Tag Archives: silencerco

A North Star AR?

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When I do a gun review, I typically only have a chance to kick it around my local climes– the swampy Gulf South, where humidity is as thick as the gumbo and sand is only something you find on the riverbank or the beach.

Well, I had a special chance recently to hammer away on a test carbine in a class at Gunsite in the high mountains in Northern Arizona during monsoon season, where the moon dust turns a unique bubblegum consistency and sticks to everything.

Then, switching gears, I was able to bring said carbine back home and continue the T&E period with another 700 rounds in between Sazeracs and crawfish boils.

The gun was a Northstar NS-15.

This thing…

You may not have heard of them, but North Star has some pretty interesting sister companies.

An offshoot of RSW Aviation, North Star Arms is the second and more commercial firearms endeavor that has sprouted from the Arizona company. The elder RSW-related gun company is the better-known Profense, a maker of improved M134 Mini Guns in 7.62 and its downsized 5.56 little brother that started when RWS was looking for gun pods for its aircraft.

And I have to admit, the NS-15 proved super accurate and durable for a mid-length carbine with a 16-inch barrel.

North Star uses Ballistics Advantage barrels and ships with a sub-MOA guarantee

More in my column at Guns.com.

Pocket 308 with a Can

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I’ve been wringing out the SFAR for several weeks and, with the first 500 rounds in the rearview, decided to go for some quiet time.

Ruger’s new Small-Frame Autoloading Rifle is aptly named, as it is a 308 Winchester-chambered AR that, rather than dog pile atop the familiar AR-10/SR-25 competition, hit the market in a very AR-15 size. We are taking 6.8 pounds in weight and just 34 inches long when fresh out of the box in its shorter carbine variant that sports a 16-inch barrel.

Ruger’s SFAR, in its 16-inch carbine format. They also make it in a 20-inch model, which is probably a waste of time.

The handy little rifle is almost perfectly set up to mount a suppressor via its adjustable gas port and standard 5/8-24 TPI muzzle threads.

With the Boomer brake removed and Omega 36M mounted in its long configuration, we found the overall length of the SFAR to still just hit 39 inches with the stock collapsed. Weight, with the can, EoTech XPS, and sling installed, was 8.5 pounds. You could shave a few ounces and inches from even these figures by running the Omega in its shorter configuration.

More in my column at Guns.com.

Turkish Tactical

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I’ve been looking at the new Tisas PX-9 Gen3 Tactical for a few months now and have found a lot to like about it. The third generation of the Tisas-made polymer-framed striker-fired pistol includes a 5.1-inch extended threaded barrel, accepts easy-to-find SIG P226 pattern double-stack mags, is offered in three finishes (black Tenifer, OD green, or FDE Cerakote), has a decent 4.5-pound flat-faced trigger, comes with steel suppressor-height Glock-pattern sights with a front fiber-optic, and has a factory micro red-dot slide cut in a Trijicon RMR/SRO pattern.

Proving reliable across the first 1,000 rounds of Barnaul import, CCI Blazer Brass, and Federal American Eagle 115-grain FMJ, I recently quieted down a bit and tested it with a suppressor.

A big one.

For reference, the overall length in this format was 16 inches and it balanced well between the full mag and the can. Keep in mind you could always shrink that down, for instance, the SilencerCo Omega 36M shown can be dropped to its short format, or you could use a lighter can such as an 8-ounce Osprey 9 2.0, but we are getting too much in the weeds here. You get the idea.

More in my column at Guns.com.

Busting that gas, for real this time

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One issue that many AR users run into, especially with today’s often over-gassed guns, is a hot blast of gas to their face. This is particularly noticeable when using a suppressor. Not a deal-breaker, mind you, but one that puts a crimp on creating a more comfortable and enjoyable shooting experience.

While visiting with SilencerCo in Utah last October, I sat down and talked about that sometimes aggravating problem.

Jacob Turnblom, one of SiCo’s engineers, me he had purchased several AR-pattern charging handles billed as reducing gas blowback over the years, for his own use. Most of these handles used side ports or channels to divert those remnant gasses away. Even before that, a common hack for users was to put RTV silicone sealant around the top edge of a GI-style handle, to try and buffer the gas away.

“I shoot almost exclusively suppressed,” Turnblom said. “So, I was really just on a mission to see if this was just all snake oil or if one of these actually worked better than the other.”

With that, he started a project where he pitted every charging handle he could find that was advertised as having a gas-taming enhancement, loaded them in a stock Colt M4 with a GI handle, and ran the tests.

“We took some really close up high-speed video, down in our test range, of the backs of these charging handles, to see if they lived up to the hype,” he said.

They didn’t.

With that, SiCo developed the Gas Defeating Charging Handle, a “gas busting” handle that actually works.

The GDCH, top, has a proprietary design feature that incorporates an O-ring seal to prevent gas from escaping from the most prominent point of egress. This seal mitigates the amount of gas that is blown back into the shooter’s face. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

More in my column at Guns.com.

SiCo Brings out a Svelte Hunting Can

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A couple of months ago I went out to SilencerCo’s place in Utah and had a chance to play with some of their toys, some of which were under wraps. One that just went public is the Harvester EVO, a sweet little (6.24 inches long and with a weight of 10.8 ounces) tubeless suppressor intended for serious hunting use.

The EVO, about the size of a Red Bull, is meant to be maneuverable and take up negligible space on long treks, where every inch and ounce matters while still being able to make everything .300 Win and smaller hearing safe.

The EVO is rated for centerfire calibers from .223 Rem to .300 Win, and I ran it through a Tikka T3x in 6.5 CM while visiting SiCo in Utah earlier this year with no problem. Yes, my old sailor ink is sneaking out.

More in my column at Guns.com.

One Can to Quiet Them All…

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Utah-based SilencerCo on Tuesday announced a new addition to its lineup, the Hybrid 46M, billed as “the world’s first and only truly modular large-bore suppressor.”

Built to a design that incorporates titanium, 17-4 heat-treated stainless steel, and Inconel, the full-auto-rated Hybrid 46M adds modularity to the company’s already popular Hybrid 46. In its long configuration, stretching over the front module and endcap, the suppressor runs 7.72-inches and weighs 14.9 ounces. In its shorter format, ideal for SBRs or pistols, it tapes out at 5.78 inches and weighs 12.2 ounces.

When it comes to accommodating calibers, it is omnivorous and is rated for all centerfire pistol and rifle calibers– including 45ACP, 10mm, .450 Bushmaster, .458 SOCOM, .45-70 Government, .338 Lapua Magnum– up to .460 Weatherby Magnum. This gives it the appeal of being a single can for just about everything in the gun safe.

More in my column at Guns.com. 

The Maxim 50, err 47

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The first “silencer” was developed and patented by Hiram Percy Maxim in 1909 and he continued to patent new designs into the 1930s, when he withdrew from the market in the wake of the National Firearms Act of 1934, which placed a (for then) outrageous $200 tax on transferring the devices, which had to be registered with the federal government.

Currently, there are over 1.3 million suppressors on the NFA’s NFRTR list, in all 50 states (law enforcement and dealers have to register theirs as well) with the devices approved for civilian use and ownership in 42 states, and for use in hunting in 40 of those.

Well, SilencerCo last week introduced a brilliant idea: a .50-caliber in-line 209 muzzleloader with a 9-inch “moderator” welded to the end of the barrel, making possibly the first commercially available suppressed black powder rifle. Since the ATF says BP guns are primitive weapons, and the can is permanently attached to said primitive weapon, then it is not a NFA-regulated suppressor.

Which means that, as far as Washington is concerned, it can be bought online via mail-order, and shipped to your door everywhere in the country with no tax stamp or NFA paperwork.

SilencerCo is sending me one to T&E, and it looks simple and very cool.

Touting a significant reduction in recoil and smoke as well as 139dB sound performance, the overall length of the system is 45-inches while weight is 7.4-pounds.

They recommend 100 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder and projectiles that do not have wadding or plastic that separate upon firing, for example, Federal B.O.R. Lock Z or Hornady FPB rounds.

Unfortunately, while the feds say the Maxim 50 is 50-state complaint, at least three states disagree, so they are just shipping to 47 states at the current time.

Still, 47 is higher than 42…and the genie is out of the bottle.

Because baffle strikes suck, that’s why

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Mmm, look at that sweet, sweet bore alignment from the breechface to the suppressor end cap.

Regardless of whether you call them silencers, suppressors or mufflers, these Class III sound moderators have never been more popular but come with their own host of special considerations to keep them plugging along.

In addition to regular care and maintenance, you want to make sure you have a good bore alignment with your can– because a baffle strike can ruin your whole day.

More in my column at Tac.44.com

Always wanted a suppressed HK53-based SBR?

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The Heckler & Koch HK53 was designed in the 1970s as an ultra-compact version of their 5.56mm HK33, basically, the German answer to the Warsaw Pact AKS-74U Krinkov or Colt’s various Vietnam-era Commando models. They saw some export success, and in the U.S. the pre-Homeland Security Border Patrol adopted them for some tactical teams (hey, Customs had the Steyr-AUG at the same time, so you can see the need for competition).

Well, SilencerCo teamed up with Canton, Michigan’s Dakota Tactical Firearms to craft a limited run of just ten (10) roller-locked semi-auto HK53s SBRs in .300 BLK, equipped with matching Omega suppressors.

Termed the D300 by DTAC, these guns usually run bigfoot on a unicorn rare on the market. Each uses an 8.3-inch free-floated fluted barrel and a “sear-ready” tungsten-filled bolt group. The DTAC hand guard is freckled with M-Lok (because what isn’t these days?) while the receiver runs a 1913 Pic rail for your optic needs that go beyond the standard HK drum/post sights. A collapsible A3 stock, tools and 30-round mag complete the package.

How mucho do they run? Check out my column at Guns.com for that stocking sticker, along with some more sweet pics.

Varmint package from SilencerCo and CZ

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Utah-based SilencerCo last week unveiled the latest entry to its Summit line of limited edition customized suppressor/firearm packages with a CZ rimfire offering.

Centered around a CZ 455 Varmint, the package includes interchangeable 17.2-inch heavy barrels in .22LR and .17HMR, each with 1/2x28TPI threads to accept the matching SilencerCo Sparrow suppressor. Each barrel is serialized to the receiver.

I must admit, I do like the aesthic of old world craftsmanship with hand-rubbed walnut furniture, and a nice CNC can.

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