I’m a big time small game hunter and have several custom .22 rifles and pistols (Kidd and volquartsen) that I shoot suppressed with a dead air mask and subsonic cci ammo or the cci quiet’s. I am considering buying a Benjamin marauder for quiet hunting. My question is does anyone have experience with both a suppressed rimfire w/ subsonic ammo and a pcp rifle (hopefully a marauder) and would a marauder be more quiet? And I know that mods can help like depinger, debouncing, and a moderator. But is it a big enough difference to use a pcp rifle over a suppressed rimfire or just marginal difference? Thanks for the insight
Quietness of PCP vs Suppressed Rimfire
- Thread starter garrs07
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I can only say, based on my experience, that my 22 pcp sounds just a bit quieter than a 22 rimfire from the shooters position. When I'm standing a few feet away or behind the shooter with a 22 pcp it is much quieter than a rimfire.
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Imho the Marauder was one of the quietest out of the box PCP's I've owned. CERTAINLY more quiet than a suppressed 22.
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I have both theirs not much difference, but my pcp’s are slightly more quiet. As already mentioned above if I stand away I can notice the difference but it’s very slight.
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FPE ?
.22 Subsonic will run in the 70 FPE range a .22 PCP normally will run in the 30 FPE range, big difference in power.
.22 Subsonic will run in the 70 FPE range a .22 PCP normally will run in the 30 FPE range, big difference in power.
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PCP can be turned down even further for more quiet fun. What do you plan to shoot so quietly? Hogs are one size of gun, rats are another. There is a guy who shoots .30 and .357 at 15 yard range and takes down possum and raccoons in a semi-urban yard.
All we know about your desire is to be quiet. Tell us a few more parameters to help you get the right idea.. moderated PCP in small game power, the impact is louder than the shot
All we know about your desire is to be quiet. Tell us a few more parameters to help you get the right idea.. moderated PCP in small game power, the impact is louder than the shot
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Where are you at?
I have my 22lr suppressed and love hunting with it, buy there are situations where the lr won't work. They can both be quieted down quite a bit, but the tones are different.
The ability to tune the airgun slower for specific areas is a huge plus.
I have my 22lr suppressed and love hunting with it, buy there are situations where the lr won't work. They can both be quieted down quite a bit, but the tones are different.
The ability to tune the airgun slower for specific areas is a huge plus.
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Pellets from my FX Impact .25 with Donny FL makes a lot more sound on target impact than the rifle itself. Even with the moderator off it's still quieter than the pellet impact at 50 yds.
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I have a number of suppressed .22 LR guns, as well as .22 cal PCPs. I fire them both indoors, and with the right ammunition I can certainly say there is not much difference at all between them. Certainly, on an equivalent power basis (i.e. with both shooting in the 85-95 FPE range) there is no difference.
If you use the CCI suppressor rounds in a suppressed rifle then you can expect it to be very quiet. The loudest sound will be the cycling of the action if you are using something like a Ruger 10/22. Even that can be improved by switching out the bolt stop from a steel piece to a delrin rod. I hear no difference shooting that suppressed (with a Q Erector suppressor) as compared to my FX Impact or Crown in .30 with a DonnyFL suppressor, and the same was true of my Benjamin Marauder .22, which I did not additionally suppress. Usiing the Q Erector suppressor on my Savage bolt action .22 is the quietest of all, since all you hear is really the click of the striker hitting the primer, and the sound of the bullet hitting the backstop.
So, from my experience, you will not gain anything in terms of quietness using a PCPO like a Marauder over a suppressed .22LR, firing CCI suppressor rounds. Note that I have found that the CCI Quiet .22 rounds will not cycle my Ruger 10/22s. They work fine in the bolt gun however, but have a lot lower FPE. The Marauder will also not make anything like the power of a suppressed .22LR, as pointed out above by AirArcher66.
The Marauder WILL be quieter than a suppressed .22LR pistol. I have one Volquartsen .22 pistol that I shoot suppressed, and also two Rugers, a MK II and a MK IV. All three are substantially louder than the rifles when suppressed, but still hearing safe. Its just that at they point they are marginally louder than my .22 air rifles, including the Marauder.
By the way, here is the data I got at the range a little while ago about the performance of the CCI rounds. You will struggle to get that kind of power from any .22 air rifle and certainly not from a Marauder. For my purposes, I don’t fire the .22LR guns in my yard, because they have too much power and there is always the risk fo the bullets traveling off property. This is NOT the case with Air rifles, especially if you are shooting pellets, so almost all my home shooting is done with pellets.
.22LR
HW MW High Low Avg FPE ES SD
Ruger MK IV 939 895 916 83.8 4.8% 15.4 CCI Supp 45gr [03/27/22]
Ruger MK 2 986 963 974 84.2 2.4% 7.7 CCI SV 40gr [03/27/22]
Ruger 10/22 915 83.7 CCI Supp 45gr [03/22/22]
Ruger 10/22 1030 94.2 CCI SV 40gr [03/27/22]
.22 CAL AIR RIFLES (25.4 GR PELLETS)
Crown Mk2 500 Max Med 865 858 862 41.9 0.8% 2.0 [10/23/21]
Huben K1 1014 1002 1008 57.3 1.2% 4.6 [03/14/22] REG 16.5 PW 25
34 GRAIN PELLETS
Crown Mk2 700 Max Max 872 854 861 56.0 2.1% 7.6 [05/15/21]
Huben K1 946 921 932 65.6 2.7% 7.1 [03/28/22] REG 16.5 PW 30
If you use the CCI suppressor rounds in a suppressed rifle then you can expect it to be very quiet. The loudest sound will be the cycling of the action if you are using something like a Ruger 10/22. Even that can be improved by switching out the bolt stop from a steel piece to a delrin rod. I hear no difference shooting that suppressed (with a Q Erector suppressor) as compared to my FX Impact or Crown in .30 with a DonnyFL suppressor, and the same was true of my Benjamin Marauder .22, which I did not additionally suppress. Usiing the Q Erector suppressor on my Savage bolt action .22 is the quietest of all, since all you hear is really the click of the striker hitting the primer, and the sound of the bullet hitting the backstop.
So, from my experience, you will not gain anything in terms of quietness using a PCPO like a Marauder over a suppressed .22LR, firing CCI suppressor rounds. Note that I have found that the CCI Quiet .22 rounds will not cycle my Ruger 10/22s. They work fine in the bolt gun however, but have a lot lower FPE. The Marauder will also not make anything like the power of a suppressed .22LR, as pointed out above by AirArcher66.
The Marauder WILL be quieter than a suppressed .22LR pistol. I have one Volquartsen .22 pistol that I shoot suppressed, and also two Rugers, a MK II and a MK IV. All three are substantially louder than the rifles when suppressed, but still hearing safe. Its just that at they point they are marginally louder than my .22 air rifles, including the Marauder.
By the way, here is the data I got at the range a little while ago about the performance of the CCI rounds. You will struggle to get that kind of power from any .22 air rifle and certainly not from a Marauder. For my purposes, I don’t fire the .22LR guns in my yard, because they have too much power and there is always the risk fo the bullets traveling off property. This is NOT the case with Air rifles, especially if you are shooting pellets, so almost all my home shooting is done with pellets.
.22LR
HW MW High Low Avg FPE ES SD
Ruger MK IV 939 895 916 83.8 4.8% 15.4 CCI Supp 45gr [03/27/22]
Ruger MK 2 986 963 974 84.2 2.4% 7.7 CCI SV 40gr [03/27/22]
Ruger 10/22 915 83.7 CCI Supp 45gr [03/22/22]
Ruger 10/22 1030 94.2 CCI SV 40gr [03/27/22]
.22 CAL AIR RIFLES (25.4 GR PELLETS)
Crown Mk2 500 Max Med 865 858 862 41.9 0.8% 2.0 [10/23/21]
Huben K1 1014 1002 1008 57.3 1.2% 4.6 [03/14/22] REG 16.5 PW 25
34 GRAIN PELLETS
Crown Mk2 700 Max Max 872 854 861 56.0 2.1% 7.6 [05/15/21]
Huben K1 946 921 932 65.6 2.7% 7.1 [03/28/22] REG 16.5 PW 30
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The biggest difference to me is one is reducing a blast hot power, and the other is stopping a large blast of air. My firearm suppressor does not do well on my Airgun.
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TO BE CLEAR, I WOULD NEVER SUGGEST USING A FIREARM SUPPRESSOR ON AN AIRGUN, AND THE REVERSE IS BOTH ILLEGAL AND VERY DANGEROUS. THE THREADS SHOULD NOT EVEN MATCH UP!
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with any gun it depends on power level really .. your dealing with mechanical noise in a pcp and heavy slow weights with no standard or barrel support in rimfire .. so .. yeah a pcp done right is worlds better on small game, dead accurate and a standard trajectory .. rimfire may be alittle more powerful depending on setup, but likely louder and inaccurate past 30ys unless its really done right .. a decent pcp will take a squirrels eye out at 60 ...
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"Like a moth to a flame."
Even with the recent request that members read the recently updated posting rules/guidelines.
Even with the recent request that members read the recently updated posting rules/guidelines.
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Mostly considering it for squirrel hunting both in the woods and in my experience I’ve had more follow-up shots on adjacent squirrels when hunting suppressed vs not. I also have permission to hunt local pecan orchards, rimfire is allowed as it’s in the county but there are neighbors close to the orchards so feel a pcp rifle might be more discreet and less disturbing.
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Huntsman Revere .177 with 0DB suppressor vs Tikka T1x bolt action 22lr with Sparrow 22 suppressor (shooting CCI Standard Velocity):
As shooter- A wash. Action noise from the PCP is more then from the pb, which has only the firing pin & a tiny spring in motion vs the hammer & valve system of the PCP. However there is still some noise from the pb muzzle end, not really perceptible from PCP while shooting.
Watching someone else shoot from a safe distance- PCP quieter. With my face well away from the action, sound from the muzzle dominates & favors the PCP.
None of the sound differences are huge in any case, though the energy output is- ~18 fpe vs ~95 fpe.
Semiauto action likely to produce more noise than bolt action pb. High velocity 22lr ammo would make the energy difference even greater, but at the cost of a supersonic crack.
As shooter- A wash. Action noise from the PCP is more then from the pb, which has only the firing pin & a tiny spring in motion vs the hammer & valve system of the PCP. However there is still some noise from the pb muzzle end, not really perceptible from PCP while shooting.
Watching someone else shoot from a safe distance- PCP quieter. With my face well away from the action, sound from the muzzle dominates & favors the PCP.
None of the sound differences are huge in any case, though the energy output is- ~18 fpe vs ~95 fpe.
Semiauto action likely to produce more noise than bolt action pb. High velocity 22lr ammo would make the energy difference even greater, but at the cost of a supersonic crack.
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Depending on how far you go to configure either gun, I imagine it's a bit of a wash. It's probably **easier** to get a suitable PCP to be significantly quieter than a sub-sonic .22. That said, there isn't anything to stop you from making a .22 as quiet as any PCP. You might have to hand-load your rounds, etc. But a relatively low-powered PCP can be as quiet as the trigger mechanism and the sound of a projectile cutting through the wind, and whatever it might hit -- like leaves and branches on the way to its target. i.e. a well setup-up PCP should be about as quiet as using a bow.
That said, there are PCPs that are difficult to make quiet, like the Leshiy 2. A PCP where you properly load the pellet into the breech, i.e. a "normal" PCP should be relatively easy to keep quiet, provided you have good control over the regulator.
That said, there are PCPs that are difficult to make quiet, like the Leshiy 2. A PCP where you properly load the pellet into the breech, i.e. a "normal" PCP should be relatively easy to keep quiet, provided you have good control over the regulator.
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Thank you for the side-by-side comparison. There's a lot of factors to take into account when considering switching to air rifle hunting so this is helpful seeing the differences. I'm thinking the marauder may be a good starting rifle then as time goes by upgrading to an FX rifle at a later point as I have seen a lot of small game hunters recommend them especially the .25.
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Thanks to everyone for the advice and insights, sounds like overall there may not be a substantial difference in noise reduction between the two original stated options. However, does seem like there are some added benefits to using a pcp rifle and will give me something new to learn since I feel I've done all I can as far as modding/investing in rimfires. I appreciate all the help, I beleive I'll order a marauder to begin with and add a moderator and then upgrade to one of the higher-tier air rifles once I am more experienced. i appreciate it.
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