Muzzlebrakes, Suppressor mounts, and Suppressors on sporter barrels

I checked with both GemTech and my gunsmith. Both said there would be no issue threading a .308 at 1/2" despite some internet commentary. My gunsmith has done hundreds off them for muzzle breaks and suppressors. So that's what I did. Used a bushing to bring it up to 5/8" and directed threaded a Tracker on to it.


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Accuracy was unchanged from stock. Sub MOA with almost anything, and I can usually count on a least one or two internet bragging size groups off the sandbags.

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Not seeing any downside to just doing a 1/2" thread job. It's not exactly untested ground.
Yellowknife. I am in a similar situation, I have a Tikka T3x Superlite in 30-06 and want to run a banish 30 on it. How is your setup treating you? I am wanting to make the plunge and thread my barrel. I am also considering replacing the barrel but that would be a steep price to pay to get and expensive silencer on my rifle. Thanks for posting this! The internet community has so much hate for 1/2" on a .30 cal. Hard to see through the hearsay.
 
I ordered a barrel last week and we went with a heavy sporter 20” in 270 Win to get a diameter large enough to thread it to the Silencer Harvester Evo I have in ATF jail. I should have a muzzle diameter of .716 at the barrel.

I think the first gunmaker/barrel maker to figure out how to offer a contour that is lightweight, and threaded for direct thread mounts is going to sell out,
 
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I ordered a barrel last week and we went with a heavy sporter 20” in 270 Win to get a diameter large enough to thread it to the Silencer Harvester Evo I have in ATF jail. I should have a muzzle diameter of .716 at the barrel.

I think the first gunmaker/barrel maker to figure out how to offer a contour that is lightweight, and threaded for direct thread mounts is going to sell out,

Several on here have had that done by McGowen, they get a sporter taper that flares at the muzzle to create an extended shoulder and 5/8” threads. Costs $35 extra, but cheaper than a Fieldcraft.
 
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Yellowknife. I am in a similar situation, I have a Tikka T3x Superlite in 30-06 and want to run a banish 30 on it. How is your setup treating you? I am wanting to make the plunge and thread my barrel. I am also considering replacing the barrel but that would be a steep price to pay to get and expensive silencer on my rifle. Thanks for posting this! The internet community has so much hate for 1/2" on a .30 cal. Hard to see through the hearsay.
I think I'm on my 5th season with this set up? It's seen some field time and is my primary mountain gun. Probably 8-9 animals? No issues at all and I just got another moose with it. I haven't had to touch the zero in years. Red loc-tite keeps the adapter firmly in place. I'd need a big wrench to get it off.

A guy I hunt with has a Tikka Superlite in .300 WM cut back into the flutes (20") and threaded for a QD type brake with an OSS suppressor. He just ordered the QD brake with the smaller thread size. That's another way of doing it.
 
I think I'm on my 5th season with this set up? It's seen some field time and is my primary mountain gun. Probably 8-9 animals? No issues at all and I just got another moose with it. I haven't had to touch the zero in years. Red loc-tite keeps the adapter firmly in place. I'd need a big wrench to get it off.

A guy I hunt with has a Tikka Superlite in .300 WM cut back into the flutes (20") and threaded for a QD type brake with an OSS suppressor. He just ordered the QD brake with the smaller thread size. That's another way of doing it.
Thanks for the info. I thought I was up a creek. I really love my Tikka and buying a barrel just to add a suppressor would have been a huge bummer. I got the Tikka mainly for it's value. What a deal out of the box.
 
I ordered a barrel last week and we went with a heavy sporter 20” in 270 Win to get a diameter large enough to thread it to the Silencer Harvester Evo I have in ATF jail. I should have a muzzle diameter of .716 at the barrel.

I think the first gunmaker/barrel maker to figure out how to offer a contour that is lightweight, and threaded for direct thread mounts is going to sell out,
Doesn't the Harvestor Evo come with a 1/2-28 direct thread option? I think you can have that can with interchangable inserts in either thread size, or at least that's the way I read the marketing material. I like how short that model is.

Yk
 
Doesn't the Harvestor Evo come with a 1/2-28 direct thread option? I think you can have that can with interchangable inserts in either thread size, or at least that's the way I read the marketing material. I like how short that model is.

Yk

Yes, but
1) I already have a Savage 6.5 CM threaded 5/8-24
2) Based upon my research, a 1/2-28 is really for smaller calibers like 223. If you run a larger caliber like my 270 build, the barrel wall ends up rather thin at the muzzle.
 
I checked with both GemTech and my gunsmith. Both said there would be no issue threading a .308 at 1/2" despite some internet commentary. My gunsmith has done hundreds off them for muzzle breaks and suppressors. So that's what I did. Used a bushing to bring it up to 5/8" and directed threaded a Tracker on to it.
I have the same problem, Omega 36M for a 308. This is on a Mossberg I bought for my son(super light, shockingly consistent). The shorter barrel will make a 1/2 28 but that’s all. I shelved the project for now but would like to see a closeup pic of what you’ve done.
 
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This seems to be a perpetual topic of conversation. This is a 5/8-24 to 1/2-28 adapter purchased from brownells. Is it ideal? No… for a custom barrel, I would have it built with a shoulder. Does it work? Yes, zero issues. The gunsmith was aware of the application and had the adapter in hand, so everything was threaded square and to tight tolerances.

 
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This seems to be a perpetual topic of conversation. This is a 5/8-24 to 1/2-28 adapter purchased from brownells. Is it ideal? No… for a custom barrel, I would have it built with a shoulder. Does it work? Yes, zero issues. The gunsmith was aware of the application and had the adapter in hand, so everything was threaded square and to tight tolerances.

I’ve been doing that with my Kimber Montana 308 with zero problems. I have a few of those adapters.
 
Yes, but
1) I already have a Savage 6.5 CM threaded 5/8-24
2) Based upon my research, a 1/2-28 is really for smaller calibers like 223. If you run a larger caliber like my 270 build, the barrel wall ends up rather thin at the muzzle.
Lots of us run 1/2x28 on 30 cal tikkas. No issues.
Wouldn't even blink at threading 270 1/2x28.
 
I right in the middle of this now. Have some sporter barrels that will only allow for 1/2-28. Every manufacturer ive spoken with, and internet research suggests i cant shoot a suppressor with a 1/2-28 ptich on anything 6.5 cal or bigger. Interesting Gemtech says its good to go?

I have a 6.5x47 lapua, 28 nosler and a 270wsm id like to suppress but have been "scared" away because i can only get a 1/2-28 pitch on those barrels.

In all my internet research, i have yet to come across a thread where someone had a failure because they used a suppressor on cal 6.5 or bigger with a 1/2-28 pitch. Probably some out there, i havent found.
 
I right in the middle of this now. Have some sporter barrels that will only allow for 1/2-28. Every manufacturer ive spoken with, and internet research suggests i cant shoot a suppressor with a 1/2-28 ptich on anything 6.5 cal or bigger. Interesting Gemtech says its good to go?

I have a 6.5x47 lapua, 28 nosler and a 270wsm id like to suppress but have been "scared" away because i can only get a 1/2-28 pitch on those barrels.

In all my internet research, i have yet to come across a thread where someone had a failure because they used a suppressor on cal 6.5 or bigger with a 1/2-28 pitch. Probably some out there, i havent found.

You can add Christensen Arms and Kimber to your list of manufacturers who obviously think it is fine. All of the Christensen Mesa series rifles have 1/2-28 threads, including their 30 cals. All of the Kimber Mountain Ascent rifles have their barrels threaded 7/16-28, which is a 1/16 of an inch less than 1/2". That rifle isn't chambered in anything less that 6.5 caliber.

This thinking is the same thing that lead us down the path to horrible factory triggers. Some perceived risk by an engineer or a lawyer out there rather than looking at the empirical data right in front of them.
 
Then why do they
recommend 5/8-24 on 6.5 cal or bigger? Surely they have learned from past failures?

Here is a response I received from a suppressor manufacturer when I asked why they don't recommend 1/2-28 on 6.5 cal or larger.

"Our recommendation is based on having enough barrel wall material to withstand the uncorking pressures generated when using a suppressor"

Wouldn't pressure be significantly reduced when it reachs the muzzle/suppressor?
 
This is very timely, I got my barreled actions back this morning and I just got home from the range. They are absolutely awesome and now I have exactly what I want. Both barreled actions are shouldered so they can accommodate 5/8x24 direct threads on barrels that are otherwise too thin.

I wanted the ability to direct thread without adapters and I had/have no desire for permanently attached mussel devices to put silencers on. With these, I’ll be able to run my banish 30 and TBAC 7 with no compromises.

One is a Kimber 308 and the other a tikka 30-06.
 

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Then why do they
recommend 5/8-24 on 6.5 cal or bigger? Surely they have learned from past failures?

Here is a response I received from a suppressor manufacturer when I asked why they don't recommend 1/2-28 on 6.5 cal or larger.

"Our recommendation is based on having enough barrel wall material to withstand the uncorking pressures generated when using a suppressor"

Wouldn't pressure be significantly reduced when it reachs the muzzle/suppressor?
Thunderbeast has stated that it’s more of an issue of just having a weak area in the barrel that could potentially be damaged from leverage when a suppressor is attached. It’s not going to blow apart or anything like that.
 
This is very timely, I got my barreled actions back this morning and I just got home from the range. They are absolutely awesome and now I have exactly what I want. Both barreled actions are shouldered so they can accommodate 5/8x24 direct threads on barrels that are otherwise too thin.

I wanted the ability to direct thread without adapters and I had/have no desire for permanently attached mussel devices to put silencers on. With these, I’ll be able to run my banish 30 and TBAC 7 with no compromises.

One is a Kimber 308 and the other a tikka 30-06.
So you threaded barrels to 1/2x28 and then run an adapter to get you to 5/8-24.?
 
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This seems to be a perpetual topic of conversation. This is a 5/8-24 to 1/2-28 adapter purchased from brownells. Is it ideal? No… for a custom barrel, I would have it built with a shoulder. Does it work? Yes, zero issues. The gunsmith was aware of the application and had the adapter in hand, so everything was threaded square and to tight tolerances.

So you threaded barrels to 1/2x28 and then run an adapter to get you to 5/8-24.?
No, no more adapters for me. This is a permanent thing done by a gunsmith.

What yellow knife has done is an adapter that goes from 1/2x28 up to 5/8x24. I have a few of those laying around that I just won’t need again in case somebody needs one.
 
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Ok. I'm not following what you did. Are threaded at 1/2-28 and bumped it up to 5/8-24? If no adapter, I assume your threaded at 5/8-24?
The gunsmith may have threaded the shoulder on but it’s permanent now and creates a shoulder for the suppressor. Prior to that, I did the same thing Yellowknife did but I wanted something different and wanted my barrels shortened anyways so I got the full thing done. I’m very happy with how it came out.
 

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