Yes, a suppressor can make your rifle more accurate

Suppressors are increasingly becoming standard kit on modern hunting rifles, but there are still a lot of legends and stories about what they do, and how they affect the performance of your rifle. The biggest question hunters often have is how this will affect the accuracy of their gun. Longtime suppressor owners will probably tell you that they will make your rifle more accurate, but we still see people claiming that adding a can will affect the accuracy of a finely tuned rifle. What is the truth? That’s what we set out to demonstrate in the video above.

sample size is the key

For the last several years, outdoor Life The Gunn team is obsessed with sample size – just ask our boss. We’ve written about the most reliable method for looking into your rifle and understanding accuracy-related terms like mean radius. The point of all this is simple: Shooters need to use larger sample sizes to understand the nuances of accuracy and the issues that have been speculated about for generations. We learned that things like nodes and load development, and the actual level of accuracy of a rifle are easy to determine if we simply use enough shots. We have to give the Ballisticians at Hornady credit for turning us on to this, starting with their podcast your groups are too small, And helps us better understand the limitations and illusions created by using a small number of shots.

So what does this mean when it comes to understanding accuracy with a suppressor? If we use a valid sample size, we can find out what adding a suppressor does to our rifle. For the demonstration in this video, we are using a sample size of 20 shots. This doesn’t give us as consistent results as using 30 or 50 shots, but it is quite reliable.

More accurate, less accurate, or the same?

When we collect a 20-shot accuracy sample, we typically fire it in four five-shot groups, allowing the barrel to cool in between. Then we use software to group them together. Every time we do this with the same rifle and ammo, it will be slightly different, but our figures generally fall within the 15 to 20 percent range. We call it noise. If the results go out of that range, it starts to mean something.

For this particular demonstration, I used the 6mm Creedmoor, 6.5 Creedmoor, and 22 LR. I collected 20-shot samples on each gun with and without the suppressor. For both center fires, the clusters became about 25 to 30 percent tighter when an suppressor was added. Rimfire groups with suppressors were about 23 percent less accurate, which is not as certain. Considering the changing winds shooting slow 22 LR bullets at 100 yards, this is likely to be within noise.

Anecdotally, I have generally seen improvements in accuracy when adding a suppressor. This can sometimes happen because the extra weight at the muzzle reduces barrel vibration. But, too often, I think that makes it easier for people to shoot a rifle. In the long run, a suppressor can help you shoot a rifle more accurately because it eliminates detonation while reducing the sound and feel of the shot’s recoil. Using this format, you can easily test your system.

cold bore shot

A commonly known phenomenon with suppressors is first round pop. The term refers to the tendency, especially on older, more primitive suppressor designs, when the first round fired from the cold compartment is faster and markedly different than later rounds fired while the suppressor is still filled with smoke and hot gases. A general principle is that a cold-bore shot from any rifle will be slightly different from a shot fired through a hot barrel. People say the same thing about the first shot through the cold suppressor.

To test this theory, we took our two rifles and fired 20 individual shots, removed the suppressor and let it cool before reattaching it and firing again. This, in theory, gives us more consistent conditions in the suppressor to simulate 20 cold-can shots.

With the 6.5 Creedmoor, accuracy was nearly the same, except the average point of impact, or group center, was moved forward about a half inch. This might seem like a definite change, but I’m not convinced. I’ve tested hundreds of 20-shot samples, and every time you shoot one, the point of impact will change slightly. For rifles and ammo that are truly sub-inch, that variation is usually within about .25-.35 inches or 0.1 mil. For rifles that are between 1.0 and 1.5 MOA, for 20 shots, that variation increases slightly. Considering that we completely broke down the position and removed the suppressor between shots, this does not indicate a change outside of normal shot distribution.

With the 22, we reduced the distance to 50 yards to reduce wind effects, and accuracy was better than usual when firing four five-shot groups. I also noticed a change of .44 inches in the average point of impact. Again, I think the nature of cold shot in a freshly made situation has more to do with the effect of the cold can. But I have noted distinct variations in the first run with about 22 suppressors, so this is something you should test on your system to determine.

What would cause suppressor accuracy problems?

There are certainly examples of suppressors that cause accuracy or point of impact problems, but the root causes are usually very simple. First of all, adding a suppressor will certainly change your point of impact, although it will not hurt accuracy. This is mostly due to adding weight to the end of your barrel. If you add a suppressor, you will have to re-zero. With a repeatable system, removing and reattaching the suppressor will not change your zero.

When you add the suppressor, be sure to use a cleaning rod or similar to check alignment. I recently, and foolishly, put a budget-priced suppressor on my muzzle and started shooting, only to see my point of impact about six feet to the right at 100 yards. The suppressor adapter was out of alignment and I was lucky I didn’t get an endcap strike and destroy the can. If you notice any major changes, be sure to double-check the alignment.

The most common source of accuracy problems with a suppressor is a loose can. Many hunters prefer the straight-thread option, myself included. But, especially before the threads wear out, the canes can come loose very easily, and if they do come loose, it will completely change your point of impact. We demonstrate in the video by firing a 20-shot aggregate with a suppressor that is barely loose. Precision was still good, but the point of impact moved forward enough that I potentially missed an animal in the distance.

final thoughts

The conclusion of all this is not that all suppressors will make all rifles more accurate, or less accurate. Rather, it is a demonstration that generally, it is not a huge difference, and you are now equipped with the tools to efficiently and effectively determine what is true for your rifle system.