Short And Sweet

At-the-ear decibel measurements ­— where backpressure plays such a critical role with AR-15-type firearms specifically — are lower than similar models of suppressors offered by other brands. In practical terms, that location is the one that matters most to the shooter.

Designed by a left-handed shooter tired of getting blowback debris all over his Ray-Bans, AMTAC suppressors feature innovative over-the-barrel engineering. In the simplest terms, ore than half of the suppressor slides over the muzzle before the threads engage. The rearward shift of a sizeable portion of the inner capacity results in several benefits, including much-reduced overall length and a notable reduction in blowback pressure.

AMTAC reduces backpressure through several design elements. Probably the most critical is the reduced time required for the projectile to travel through and exit the suppressor. A bullet travels into and out of a 3.7-inch chamber approximately twice as fast as it does through a traditional 6 ½- to 8-inch chamber, cutting in half the time that a semiautomatic operating system experiences maintained high levels of pressurization.

Another factor that contributes to reduced blowback is the massive dead air space in the portion of the suppressor shrouding the barrel behind the muzzle. Baffle free it acts as a compression chamber that both absorbs pressure and deadens sound.

Why is reducing backpressure a good thing? Two reasons: Backpressure jets a lot of hot gasses, soot and particles (all known as blowback) rearward into the action and out the ejection port (really annoying to left-handed shooters), and it relays a lot of sound rearward to the shooter’s ears. Reduced backpressure translates to reduced fouling and less perceived sound.

There is a third benefit, and that is reduced recoil. When the quantity and duration of blowback pressure is reduced, the violence with which your bolt carrier group (BCG) reciprocates is also reduced, lowering perceived recoil. It’s rather subjective but bears mentioning. Astute readers will rightly point out that an adjustable gas block aptly controls peak backpressure; however, adjustable gas bocks cannot reduce the duration of backpressure.

The other major advantage of AMTAC’s over-the-barrel design — reduced overall length — needs no introduction. Traditional suppressors add a significant amount of length to a firearm, reducing maneuverability and throwing off the balance. They can make a previously sleek firearm positively cumbersome. Adding only 3.7 inches (the typical muzzle-forward length of an AMTAC suppressor) minimizes those adverse effects.

Another often-overlooked advantage of the shortened travel distance inherent to the over-the-barrel design (coupled with aerospace-quality machining) is a complete lack of baffle strikes. To date, AMTAC has not experienced a baffle strike of any kind.

Let’s take a quick backstage look at the company and then delve into the nitty-gritty of the various suppressors AMTAC offers.

AMTAC: The Company  Springing from the fertile minds of engineers accustomed to creating as the company puts it, “mission-critical components for aerospace, medical and defense industries,” AMTAC Suppressors is a branch of a precision-machining giant with deep resources. Like Zeiss and other premium manufacturing entities, shooting-related products make up a relatively small portion of the business.

As a result, AMTAC’s survival doesn’t hinge on riding out low points in a market trends such as the current lull in suppressor sales caused by much-inflated consumer expectations centered on the Hearing Protection Act (HPA). For the most part, AMTAC produces its suppressors a la carte, and when the market downswings, the company simply directs fewer resources to manufacturing suppressors. When market demand burgeons to levels other companies can only support after time-consuming expansion, AMTAC just shifts more manufacturing resources into suppressors.

For those interested in such arcana, AMTAC is U.S. Department of Defense ITAR certified, ISO 9001 certified and is Registered AS 9100. The company is located in Salt Lake City, and white it’s been manufacturing suppressors for only a few years, it’s possessed of a long and honorable history in manufacturing for the aerospace industry.

Sophisticated CNC machining contributes to perfectly concentric units. As a notable departure from conventional construction, the inner baffles are machined from 17-4 PH stainless steel as a single unit rather than as a stack of individual parts. Each suppressor is comprised of only four pieces: maintube, endcap, one-piece baffle structure and threaded rear cap. Finally, every suppressor is finished in one of three Cerakote colors and is backed with a no-nonsense lifetime warranty.

AMTAC Suppressor Lines  Five primary designs make up AMTAC’s suppressor lineup, with caliber variations bringing the total to nine versions plus color variations. All but one feature the company’s over-the-barrel design.

CQB: This flagship AMTAC suppressor is designed for typical AR-15 carbines with a standard carbine-length gas system. Available in either 5.56 ($875) or 7.62 ($975), it’s 9.7 inches in length, 6 inches shroud the barrel and it weighs 20 ½ ounces. The outside diameter is 1.62 inches, so take that into consideration when planning to pair this suppressor with a long handguard. Maximum barrel diameter that will fit inside the CQB is .76 inch. Available colors are black, FDE and gray. In practical terms, the CQB is the most effective over-the-barrel can but requires a minimum of 6 inches of gas-block-free barrel behind the thread shoulder, so it won’t fit on AR-15s with a mid-length gas system on a 16-inch barrel.

CQBm: As you might guess, this is a shortened version of the standard CQB designed for use with mid-length gas systems on 16-inch barrels, as well as any other rifle with only 4 inches of barrel between the thread shoulder and the gas block. Although slightly lessened, sound suppression quality is still very good, and the reduced length lowers weight to 17.7 ounces. The diameter is 1.62 inches, overall length is 7.7 inches and maximum compatible barrel diameter is .76 inch. Like its lengthier brother, it’s available in both 5.56 ($875) and 7.62 ($975) versions, Cerakote black, FDE or gray.

Sniper: Designed for use with heavy barrel profiles that won’t fit inside the CQB or CQBm, the Sniper is compatible with barrel diameters up to .95 inch. Like the CQB it’s 9.7 inches overall with 6 inches shrouding the barrel, and the overall rifle length is increased only 3.7 inches with the Sniper mounted. Its overall diameter is 1.62 inches and weight is 22.2 ounces. Pair this suppressor with heavy-barreled bolt-action precision rifles. Both 5.56 ($900) and 7.62 ($1000) are available Cerakoted black, FDE or gray.

Hornet 9mm: No, this isn’t a pistol can; it’s an over-the-barrel 9mm suppressor for pistol-caliber carbines. Featuring its own unique baffle design prove by extensive testing, it keeps a carbine as short as possible while offering outstanding sound suppression. Overall length is 7.7 inches, with 4 inches shrouding the barrel, and it weighs 16.6 ounces. The outside diameter is 1.62 inches so keep that in mind if choosing a long free-float handguard. I’ve put hundreds of 9mm and 5.7x28mm rounds through a Hornet, many of them from select-fire short-barreled rifles (SBRs), and it’s an outstanding suppressor. As with all of AMTAC’s cans, it’s available with a black, FDE or gray Cerakote finish ($875).

SBR: Currently, this is the only traditional end-of-barrel suppressor that AMTAC offers, although an outstanding rimfire can will soon be available. It’s subbed the SBR for its compatibility with extremely short semiautomatic barrels that don’t offer much barrel length forward of the gas block, and those that won’t play nice with over-the-barrel designs. However, the SBR is different from other traditional end-of-barrel designs in one important way: The threads that mount to the rifle’s muzzle are cut directly into the rear of the one-piece machined baffle. As a result, concentricity borders on perfection, which directly benefits consistency and accuracy. Plus, assuming your barrel threads are straight and concentric, you’ll never experience a baffle strike. The overall length is 7.7 inches, with a 1.62-inch outside diameter. The SBR weighs 20 ½ ounces. Both 5.56 ($900) and 7.62 ($1000) versions are available in black, FDE or gray Cerakote.

Fire Ant: Destined to be one of the best rimfire suppressors, this sleek little can will likely be available by the time you read this. It will be rated for every rimfire cartridge on the market, plus the .22 Hornet and 5.7x22mm. Like the SBR, it’s an end-of-barrel design with the threads machined directly into the one-piece baffle. Weight was not available at the time of publication, but the length is 5.3 inches and the diameter is 1 inch ($450).

Need one?  I’m not going to say that you need an AMTAC suppressor. Supply is finally catching up with demand, and there are a plethora of good-quality, highly effect suppression devices on the market. However, if you detest adding 7 or 8 inches to the end of a barrel, don’t like blowback residue or the effects of loud sounds, and you appreciate extreme consistency, look no further.[sm_image alt=”Guns & Ammo” image=”6607″]