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Small-Scale Question Sunday for December 10, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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  • Harder to keep a sniper rifle concealed than a submachine gun?

  • Escalation from "street gangs' kind of violence to "assassination" kind of violence will attract more cop attention?

  • Longer and more complicated setup = larger chance of getting caught?

You don't need a sniper rifle, a DMR chambered in 7.62x51 or even a half-decent AR-15 with an LPVO will more than suffice.

A 10 inch barrel on the latter will probably do the trick for engagement ranges within a few hundred meters, especially when you can quickly follow up with more shots.

At that point, it's barely bigger or even shorter than most SMGs, if not an autopistol. Easier to get too, if comparing semi AR-15 or AR-10 to anything with full-auto capabilities.

If you wanted to get really fancy, splurge for a suppressed AR in .300 Blackout, you can perforate fools with whisper quiet rounds, and not even wake up the neighbors downstairs.

I think you're a touch off base here. Yes, you can get a .308 with a ten inch barrel, but it's more regulated and it is going to be LOUD, and throw a fifteen foot fireball when you shoot it. Might as well fit a roman candle to your assassination gun. You're also going to lose all the power that would make you choose a .308 in the first place, because ten inches of barrel isn't going to get the round up to speed. Right about ten inches, a .308 round drops below the 2200 FPS mark at the muzzle, meaning you might as well use the .300 blackout because you've gimped the more powerful cartridge.

Now let's talk about the problems with .300 AAC. First, it's low power, essentially a pistol cartridge when suppressed. Second, suppressors are expensive and the legal process is lengthy. You can build or buy "solvent trap" cans, but those are on the police radar and they don't work nearly as well as proper cans. Third, even in the best case scenario, the noise is still significant and noticeable. We're talking 130 decibels roughly, and there is a phenomenon known as "first round pop", where the first shot in a cold can is louder than the subsequent ones. It's not hearing safe, the "whisper quiet" is more likely noticeably louder than a stadium rock concert or a jet aircraft.

Take it from someone who has a built-out suppressed.300, I wouldn't recommend it for an assassination.

Yes, you can get a .308 with a ten inch barrel, but it's more regulated and it is going to be LOUD, and throw a fifteen foot fireball when you shoot it.

I understand my initial comment might be slightly unclear on the point, but I meant 10" AR-15s chambered in 5.56 or thereabouts. That barrel length in 7.62 is a disaster. I mean, you might as well concuss your enemy to death instead of shooting him.

First, it's low power, essentially a pistol cartridge when suppressed. Second, suppressors are expensive and the legal process is lengthy. You can build or buy "solvent trap" cans, but those are on the police radar and they don't work nearly as well as proper cans. Third, even in the best case scenario, the noise is still significant and noticeable. We're talking 130 decibels roughly, and there is a phenomenon known as "first round pop", where the first shot in a cold can is louder than the subsequent ones. It's not hearing safe, the "whisper quiet" is more likely noticeably louder than a stadium rock concert or a jet aircraft.

Isn't .300 AAC a relative chonker of a round? I can't see how one can call it pistol tier even if it's subsonic. I expect the lethal range will be significant enough that an adversary with a handgun will be powerless to respond.

It's not hearing safe, the "whisper quiet" is more likely noticeably louder than a stadium rock concert or a jet aircraft.

Take it from someone who has a built-out suppressed.300, I wouldn't recommend it for an assassination.

I have seen claims of around 120 dB from other owners, but close enough, and it's still a 30 dB drop from unsuppressed.

I am under the impression that matters, a lot, because it potentially changes the overall sound signature enough to confuse people who would immediately jump to "gunshot", and at least by the time the round reaches the target it becomes exceedingly difficult to triangulate the shooter, even if it's not Hollywood-quiet.

Isn't .300 AAC a relative chonker of a round? I can't see how one can call it pistol tier even if it's subsonic.

With common subsonic rounds necessary for suppression, the ballistics are pretty comparable to the .45 ACP (or 10mm), a 220 grain projectile at 1k fps vs a 230 at 900. Of course, the downrange accuracy is much better, but in terms of power, we're in the same ballpark. You're not getting rifle damage at subsonic velocities.

Getting pinged at by a regular scoped PCC from some rooftop inside +/- a hundred yards sounds like a pretty bad time though -- I think it's mostly the honour culture aspect combined with gang-bangers having limited knowledge of modern gun culture/tech that stops this from being on the table.