The SilencerCo Switchback Suppressor
Maximum Rimfire Versatility
The SilencerCo Switchback sound suppressor is the most versatile rimfire can on the market.
The SilencerCo Switchback is the most versatile rimfire sound suppressor on the market today. Featuring lightweight titanium and stainless-steel construction along with a uniquely modular design, the Switchback will perfectly complement everything from your favorite .22 rimfire plinking pistol up to that .17 HMR bolt gun that shoots the flies off your target stand. The Switchback can be optimized for maximum performance or minimum footprint. It can also be tuned for either rifle or pistol applications.
The SilencerCo Switchback can be configured in multiple formats to suit the specific application.
Ballistic Philosophy
I’ve been at this since I was seven years old when I bought my first Daisy BB gun. Over the intervening half-century, there have been black rifles, precision guns, automatic weapons, trebuchets the size of moving vans and slingshots. The most transformational gun purchase I have ever made was a rimfire sound suppressor. That adorable little can changed everything.
Before I bought that first rimfire suppressor, a trip to the range inevitably included hearing protection. Afterward, I could break out my Walther P22 or S&W M&P .22 and leave the muffs at home. While that makes shooting more convenient, safe and fun, the real transformation was in introducing new shooters to the game.
Shooting is a blast, but it can be intimidating for the neophyte. The terminology is foreign, the practitioners are often big, gruff and hairy, and the tools can legitimately kill you if not deftly wielded. As a result, most everybody begins with a .22 rimfire. There will be time for the .44 Magnum Desert Eagle later. On Day 1, you want a .22.
And that is where a proper rimfire can really shine. When using a suppressed .22 rifle or pistol, particularly if stoked with subsonic ammo, the experience is placid and non-threatening. Range commands can be spoken in a conversational voice, and the experience is much less intimidating.
In its most compact version, the SilencerCo Switchback is absolutely tiny.
Switchback Particulars
On every National Firearms Act (NFA) item, something has to be the registered bit that takes the serial number. In the case of the SilencerCo Switchback, that’s actually just the mount. This piece is about the size of a lug nut and has the serial number engraved circumferentially around the near end.
The entire package consists of two separate baffle stacks, the serialized mount, an endcap and a coupler to connect everything together. By mixing and matching, you can actually build four different configurations out of this one basic suppressor system. The smallest version is only 2.5 inches long and weighs a paltry 3.2 ounces. Thusly configured, the gun still makes a fair amount of noise, but the overall package will hide in the front pocket of your 5.11s.
The mid-size setup is 3.6 inches long and weighs 4.3 ounces. This version offers a slightly larger internal volume and subsequently works just a little bit better. In its full-sized configuration, the Switchback spans 5.75 inches and weighs 6.5 ounces. It is likely the most effective rimfire can I have ever used.
The SilencerCo Switchback works like a champ on a rimfire rifle like this Luth-AR customized Ruger 10/22.
Once everything in the box is mounted up, the suppressor can still be optimized for either rifle or pistol applications. This involves swapping the far module around backward. I have no idea what the science behind that might be, but it does seem to work.
One fringe benefit of all this rampaging modularity is that the suppressor is easily disassembled and maintained. Additionally, the dichromatic dissonance you get from the silver tubes and the black interstitial bits just looks cool. That really shouldn’t matter to grizzled gun nerds like us, but it does. The Switchback 22 is rated for use on all .22 rimfire platforms as well as the zippy 5.7x28mm round, even on full auto.
Mixing and matching pieces of the SilencerCo Switchback allows the can to be optimized for various applications.
Trigger Time
There are more potential .22-caliber hosts for the SilencerCo Switchback than might be readily cataloged. When threaded onto your Ruger 10/22, you can assassinate tree rats without alerting their buddies who are sitting on the branch alongside them. Ringing steel with a gun that doesn’t make any real noise is an inimitable way to kill a lazy Saturday afternoon at the range. If ever called upon to HALO jump into enemy-held territory to rescue the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, you’ll want a Switchback on the end of a Walther P22 tucked into the front band of your boxer shorts. Even if you are not technically a spy, threading that rascal onto your favorite rimfire host will put a seriously fun dent in your rimfire ammo stash.
The SilencerCo Switchback is a one-size-fits-all rimfire sound suppressor that can transform your shooting experience.
Denouement
The $200 transfer tax is indeed onerous. However, thanks to wasteful government spending and subsequent inflation, it isn’t as big a blow as was once the case. Additionally, the transfer process nowadays takes days to weeks rather than months. Landing a sound suppressor of your own just isn’t as big a pain as it used to be.
Everybody makes .22 suppressors these days. Nobody makes a .22 suppressor quite like this. Inimitably versatile, undeniably effective and as rugged as Margaret Thatcher’s backbone, the Switchback 22 is the very top of the heap. The MSRP is $499.
Learn more at SilencerCo.com.
