[UKShootist]

In UK we have some of the most restrictive firearms laws in the world which, I might add, hacks me off greatly. But, once a person gets a firearms certificate, sound moderators are no problem to acquire, if you can provide a good reason for having one. Hunting is generally a good reason.

So, I can buy a SAK brand rimfire moderator for about £36, ($50?). They are most effective on rifles, even with barrels as short as 12". I wouldn't know about pistols, as they aren't allowed at all here (with very, very, few exceptions) There are many other brands about, ranging from £25 to about £120. Few are much better than the SAK though.

Centrefire moderators are available from about £150 upwards. While they do not remove the supersonic crack, they are damned effective, or at least the good ones are. On my .223 Steyr Scout, I do not need any hearing protection when shooting. A friend at the range has a very moderately sized (smaller than mine) moderator on his Remington .308, and it would certainly be quite tolerable in the field, but it's just a little louder than mine on the ,223.

I would be interested in a summary of the situation in the US on sound moderators. Costs and designs, particularly for ,22 rimfire.

[robocop10mm]

Suppressors (as they are known here) are regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA). The same law that regulates the possession of machine guns, short barelled rifles and shotguns, destructive decises, etc.

Rimfire supressors are fairly reasonably priced $350 ish? But there is a $200 transfer tax for each NFA item (supressors included, AOW's are $5, but that is a different topic).

Interestingly, the $200 tax was put ini place in the 1930's when the retail price of an expensive machinegun (Thompson 1921 model) was $200. The tax effectively DOUBLED the price of a machinegun, but no provision was made to raise the tax. The sales tax on a Thompson would be more than $200 today as Thompsons can sell for $20,000 or more.

[UKShootist]

Originally Posted by robocop10mm

Rimfire supressors are fairly reasonably priced $350 ish? But there is a $200 transfer tax for each NFA item (supressors included, AOW's are $5, but that is a different topic).

Hells teeth! $350 for a rimfire sound moderator Here, when a SAK moderator gets too clogged up, which takes ages, many people will just throw them away and buy a new one. Too much trouble to strip.

Take a look

And these guys are expensive.