One thing that Hollywood always gets wrong is the sound of a “silenced” firearm. They’ll take a centerfire rifle pistol, or shotgun, slap a “silencer” on the end of it, and when the actor pulls the trigger, the noise of the shot is little more than a muffled cough.

Of course, that isn’t what happened in the real world if you’re shooting much more than a sub-sonic .22LR.  People who have been exposed to “silencers” in the movies always seem surprised when they are near a suppressed weapon fired for the first time, and realize that is sounds just like a regular firearm, but not as painfully loud.

Gunshots from suppressed (not silenced) weapons still sound like gunshots, as the video from hickok45 above clearly shows when he shoots various loads through a suppressed 12-gauge shotgun with the Salvo 12, one of the newest suppressors on the market.

Shooting suppressed reduces noise pollution in the area surrounding firing ranges, while dropping the still very recognizable sound of a gunshot to levels where it will not cause (as much) hearing damage for shooters.

Because of these benefits, suppressors are increasingly becoming mainstream despite the onerous financial costs and procedural hurdles imposed by an outdated National Firearms Act. I think we’ll see them removed from the NFA and either deregulated entirely.

They are, after all, nothing more than mufflers like those you have on your cars.

Can you imagine having to undergo a federal background check, endure a nine-month wait, and pay a $200 tax penalty to keep from being deafened by your car?