 cans will typically be bigger, heavier, and louder than 5.56 silencers on the same firearm. In addition to this, there tends to be a significant increase in first-round-pop when using smaller calibers in suppressors that have the ability to run larger calibers. Therefore, you could be getting the same (often better) sound performance out of a silencer that is a fraction of the size and weight of the “multi caliber” option.

So, on the surface, one silencer that will work for every firearm you own (assuming you’ve got a decent collection), sounds like a no brainer.  But what we so often run into is that those people primarily only shoot one firearm.  We understand the lust over wanting one can that has enough versatility to fit most host firearms with merely the switch of an adapter. But for some, that might not be the most realistic initial purchase. In general, people usually have that one gun that goes with them every single time they head to the range. After that, there are a few firearms that generally don’t get as much love as the primary gun.   It takes a little bit of introspection to figure that out and it can be difficult to admit..  Especially if it is your first silencer, we recommend getting one that is optimized for that“ol’ faithful” gun rather than something that might not be used as often.

The Great Debate

If you come into the shop and ask one of our staff members what they’d recommend, they’ll probably ask you what firearm you shoot most regularly and what you’re wanting to use the suppressor for. By answering these questions, it will help guide us to what you might prefer more.

If you answered by saying that you generally only shoot one firearm, then we’d suggest that you purchased a suppressor more specific to that caliber. For example, it wouldn’t make sense to buy something that’s rated for a .308WIN if you only regularly shoot 5.56.

We Hear You

Both options are great for their specific circumstances, but ultimately the decision isn’t up to us; it’s up to you. What we want is for it to be worth the wait for you!

You might feel like you need a little bit more time to figure out exactly what you want, and that’s okay! There’s quite a bit to consider, and we’ve got staff on hand if you want or need to discuss.