55 gal. Suppressor

Whether it works or not, it sounds like something the ATF would want you to get a $200 tax stamp for since you said its a suppressor!

I'd actually be interested in this. It does not attach to the firearm in any way, is not portable unless you're of Herculean proportions and would somewhat decrease the noise your neighbors have to tolerate when you shoot. Calling this a "suppressor" would be akin to claiming an indoor range is a suppressor. It is a fixed structure, firearms are used inside it, the noise heard outside is diminished.

An structure placed, exterior sound baffle.

Doubt the Feds care if it is not attached to the gun.

I know, I was joking.

It's legal.



If you bang something on an empty 55 gallon steel drum, then do the same thing to a plastic one the difference in resonance between the two is why I used the plastic ones.



They also won't rust, weigh less and easier to cut.

No it's completely empty. It actually makes it louder for me but it doesn't bother my wife any longer when I'm out playing.

Glue some sheets of foam rubber around the inside?

That might help, my goal was to keep the wife happy with as little work as possible. I didn't want it very heavy or a bunch of stuff blowing around with every shot, so they are empty.

Just don't attach the drum to the muzzle. That is the no-no without a Form 1.

in my youth we used a range that had a frame that held some clapped out tires that did an impressive job of muffling retort. I'm actually a little fuzzy on whether it was 6 or 8 tires, but we used it with the muzzle about even with the inside of the second tire in. from the house, a few hundred feet away, the sound of a '30-06 in the tires was actually quieter than a .22LR out side of it.

redclay wrote:
Are these effective and or practical...

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Yes.

What you are describing and what jmorris has pictured are effective mufflers.

If you could suspend a 35 gallon (or thereabouts) drum inside of a 55 gallon (or thereabouts) drum using thin metal brackets or bailing wire the device would be even more effective since there would be no direct path for vibrations to travel from the inside drum to the outside drum. You need an air gap all around the inner drum, so just connect with brackets or wire. Also note the large cut jmorris has in his drum to allow for a decent sight picture.

You could also fill the space (in whole or in part) between the drums with polyester fiberfill or an eggcrate matress topper like hso mentioned to further deaden the air. Fiberfill along with open cell foams are "accoustically transparent" but they work in this case by attenuating the air compression that is transferring sound from the inner drum to the outer one. Since this isn't a silencer in the conventional sense, there isn't any worry about setting the firberfill on fire from the propellant gas since they will have cooled down by the time they make it out of the first drum.

If you want to really get sophisticated (and if cost is no object), line the outer barrel with some sound deading material like this: https://www.crutchfield.com/shopsearch/sound_deadening.html?&pg=1

redclay wrote:
...sooth neighbors hearing?

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Hearing, yes. But they are not pretty and your neighbor(s) may consider it an eyesore.

It is possible to get 20 to 30 decibels of sound attenuation using landscaping. Depending on how far away you are from the house and the neighbors, that may be enough. There are hybird species of the Salix (myrtle) that will grow to maturity in tree form in only a couple of years. Other Salix shrubs like the wax myrtle grow near to the ground and can fill in between the trunks of the Salix trees. Their thick, abundant foliage is an effective sound absorber for the neighbors.