Suppressor for air rifles

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Keyfer 55

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Are suppressers legal for air guns???
Is air guns considered firearms???
I have a Discovery in .22 cal
 
More to the point, why? Supressors work by clipping muzzle report caused by burning powder/expanding gasses, of which there are SFA in an airgun.
 
The rules vary all over and from place to place.

Best bet for OP is to check through Georgia law on air rifles. And, like as not, most of that is going to be on prohibitions for use inside of incorporated City Limits (as a guess, from reading one too many municodes).

Air rifle suppressors work on the air released from behind the projectile as it clears the muzzle. Generally, this is a lower volume of gas than from "combustion: firearms, which makes them unsuitable for those arms.

OP's rifle is one of these: https://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_Discovery_Air_Rifle/1543
Which has a stated max MV of 900fps, which is getting close to supersonic. Interestingly, you may need a "hold closed" (i.e., rubber band) to keep the bolt handle locked.
 
More to the point, why? Supressors work by clipping muzzle report caused by burning powder/expanding gasses, of which there are SFA in an airgun.

Wrong. The expanding compressed gas leaving an air rifle can be suppressed to reduce the report. Powerful air rifles have a loud enough report to startle other game.
 
If it's a separate suppressor (can be removed) then the smart thing is to assume its regulated. Remember that suppressors/silencers are federally regulated as firearms by the NFA regardless of how they are used, or even if they are never used.

Depending on how a removable airgun suppressor is designed, you might win your case as Crooker did, but the cost and hassle of your defense will be far, far more than the cost and hassle of legally acquiring a silencer.

The only way I would own a suppressed airgun is if the airgun was built with integral suppression. That means that the suppressor is built in and can't be removed and installed on another airgun or a firearm. There are a number of airguns that fit this description.
 
Wrong. The expanding compressed gas leaving an air rifle can be suppressed to reduce the report. Powerful air rifles have a loud enough report to startle other game.

What did I say that was wrong?
 
Suppressors work the same in airguns as in firearms. Just as there are expanding gases (generated by combustion) in a firearm that are propelling the projectile, and which create a report when the bullet exits the bore and the gases escape, there are expanding gases (from air that has been compressed) in an airgun that are propelling the projectile and which create a report when the bullet exits and the gases escape the bore.

In low-performance airguns, the report is fairly quiet. As the power level goes up, so does the noise. In a high-performance, pre-charged pneumatic airgun, the report will be extremely loud--essentially indistinguishable from that of a firearm of comparable power.
 
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Are suppressers legal for air guns???
Is air guns considered firearms???
I have a Discovery in .22 cal
Yes, but only the ones manufacturers install on the air gun. Lots of air rifles today have integral baffles towards the end of the barrel. It’s pretty obvious when they have it because the barrel tapers out much thicker at the end. I have a pcp gamo air rifle and it’s no problem. But don’t make them at home because if you can thread it onto an air rifle you can thread it onto anything. You’d have to destroy the air rifle to get off the integral suppressor and it’s certainly not applicable to firearm pressures
 
Lots of flat out wrong in this thread.

In the US as far as I know if the "suppressor" can not be removed from the gun it is legal in all states. Now in the air gun world they have what they call an LDC....lead and dust collector.....yea it is a suppressor, and you can put them on about anything. TKO is very popular at the moment, as well as a few others.

Others have commented on how they work and they do the exact same thing as the devices on "real" guns. And they do make a big difference.

I am not going to go out into the weeds on this (yea I know amazing right) but I would check with your area and see what is up....check out AA, PA, or one of the other "big" name airgun dealers and see what they have to say....and I say this because local law enforcement are likely a bit fuzzy on this area of their law....now that being said, they are the ones that will come and visit you....so is all that headache worth it.

As I remember the disco is not that loud....and it does not have to be uber powerful to be loud....My chief is one of the louder rifles for some reason and it is a 900fps gun, my 25 hatsan is about as loud.....and by loud I would say 22 longs....not LR....out of a rifle long. A bit of noise but nothing real bad....but all around you will know you are shooting.

I would ask the OP what is your end game, do you want this thing to shoot in the back yard and no one know....if so, I would not do it. Past that IMHO these "add on" suppressors are really not a good idea, and I really think they are a hairs breath away from going away and bringing a lot of attn to airgunning.....attn we do not need or want.
 
I will add in there if you really want to shoot PCP in the back yard and want it to be as quiet as possible, or shoot in the basement for that matter (where the noise is much worse) I would look at a different gun. I would look at the euro version of the maximus....a sub 12ftlb pound gun that will really shoot a LONG time on one charge of air. This gun is like it is on a regulator....the shots are just that steady. I would bet I have 5fps between highs and lows on mine...it shoots very well and it is also pretty quiet.

Not the most refined thing in the world, but nice and light and very quiet....and pretty darn accurate out to about 30 yards, after that you are lobbing them in there, and the wind will play hell with you as the pellets really slow down. Do a trigger mod and you are good, that is really the only thing you really NEED to do to the gun...I think the kit from a good company is around $30....then some glass and you are good to go. The euro version does have a threaded barrel and will take a "suppressor" easy as you can do that in europe....laws are so funny.
 
My discovery is as loud as an unsuppressed, long barreled .22 LR.

TKO makes them for your Disco, they are not an NFA device (legal to put on air rifles, no Tax stamp or other paper work needed).

http://tko22.com/Section1.html

That said I have suppressed .22’s that are quieter than moderated pellet guns.

 
My discovery is as loud as an unsuppressed, long barreled .22 LR.

TKO makes them for your Disco, they are not an NFA device (legal to put on air rifles, no Tax stamp or other paper work needed).

http://tko22.com/Section1.html

That said I have suppressed .22’s that are quieter than moderated pellet guns.



Have you chrono'ed them....how fast are you flinging the pellets. IIRC my disco was in the low 900's and I just did not get much noise out of mine. I want to say my 2100 with 10 pumps was louder then the disco.

I really think that these are a hairs breath away from bringing a bunch of attn on the air gun community that we really do not need.....I am not a fan....now if you can not take it off the gun...ok, but companies like TKO....man I just see it as bad news.....and I know I am in the minority on this, but it only takes one news story to blow the lid off of this.
 
I’d have to go look up my data but IIRC it was 14.7 gn pellets in the high 800’s.

A lot louder than my 392 or springers, that’s for sure.
 
New Jersey doesn't allow even manufacturer suppressed air rifles to be possessed. https://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/airgun_info.htm

That is really very limiting....thank you for the link.....I do not know much about laws in other states. I would think that NJ is pretty restrictive.
That line in there is going to take a great many of the more popular air guns right off the list.....I wonder if they are calling the Mrod being "silenced"....or Gauntlet....heck so many of the more modern PCP's have it built in.....this is really pretty stupid, and has to be done by someone that has zero experience on what they are passing laws against.

I also found this part interesting:
Ammunition no smaller than .177 caliber and no larger than .22 caliber producing projectile velocities of not less than 600 feet per second measured at the muzzle is legal.

Not LESS....so hitting harder is ok....but less is not. Now I get they are talking about hunting and I would say that a 22 at 600fps is.....well stupid on a cotton tail. But nothing over 22. Again why, Personally I want as much energy hitting the target....I like 25 for most little furry critters....just more room for error.

Goes to show you really need to check your local laws, I wonder if the big outfits make customers know that yea you cant have that $99 umerex CO2 fusion because it has a "silencer" on the end of it.....

just stupid.
 
I’d have to go look up my data but IIRC it was 14.7 gn pellets in the high 800’s.

A lot louder than my 392 or springers, that’s for sure.


392 is in the same ball park as a 2200, and that thing has a bit of a crack to it. My most powerful springer is a RWS 48, and while very porkey it is not loud. I do not remember my disco being that loud....could be my old age catching up with me.
 
this is really pretty stupid, and has to be done by someone that has zero experience on what they are passing laws against.

If you take the time to think about them most laws are written by people that don’t know what they are doing.

There are lots of city ordnance’s that treat airguns the same as firearms.
 
That is really very limiting....thank you for the link.....I do not know much about laws in other states. I would think that NJ is pretty restrictive.
That line in there is going to take a great many of the more popular air guns right off the list.....I wonder if they are calling the Mrod being "silenced"....or Gauntlet....heck so many of the more modern PCP's have it built in.....this is really pretty stupid, and has to be done by someone that has zero experience on what they are passing laws against.

I also found this part interesting:
Ammunition no smaller than .177 caliber and no larger than .22 caliber producing projectile velocities of not less than 600 feet per second measured at the muzzle is legal.

Not LESS....so hitting harder is ok....but less is not. Now I get they are talking about hunting and I would say that a 22 at 600fps is.....well stupid on a cotton tail. But nothing over 22. Again why, Personally I want as much energy hitting the target....I like 25 for most little furry critters....just more room for error.

Goes to show you really need to check your local laws, I wonder if the big outfits make customers know that yea you cant have that $99 umerex CO2 fusion because it has a "silencer" on the end of it.....

just stupid.


Their laws eliminate a great deal of modern airguns, not much left on the table for their residents to plink or hunt with. Hard to believe that is a part of the United States. Makes me glad to live in MO, where we have legislation like this being considered: https://www.senate.mo.gov/19info/BT...H_Fq2GVLwd6aLlrWUtvnya3I5StGnJDsItMOkvu_8vMg4
 
Actually all suppressors for airguns are illegal, unless you have the tax stamp etc. The reason mfg's get away with it is the ATF doesn't cover airguns so they are not concerned about them (not my job), but they are still technically illegal. Even if a suppressor has to be cut from whatever it's attached to doesn't make it legal, but many airgun suppressors simply un-thread and could easily be used on a firearm. All but one of my many airgun suppressors thread on, and I could put them on my 22LR in about 10min with duct tape, and they would work. The problem, imo, is a million things could be used as a suppressor so they only bust people if they can show intent. Like if you made a suppressor that clearly has no other function. So the muffler and oil filter on my car are both potential suppressors, but I'm ok as long as I don't mount them on a firearm, or have a mount ready to go. For example a shirt is ok until you wrap it around the muzzle. A solvent trap is one that has the use of being a solvent trap, but the ATF isn't buying it so they're illegal period. Even possessing the solvent trap adapter that connects a gun to a car oil filter is illegal, even tho it is not a suppressor w/o the filter. The gun is legal, the filter is legal, but the adapter serves no other function and the ATF is not stupid. So when people push the limits like they did with solvent traps, the ATF responds. I actually saw a full blown firearm suppressor on the Walmart website for $20. It had the right threads, it was an alum body with a hole on the other end and accepted a paper filter. Even w/o the filter it's totally a suppressor, but there it was on the website. I'd imagine they were either ignorant to what it is, or the "filter" is delivered by an ATF agent that asks if you ordered it, and will you accept it.
The Walmart link is broken but google Wix or Napa fuel filter suppressor. Ebay no doubt has them.
Here's that adapter I mentioned, which IS on the walmart site: https://walmart.com/ip/148312318

Making a suppressor for an airgun no doubt puts you in a much grayer area, so I'd rekon that if you do it better not fit easily onto a firearm, which is kinda hard to do since they're so similar, and why the oem suppressors from my airguns will fit firearms.
Also note that it only has to reduce the report by 1dB, one time, to quality as a suppressor. So yes a lame plastic suppressor counts. I'd imagine fake suppressors count too b/c I'd imagine the tube length could drop it 1dB. Having a longer barrel that reduces >1dB is a-ok, just as selecting quieter ammo is, or a gas actuated gun where that gas usage drops >1dB. I'd imagine controlling all that stuff would be too complicated so they don't bother, but probably don't care either. The spirit of the law is to prevent bag guys from quieting their shootings so it seems they're just concerned with the obvious suppressors doing the obvious. Imo...
This link may help some people who think airgun suppressors are exempt for whatever reason: http://tinyurl.com/zbtllh2

Many airguns don't really need a suppressor, but I want them on everything and imo a pcp is pointless w/o one. I went a step further with my Marauder and added a suppressor to the oem suppressor to pretty much make it a silencer b/c it literally is silent now. No way in hell I'd take that add-on off my property, but in my yard I feel safe enough to use it.
 
Actually all suppressors for airguns are illegal, unless you have the tax stamp etc.
If it can be truly shown that the suppressor is only for airguns and can't be used on a firearm then it is legal without a tax stamp since the federal law does not regulate airgun suppressors.

There has been at least one case one where a person had a (removable) airgun suppressor (there's a link to the Michael Crooker case earlier in the thread in theairgunman's post) and was able to demonstrate to the court's satisfaction that it was not a firearm suppressor and therefore not regulated. It would have been way cheaper for him to pay for the tax stamp than to go to court. In addition, the circumstances of the case were somewhat unusual.

Integral airgun suppressors are designed so that they can not be removed in functional condition. That is considered reasonable proof that they are not firearm suppressors and therefore not regulated by federal law.

If I were going to own a removable airgun suppressor, it would have a tax stamp--I can afford that easily--but I can't afford to go to court.
 
Check out this sight. I have one for a Walther 850. Totally silent. The only thing you can hear is the hammer spring. I also have one for a Crosman 2250, same thing. This discussion has been going on in the Airgun community for many years. On the Walther which is Co2, Walther would sell a "compensator", Funny thing is, that if you just placed black tape around it, would do the same thing as the "Air Stripper".

TKO
http://www.tko22.com/index.html

All this said, I am a air gun enthusiast, and I prefer high quality Springer's. Nothing comes close to love I have for them. A nice German/English airgun and then custom tuned makes a beautiful shooting platform. And they are extremely quiet. All mine have been custom tuned Except one. The Walther LGV which feels like a Custom Tune right out of the box.And beautiful machining, just total quality. Sounds like a small thud when shooting.

BtNZeQm.jpg
 
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If it can be truly shown that the suppressor is only for airguns and can't be used on a firearm then it is legal without a tax stamp since the federal law does not regulate airgun suppressors.

There has been at least one case one where a person had a (removable) airgun suppressor (there's a link to the Michael Crooker case earlier in the thread in theairgunman's post) and was able to demonstrate to the court's satisfaction that it was not a firearm suppressor and therefore not regulated. It would have been way cheaper for him to pay for the tax stamp than to go to court. In addition, the circumstances of the case were somewhat unusual.

Integral airgun suppressors are designed so that they can not be removed in functional condition. That is considered reasonable proof that they are not firearm suppressors and therefore not regulated by federal law.

If I were going to own a removable airgun suppressor, it would have a tax stamp--I can afford that easily--but I can't afford to go to court.

This is 100% true, I was shocked to see the NJ deal and really doubt it would stand up in court. Having that takes out so many popular air rifles, Mrod for one....the "silencer" is the barrel....it will not go anywhere else, you can take the outer barrel jacket off, to clean....and trust me it does get nasty in there.

I am not sure how TKO gets past it, and I really think it is not long for the world and those that use them are bringing unwanted attn on the airgun community. I look at things like the TKO to airguns as "drones" are to the RC hobby. We are just fine for 50 years flying our little toy planes around....and on one gave one rip about us....but put the drone in and you get idiots that do stupid things with them as they require no skill to "fly" no work in to making them fly, open box stick in battery fly. Now we have all this stupid garbage with RC aircraft.....and it is all because of idiots with drones.....these removeable "lead and dust collectors" are the same thing....idiots that came into the air gun hobby in the last few years and are going to screw it up for all of us.

Old man rant over.
 
This is 100% true, I was shocked to see the NJ deal and really doubt it would stand up in court. Having that takes out so many popular air rifles, Mrod for one....the "silencer" is the barrel....it will not go anywhere else, you can take the outer barrel jacket off, to clean....and trust me it does get nasty in there.

I am not sure how TKO gets past it, and I really think it is not long for the world and those that use them are bringing unwanted attn on the airgun community. I look at things like the TKO to airguns as "drones" are to the RC hobby. We are just fine for 50 years flying our little toy planes around....and on one gave one rip about us....but put the drone in and you get idiots that do stupid things with them as they require no skill to "fly" no work in to making them fly, open box stick in battery fly. Now we have all this stupid garbage with RC aircraft.....and it is all because of idiots with drones.....these removeable "lead and dust collectors" are the same thing....idiots that came into the air gun hobby in the last few years and are going to screw it up for all of us.

Old man rant over.

That argument was used many years ago with the debate and never washed out. Never brought undue attention. TKO for instance has been around for Years. You do not have to get a Stamp for one of these. Yes, go check your local laws, fine. Undue attention? Hell, most people do not even know they have existed for years including air gunners. By the way, they are not sold as Silencers.
 
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