Why are there no integrally suppressed centerfire pistols?

S

simonrichter

New member
There are some integrally suppressed 22lr pistols (the High Standard, and I guess from Ruger as well). Since 22lr is easy to suppress anyway and out of a standard length pistol barrel most ammunition will come out subsonic, these don't seem to be a great advantage as compared to a 22lr pistol with a screw-on can.

On the other hand, full-caliber centerfires would definitely benefit from an integral suppressor, yet apart from some Chinese and Russian exotics in the cold war, there is no such weapon. Is this for legal reasons more than technical ones?
 
In the U.S., there are no legal reasons, because a suppressor is a "firearm" under the National Firearms Act, no matter what kind of gun it fits, or even if it is installed on a gun at all.

The reasons are at least partly technical, since a suppressor on the barrel can add enough weight that it will interfere with movement of the barrel in a recoil operated gun. However, suppressors have been made that work well with the 1911 and other recoil-operated pistols. I think the main reason is lack of demand in the civilian market today. Obviously, the NFA restrictions, plus state restrictions, reduce that market, but that is not specific to CF pistols.

I think the biggest factor, other than the law, is the size and weight of the suppressor. People who buy, say, a Colt commander for concealed carry will not add a suppressor that is as long as the gun. It would make the pistol awkward, hard to conceal, hard to draw, and serve little useful purpose in most self-defense situations.

For that matter, how many people want suppressors on .22 pistols? Some do, but the ones mentioned were not made for the commercial market; they were made for the government for specific purposes, ones civilians would not usually encounter. While suppressors would be very good for ear protection and keeping range noise level down, both the law and other considerations will probably keep them rarities for the indefinite future.

Jim
 
integral suppressor

Personally, I'd say its more for economic, rather than legal or technical reasons.

There simply is no market.

The High Standard gun was a military contract IIRC.

Don't know about any Ruger.

Making a gun with a built in suppressor is certainly possible. But it then puts you (the maker) in the same boat as suppressor makers, meaning, your product can ONLY be sold to a very small market.

So, you have an entire gun (and suppressor) that has to sit on the shelf until the fellow with the proper license comes along. This may be months, possibly years that you have an investment just sitting there, waiting, and NOT able to be sold to anyone else.

I believe suppressor makers figure the small customer base and wait times (Fed gov) as part of their business model. Regular gun makers don't.

The exact same gun, with a detachable suppressor, can be sold to any qualified person, minus the detached suppressor, as it is simply a regular handgun, sold in the regular market.
 
Some folks accept the Hollywood picture of a suppressor as something like a 2" piece of garden hose, which I think some of the movie "suppressors" were. The real ones tend to be a bit larger.

Jim
 
I'll bet one could get a can for a little 32ACP pretty small volume, but it will dwarf the gun slide no matter what. People complain enough about how big SIG slides are already, and I imagine any integral can would be much bulkier than that. The AAC can/ CT laser combo initially pitched for the R51 would be a pretty compelling package in terms of bulk, but alas it was badly botched.

TCB
 
Gratuitous pic of a neat Walther TPH. Talk about can to pistol ratio! :eek:

Cool though huh! :cool:

image_676.jpg
 
Making a gun with a built in suppressor is certainly possible. But it then puts you (the maker) in the same boat as suppressor makers, meaning, your product can ONLY be sold to a very small market.
Click to expand...

I was going to say the same thing... There are a few custom makers out there, most using the Ruger MKIII platform. For sheer fun and options it made more sense to me to just get a .22 can to which I can mount it onto several different handguns.
 
Now that High Standard and Colt Woodsman pistols are no more, the Ruger is the only one that has a barrel suitable for turning down to use with a built in suppressor. Also, the long barrel Rugers allow the "can" to be only a relatively small diameter greater than an original "Bull" barrel, even with a concentric suppressor.

Jim
 
James K....you used the word "rare". If you hadn't been staff, I would wonder about you. I've been going to the same outdoor range for years and have NEVER had a visit without at least one person there with a silencer.
 
I've always said that if someone could make a nice integrally suppressed 9mm, I'm all in. That would get me off my butt to do a trust and buy one.

There are fixed barrel 9mm's - Sig P210; Steyr GB and a number of others. I'm not sure how this would work (if I was, I'd design it and make lots of money!)
 
Why don't they make any integrally-suppressed pistols? Two reasons: design constraints and there's no market for them.

With the size requirements of a decent pistol silencer, the gun would just be too big. Sure, an integrally-suppressed centerfire pistol would be smaller than a pistol with a detachable silencer, but not by that much. And being able to detach the silencer is a huge advantage; not only can you remove the silencer to make your pistol much more compact, but you can put it on different firearms.

An integrally-suppressed centerfire pistol would require a complete redesign of the traditional handgun design, and then virtually nobody would buy them. Most companies don't want to spend large amounts of money to produce a product that won't sell.
 
I have an idea for modifying the design of a common 9mm pistol in order to be semi-integrally suppressed in a manner that will result in a sleek design that is able to be holstered. It won't be cheap. I plan to make one for myself. Once completed, I will inherently consider it's commercial possibilities, but I doubt there will be much.
 
I've always thought it would be pretty nice to have a suppressed concealed carry pistol, but none are really made. I could see a number of circumstances that would make it beneficial to have one.
 
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