SilencerCo Scythe Ti failures

[HighUintas]

Yo dudes, I was watching this video and noticed that the can gets hot on the welds that fail first and stays hottest there longest. Kind of makes me wonder if it's a thermal cycling failure.

I have noticed that too just by feeling after shooting

 

[whoami-72]

Alright guys, I did a bit more research and have a theory. Silencerco posted on their website that it's made from grade 5 and grade 9 titanium. From some initial reading, it looks like grade 9 is easier to work with (stamp baffles) and has worse heat performance (shows up "reder" on a thermal imaging), and is a weaker titanium (more likely to fail).

So, I have a sneaking suspicion that what we're seeing is the welded joints between a grade 5 blast chamber and grade 5 first baffle fail when connected to the grade 9 baffle stack. I think it's also weakening at that weld the fastest because the grade 9 baffles don't handle the heat as well and Thermaly fatigue faster than anywhere else. As a result, I'd be willing to bet it's a long term design flaw of the can that everyone will experience at some point if they shoot it long enough.

I don't plan on taking it any further than this since I don't own one but think they're super cool and still may end up buying one....... links below if your interested.

Grade 5 vs Grade 9 Titanium - What's the Difference

Get an expert breakdown of the key differences between grade 5 and grade 9 titanium. Know what to look for when you're selecting materials for your next project.

www.marketsmartb2b.com

Grade 9 vs Grade 5 Titanium Comparison: Choosing The Right…

Grade 5 Titanium has dominated the discussion for decades but now there are a wide range of applications in which Grade 9 Titanium is the superior choice.

www.ulbrich.com

Grade 5 Titanium vs Grade 9: What's the Difference? - MFG Shop

In the world of engineering and manufacturing, choosing the right material can mean the difference between success and failure. Among the vast array of

shop.machinemfg.com

 

[just.mark]

@whoami-72 thata good research and seems very plausible. Thank you for sharing. I put another 100 rounds of 7mm prc through mine this week and now I am wondering if the failure is a accumulation of heat damage over time. I let mine cool 5 to 10 min between 8 shot strings and wonder if that will protect it.

 

[HuntHarder]

Id honestly just shoot it like you normally would. I know I have and my Scythe is over 1000 rounds of 6.5cm, and 200ish 22" 300 win mag. I thought about attaching a small steel leader thru the ports on the end and about 50' of 100lb test to make it easier to find the end when it blows in half. Hasn't happened yet. This thread makes me wonder if it truly is isolated and not that many failures, based on how many have been sold. Internet search does not really provide too many other reports of them blowing apart.

I am continuing to use my as I normally would and hoping that if something happens, it happens during the off season and not on a shot on an animal.

 

[Marshfly]

This thread makes me wonder if it truly is isolated and not that many failures, based on how many have been sold. Internet search does not really provide too many other reports of them blowing apart.

People with failures are significantly more likely to report than those that have not had failures.

 

[IDVortex]

Holy balls this thread went down the nerd road on cans. Thanks, actually learned a bit about TI cans.

Though, I have wanted a Scythe, I think I'll be sticking with AB for now or try out a UM.

 

[jtevanMT]

I get that it's a concern. But it might be overblown on the recoil end. When mine let loose I didn't even notice and it didn't affect the shot. Guy on the bench next to me tapped me on the shoulder to let me know. Other people's experience may be different.

My experience was different, recoil was much more than without the scythe. Almost pushed the bag and me off the bench since I was not expecting it. My shooting partner said WTF was that. It took about a minute for us
to notice 1/2 the scythe was missing. Fortunately, only a sore shoulder.

 

[The Harbor Master]

My experience was different, recoil was much more than without the scythe. Almost pushed the bag and me off the bench since I was not expecting it. My shooting partner said WTF was that. It took about a minute for us
to notice 1/2 the scythe was missing. Fortunately, only a sore shoulder.

There's definitely been people with major medical issues during suppressor failures. Glad nothing too terrible happened!

 

[mlevimadden]

If you’ve experienced catastrophic failure of the Scythe Ti, please post the following:

1. Cartridge or cartridges used with approximate round count

2. Barrel length

3. Factory ammo, hand loads or both

4. Details of ammunition

5. Details of failure (to include failure point and pics)

Had to update my vote to a yes.

1. Only ever fired on a tikka 6.5 PRC. Never more than 5 shot strands. Failed at 375 rounds.

2. 20”

3&4. Handloads, 147 ELDM and N565 at 2810

5. Pic below. Separated at second weld like everyone else.

 

[waspocrew]

Had to update my vote to a yes.

1. Only ever fired on a tikka 6.5 PRC. Never more than 5 shot strands. Failed at 375 rounds.

2. 20”

3&4. Handloads, 147 ELDM and N565 at 2810

5. Pic below. Separated at second weld like everyone else.

Sorry to hear about the failure. I don't think a 20" 6.5 PRC is all that spicy.

 

[waspocrew]

So far I've only used mine on a 20" 6 ARC. Probably 100 rounds through it at this point, but I'll keep shooting away.

 

[mlevimadden]

Sorry to hear about the failure. I don't think a 20" 6.5 PRC is all that spicy.

Thanks. I filled out the warranty request yesterday, so we will see how it goes.

Worst part was it happened at an NRL hunter match on my second stage so I had to shoot the rest of the match with a bare muzzle.

I also lost it on a steep downhill with dead trees and rocks and was unable to find the front half of the suppressor, so I will post here if SiCo gives me any trouble returning only the back section.

 

[TxLite]

I also lost it on a steep downhill with dead trees and rocks and was unable to find the front half of the suppressor, so I will post here if SiCo gives me any trouble returning only the back section.

Can’t imagine they would, given the nature of how suppressors fail. But I’ll be interested to see if they do

 

[Foster_65]

Had to update my vote to a yes.

1. Only ever fired on a tikka 6.5 PRC. Never more than 5 shot strands. Failed at 375 rounds.

2. 20”

3&4. Handloads, 147 ELDM and N565 at 2810

5. Pic below. Separated at second weld like everyone else.

This mimics my failure as well. Same firing regime. Failure not do to misuse.

 

[Nine Banger]

I also lost it on a steep downhill with dead trees and rocks and was unable to find the front half of the suppressor, so I will post here if SiCo gives me any trouble returning only the back section.

If they need a piece to weld to yours, they can shoot the end off of one of theirs.

 

[waspocrew]

Thanks. I filled out the warranty request yesterday, so we will see how it goes.

Worst part was it happened at an NRL hunter match on my second stage so I had to shoot the rest of the match with a bare muzzle.

I also lost it on a steep downhill with dead trees and rocks and was unable to find the front half of the suppressor, so I will post here if SiCo gives me any trouble returning only the back section.

Definitely interested to hear how it's resolved for you and how they'd explain the failure.

 

[2GRFE]

Can you imagine being on an elk hunt, miles in the backcountry. You’ve finally managed to create a good shooting window and you proceed to shoot your silencer in half.

Makes me sick

 

[mlevimadden]

A follow-up as I know a lot of people have asked about the recoil on blow-up.

I was in a high-stress scenario being on a match stage (and of course it happened on one of the most difficult stages at the match), but I didn't even register when it blew up. I honestly couldn't tell you which round fired of the stage the suppressor blew up on. I didn't know it had happened until I cleared my rifle at the end of the stage and saw 2/3 of the suppressor gone at the end of the muzzle. I assume for most in a hunting scenario, it would be a similar situation and you wouldn't register it in the heat of the moment.

As a lesson-learned, the most difficult part was trying to get my zero correct again with a bare muzzle since I hadn't documented the difference between my zero with the Scythe installed versus bare muzzle. I ended up having to move my zero down 0.6 MIL but had to dial this in over the next few stages at the match. I would definitely recommend having this documented if you plan on using the Scythe on a magnum cartridge.

Hopefully you all get lucky with your Scythes, I was optimistic I wouldn't have troubles since I was only shooting it on this rifle that didn't seem too big, but I lost.

 

[Jbehredt]

Let us know if it looks any different upon return. Interesting idea that they may have beefed up one of the last ones to make the return trip. If so I may need to let mine ride on a 7.5” 5.56 to get it ready for a makeover.

 

[mtwarden]

Yeah it would be encouraging if there was a newly tweaked design and they acknowledged so AND then do the right thing and let everyone else who owns one know that there has been a redesign.

Completely different story, but similar situation. I had an early production 2009 WRX hatchback and was a regular on one of the WRX forums. Guys were blowing up engines, reporting it and were eventually able to narrow it down to a certain build date range. As would be my luck, mine fell in that build date range and I felt I was sitting on what amounted to a time bomb. Sure enough my engine eventually blew. Subaru was great in repairing (actually they sent a full long block—new turbo, the whole works), BUT I'm sure they had the same information as we did (and probably more as was discovered to be a mistake during the manufacturing process) and could have notified the owners instead of waiting for the engines to blow