Wilson Combat is a seminal name in the gun industry. Their high-end handguns, rifles, and shotguns set the bar for custom-made precision firearms. Most of us are satisfied with some basic box-store plastic pistol. By contrast, Wilson Combat’s weapons are ballistic works of art.
With such a rarefied ballistic foundation upon which to build, Wilson Combat has now branched out into suppressors. Its Quell line of pistol silencers is top flight. Then there’s the new Silent Bandit silencer. The Silent Bandit is a high-performance rifle suppressor that is essentially unkillable. It’s also named after Bill Wilson’s dog.
Silent Bandit — What’s in a Name?
The next time you’re taking a long car trip with the family, make a mental note of the RVs that you pass on the interstate. My own family took a vacation each summer in our modest travel trailer back in the day. We went to the beach, the mountains, the Great Plains and a few big cities. Those were some of the warmest memories of my childhood. Our trailer was called a Holiday Rambler.
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Rambler seems a pretty appropriate appellation for a family camper. The name is light, friendly, non-threatening, and adventurous. However, nowadays, we seem to have outgrown such frivolous monikers.
Today’s RVs carry names like Conqueror, Avenger, Spectre and Wraith. You’d think striking off for a peaceful week in the Great Smoky mountains was actually Delta Force going all kinetic on Megatron. Perhaps all the good wholesome names were already taken. Whatever–I suppose it sells RVs.
That same quandary affects other industries too. Our society is the most refined capitalistic society in human history. How a product is marketed is as important as what it actually does. The Chevy Corvette, Ford Mustang and Aston Martin Vanquish all conjure mental images of speed and primal sex appeal.
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By contrast, the old Chevy Nova suffered abysmal sales in Latin America. “No-va” literally translates to “No Go” in Spanish. Someone at Chevy missed the mark.
When Wilson Combat needed a name for its new rifle silencer, a lot of the good ones were already in use. Different names like Omega 36, Sandman X, Banish, SOCOM, Resonator and Meat-Eater come to mind. They needed a name that implied toughness, reliability, and readiness. Because the new silencer’s motto is “All Bite, No Bark,” naming it after Bill Wilson’s loyal dog Bandit was a no-brainer.
Silent Bandit Suppressor Details
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The Silent Bandit Suppressor produces a 31 dB average noise reduction. This can’s novel gas management system controls the flow of muzzle gases while minimizing back pressure. Its titanium baffle stack is available in two broad configurations. The first is a smaller 5-baffle option with a 5.76-inch stack and weighs 12.1 ounces. The second one is a slightly larger 6-baffle version that measures 6.41 inches and weighs 13.3 ounces. Silent Bandit silencers have a lithe 1.75-inch external profile that minimizes bulk and enhances maneuverability.
These silencers are designed to accept a standard HUB mount. Because of their tough construction, they will digest most anything they can safely handle. Both the HUB mount and end cap are crafted from rugged H13 steel and finished in a dull black nitride. Its HUB mount attaches via a 1-3/8-24 UN-2A thread. The end cap uses an 1-3/8-24 OD thread.
Both ends are designed for easy cleaning and maintenance. In this day and age, the HUB has become industry standard.
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The Silent Bandit is coated with a temperature-resistant variant of Wilson Combat’s classic ARMOR-TUFF protective finish. This non-reflective tactical surface treatment offers corrosion protection and resistance to the inevitable rough handling. The end result is rugged, attractive and effective.
The Good Hosts
The Silent Bandit works well on different types of firearms.
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On your favorite bolt-action precision rifle, the Silent Bandit can actually enhances accuracy by dampening out barrel harmonics. With regards to heavy bolt-guns, the Silent Bandit’s weight is light enough that you almost forget it is there. You will wonder how you tolerated that noisy rifle for so long.
This can is also right at home on your favorite autoloader. Thirty-caliber weapons such as the AR10, FN SCAR17, and Tavor 7 thrive with such a unit. The Silent Bandit’s back pressure mitigation is particularly pertinent in direct gas-impingement weapons.
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Simply swap out mounts, and this single silencer will be just as effective on your 5.56mm firearms too. It runs like a scalded ape with .300BLK guns too. Heck, you could mount it on a .22 rimfire if that’s your bag. Regardless of the host, the Silent Bandit offers superlative suppression in a package that is both tough and cool.
Feeding the Beast
In addition to offering a wide array of custom rifles, pistols and shotguns, Wilson Combat also produces their own line of premium ammunition. My favorite is the Lehigh Defense .308 Winchester 155-grain TXC round. This high-end cartridge pushes a pre-fragmented solid-copper machined bullet with a polymer ballistic tip. The TXC load feeds reliably and provides consistent aerodynamic performance.
Just looking at the thing, it should be intuitively explosive downrange.
In addition to fixed ammunition, Wilson Combat offers loose projectiles for reloaders.
If you own a centerfire rifle suppressor, you really should invest in an inexpensive single-stage reloading setup. Factory subsonic ammo is expensive and tough to find. Rolling your own subsonic fare is fun and well within the capabilities of most adult Americans. The initial investment is recouped after your first few boxes.
The details are readily available on the Internet. I use Trail Boss, a gentle but high-volume powder. This stuff is actually designed for cowboy action shooting. However, it is perfect for reloading subsonic rifle rounds as it doesn’t leave so much empty space inside the case. The loading data is easy to find online.
Once you get your desired load tweaked to just underneath that magic 1,125 feet per second speed of sound, the world is your oyster. A bolt-action .308 rifle equipped with a nice can like the Silent Bandit is the only suppressed firearm I have ever fired that truly approximates movie-grade quiet. I could shoot my homebuilt subsonic 155-grain TXC rounds and hear little more than the bullet striking the steel downrange. Trust me, you’ll be impressed with how well this works.
Canine Philosophy
We’d honestly all be better off if we were a bit more like our dogs. Your dog doesn’t care if you’ve had a hard day. He will love you even when you are smelly, sweaty, grouchy, or tired. He is loyal, brave, strong, and committed. Treat that beast right, and he will spend his dying breath for you. A good dog is indeed the ideal companion. They earned that “Man’s Best Friend” thing.
So, if you needed a name for a rugged, hard-use sound suppressor that implied reliability and effectiveness, I really can’t think of anything better than naming it after your favorite dog. Like the canine, the Silent Bandit is the ideal adjunct. It enhances the performance of the host weapon and will never let you down.
If you live in one of the forty-two free states that allow sound suppressors, you need one. Threading a Silent Bandit onto the snout of your favorite big bore rifle will remind you of what attracted you to this quirky sport in the first place. Being able to shoot stuff while leaving your hearing protection at home is frankly addictive. The Silent Bandit is indeed all bite and no bark.
