Pistol Suppressors

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Buy for the largest bullet, not the favourite one

A suppressor safely handles any bullet equal to or smaller than its bore. On rifles that logic pushes people toward a .30 caliber can. On pistols it pushes you toward .45, and the trade is smaller than you might expect, because pistol bullets are already slow and there is less gas velocity to lose past an oversized bore. Browse our blackout ammo range.

The one exception to the buy big rule is rimfire. A 9mm or .45 can will suppress .22 LR, but rimfire fouling is soft, heavy and relentless, and a centerfire pistol can is not built around that much lead. If you shoot rimfire regularly, buy a dedicated .22 suppressor. It is the cheapest can on the shelf and it will save the expensive one.

Which pistol calibers are naturally quiet

Pistol shooters have an advantage rifle shooters do not: most handgun ammunition is already subsonic, so a suppressor delivers its full benefit without buying anything special.

.45 ACP has been subsonic since 1911. A 230 grain bullet at roughly 850 fps is heavy, slow and quiet, and it is arguably the best suppressor host cartridge ever made by accident.

9mm is subsonic in 147 grain, marginal in 124 grain, and usually supersonic in 115 grain. Load heavy and it is quiet.

.380 ACP is subsonic in most loadings, though the small case means there is less blast to suppress in the first place.

.357 Magnum and .357 SIG are the loud ones. Both are high velocity bottleneck or magnum rounds firing well over the sound barrier, so they crack no matter what you thread on the muzzle. A suppressor still helps enormously with blast and concussion, it just will not be quiet.

Boosters, and which hosts need one

Most modern semi automatic pistols use a tilting barrel that has to move to unlock the action. Hanging ten to fourteen ounces of suppressor on that barrel stops it moving properly and the pistol short strokes.

The fix is a booster, also called a Nielsen device: a spring loaded piston in the back of the can that lets the barrel move independently for the fraction of an inch it needs. Almost every pistol suppressor sold today includes one.

You do not need it on a fixed barrel host. Revolvers, fixed barrel pistols, and pistol caliber carbines all keep the barrel still, and for those the piston is replaced by a solid spacer that ships with most cans. Swapping takes a minute with a wrench.

Revolvers deserve a specific warning. Most revolvers cannot be suppressed usefully at all, because gas escapes from the cylinder gap regardless of what is on the muzzle. The exceptions are designs with a gas sealing cylinder, which are rare and specialised.

Frequently asked questions

Can one suppressor cover all my handguns?

Usually, if you buy a .45 rated can. It will safely run .45 ACP, 10mm, .40, .357 SIG, 9mm and .380, and you swap the piston to match each host's thread pitch. Rimfire is the exception and deserves its own dedicated can.

Which pistol caliber is quietest suppressed?

.45 ACP, comfortably. A 230 grain bullet at roughly 850 fps is naturally subsonic, so there is no sonic crack for the suppressor to fight. Heavy 147 grain 9mm is a close second.

Do I need a booster?

On a tilting barrel semi automatic pistol, yes. Without one the suppressor's weight prevents the barrel unlocking and the pistol will fail to cycle. Fixed barrel pistols and pistol caliber carbines use a solid spacer instead.

Can I suppress a revolver?

Generally no. Gas escapes from the gap between the cylinder and the barrel, so the noise gets out regardless of what is on the muzzle. Only rare gas sealing designs make it worthwhile.