Hollywood’s Got it WRONG: The Truth About Suppressors (Silencers) and What They Really Do

​So we have all seen it in the movies, or on television, a bad man (or woman) is looking to brutally murder a spouse, lover, traitor, terrorist, criminal, whatever and as they are ever-so-slowly sneaking towards their target the camera zooms in and there they are – looking all menacing, screwing a silencer (aka suppressor – they are the same thing) onto the barrel of their pistol.

Hitman: Agent 47 Image Courtesy of www.imfdb.or

And then pffft, there it is, they shot their target without a sound and escape without alerting anyone to their murderous actions.
 
If someone was use Hollywood to determine their feelings about silencers (or guns in general), which why wouldn’t they, I mean if it happens in the movies or on TV it must be real, I can understand why one might feel apprehensive about a wide availability of suppressors on the firearms market. 

But let me give all those fearful of silent weapons being brandished about by nefarious murderers a reassuring reality check: suppressors (silencers) are NOT silent!  You can still hear the shot!  Don’t let Hollywood special effects fool you, suppressors only suppress (duh) the noise, they do not eliminate it.  Check out this YouTube video:

Not only do we get to hear what the firearm sounds like suppressed, we get to hear what it sounded like prior to the suppressor being attached.  While there is a very clear and audible difference, the suppressed shots are in no way silent (or even anything near it).  Consider yourself educated and your concerns about silent weaponry addressed.  Just in case you wanted more information, Frank Miniter of the NRA-ILA wrote an excellent article today, 5 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Suppressors, that replaces even more myths with facts – it’s a quick read – take the time to educate yourself even further.
 
So why all the taxes (a $200 tax stamp is required) and long wait periods (four to nine months) for something that is meant to be used (with much success) simply to protect the operators hearing?  Well, that is the very question Congress is being asked to consider in the Hearing Protection Act of 2017 which was recently introduced in both the Senate and the House.  According to the NRA the “bill would remove suppressors from the provisions of the National Firearms Act (NFA), which requires buyers to pay a $200 tax and undergo an enhanced background check that can take up to nine months to complete. Suppressors would continue to be regulated like non-NFA firearms, which require a background check when sold by a licensed firearms dealer or across state lines.” See: https://www.nraila.org/articles/20170127/disinformation-campaign-on-the-hearing-protection-act-continues
 
At this point, I feel it would be totally pointless for me to add my two cents to the discussion as the facts about what suppressors do, and don’t do, speak for themselves.  What I will say is that, for someone like me who lives with a man who seems nearly deaf – despite wearing hearing protection when he shoots, the benefits of suppressors far outweigh whatever downside ill-advised 2nd Amendment cynics offer up.  Although I am certain my husband is happy to continue life not hearing (or maybe even pretending not to hear) most of what I say, I would like to live in a country that makes it easier to protect this most precious of senses, as I would like to be able to hear what others are saying to me and attaching a suppressor onto the end of a Colt 1911 as I practice shooting would help me do just that!
 
If you feel passionate about protecting your, or a loved one’s, hearing go to NRA website link below and inform your representatives that you support the Hearing Protection Act of 2017.  Changes that will make shooting and shooting sports safer is in your hands, what will you do with your voice?

Contact your reps today: https://act.nraila.org/takeaction.aspx?AlertID=1442&_ga=1.83046357.2529385.1484596145