Suppressor Help: 5" vs 7" cans for Hunting

Joined
Feb 23, 2018
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I am going to make the plunge and finally purchase a suppressor. But I am feeling a little overwhelmed deciding on which one to buy.
I am not concerned about full auto rating etc. My suppressor will be primarily used for hunting, I mostly want to be able to hunt without having to worry about hearing protection, as all of my hunting rifles currently have brakes. Suppressor would primarily used on my 6.5-06 AI. but would also probably use it on my 22-250 for coyotes also. Whatever I buy will be 30 cal for versatility. Having the absolute quietest can is not my primary concern, I'm trying to find the happy medium between reasonably quiet, and in a weight and length that I don't mind packing around on my hunting rifle. I am probably completely overthinking all of this, but I just want to be sure before I commit to one.

I am torn between going with something like the dead air nomad, Q half nelson, VOX or Ultra 7, which are all ~6"-7" and ~10-14oz.

In hopes of keeping weight and length down on my hunting rifle that has a 24" barrel, I am also very tempted to go with a smaller 5" "k" can such as the YHM Resonator K, or the VOX K, or Ultra 5, but I have concerns about them not offering adequate suppression.

I'm hoping someone has experience with the smaller ~5" cans compared to the ~7" cans, and can share your experience with each. Would the little bit you save on weight and length be worth it in your opinion? Or would you rather pack the little extra for the added suppression? Are the 5" cans adequate or a waste of time on a hunting rifle?

Thanks,
 
OP
RaggedHunter
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I am pretty much in the same boat and was going to post a thread about this today.

Great minds think alike they say :cool:. Hopefully some guys with some first hand experience can chime in and put some of our concerns to rest.
 

mcr-85

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I was looking at the Dead Air Sandman TI. I have yet to buy my first one either. Mine will mostly be on coyote rifles but would be nice on a hunting rifle as well.
 

Shoes

FNG
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I love my 30 cal Ultra 7. In the 30 cal variety the Ultra 5 reduces a 308 to around 145 db, this is still above what is considered "safe" for an impulse noise. The 7 is around 135 dB which would be considered hearing safe. If you want quiet, go with the 7. If you want light and portable, go the 5 and just understand the tradeoffs you're making.
Have you called TBAC? I'm betting they have more data than what is on the site for more cartridge/barrel combinations and you could see what the difference is on guns you have.
 

JigStick

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I have a TBAC 30P1 direct thread in 30cal that I use on my 300wm. Fantastic performance all around. Got it probably 5yrs ago. Two years ago I picked up both the DeadAir Sandman K and L quick attach ones. Both are equally as good as the TBAC in regards to precision and accuracy. Very minimal change in POA / POI

I rarely use the TBAC anymore. The convenience of the quick attach is great. Also, DeadAir offers interchangeable end caps. So when I throw my 30cal DeadAir cans on my 6.5x47, 6dasher, etc I just screw on the appropriate diameter end cap. Giving you the benefit of a 6mm / 6.5mm can but with the volume of a 30cal. Stupid quiet.
 
OP
RaggedHunter
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I have a TBAC 30P1 direct thread in 30cal that I use on my 300wm. Fantastic performance all around. Got it probably 5yrs ago. Two years ago I picked up both the DeadAir Sandman K and L quick attach ones. Both are equally as good as the TBAC in regards to precision and accuracy. Very minimal change in POA / POI

I rarely use the TBAC anymore. The convenience of the quick attach is great. Also, DeadAir offers interchangeable end caps. So when I throw my 30cal DeadAir cans on my 6.5x47, 6dasher, etc I just screw on the appropriate diameter end cap. Giving you the benefit of a 6mm / 6.5mm can but with the volume of a 30cal. Stupid quiet.

I appreciate the input. I will likely just go with a direct thread as I wont likely be switching it around much.
How would you rate the effectiveness of the sandman k on say your 6.5x47? is it sufficient suppression for say hunting where you're only going to fire a few rounds?
 

JigStick

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With all of my mentioned suppressors you can safely shoot a 300wm without ear protection. When I run them on my 6mm and 6.5mm it’s even more quiet. More kind of sounds like subsonic 22LR going off


honestly back in the day direct thread was the name of the game for precision rifle cans. But with the development of much much better quick attach muzzle devices it’s just not true any more. The design of the DeadAir muzzle devices produce consistent lock up and indexing every time. Just like shouldering a direct thread onto your muzzle threads. It’s up to you man. But I can tell you that since I got the quick attach ones I rarely dick around with screwing that TBAC on

TBAC 30p on a 23in 6.5x47
85E5AA63-2BED-48BC-A67F-A8A385780E24.jpeg

TBAC 30p on my 300wm

4D828403-E21B-4F16-B391-B8389653B166.jpeg

the shorter style cans weren’t available when I purchased my 30P. Regardless of what you decide get something in the 5-7in range for a hunting rifle.

sandman K on a 24in 6x47

A29211A3-BE49-4DD6-9D7B-71323C178C2C.jpeg

I’ll have to take a pic of the Sandman K on one. Sorry don’t have one on the iPhone.
 
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OP
RaggedHunter
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With all of my mentioned suppressors you can safely shoot a 300wm without ear protection. When I run them on my 6mm and 6.5mm it’s even more quiet. More kind of sounds like subsonic 22LR going off


honestly back in the day direct thread was the name of the game for precision rifle cans. But with the development of much much better quick attach muzzle devices it’s just not true any more. The design of the DeadAir muzzle devices produce consistent lock up and indexing every time. Just like shouldering a direct thread onto your muzzle threads. It’s up to you man. But I can tell you that since I got the quick attach ones I rarely dick around with screwing that TBAC on

TBAC 30p on a 23in 6.5x47
View attachment 150020

TBAC 30p on my 300wm

View attachment 150021

the shorter style cans weren’t available when I purchased my 30P. Regardless of what you decide get something in the 5-7in range for a hunting rifle.

sandman K on a 24in 6x47

View attachment 150024

I’ll have to take a pic of the Sandman K on one. Sorry don’t have one on the iPhone.

I really appreciate all the input, this has been really helpful. The pictures help a bunch, I would definitely like to see one of your 6x47 with the sandman K on it. That would be very close to my rifles overall length.

And that's good to know that the new quick attach setups are reliable. I suppose they add a little weight vs direct thread but I'm not sure if it's enough to make a difference, I will have to look at going that route a little closer before I buy.
 
OP
RaggedHunter
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I was looking for the same use, I went with a GAP jager. Only adds 4.5” to barrel length, & only 7oz. I wanted one to put on & leave it.

I looked at that brake also. Very appealing for a dedicated hunting suppressor. Only problem is I have a Proof barrel and it wont fit over my muzzle. If I had a smaller contour barrel this one would probably be very high on my list.

Have you had a chance to shoot it yet? If so would you mind sharing what rifles you've shot it on, and how effective it is?
 

Jacack

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I was looking for the same use, I went with a GAP jager. Only adds 4.5” to barrel length, & only 7oz. I wanted one to put on & leave it.


i got one too, been running mac bros cans for a few years now and had great luck with them and seeing they made it i went ahead and bought it as a dedicated can for my 6.5 Saum. unfortunately i just started the long wait so it will be a while before i can report on it other than handling it and being impressed with the look and feel.
 

HuntnPack

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I looked at that brake also. Very appealing for a dedicated hunting suppressor. Only problem is I have a Proof barrel and it wont fit over my muzzle. If I had a smaller contour barrel this one would probably be very high on my list.

Have you had a chance to shoot it yet? If so would you mind sharing what rifles you've shot it on, and how effective it is?
Yes the jager is ideal for hunting rifles with smaller/med contour, std length barrels.
I have not got to use it yet, still locked up.
I got a 6.5 model for a Seekins Element 6.5 PRC with 21” bbl. that’s .700 at muzzle.
Dedicated to that rifle only. It’s Perfect !!
Short, small dia., lightweight.
I wanted to maintain the 21” bbl & not sacrifice velocity & still have a very manageable finish length at 25.5”
Did get to handle it
& was impressed with quality. Couple guys over on the Hide with good info on it.
give user Sendero _Man a msg.
Oh.... also give GAP a call in regards to mounting on a carbon Barrel.
 
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Sled

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I am considering the jager as well, even though my first hunting suppressor is in jail currently. (sico harvester)

the short over barrel configuration is appealing but i'm a little worried about the minimum bbl lengths.
 
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I wish more US companies offered over the barrel ones. I hunted with one in NZ and it was great. I think 3” over 5” in front would be nice. That’s about what that one was.
 
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Sabinal, TX
Another vote for Ultra 7 .30. I have a SiCo Omega as well but I don’t like it as much for precision shooting. Don’t ounce count on a suppressor. Look for it’s ability to facilitate precision shooting, minimal POI shift and sound suppression. Weight will largely be solved by its minimal POI shift and reputation for precision shooting because heavy cans won’t meet these criteria - they change most barrel harmonics too much. Getting a suppressor is, first and foremost, about reducing sound and making it safe without ear protection.

Remember, you’re going to be using your suppressor 99.9% of the time NON hunting. Like range shooting. Short cans may look cool and sound cool in theory but they’re sort of a half-measure, imo. If the weight savings between a 5” and a 7” can is going to make a difference in your pack, a guy should just pack some foam earplugs and leave the can at home OR spend more time at the gym. Lol.

I’m not up on the latest and greatest suppressors but my Ultra 7 has been amazing on everything from a coyote SBR .223 to my custom LR rifles up to .300wm. It pretty much lives on my 6.5 Creedmoor. I’ve had the fortune to shoot MANY suppressors and the TBAC Ultra series checked ALL the boxes for me and better than any other can I shot: repeatable bugholes that are essentially the same as groups without the can AND minimal POI shift from groups shot without the can. I’m less than .4 MOA different without my Ultra 7 on my 6.5 Creedmoor. That’s pretty awesome. My Omega causes about 1.25 MOA shift.

The ONLY thing I could wish for is that it was capable of handling up to .338, so I could put it on anything from a pistol caliber AR to a .223 to a .338. But, we can’t have anything. Lol!

Hope this helps



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Dunky

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I went back and forth on this. reached out to TBAC and they steered me toward the ultra 7 as a good all around option. Ordered it with the brake mount to use on a few different rifles. just waiting for the paperwork to clear
 
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