Suppressed, why?

[swanny]

I'm not a huge gun buff so can anyone tell me why suppressor so seem to be the rage? Just curious. Is it clearly just for a quieter shot?

[Buzz2401]

Well after shooting for close to 30 years and hunting for most of that time.  I now wear double ear protection, foam and muffs, a noise suppressor saves your hearing.

[jay.sharkbait]

Quiet, less recoil and slightly better speeds.

[JJB11B]

always look cool! On top of what was already said, I want a couple

[DoubleJ]

To have the ability to assassinate enemy combatants with just a "thwip" coming from the gun so as to not alert other enemy combatants to your presence.

[bullfisher]

Because a quieter shot is awesome.
They are all the "rage" because laws for having and shooting them continue to loosen up in our favor.

[jay.sharkbait]

To have the ability to assassinate enemy combatants with just a "thwip" coming from the gun so as to not alert other enemy combatants to your presence.

Don't forget confined spaces.

[fly-by]

The ability to hunt without ear pro is really nice.  I was in TX for a combo hog/deer hunt last month and took one of each. Hog was not suppressed, deer was.  Having to stop and put in ears with a hog running around thick brush was not a good option, but I value my hearing so did it.  Simply shooting the deer without worrying about hearing loss was a huge benefit.  For predator calling suppressed is the only way to go since you are generally not packing a rifle very far.  For still hunting the weight can wear on you.  If you take the plunge I would suggest a direct thread model to avoid the extra weight and expense of a muzzle device, and go as light as you can.  Don't worry about a full auto rated can for a hunting rifle.  I went with a Silencerco Specwar and though the suppression level is great, a Harvester or other lightweight model would have been better for hunting.

As mentioned, recoil reduction is another benefit.  The Specwar turns a 8.5 pound 300 WM into a 7.5 pound .308.  I think the lack of blast and concussion is even better than the recoil reduction.

[Bob33]

What? DId you say something?

[Okanagan]

The only thing I don't like about shooting is the NOISE.  I've hated that part since I was a kid.  Anything that will reduce the loud noise is desirable, to me and I'd guess to most people.  I would bet that reducing noise would increase the number of gun owners and shooters signficantly.

[2labs]

Quiet, less recoil and slightly better speeds.

Just thought I would ask as I respect your opinion, once you break the sound barrier even suppressed, are you not loud?

[JJB11B]

Because we should be able to do whatever the .... we want to do to our firearms. The govt should keep their laws off my guns and off my body

[JimmyHoffa]

Quiet, less recoil and slightly better speeds.

Just thought I would ask as I respect your opinion, once you break the sound barrier even suppressed, are you not loud?

loud but still a lot quieter than not suppressed.  The biggest factor of noise is the muzzle blast, the more pressure at the muzzle, the louder it is.

[jay.sharkbait]

Quiet, less recoil and slightly better speeds.

Just thought I would ask as I respect your opinion, once you break the sound barrier even suppressed, are you not loud?

Definitely, but it's not bad and there is almost no muzzle blast.

[h20hunter]

Easy. Why not?

[JimmyHoffa]

If you can cut the sound intensity by 3 dB, you've cut it in half, 10 dB would go down to 1/10, and 20 dB to 1/100. 
If the muzzle blast and the sonic boom have the same sound pressure level the combined noise doubles by going up 3 dB. 

[swanny]

Thanks, that's what I figured. Wasn't sure if there was another reason I was missing

[h2ofowlr]

It also nice having them as the snowflakes call 911 when they hear shots fired these days.  They also take to social media to bash the neighbor the noise is coming from.  What they don't hear is good!

[hunting4sanity]

The reasons for shooting suppressed for me are the sound reduction, recoil reduction and improved accuracy. I have severe and constant tinnitus, the ringing is very annoying and makes me wish I had started shooting suppressed decades ago. There is a definite reduction in recoil with the suppressor and I feel there is an improvement in accuracy for me just because of the reduced 'boom' and shock effects that you experience shooting un-suppressed. I use a Thunder Beast Ultra 7 on a couple of hunting rifles and have other rifles I don't use a suppressor on. A suppressor obviously changes the weight and balance of the rifle, but most of the time hunting and always at the range, I prefer to shoot suppressed.

[Bofire]

  and on the other hand it is a way to make your nice balanced handgun feel like a boat anchor!
Carl

[JJB11B]

The modern suppressors are incredibly light

[Zardoz]

and on the other hand it is a way to make your nice balanced handgun feel like a boat anchor!
Carl

Yeah, but it still looks cool.