Silencers and Competitive Shooting
- February 19, 2023
Hunter Constantine
Shooting suppressed rifles has become increasingly popular lately with the ease of getting a Suppressor. ATF eForms and online distributors made ownership only a few clicks away from bringing home a suppressor for your carbine or pistol. In the Shooting sports, as well, more and more shooters are competing suppressed, and there are many reasons:
- They want time behind their gear. The best way to get repetitions on your gear is to perform under pressure and shoot from positions you may not put yourself in during practice or a casual range day.
- It’s more enjoyable to shoot suppressed due to the decreased sound signature, concussive forces, and impact on the environment around you. (Shooting under barricades in dusty conditions can be detrimental to your sight picture.)
- Suppressors help with recoil reduction, which helps speed up sight acquisition when engaging targets. Competition is all about speed and we look for any competitive advantage that helps our standing on the leaderboard.
- You’ll protect your hearing long-term.
Let’s examine which suppressors are a competitor choice for different shooting disciplines and calibers.
Types of Competitions
You’ll likely find competitors shooting suppressed in two disciplines, 2gun/3gun (Multigun) and PRS. Competitors usually shoot AR-15 patterned rifles chambered in .223/5.56 in Multigun carbine matches. Some competitors prefer to shoot other carbine styles like AK pattern rifles and Galil’s. Still, they all typically have 12 to 18-inch barrels, are gas-operated guns, and run 20-60 round magazines. Multigun is a fast-paced, run-and-gun style of shooting.
PRS stands for Precision Rifle Shooting. PRS is a much slower-paced style of shooting. Most competitors use bolt guns and large actions chambered in rounds like 6mm Dasher, 6.5mm Creedmoor, and other high-pressure, flat trajectory cartridges.
These disciplines are vastly different, and they require suppressors that meet their specific requirements to maintain optimal performance.
Velos LBP
The new Velos Lbp is designed with performance in mind. It is specially made for 5.56, so attaching this to your Multigun carbine is a match made in heaven. Several design features make it a great suppressor for competitive shooting, from its diminutive size to its baffle design and durable construction.
At only 5.98 inches, this is one of the smallest suppressors in its class. The best attribute of the Velos LBP is its ability to minimize gas blowback while still offering impressive sound performance. The core is 3D printed from Inconel with a baffle design that allows the silencer to run efficiently without adding back pressure to the operating system. That means the shooter can sustain a rapid course of fire without worrying about breathing in harmful gases. This is especially helpful in Multigun matches, where it is common to be shooting within confined areas
As for durability, it is vital to have a suppressor that can handle the heat of a vigorous firing schedule. Some stages at matches may have you shooting 60-80 rounds in less than a minute. Add in environmental factors like 100° F temperatures (or higher) while shooting, and it can be very hard to cool the suppressor down. The 17-4 stainless steel and Inconel 625 construction allow the Velos LBP to withstand anything you throw through it.
All of these features combined make the Velos LBP a fantastic 5.56 option for Multigun matches.
Now, let’s talk about PRS.
Precision Rifle Shooting is very different from Multigun, and shooters look for distinct characteristics in a suppressor for their precision rifle. Specifically, they want to keep wight to a minimum, with maximum sound suppression, while being able to handle the high-pressure calibers that PRS shooters prefer. That’s a tall order, and the SilencerCo Omega 36M does it all.
The Omega 36M is rated up to .338 Lapua Magnum, which can hit pressures up to 60,000 PSI, making it one of the highest-pressured rounds. There is no question the Omega 36M can handle rounds like 6MM Dasher and 6.5 Creedmoor.
Another benefit of this suppressor is its modularity. Really, you’re getting two cans in one so you can decide whether to focus on the sound suppression or overall weight. The short configuration will thoroughly control the decibels, and the long configuration has an even more impressive sound performance.
The Omega 36M knocks it out of the park when you want to install it on a PRS host.
Competing Suppressed
Why should you care about suppressing your competition gun? The answer is very simple. You want to protect your hearing. Competing suppressed can allow you to keep enjoying the sport well into your life. One of the most common injuries recreational shooters face is hearing damage. Rifle calibers can be some of the loudest firearms shot. Besides wearing proper hearing protection, a suppressor is the next step in protecting your ears.
I’ve seen many rifle shooters whose hearing abilities have declined over the years of shooting. Unfortunately, these shooters mainly shot with large muzzle brakes that amplified the noise and created massive concussive forces.
But the good news is that nowadays, everyone and their sister seems to have a suppressor. I hope to see the trend of competing suppressed increase in the coming seasons. We only have one set of ears, and it’s essential to do everything in our power to protect them.
Whether behind an AR or a precision bolt gun, I recommend equipping your gun with a suppressor. Although these recommendations are performance-driven, it applies to any recreational shooting.
The Velos LBP is the ideal candidate for your 5.56 caliber host. The innovative baffle system keeps from adding back pressure to your gun, which makes for a cleaner, healthier shooting experience.
The Omega 36M is the best versatile suppressor you can own. Not mentioned earlier, it’s rated for pistol calibers like 5.7x28MM and 9MM. This can is lightweight, compact, modular, and durable enough to withstand the pressure of some of the highest-pressured rounds on the market. If I had to choose one can do it all, the Omega36M would satisfy most of my needs.
Between these two suppressors, you will be set for whatever practical competition shooting match you attend. Do yourself a favor and protect your hearing by shooting suppressed. Figure out which suppressor will suit your needs by answering these questions:
- What do you want to do with the suppressor?
- What calibers do you want to suppress?
- What will your estimated firing schedule be?
Once you answer these three questions, you have a general idea of which can to choose to optimize your performance.
Hunter Constantine
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