Advice please, first 22lr suppressor

[evan price]

Deciding on trying a suppressor. Looking for value and quality, ease of disassembly/reassembly &.cleaning. Quiet. Compact..good for pistol or rifle.
Looking at dead air mask, sure fire ryder22 aac pilot, ruger silent sr22, gemtech gm22, and the silencerco sparrow and spectre2.
Advice welcome, would rather buy a good one since the stamp all costs the same. But not break the bank.
Thanks.

 

[yugorpk]

Spectre 2. You'll never feel like you wasted your money.

 

[evan price]

The Spectre 2 is my top choice now.
I would like to see opinion from someone who owns a Ruger Silent-SR22. It looks to have the specs. If want firsthand knowledge though.

 

[Theohazard]

I have a Dead Air Mask. It's shorter than a Spectre 2, but it's easier to take apart when dirty and it's just as quiet (if not quieter). The Mask also has almost zero first-round-pop, even on a pistol.

 

[weblance]

My SilencerCo Stainless Sparrow is perfect, as far as I'm concerned. It has no effect on accuracy, almost falls apart when disassembling, is silly quiet, and small and short. On a pistol length barrel, it does have First Round Pop, but a small spritz of water from a nasal spray bottle up its snout, eliminates the FRP. IF I need to take a stealthy first shot, that's all I need to do. On a rifle length barrel, there is no FRP. I think complaints about FRP are overemphasized

 

[Theohazard]

I think complaints about FRP are overemphasized

I guess it all depends on your priorities. I periodically get raccoons and other critters in my back yard, and I want to be able to grab my suppressed .22 pistol and take care of them without having the shot be too loud. I also don't want to have to take the time to use nasal spray to get rid of the first round pop, I just want to be able to grab my .22 on a moment's notice and have it be quiet from the first shot.

So, for me, first-round-pop is very important. But for others it might not be as important.

 

[weblance]

Takes all of a half a second to squeeze the little bottle

 

[Theohazard]

Takes all of a half a second to squeeze the little bottle

I'm sure it doesn't take long, but why would I want to always need to keep a bottle of nasal spray near my suppressed .22 when I can just use my Mask and not ever have to worry about it?

Personally, I have no desire to need nasal spray to make my first shot quiet. For my needs, first-round-pop is an issue, and I spent hundreds of dollars and waited almost 5 months for my .22 silencer. I want it to be quiet from the first shot, I don't want to have to take a bottle of nasal spray and spray it in my silencer for it to be quiet on the first shot. And thankfully, with my Mask I don't need to do that.

Look, I recognize that for many people first-round-pop isn't an issue. And that's great; for those people the Sparrow is a great choice, maybe even the best choice out there. But for people like me who want their .22 silencers to be quiet with the first shot (and we don't want to mess around with nasal spray to get that), silencers like the Spectre or Mask are better options.

 

[Ranger Roberts]

I have a Spectre II and a Sparrow and love both of them. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn't choose any differently. If I had to choose just one I would go with the Spectre II. I typically use it on my Ruger MKII and it is stupid quiet.

 

[Elkins45]

I have about 500 rounds through my Specter II and am totally satisfied with it.

 

[Mike OTDP]

For a pure .22LR can, I'd look at a Bowers Paradigm. Whatever you buy, take a sharp look at the specs...there are a lot of .22 caliber cans out there that are designed for higher-pressure centerfire rounds and then marketed for .22LR. That comes at a price in weight and size you may not be willing to pay.

 

[evan price]

I've seen the FRP debates on various forums, and I have to wonder what is different about the baffles that makes the FIRST round pop and not the rest. And is it always the first round, as in if I stop shooting a few seconds, then is the next round the "first" round also? As in, is it better for a full auto type firearm and not a semi?

 

[basicblur]

I have an AAC Element II and Silencerco Sparrow II - just a few observations:
1. The Element II has NO first round pop on pistols or rifles (I hear stacked baffle designs tend to have less tendency for a FRP).
2. The Sparrow II does not have a FRP on my rifles, but DOES have one on my pistols - apparently the extra barrel length slows the gasses enough before they hit the silencer that there is no FRP on the rifles.
3. The Element II is lighter and smaller - that coupled with the fact that it has no FRP means it spends most of its time on my pistols. My Sparrow II spends most of its time on my rifles where the extra size & weight are less critical.

AFA cleaning, conventional wisdom says the Sparrow II is easier to clean, but after cleaning both, I may be willing to say the Element II is as easy to clean, especially if you have a SS tumbler.

With the Element II, you can just toss everything (but the outer sleeve) into the SS tumbler - you cannot toss the Sparrow II into the SS tumbler without possibly damaging the threads and end cap, since both are permanently attached to the monocore.

Of course, I doubt I'll ever clean them that well again. The only reason I cleaned the Element II to "like new" was so I could try the silicone dip treatment.

They work better if slightly dirty, so future cleanings will probably consist of nothing more than the ultrasonic cleaner (Gunslick / RCBS).

FWIW, I cracked them open for their first cleaning at the 1,000 rd. mark, and mine looked nowhere near as dirty as pix I see of some folks are cleaning at 200 to 500 rds - don't know what kind of dirty ammo they're shooting?

After dipping both mine in silicone, I don't plan to crack them open again until the 2,000 rd. mark.

 

[basicblur]

Forgot to add (the short version)...

If it was me and your stated use (pistols included), I'd go with the AAC Element II.

I'm sure some of the new stuff is good, but if FRP is important to you, the AAC Element II is tried and true - don't know about some of this newer stuff.

I like to tell folks that ask me about silencers that FRP is the dirty little secret many don't want to tell you about (and hope you don't ask).

Some take it to heart - some just get all bent out of shape when you mention it!