What standard rifle caliber is quietest out of a 16 or so inch barrel

[The Dumb Gun Collector]

Hey dudes,

I'm curious. I was listening to my buddy shoot his wasr 762x39 and it seemed a lot quieter than an AR. It was still loud as hell, but much less ear piercing when standing 25 yards or so away. I have been toying with the idea of putting together a Ruger Ranch Rifle (bolt) and putting irons and a simple red dot on it as a GP/property gun. I really like the handiness of a bolt action (this is not for combat, just a rifle companion to my shotgun for dealing with pests on my property).


What is the least loud out of a 16 inch barrel? A 762x39? A 556? A 300 blackout? Something else? Anyone actually know?

[Coal Dragger]

I can’t give a definitive answer but just a few observations:

1.) The higher the projectile velocity the louder and sharper the report is.

2.) The more powder you are burning relative to over all bore volume for combustion, the hotter and higher gas pressure is exiting the muzzle which also means more noise. More fireballs too.

With that in mind don’t pick a cartridge that is burning a bunch of powder or making bullets go really fast.

The 7.62X39 achieves that in a shorter barrel, so does .30-30 Winchester. I’m sure .300 Blackout will too. The .338 Federal would also probably do a good job with the heavier bullets offered with their modest velocity, but it’s not a common caliber.

[AndyLate]

Of the 3 you mentioned, the 300 BO will be quieter than a 7.62x39 or 5.56. Less powder capacity to bore, uses fast burning powder, and produces a lower velocity.

Andy

[wanderson]

Yup, .300bo in subsonic would be quietest out of a 16” barrel.
Now there’s a few options in subsonic 7.62x39 as well. Both are pushing 200gr. bullets so there shouldn’t be any difference in dbs. But there’s more choices with off the shelf ammo in .300bo.

Of course, .300bo is ridiculously expensive right now. Last year when the Brown Bear steel case 7.62x39 subs first came out they were just a bit pricier than cheap brass cased S&B or Magtec .300bo subs. Hard to say what it’ll be like next year.

Wolf also brought supersonic .300bo over here this year but ammo prices were jumping up just as it showed up. I think it started at 35 cents a round. Wolf steel case subsonic is supposed to be coming as well.

But in terms of cost, 7.62x39 will always be the cheapest overall.

[1_click_off]

I have a Ruger ranch in 300aac. With the Sandman-L it is very quiet shooting 220gr subs. Like an air rifle with more bass. I highly recommend staying far away from the rotary mags. I have 3 mags and none feed correctly unless I download to 3 rounds and then it is a crap shoot. I have even done the extra wind trick on one of the mags and it helped, but still not reliable. Ruger’s only advice was, we can send you another mag to try. Nice rifle as long as one doesn’t need a fast follow up shot...

This rifle is also less abrasive unsupressed with this round. Subsonic and I imagine most of the burn is done in the barrel with this big slow slug.

[sjc3081]

30-30 Winchester is very quiet for a rifle round. 300 yards away it is so quiet it’s difficult to judge the direction of the shot.

[matemike]

30-30 Winchester is very quiet for a rifle round. 300 yards away it is so quiet it’s difficult to judge the direction of the shot.

I was going to suggest a lever action in one of the pistol calibers - .357, .41, .44, 45 LC. They are not quiet, but they are far less ear piercing that a rifle round. Kinda like they have more bass.

Or you could look at 45-70 as bullet manufacturers make subs for it. But the rifle length bullets start becoming long cycles with a lever. That's why I suggested the revolver calibers.

IMO a lever action is handier than a bolt rifle as a GP/ranch/truck gun because they lay flatter on a vehicle dash or tuck down between the seats. The cycling is handier too. But that's just me.