New Toy - Suppressed Ruger 22/45

[crs]

Sounds like an air pistol - no ear protection needed. Also accurate.
Click on thumbnail to enlarge.

[olyinaz]

Looks like fun!

Oly

[FWiedner]

Looks nose heavy, but it's got a 'cool' factor that I'm kinda likin'

[jdad]

How long was the "Tax Stamp" wait?

[AJMD429]

I got a "Trek" .223 can from Gemtech and the wait was about 8 months. Yep - that darned tax cost $200, BUT only $40/gun, since I can use it on five guns so far:

• AR-15
  Mini-14
  Ruger 10/22 with aftermarket threaded barrel
  Ruger Charger with aftermarket threaded barrel
  Ruger 22/45

Planning to get my Contender .22 Hornet barrel threaded for it as well

The Charger is probably the most 'fun' to use it on, since you're using a bipod anyway, and it is amazingly accurate. On the 22/45 it really doesn't balance much differently than my muzzle-heavy 7-1/2" Super Blackhawk (recoil and noise are noticeably different, though ).

[piller]

Looks like a lot of fun.

[rjohns94]

Congrats. Love mine. I need to get a bolt gun in 22lr so I can swap out. Mine is very well balanced and not nose heavy at all. Yours?

[Rusty]

So just how quiet are they?

I would like to get one so I could shoot without the neighbors knowing I am shooting. I just don't like drawing that much attention to my shooting.

[fordwannabe]

Rusty, my can fits a couple different guns also but when it is on the bolt action rifle, I shoot groundhogs out the back door and people in my house dont know its going off....WAY QUIETER THAN MY GAMO AIR RIFLE. I am using super colibre in that rifle but it will not cycle a semi auto. The other day I took a shot at a groundhog and my son was in the room with me and he said "didnt fire huh" then i popped the empty out into my hand and chucked it to him. They are that quiet.

[Pitchy]

Very cool

[AJMD429]

tonsofsuppressors

So just how quiet are they? I would like to get one so I could shoot without the neighbors knowing I am shooting. I just don't like drawing that much attention to my shooting.

Here's some comments and I linked to the four suppressors I find worth looking at...

Pretty quiet, but it depends alot on the ammunition you're using, and the barrel length. Even though my Gemtech Trek is rated for .223, high-velocity .22 LR's make a pretty loud 'crack' when you shoot - definitely sound like gunshots. In fact, with the high-velocity .22 LR's, and a long rifle barrel giving the full velocity, I'm not sure I could tell if a can was on or not without looking. The pistol-length barrels often do ok, because they produce more muzzle-blast (which the can deals with quite well), but they often leave the bullet subsonic so no 'crack' noise. The Trek is 17 ounces and 5-3/4" long, so adds as much weight as a rifle scope; not petite for a handgun, but works well enough. Since it's 1.5" in diameter, the sights on a Ruger 22/45 are just barely useable, but I put a small red-dot on mine so it doesn't matter.

The Thompson Machine 'Operative' that is an integrally-suppressed barrel for the 10/22 (or 96/22 easily, and maybe 77/22 with some gunsmithing), has an expansion chamber in it that keeps even high-velocity ammo subsonic and quiet. I'm not sure it weighs even as much as a factory Ruger barrel, and fits the 'bull-barrel' chanel stocks.

Standard velocity ammo is VERY quiet in either one, and that includes most of the 'target' grade ammo I've tried.

Something worth noting is that several of the suppressor makers specifically say NOT to use the Aquila SSS ammo because the bullets are so long that with a normal twist rate they don't fully stabilize, and could 'yaw' in the suppressor resulting in a baffle strike. If you have a special high-twist barrel though (many of the after-market threaded ones are higher-twist or can be ordered that way, since the assumption is you may shoot heavy-for-caliber bullets at slow velocities), it shouldn't be a problem. I suppose if you shoot some paper at 50-100 yards and they are clearly not keyholing, they are probably not going to be wobbling much at the muzzle.

Like fordwannabe says, they can be 'quieter than an air rifle' with the right ammo/gun. A short-barrel gun may go from the loudest to very quiet with a can and regular ammo, but a long-barrel gun with subsonic ammo has the overall quietest potential.

The reason I put my integrally suppressed barrel on a 96/22 instead of a 10/22 was that if you use one on a semiauto the noise of the action cycling seems so loud (the gunshot noise normally masks it). With the levergun, you hear NOTHING but the click of the firing pin, and then the bullet impacting. If I miss the 100 yard gong and hit the leaves/sand in the berm, you hear that, and if I hit the gong (pretty much always, as the gun is very accurate, and moreso with the suppressor) just the firing-pin noise then a half-second later the 'ping' of the gong being hit.

A 'dedicated' .22 LR suppressor is a bit lighter and slimmer than a .223 one, but many of you guys probably have AR-15's or other .223's you might want to suppress, so getting a slightly bulkier can rated for .223 can serve both purposes. For .223, you WILL hear a loud crack (soft enough you don't need hearing protectors, but not exactly 'quiet') if you aren't using subsonic ammo. I've yet to find/load any subsonic, bit I've heard others using it, and there you do have a really quiet gun.

Gemtech's 'WMR' is rated for .22 Mag, .17 HMR, and .22 LR. Don't know if it's rated for .22 Hornet or not, but of course the .223 cans are. It's only 6-3/4" ounces and 5-1/4" long, and has the smaller 1" diameter typical of rimfire cans. I almost got one, but instead picked the Trek. If you don't plan to suppress centerfire, it would balance better on handguns, but I chose the Trek instead to cover all bases. I suppose .22 LR-only cans are probably even smaller and lighter than the WMR, but I never bothered to look.

ANOTHER thing to keep in mind is that you can use a suppressor for smaller-caliber rounds, as long as the pressure is not excessive. You could use a .45 ACP can on a 9mm, for instance, but NOT on a .22-250...! Since .22 LR is notoriously 'dirty' a suppressor which can be disassembled for cleaning is ideal (but that lowers the strength/pressure handling capacity some). A popular one now is the one called the "Mystic" by Liberty Suppressors, because it is .357 caliber, and rated for subsonic velocity loadings from .357 Maximum on down, but also useable for most of the non-bottleneck smaller calibers, including .338 Whisper/Spectre, .32's like .32 H&R, .32-20, .30 caliber (i.e. .300 Blackout/Whisper) and so on, .256, & .243 calibers (not very many would apply, but things like .25-20, etc., and pretty much all the .223 and .17 caliber things other than magnums. It weighs 14-16 oz or so depending on what adapter you need, and is 8" long, but is very versatile for long guns. The Mystic is only 1-3/8" diameter, AND can be disassembled for cleaning if you're using rimfire or cast-lead loads, so might actually be the BEST all-around suppressor for .22's and up. It would be fine with the Ruger 22/45's sights, and weigh less than the Trek (but a bunch more than the WMR or other rimfire designs).

Sorry to ramble, but I know lots of you have commented that you're "thinking about getting a suppressor" and although I only have two, I've enjoyed them, and learned alot about them and similar models while doing the shopping. A Mystic is on my short-list, but I have to start getting paychecks again first...

[fordwannabe]

I was out at my buddies private range the other month and we were shooting high velocity ammo out of my bolt action with the can on it and it was funny as could be
click (firing pin) .....boom(bullet breaking the sound barrier).......ding(impact on gong). It may not translate unless you have done it yourself but it's pretty funny to just hear a click then down range the boom then ding. If you have a can try it!

[crs]

Thanks to those of you with more suppressor experience whan me for answering all the above questions and contributing even more. Lots of good suppressor stuff here.

My observations on the Ruger 22/45;
1. Without a suppressor, it handles and shoots well. A good, fun training pistol for beginners.
2. With our suppressor, it is a bit "barrel heavy" but OK for plinking. No perceived recoil or noise.
3. With our suppressor,for target work, a two hand hold is very steady and accurate.
4. A red dot sight will soon be added.

[Ysabel Kid]

Still waiting on the tax stamp from the BATFE. They cashed my check in March...

Can't wait. Recently picked up a Ruger 22/45 Lite after reading a couple articles on it including Jeff Quinn's. Will post pictures soon!

[fordwannabe]

They cashed my check in March or May and I got the word end of OCTOBER so don't hold your breath! They are fun though after all the hoop jumping.

[DixieBoy]

Very cool and interesting thread. And Doc, you weren't rambling, that was a very informative post. I learned some things here tonight. Thanks ! - DixieBoy

[Paul105]

I have a Tactical Innovations "Quest" -- 22 LR only -- 5" and five ounces. It works real well on a bolt action rifle with subsonic ammo (CCI subsonic segmented hollow points are quiet and very effective on small rodents). On a semi auto pistol, it's ammo dependent and subsonics are quieter (must be due to less powder or?), but still not Hollywood quiet. I have a dog that is very sensitive to loud noises (gunfire, thunder, fireworks, etc.). She will sit right next to me when I shoot the suppressed rife -- not so much with the pistol.
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22/45 Lite, C-More STS, Quest
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Gophers shot with CCI subsonic segmented HPs from the suppressed Savage bolt action rifle.
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"Fraidy Cat" (dog)
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Paul

[AJMD429]

1. Without a suppressor, it handles and shoots well. A good, fun training pistol for beginners. . . . 4. A red dot sight will soon be added.

One other thought would be Crimson Trace grips. I'm pretty sure (check before plunking down $200) that the ones for a standard 1911 would fit the Ruger 22/45's that use standard 1911 grip panels (not all of them do). The only thing I could see slightly different might be at the top of the left grip panel there is a small angle cut from I think the front upper corner for the bolt-catch (see below). Nothing that you couldn't do with a hand-rasp, and I don't think any of the electronics is anywhere near that area. I have a pair on my 1911, and if you want me to try a test fit on my 22/45, just PM me and I'll put it on my list of 'chores' to do (gotta put some FUN stuff on that list ).

Anyway, the Crimson Trace grips I find really help the novice shooters I work with in a couple ways. I use them to demonstrate 'muzzle control', by putting a fake-cartridge-and-barrel-rod safety thing I have in the 1911, then just casually holding it while we're talking, letting the muzzle point toward their leg or something, then I turn on the dot, and say "look" - they are surprised my gun would have blown a hole in their thigh if it went off. Also, just to get them oriented to 'snap shooting' when we 'advance' to that. Plus - they're just another cool 'tactical' thing that catches the interest of semi-interested people and may turn them into pro-gun people once they get 'hooked'.

I have a 1" Millet 'tube' style red-dot on mine on the Ruger factory scope base, and it works fairly well. I do like the Burris Fastfire-II's, but I already had the Millet sitting around unused.

[Irelander]

Ahh suppressors. Gotta love 'em. I have a Tactical Innovations TAC65.

Here it is on my CZ452


And on my Buckmark


Hoping to get some stainless steel baffles installed by Huntertown Arms. They offer to put their Kestrel baffle stack in a TAC65 for $250. That would be a nice step up for my TAC65 with its aluminum baffles.

I'd love to get an AAC TiRANT 45 for my Rossi 92 44MAG, of course using 44SPL loads only. That would be awesome for hunting.

My next suppressor will probably be an AAC Cyclone for my .308.