MAC subgun suppressors?

[heypete]

Hey folks,

Now that I'm an Arizona resident, I'm looking at picking up some affordable NFA guns, starting with what I can actually afford.

Right now, that is basically two things:
* A MAC variant, probably in 9mm due to inexpensive ammo.
* Ruger AC556

The MAC is quite a bit cheaper, and there's an indoor NFA friendly place where I could shoot it, but not the Ruger.

That said, I was wondering several things.

1) Which MAC subgun variants are good? I know little about them other than they're select fire (is that safe-semi-auto or some other type of selector like safe-burst-auto?), supposedly quite reliable, ugly as sin, and within my NFA budget. Any recommendations on brands would be helpful, as would any suggestions on useful replacement parts. I'm not sure what components wear more quickly than others, and would hate to wear out an auto sear and not be able to have it replaced.

2) What MAC-compatible suppressors are available and for how much? I know the MAC was designed to be easily suppressed, but I'm not sure which ones are better than others in terms of longevity, durability, sound suppression, etc. It would seem that Gem-Tech has their Viper suppressor, which is one of the few that I've been able to locate on the web.

Any comments on the care and feeding of a MAC and/or a suppressor would be most welcome.

Cheers!

 

[MisterPX]

As far as an M-11, SWD is most likely what you'll get. Great little toys. You might also be looking for a Mac 10 in 9mm. Can't say too much about them, except watch out for the Texas? ones. Check out uzitalk.com then go to the Mac section. IF your Mac is threaded 1/2x28, you can stick any FA rated can on there.

 

[taliv]

my mac10 in 45acp has an enormous AWC can (matching serial numbers, even). i'd definitely recommend it.

however, when you say "designed to be easily suppressed" that may be true, as it's certainly easy to slap can on... but it does NOT mean they're quiet. they fire from an open bolt and the action is much noisier than you might suspect.

 

[heypete]

my mac10 in 45acp has an enormous AWC can (matching serial numbers, even). i'd definitely recommend it.

Good to know.

however, when you say "designed to be easily suppressed" that may be true, as it's certainly easy to slap can on... but it does NOT mean they're quiet. they fire from an open bolt and the action is much noisier than you might suspect.

I have no illusions about how quiet it'll be (though having a video clip or something with it firing suppressed and unsuppressed would be nice), but any reduction would be nice. I hear that with the suppressor, it's a bit more controllable.

Would you recommend a 9mm or .45 ACP MAC? I was leaning toward 9mm simply due to economy of bulk ammo in that caliber, but any thoughts would be nice.

Also, how's the ergonomics? The grip doesn't look terribly comfortable from pictures, but I have no personal experience.

How available (and expensive) are spare parts? Anything in particular wear sooner than others (i.e. barrels, the auto sear, etc.)? Are most MACs registered sears or registered receivers? If it's the receiver that's registered, is it possible to acquire replacement auto sears and other parts that wear? I'd be concerned about long-term upkeep of it. Finally, how available and expensive are magazines?

I realize it's a bunch of questions, but for my first NFA gun, I'd like to make a well-informed decision.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

Go with the M11/9 subgun. An addition to parts being cheap, they have almost as many accessories available as the AR-15 series rifle. This includes such things as .22LR uppers, rifle uppers, folding and collapsible stocks, etc.

Hard to believe this used to be a generic MAC-11:


or this one:

Are most MACs registered sears or registered receivers? If it's the receiver that's registered, is it possible to acquire replacement auto sears and other parts that wear? I'd be concerned about long-term upkeep of it. Finally, how available and expensive are magazines?

The majority are registered receivers. That means you can have as many replacement auto sears as you desire (provided you own NO semi-automatic MAC type firearms). I keep a complete trigger group for my M11/9 as well as a complete spare upper and bolt. Magazines are plentiful and relatively cheap.

 

[heypete]

Wow, those are some nice looking MACs. I haven't really been looking at accessories in the NFA market, but one of my complaints with the basic MAC subgun is its hideous blockiness and ugliness. Glocks look good blocky...the MAC, not so much.

But having some accessories, as cheesy as they sound, really make it look quite a bit nicer. A comfy grip, maybe some sort of forward area to grip (not a vertical grip, but a forward handguard), a decent stock, a suppressor, and a red dot seems to make quite a bit of a difference.

It looks like prices for SWC M11s run about $3700-$4200, per autoweapons.com. Do these seem like fair prices in today's market? I'm heading up to Scottsdale over the weekend and might check in with the Scottsdale Gun Club (a big Class III shop here) to see if I could rent an M11 and price-check what they have for sale.

No doubt I'll come back and ask a bunch of questions either here or in the General forum.

 

[jack the toad]

It looks like prices for SWC M11s run about $3700-$4200, per autoweapons.com.
That sounds high to me even if you're including the price of the can.
The newer design cans are higher than the old SIONICS wipe type. I personally wouldn't give $200 for the SIONICS.

 

[CleverNickname]

Autoweapons has a good selection, and I'm sure he has good service, but he's also known for having above-average prices.