Suppressed Group Sizes (Need Help)

BrentH

WKR
Joined
Jun 20, 2013
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914
Location
WA
I’ll start off by saying I am brand new to suppressors but not shooting or even long range shooting.

This winter I bought two suppressors for two different rifles.

First gun is a Seekins PH2 in 6.5 PRC that I stuck a TBAC Magnus on using the Area 419 Hellfire system. Going from a TiPro brake to the Magnus, I saw zero POI shift and my group size tightened up.

Took out the second gun today, which is a Ruger American GoWild in 6.5 CM. Has a Leupold Freedom CDS scope and (I think) Talley or Warne rings (I know, I know).

This gun/scope has been rock solid the last 4 years riding around in the truck and/or side by side, always held zero, and my son has taken deer from 100-430 yards with it. Last season I shot it at the beginning of the season to confirm it was still on and then put it away, as my son wanted to shoot the PRC.

My daughter is going to start hunting this year, so I added the suppressor, TBAC Ultra9 (6.5 cal) using the Hellfire system, and also added some weight to the buttstock via some steel rods wrapped in bubble wrap to heavy up the gun a little.

First shots today with the suppressor at 100 yards were about 1-2’ high and a couple feet to the right. Moved it in to 50 yards so I could get it back on paper at 100.

Next 4-shot group was all over the place:
IMG_4879.jpeg

Let the gun/suppressor cool all the way down and shot another 3-shot group. Still bad, but not AS bad.

Let the gun/suppressor cool one more time, and at this point I was down to the last three rounds of ammo I had brought with me (wasted too many getting it back on paper at 100). Again, this group was better, but still not what I have come to expect from this gun:

IMG_4880.jpeg

So, now I’m questioning is there something about the gun that doesn’t like the suppressor hanging off the end, or has my budget-friendly scope/ring combination finally given up the ghost? I made sure the suppressor was threaded on tight (as tight as I could get it with my bare hands) to eliminate that from the equation.

Just wondering if next best course of action is to try a different scope, or something else?

Picture of said gun:
IMG_4878.jpeg
 
I wouldn't say there was anything wrong yet. Just try a different load. Just because it worked without the suppressor doesn't mean it will with. Each rifle. suppressor, load combo is different.
The POI impact is to be expected, however yours seems a bit extreme.

Have you tried it in a Direct Thread configuration rather than using the QD setup? In my experience, DT will usually result in less shift.

Either way, I would try some different loads before blaming the suppressor.
 
You are clipping one of the baffles. As you shoot it more and more the bullet will wear the baffle out of the way. OK, thats not really acceptable. But I would say the bullet is hitting a baffle.
 
You are clipping one of the baffles. As you shoot it more and more the bullet will wear the baffle out of the way. OK, thats not really acceptable. But I would say the bullet is hitting a baffle.

Agreed. If you are getting that much of a shift, it is from a baffle strike. You need to check your mount/adapter.

When I had that problem, it was due to an adapter being out of spec.


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Did you test the test accuracy before putting the suppressor on? Were you getting good groups? Did something go wrong with the scope since last season? I’d take the suppressor off, strip it down retorque everything and test the rifle accuracy again.

Unless you did all that then I’d lean toward a issue with the suppressor.
 
Agreed. If you are getting that much of a shift, it is from a baffle strike. You need to check your mount/adapter.

When I had that problem, it was due to an adapter being out of spec.


____________________
“Keep on keepin’ on…”
Out of curiosity was it a QD/hub style adapter or a DT style adaper?
 
Out of curiosity was it a QD/hub style adapter or a DT style adaper?

It was a 1/2-20 to 1/2-28 DT adapter for a Banish 22. Once I replaced the adapter, the problem went away.

My normal POI shift for a suppressor is about 1/2” (whether rimfire or center fire).


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