Suppressor Solvent

[Lawnboi]

I’d pull my hair out if I had to clean my suppressors every few hundred rounds.

I weigh mine and clean them when they gain weight. I have take apart and sealed cans and prefer cleaning a titanium sealed can to anything I have to take apart.

 

[justin davis]

I’d pull my hair out if I had to clean my suppressors every few hundred rounds.

I weigh mine and clean them when they gain weight. I have take apart and sealed cans and prefer cleaning a titanium sealed can to anything I have to take apart.

How do you clean you titanium cans?

 

[thinhorn_AK]

People are suggesting CLR which is a weak acid cleaner. So is “the Dip” which is widely reported to produce a toxic lead acetate solution that can be absorbed through the skin. Anyone know the chemistry on CLR and lead?

I emailed the CLR people and they wouldn’t answer the question. They just said they have never done tests to see what happens after the chemical is used.

For that reason, I just treat it as if it’s dangerous and I don’t dispose of it on my property.

 

[z987k]

My understanding of lead chemistry is fairly basic (I'm a biologist), but it appears that lead solubility is not strongly affected by pH changes and is more dependent on reduction-oxidation chemistry.

CLR is a recommended cleaner by Banish for their Backcountry silencer in a video I saw online. Thinking about this further, CLR contains lactic acid (lowers pH) and lauramine oxide, a surfactant. Lactic acid and lead may for lead lactate if heated, but would not form lead acetate (lead plus acetic acid + heat); some energy input is required for either reaction. Lauramine oxide may serve to surfact lead complexes or chelate (solubilize) lead within solution, facilitating removal from surfaces. Note that my impression is that this would not change the redox state of lead to a +2 charge which makes the lead itself soluble and highly toxic (direct ingestion being the main health hazard).

If you are concerned about dissolved lead in cleaning solutions from a health or environmental perspective, I suggest adding magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) in excess (i.e., a couple tablespoons) to your used cleaning solution. You can then add bentonite or kitty litter to create a solid and dispose of the solution with your residential garbage. The Epsom salt should precipitate out insoluble lead sulfides through a single-displacement reaction, PB + Mg(SO4) → Pb(SO4) + Mg. Lead precipitates have very low human and environmental toxicity compared to solubilized lead.

Perhaps someone better versed in chemistry can double-check my logic above.

Interesting and related sidenote, lead fouling with copper-jacketed or monolithic bullets is due to gunpowder residues which contain trace amounts of lead that is vaporized during combustion then settles on surfaces (barrel, silencer, nearby environment, etc.).

Note- edited for clarity and bolded the take-home message.

Is there really much if any lead in powder? I assumed all the lead build up from a jacketed or mono bullet would be from the lead styphnate in the primer.

 

[Lawnboi]

How do you clean you titanium cans?

Follow thunderbeasts recommended process with clr.

My take apart can is not titanium so I have to be a little more careful with solvents.

Part of the reason I’ll probably only buy titanium cans from now on is that you can fill them with clr. Clr is cheap, soaking baffles in other solvents can get expensive.

 

[justin davis]

Follow thunderbeasts recommended process with clr.

My take apart can is not titanium so I have to be a little more careful with solvents.

Part of the reason I’ll probably only buy titanium cans from now on is that you can fill them with clr. Clr is cheap, soaking baffles in other solvents can get expensive.

Ok thanks

 

[Andouille]

Is there really much if any lead in powder? I assumed all the lead build up from a jacketed or mono bullet would be from the lead styphnate in the primer.

Great question. I used "gunpowder residue" in a general sense, but you are correct that "oxides of lead" are present in the primer per this study article.

 

[rbutcher1234]

Follow thunderbeasts recommended process with clr.

My take apart can is not titanium so I have to be a little more careful with solvents.

Part of the reason I’ll probably only buy titanium cans from now on is that you can fill them with clr. Clr is cheap, soaking baffles in other solvents can get expensive.

For what it’s worth, surefire soaks their cans in CLR when the military eventually sends them in.

 

[justinspicher]

I found this awhile back when I got my suppressor.

Cleaning Silencerco Suppressors



There is really no need to clean our sealed center fire suppressor’s baffles, they shoot hot enough and with enough pressure to blow out any build up. You may notice a little carbon after a while, This is totally normal and will not decrease the performance of the suppressor. if you feel the need to clean it. We recommend soaking it in mineral spirits for 12-24 hours, then washing it out with plain water and blowing it out with an air compressor. Then give it time to dry.



You will want to clean the threads from time to time. Any gun cleaner and a stiff wire brush will work great. I’ve also found break cleaner works well.





The best and easiest way to clean the Spectre is with a tumbler using stainless steel media. You can simply put all your baffles in this tumbler and it will do all the work for you.



If you do not have access to a tumbler, then a Sonic Cleaner is the next best choice.

If you are cleaning your silencer by hand then you will just use a stiff brush and gun cleaner to clean your baffles.



You can also soak it in CLR, that will do a great job as well.



The Omega 300 and Spectre can be put into an ultrasonic as they are both stainless steel.

But beware that it can take off finish and even the serial number if you aren't careful.



Sonic Cleaners & Suppressors

We've had a lot of customers ask us about using a sonic cleaner on their suppressors lately - so we decided to run some experiments to see how well they really work. Over the course of our experimentation, we learned quite a bit - and I think we've come up with a pretty good idea of how to use a sonic cleaner both safely and effectively on your suppressor. Before going into the details, let me stress that suppressors DO NOT need to be cleaned like you would clean your firearms. Honestly, they shoot quieter when they're dirty; so, you should really keep your cleaning to a minimum. Having said that, however, there are some cases where occasional cleaning is necessary - such as .22 suppressors being used with that dirty/non-jacketed ammo... We used a Hornady Magnum Sonic Cleaner with the Hornady gun cleaning solution. The heater feature was turned on to 140 degrees for all the testing.



Now, on to the tests! The first suppressor we decided to use was the excellent Stainless Sparrow from SilencerCo. Since the Sparrow is so easy to take apart, it doesn't get cleaned as much as our other .22 suppressors (which is actually a good thing - remember that less is more when cleaning suppressors). Since this was our first attempt, we simply took the Sparrow apart and threw all the pieces into the Sonic Cleaner for 45 minutes. We filmed the test for your viewing pleasure: If you watch that video clip, you'll see that we were initially unimpressed with the results. You may also have noticed that the Sparrow finish held up perfectly in the sonic cleaner - so we didn't think much about the damage that could occur. We learned later that putting a finished part into a sonic cleaner is not a great idea!



Our second experiment was much like the first in that we simply pulled apart an AAC Ti-RANT 9 and threw it in the sonic cleaner for 45 minutes. Once again, you can see the test here: This time around, we started to see some minor damage to the finish - so we decided it would be a good idea to limit the time that finished parts spend in the sonic cleaner. Unfortunately, the lesson we should have learned was to leave the finished parts completely out!



Our third test was the first time we really started to see good cleaning results. This time we used an AAC Element and followed these steps:

1. Put only the internal baffles into the sonic cleaner for 15 minutes.
2. Pulled them out and gently scrubbed them using a copper brush - the carbon pieces flecked off far easier than normal so we only spent a couple of minutes and didn't worry about getting it perfect.
3. Put the baffles back into the sonic cleaner together with the tube for an additional 15 minutes.
4. After the second 15 minute run, the remaining build-up fell off easily and they looked great! Literally, the baffles looked like new!

Unfortunately, although we only put the tube in for 15 minutes, it didn't fare well at all. This is the kind of thing that would make you sick if you had just spent the time and money to procure a nice new suppressor; so, once again, I advise you to leave the finished parts completely out of the sonic cleaner! Regardless of the damage to the Element finish, we continued with our experiments since we were impressed with how clean the baffles were coming out. Since we have heard so much about how aluminum parts may or may not be damaged in a sonic cleaner, we decided to give that a try using a, fully aluminum, Tactical Innovations Stratus suppressor. Since the Hornady gun cleaning solution is supposed to be safe for aluminum parts, we didn't anticipate any problems - but we hadn't anticipated the finish coming off either... Fortunately, the Stratus came out as clean as the Element - and with no pitting or other damage to the aluminum baffles. I'm not going to guarantee anything; but, we're not going to worry about aluminum baffles going into the sonic cleaner. Overall, I think this is a great tool for cleaning the baffles from take-apart cans since they come out perfectly clean with a minimum of effort. It is unfortunate that the finish can be damaged so easily since that makes it impossible to just throw a sealed can into the sonic cleaner every few thousand rounds. For sealed cans, I think we'll just stick with soaking in solvent and rinsing them out.

 

[rbutcher1234]

Anyone who tries to argue that there is no performance loss due to lack of cleaning with a centerfire rifle can does not shoot enough. Suppression performance and weight have all been adversely impacted by heavy round counts. To maintain highest levels of performance, build up internally must be managed.

 

[Formidilosus]

Suppression performance and weight have all been adversely impacted by heavy round counts. To maintain highest levels of performance, build up internally must be managed.

Can you give some numbers to “heavy round counts”?

 

[rbutcher1234]

Can you give some numbers to “heavy round counts”?

Absolutely. These may not be very high round counts for some people since it is all relative.

I have an RC2 that has somewhere between 21-23k through it. That can has gained weight.

I have a 12th model that is somewhere between 11-12k. The Douglas barrel still shoots within my level of acceptability, so the can hasn't been taken off the gun in a long time.

I have a dominus that has somewhere between 10-11k of 308 through it, as well as 716 of 6.5cm (the 6.5 is more exact because I am tracking the barrel)

Again, perhaps "heavier" was the wrong term since it's all relative.

 

[Formidilosus]

Absolutely. These may not be very high round counts for some people since it is all relative.

I have an RC2 that has somewhere between 21-23k through it. That can has gained weight.

I have a 12th model that is somewhere between 11-12k. The Douglas barrel still shoots within my level of acceptability, so the can hasn't been taken off the gun in a long time.

I have a dominus that has somewhere between 10-11k of 308 through it, as well as 716 of 6.5cm (the 6.5 is more exact because I am tracking the barrel)

Again, perhaps "heavier" was the wrong term since it's all relative.

Those are good numbers. Most people believe “heavy” is about 200 rounds. Once you get into the 20+ thousand rounds, the can ar e gaining weight. Performance doesn’t seem very effected for good ones, but they are heavier.

 

[rbutcher1234]

Those are good numbers. Most people believe “heavy” is about 200 rounds. Once you get into the 20+ thousand rounds, the can ar e gaining weight. Performance doesn’t seem very effected for good ones, but they are heavier.

Glad I am not most people then! Those 200 rounds would barely cover weekly cold rifle/pistol diagnostics.

My experience absolutely mirrors yours regarding sound, but I am not the best person to quantify minute sound changes. When I’m at a range, I am always wearing double ear pro even if suppressed. I get semi annual hearing tests at work, so measured hearing loss is something that would be noticed. Work cannot have a measurable drop in hearing. In the field, it’s usually just headphones and a can. Regardless, I always have a minimum of two forms of hearing protection between a suppressor and 1/2 levels of ear pro. I will not consciously choose to be around unsuppressed guns without double earpro.

Because of earpro, I cannot tell a sound difference on my surefire compared to new and unfired. Perhaps it is slightly louder, perhaps not. Either way, it’s a workhorse and continues to work fine like every single one I have seen for tens of thousands of rounds.

The weight accumulation due to carbon and other particulates is very interesting. I’ve seen it happen at different rates on different cans, presumably due to design and functional differences. It took right at 1k (mix of 308 and 300NM) to gain close to an ounce of weight on a 338 ultra sr, whereas a Helios qd ti and a Hyperion has had more than 2k without that level of weight buildup. I have tracked more early data on bolt gun can weight, but I am trying to do a better job of starting earlier for the gas guns. We all evolve, learn, and grow.

Statistically, there may be a difference due to sample size. If we look at it that way, I would only be truly comfortable making statements about surefire, ops inc/Allen engineering, and Hux suppressors since I have seen large round counts through multiple examples on comparable platforms.

I have no doubt that eventually, left unchecked, enough carbon would build up to perceptibly impact sound suppression. Whatever number than is though, I feel that you’d notice the weight increase significantly earlier. Platform matters too, ie 300NM with a 9” can vs subsonic 300blk with a 9” can… one of those is going to build up particulates more quickly. Can type matters too, I care a lot more about routinely cleaning flow 556Ks than RC2/QDC/NT4.

 

[Xbow hunter]

Can you give some numbers to “heavy round counts”?

Watch the YouTube video by Barbour Creek Shooting Academy on cleaning suppressors. It shows quite a bit of carbon coming out while pushing out the core of the suppressor.

 

[Weldor]

Carbon Pro works good on my Banish. Have also used Hoppes Elite. Made a 4 inch long x 2" PVC tube for the baffles, just give them a soak and nylon or brass brush and they are clean.

 

[Caseknife]

I use the Hornady Sonic cleaner on my Banish 30, works good.

 

[Veloci_Wrench]

Centerfire suppressors can easily go thousands and thousands of rounds without cleaning. I've built Form 1 cans, so they disassemble like a Banish and there is no need to clean it every 50 rounds. If you remove the end cap and the baffles are stuck, just whack them from the other end with a 1"dowel, or old broom handle and a hammer.

Rimfire is a different story, those should be cleaned every few hundred rounds, for sure.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

I cleaned my titanium can about a month ago and I have always used the dip method but figured I would try soaking in CLR because a lot of people on here recommend it. I soaked the baffles in a glass quart jar full of CLR and the results were abysmal. After soaking for approx. 48 hours, I then spent hours and hours of scrubbing to get them clean and when i used the dip method they came out sparking clean after just 24 hours with basically zero work on my end.

 

[Unckebob]

I cleaned my titanium can about a month ago and I have always used the dip method but figured I would try soaking in CLR because a lot of people on here recommend it. I soaked the baffles in a glass quart jar full of CLR and the results were abysmal. After soaking for approx. 48 hours, I then spent hours and hours of scrubbing to get them clean and when i used the dip method they came out sparking clean after just 24 hours with basically zero work on my end.

How did you dispose of the waste?