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Buying a suppressor used to be an ordeal. Not any more. Silencer Shop has streamlined the federal application process making it a snap to shoot quietly. Yes, the federally mandated six-month waiting period is still a reality, but Silencer Shop has mastered the system. So much so that they processed more than 60,000 forms with that ATF in 2015 alone. Here are three reasons why buying through Silencer Shop will make you wonder why you don’t have a silencer already . . .

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81 COMMENTS

  1. You asked so, two words sum it up nicely: tax stamp. When suppressors are removed from NFA, I’ll own dozens of them, but until then, I’ll pass.

    • There’s idealistic, and then there’s realistic. You’ll never get to own any NFA toys in your lifetime then. And in doing so…. they win.

      • Disagree. The pressure is ramping up to remove suppressors from NFA; ATF can’t handle the volume of applications, more and more companies are making them, they are becoming very common, and legislation has begun to be introduced, which will fail the first several times, but over time will move the Overton window (that’s how shall-issue advanced). I predict suppressors come off NFA list in 2-5 years. Ten at the outside. FWIW, I’d be far more interested in a pistol-caliber SBR than a can.

    • As Hobbez stated, I refuse to purchase a suppressor because I refuse to pay Fedzilla a $200 tax on such a device … not to mention the fact that I don’t want to have to register anything with Fedzilla.

      The other reason that I have not purchased a suppressor? They are ridiculously and unnecessarily expensive … easily costing between two and three times more than the firearm intended for their use.

      When I can walk into a store and purchase a suppressor for $80 without any legal mandate for any tax or registration with Fedzilla, I’ll be buying them. Until, then … I’ll use my money for more ammunition or firearms.

      • Sure, points taken. But like I said, who ends up getting what they want in the end?…. you or them?

        $200 was supposed to financially prohibit people from casually buying NFA items back in the 1930’s. That’s roughly $3500+ in today’s prices.
        Non-NFA firearms require registration/NICS also. So I don’t see the big deal.

        • Except NICS is not registration per se but a recordation. The government has to work to figure out what you have. Also if you live in a state that allows private sells then it is even harder since there are no records of private transactions unless the buyer/seller keep their own.

          NFA items require no work at all for the government to know what you have. They pull up your name on the list, have your photo, and fingerprints. You have to notify the government when you move even when crossing state lines on a trip!!

          All of that just for a muzzle device, an exorbitantly priced one at that, at the end of your barrel to just reduce the sound decibels enough so you don’t require hearing muffs and make your gun dirtier requiring more maintenance than usual. Yes I am aware of silencers other benefits but the cons mentioned above far outweigh the pros.

  2. Why Don’t I Already Own A Silencer from Silencer Shop? Because they screwed their local customers with their new business model, that’s why.

      • yeah I’d like to know more about what you mean before I go through the trouble. Seems like I should be checking out another mfg

      • Because they are a distributor, anything you buy at the shop has to be picked up at a third party Class 3 dealer, so you get a middleman adding a transfer fee even when you would rather just pick up the goods at Silencer Shop.

        • To clarify in response to Theo’s comment, when you pick which third party dealer to pick the product up at, the price you are shown already has their cost factored in. It’s not a separate mark up, but they still have to make money. There’s competion and Silencer Shop site shows what the can will cost with each dealer’s not-a-fee included.

          The underlying point was there’s a middleman taking a cut at no particular benefit to local customers. The business plan is optimized for Internet customers rather than local ones. Smart decision, but a little unfortunate for Austin folks.

    • So to you doing something that is good for 90+% of people and bad for <10% is a reason to boycott them? That makes tons of sense. Seems like if they are doing something that is a benefit to the great majority of people we should like it. Plus it's only bad for Texas, and that place and anyone in it pretty much blows anyway, so who cares?

      • Come on now. I’ve never met a Texan who doesn’t think that everything should be about Texas. They can’t really help themselves. Whatever you do, don’t bring up brisket. They won’t stop when it comes to brisket.

        Meanwhile I have 4 cans I’m waiting on from SS, since the HPA will never ever ever happen.

        • Nobody smokes brisket like me. I have a secret rub too that’s world class ! Silencer Shop is a great company,great people ! I bought one silencer AAC 762-SDN-6 through them that I can run my .308’s and AR15’s with ! That’s all I need.

  3. Why don’t I already own one? Everything they have is backordered from people trying to get in before 41F.

    Nice people, their shop is right up the road fron my work, and they were very helpful with my NFA n00b questions. Now if they would only get some merchandise in stock so I can get a Form 4 underway.

    • Try Capital Armory. They are near SS. Just picked up a Spectre 2 on Monday and a Octane 45 today.

  4. Because local shops can and do compete with Silencershop prices. We take care of you before and after the sale. You can’t shake a man’s hand and look him in the eye via the internet (well, at least not the handshake part).

    • ^This. Just bought another one yesterday at my LGS and saved literally $160 over what SilencerShop wanted for the same can “on sale”. And it was in stock, not backordered or wait listed.

      • ~160 on a ~800 dollar purchase is not competing in my opinion. Plus also factor in another ~50 bucks for sales tax and you are looking at over 20% more expensive. I would take 5 silencers over 4 silencers and 4 handshakes. Just me though.

    • I’m home based and don’t keep silencers in stock, so form 3 time still applies. The difference is that you can have conjugal visits with your new toy once I get it in :-). And, I do have demos that I let folks try before they buy. You just can’t get that with an online only dealer.

    • Silencer Shop doesn’t have prices, per se, unless you are one of their dealers. They are a distributor. The prices you see on their site are the prices that dealers across the country are selling them for.

  5. They are also not the cheapest. My local NFA dealer has cheaper prices then Silencer Shop does an as long as they have what I want in stock I don’t have to wait for the additional form 3 transfer time. Also my LGS allows me to shoot it any time I want while I’m waiting for my tax stamp to clear. Can’t do that with SS.

    • You very much can shoot it while ordering from SS, I did with both mine. Just do the transfer through a local place that has a range and not a home FFL. You only miss out on the first few weeks of form 3 time.

      And in my area(Denver) they pretty much are the cheapest. The major shops don’t come within 20% of SS price before sales tax. I have only found one place that every has anything cheaper, and they never have anything decent in stock.

      • This. I’ve been able to “visit” with my cans at MGT and Bristlecone in the Denver area after ordering them from SS, and ordered them a month ago. They shipped from SS within 2 weeks to the locals. I can use them at the range there until the F4 is approved.

    • I bought my first three suppressors through the Silencer Shop. The third one I was allowed to backorder. Despite the good experience, I’ve purchased two additional ones from other retailers. Why you ask? The Silencer Shop never seems to have anything in stock that I’m interested in. I’ve been on some of their waiting lists forever.

      I personally have given up on the Silencer Shop. At any given time, they only have a handful of in-stock choices.

      • Its not like you can walk out of the store with it if they had it. Its called inventory control – if you have a product that people have to buy months in advance before they can take possession, you don’t have to worry about stock building up in excess of demand for a particular model. That being said, there is no real excuse for not having at least one example of every model available, for customer inspection.

  7. Two reasons: tax stamp being tacit approval of a system of oppression and outrageous markup on century old tube/baffle technology
    Without the “yessuh massah” of the tax stamp I may be able to overlook the $1,200 aluminum tube or at least purchase with a little less bile taste in my mouth. But without the stamp I’d just make a crate of my own for a fraction of the cost.

    • Yup. No NFA items can be bought or sold in California. For that matter, we can’t even have threaded barrels on pistols unless there is a pinned cap covering the threads. No .50 BMGs either.

  11. To sound like a broken record… Because suppressors are illegal in Illinois unless you’ve been sized up for you shiny new jackboots.

  12. I’d like to own one, but the Commonwealth of Massivetwoshits disagrees. From my point of view, owning a muffler is not worth dying in prison.

  13. “Why Don’t You Already Own A Silencer from Silencer Shop?”

    I have no idea what state I may be living in in the next few years.

    That’s a lot of money to tie up if I may be forced to sell it at a loss.

  14. They don’t stock Silencerco it seems. Was there a falling out?

    That being said, if I had no other option, I’d go through them. However, there’s a semi-local (to me) gun store that has a massive selection of cans and also an attached range so you can visit while the can is in ATF jail.

    http://shootingcenters.com – in Delray Beach, FL

    If cans could just be shipped as any other item, I’d gladly give Silencer Shop my business if the prices were agreeable, but having to wait for Form 3 on top of Form 4 makes it a little unpalatable.

  15. “Why Don’t You Already Own A Silencer from Silencer Shop?”

    You mean other than silencers costing 800+ and then the $200 tax stamp (making it $1000= EACH) and being on a limited budget?

    Get the prices down and I might own at least ONE. Sheesh. I’ll start a go fundme account for everyone who has deeper pockets than myself but hey! I didn’t ask to have a medically fragile child and have to be spending a ton of cash. And throwing him off the cliff like the Spartans… well… its kind of frowned upon in today’s society.

    Hey! You asked! You don’t have to like the answer.
    Now lets talk about gofundme > PsyNEEDSaSilencer 😉

  18. My reason is pretty simple. I only own one gun with a threaded barrel (7.62x39mm), so it hardly seems worth the hassle and expense for something I’d still have to wear hearing protection with.

  19. DAN… WHAT IS GOING ON with the ads today???

    Not that I necessarily object to an ad/story for SilencerShop – but amidst the pictures of toenail fungus and now the damn AUTOPLAY VIDEO ADS – I need to ask – what are you guys doing?!!??

    • Good point! Not to mention I’m pretty sure Julia Stiles is not transgender, and John Goodman is not dead!

        • Well, I actually like to support TTAG so I have them as an exception in Adblock – but it’s really trying my patience.

          The ads are getting beyond ridiculous, and the auto play crap may have been the final straw today.

          Cmon Robert and Dan – give us a break so we don’t have to Adblock!

        • You stuck it out longer than me. I had TTAG as an exception to my Adblock for a while, but it became clear a long time ago that the trashy ads (and the attendant auto-play videos, browser crashes, trackers, and security problems) weren’t going away, so back on the blacklist it went. Sorry, guys. Clean up your act and I’ll gladly throw some clicks to legitimate, non-clickbait advertisers.

  20. My local gun store and
    indoor range hosted a suppressor expo. They ordered my Dead air Mask and will hold my sbr’d PS90, after it returns from the shop.

    I have nothing against the Silencer Shop. It’s just I know my “peeps” better.

  21. because a solvent trap adapter is cheaper on amazon? i kid, i kid.

    I live in a slave state and don’t make massive campaign contributions, so not gonna happen.

  22. I don’t have any desire to own a suppressor because nearly everyone else at the range is un-suppressed.

    • Exactly – no point in shooting silenced at the noisy local indoor range. If I owned a farm or other similar property suitable for shooting I would be all over silencers.

      • Neither of you have shot suppressed before obviously. Reduced recoil, better accuracy, not making the shooters on the next bench be pissed off because you have a break on the end. Not all suppressors will make a firearm hearing safe doesn’t mean there aren’t other benefits.

        • Um, yes I have. There are benefits, to be sure, but not enough in my current circumstances.

          Maybe one day when I get that vacation property in PA or NH.

  24. Because I live in a State where NFA items are banned. I can’t even have a threaded barrel for a compensator unless it is permanently attached.

  25. Until The Donald signs the Hearing Protection act of 2015, my state infringes on that particular civil right. That, and I’d rather spend the $1k on more ammo or guns.

  26. Because I live in a state that will very soon ban semi-autos and will implement permitting and background checks for ammo, so we have other things to worry about.

  27. Ear plugs are cheaper than silencers. I’m not paying a grand for a silencer. Not paying a tax stamp. Funny though – if I wanted a silencer I could make one easy enough on the lathe & mill, so it’s not like it can only be obtained by following current regulations (for a safety device no less) but I’m a law abiding citizen and all that jazz.

  28. Why don’t I? Because I got just as good pricing plus all the benefits of a local store by buying locally. Excellent service, lots of help with my stupid questions, and an all around pleasant experience. Now I’m just waiting for my NFA papers so I can get it out of Form 4 jail.

    I could only afford one, so I got what I will use the most. Believe me, there are two more I wish I could buy but high cost + tax stamps + wait time? Yeah, this one time is enough.

  35. I pulled the the trigger on mine as soon as the hacks loosened Mi laws a little. It took almost a year from start to finish. Very happy with it however, and intend to acquire more when l can justify spending the coin.

  36. Because someone in New Zealand can buy a suppressor for less than the cost of our tax stamp, and buy 2 larger suppressors for the cost of one of your .223 suppressors. The artificially inflated prices of suppressors mean I won’t bother.

    • My LGS buddy is doing a pretty good business in silencers. I can definitely see the value and practicality. However, I’m going to wait and see what happens over the next year. If our side does not win the WH, I’m spending that money on ammo, and storage containers. If we do win, then I’m hoping the surge in popularity and the growing acceptance of their use will get rid of the tax stamp. I need at least 2 or 3, and the hassle to obtain them now are ridiculous.

  38. Here’s the ONLY thing keeping me from buying a silencer: the NFA of 1934. I don’t want to put my name in a super evil list of henchmen who own those scary silencers, to be registered, tracked, inspected, harassed, and eventually be on the short list of super villains who can get hit first when they start confiscating the coolest toys out there.

  39. They’re easy to make at home in those states that allow class 3. Why would you purchase one? Making a monocore anymore is almost trivial. For me, it’s not legal in my state which means I won’t be in this state forever and will eventually take my money and go somewhere else… somewhere with beer and hookers.

  42. I want one. I think the benefits of sound suppression on a 9mm SBR is worth the effort. However I can’t wrap my head around paying more for a silencer than I paid for my Scorpion.

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