The day PSA launched suppressors, I purchased an AAC Ranger 7 with a 5/8-24 direct thread adaptor for my .300
Planning on running some quick mounts on all my rifles. But, I’ve got some pressing questions.
Typically, I derive a lot of my knowledge from YouTube, but, YouTube has gotten stricter on guns and no one shows you how to properly attach suppressors.
AAC has a bit of knowledge and I’ve done some googling. Biggest thing I am trying to gather info on is thread locker vs grease.
I was looking at the Dead air Xeon QD system, mainly because of the reverse thread, thinking this would alleviate seizing up.
My minds eye says to use thread locker on the adaptor on the suppressor, and run nothing on the QD mount when you attach the suppressor to it?
What say y’all? This is my first suppressor and the process was incredibly easy. I have a feeling I will be buying many more.
I ain’t no suppressor guy, but you got me curious .
A quick read said locktite, but some said anti sieze due to thermal expansion. I guess the latter would be easier to remove if you swap them to different rifle/pistol.
Guitar Guy runs suppressors, as do others around here. They will know what works, and what don’t from experience. I figure stuff like that from working on all things mechanical that I’ve worked on since the early to mid '70’s .
I can’t afford no suppressors, can barely justify bullets:rofl:.
I too recently got my first can AAC Halcyon
.22 to 5.7 but mine is direct thread. I use Lucas extreme duty, AAC mentioned iirc anti seize but that product can get messy. @GuitarGuy @SuperPredator
Let’s see if they will chime in?
I have only used Rocksett. And that was a precautionary measure on a can that was tucked inside the handguard so deep that i couldn’t easily retighten it if it were to loosen.
Each one of my YHM direct-threads came with an individual tube of antiseize.
That said, I use it sparingly, and clean it off after taking the can off the barrel, paying particular attention to the female threads. I have a ~9/16” brass bristle brush that I “chase” the threads with.
Any debris left in threads can Gall them, making that can an inadvertent pin-N-weld whether you want it to be or not.
If the threads are Galled (Because Stainless!) with materials and little bits of torn-off threads in them, it’ll probably be cheaper (and safer!) to disassemble it [the firearm] and send barrel and silencer back to the manufacturer - with instructions for them to sacrifice the barrel.
Although I am relatively new to silencers, this is coming from decades of dealing with threaded fasteners in machinery and boilers. Particularly nickel-chromium steels (i.e. “stainless”). Threads, are Threads.
I’m not going to wait on it to seize before doing a bit of preventive maintenance on my direct-thread can(s) between sessions.
.22 is a filthy ammunition - and I have already seen it leave debris behind when I took the can off the barrel - and despite wiping it out, the grittiness was apparent the next time I threaded it back on. So I obtained a brass-bristle “bottle brush” for 1/2” bores, and started cleaning the threads with that after use. Twisting motion, not in-out-in-out. Voilá! No more grit; smooth threads. Brass gun-toothbrush for the barrel threads.
Antiseize is up to the individual, but clean male and female threads upon assembly are absolutely a must.
Not this specific brush, but ones very much like it (shorter). I happen to have access to a supply of somewhat-shorter brass tube brushes, but wanted to demonstrate what I was talking about, in case I wasn’t clear enough.
WILL your threads gall and seize if you don’t use antiseize? Maybe. Maybe not.
The threads on the can are (ostensibly!) made from somewhat-harder stainless than 316 or 304/308. Some may even be Inconel (or other, similar alloy). The barrels are typically 4140, which is also a tough, chromium steel.
But even a “cheap” can costs as much (or more!) than the firearm you’re threading it on to - don’t you want to get all the muffled-bang for your buck that you’re able?
I’m merely advocating brushing often, with cans you aren’t leaving in place with a threadlocker for extended times.
I thread the brush in with the threads, then back out - give it a shake, maybe blow it out. I don’t believe it to matter if some bit of carbon or dirt in the threads stays in the can. I just don’t want it in the threads.
Just like with checking concentricity, I’m gettin’ The Religion about cleaning these threads. Couple hundred more rounds, I’ll probably actually clean the baffle stack in the sonic cleaner.
@SuperPredator
I realize this post is over a month old, but I stumbled on it.
Have you or would you share details on your build that has a can tucked in the hand-guard?
(hand-guard model, suppressor brand/model, any helpful learned lessons.)
Thank you!
This has been something I’ve been toying with, but difficult access to the can has made me hold back on buying and assembling one this way.
(For example, the CZ Scorpion carbine/M-LOK hand-guard with a can tucked inside is awesome looking, but the fact that the barrel nut holds the hand-guard on is a non-starter. If that ever got seized up the hand-guard might need destroyed to access the barrel where it threads on.)
I know I’m not the guy you tagged, but I’ve got a few thousand suppressed rounds under my belt and currently run about a half dozen cans. I have two tucked builds: a .300 BLK and an 8.6 BLK—one with a QD can, one with a direct thread.
I don’t know much about the Scorpion, but if you’re just asking about Rocksett, I use it on all my muzzle devices. Picked up the habit from a PRS gunsmith I trust, and I now use this “Muzzle Adhesive” version of Rocksett (picrel). It’s purpose-built for this use case.
I’ve never had trouble breaking loose any of my Rocksetted mounts. I’ve had more issues with carbon-locked gas blocks, honestly. One time I actually overtightened my YHM Turbo T3 and ended up unthreading the whole QD muzzle device with it. The can wasn’t Rocksetted, but the muzzle device was. I just cleaned up the threads, reapplied Rocksett, torqued it back down, and it’s still running fine.
No threadlocker is permanent. I wouldn’t use it on a barrel nut, but for fine threads like muzzle devices, it’s solid—especially on tucked builds where access is limited. Hope this helps, and welcome.
I’ve since changed it, but it was a 10.5” barrel, Innovative Arms Grunt 5.56, tucked under an Aero Precision 15”Atlas handguard. The supressor pokes out the end maybe 1/2”. I’ll look for a picture of it to post.
My only helpful lesson is to tune the operation of the SBR/supressor combo before putting the handguard on. All the on/off/on/off got aggravating.
Walked in the the gun store on May 10th and spent about 45 minutes doing all the paperwork at the silencer shop kiosk and the store paperwork. Received the email at 9:30 this morning that my form 4 was approved and my sparrow suppressor is ready to be picked up.
9 days from submission to approval, not bad. Way better than the year plus it took a while back.
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