# Are there any guns that are actually silent (or nearly so) as the movies would have it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 10, 2020, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683 "2020-08-10T01:23:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/21 "2020-08-10T10:51:29Z")
I was present when deer were being shot with tranquilizer darts. The gun was CO2 powered. Each shot went pffft. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/22 "2020-08-10T11:45:08Z")
That is Ian McCullum of Forgotten Weapons, isn’t it? I find his vids fascinating - but I think it is down to mic placement for stuff - I would want to be there in person. edited can’t spell for shite this morning ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/23 "2020-08-10T11:53:24Z")
It is. As far as mic placement, the sound of the action and bullet strikes downrange are clear so it would seem to accurately illustrate the sound reduction in that particular instance. I do wish the silencer vids would have a sound meter present and placed in front of the muzzle. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/24 "2020-08-10T12:25:40Z")
well, it’s a “blow-back” semi-auto action; the mass of the bolt and the spring is what keeps it closed until the bullet has left the barrel. you’ll have some gas escaping as the bolt opens and ejects the spent case. plus you’ll have the slapping of the action cycling which is not exactly quiet either. and if you’re using supersonic rounds, the sonic boom from the bullet is pretty apparent. Though nowhere near the level of an unsuppressed firing. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/25 "2020-08-10T13:02:01Z")
List of various suppressors, their attenuation, and resulting sound levels, here: [https://modernrifleman.net/suppressors/](https://modernrifleman.net/suppressors/) Note the three digit numbers in the ‘SPL’ portion of the spreadsheet. I think that’s a decibel reading for that firearm and suppressor, firing that cartridge. 100 db is still pretty loud, and most of the firearms are still in the 120-135 db range suppressed. From another [suppressor website,](https://americansuppressorassociation.com/education/) the quote is that a typical suppressor will attenuate the noise from an unsuppressed firearm, roughly as much as a set of earmuffs or earplug will. Or around 25-33 db. Again, it’s difficult to compare apples to apples on this, as sound measurements like this are really dependent upon experimental conditions, sensor locations, types of sensors, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/26 "2020-08-10T13:08:24Z")
I was just wondering where Hollywood got the “pyoop” silenced gun sound from in the first place. At some point someone must have been the first to use it. Presumably they based it on an air gun? ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/27 "2020-08-10T13:30:08Z")
Absolutely silent? Nah. But quiet enough to murder someone without the neighbors noticing? Sure. Subsonic 9mm out of a can is scary quiet. The action is louder than the bang. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/28 "2020-08-10T15:19:29Z")
> [@Dancer\_Flight](#): > > Of conventional firearms in common use, a suppressed subsonic .22 or even 9mm is fairly quiet, even hearing safe. In general one of those in a semi-auto will have the mechanical noise of the action cycling as louder than the shot itself. I know it’s an anecdote, but once years ago, I was at the range one afternoon, and saw the guy next to me shooting a pistol, but I couldn’t hear it firing through my hearing protection AT ALL. Since it was just the two of us there at the time, I eased one of the ear muffs off, and listened. All I could hear was the bolt cycling on the pistol (it was a Ruger Mk 4 of some kind, which is a .22 automatic target pistol), and the suppressor was reducing the muzzle report to nearly nothing. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/29 "2020-08-10T15:53:06Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > For comparison, how loud is a modern compound bow, or crossbow, or old-fashioned long bow? not very. probably less than a suppressed .22 or 9mm. I mean, you do obviously hear a fairly noticeable “snap” from a bow, and my crossbow does make a good “clack” when fired, but nothing approaching even a suppressed gunshot. still enough to spook a deer, though. ---
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/30 "2020-08-10T16:30:03Z")
Even without a suppressor sorting sub sonic .22 shorts or if my 1950s vintage Mossberg bolt action .22 is amazingly quiet. But then again, we’re talking .22 short. Any decent caliber (.380 and up) just sounds like a gunshot, just not as loud. I think that the time has come for suppressors to be sold over the counter without the need for a tax stamp and the year wait for approval. The health (hearing) benefits outweigh the negatives. I’ve been shooting since I was 8 years old and at 53 my ears never stop ringing. Granted, when I was young we never used hearing pro, but then again we didn’t use seat belts either. Shooting is fun, reduced noise shooting is even more enjoyable. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/31 "2020-08-10T16:48:42Z")
> [@obbn](#): > > the time has come for suppressors to be sold over the counter without the need for a tax stamp and the year wait for approval. The health (hearing) benefits outweigh the negatives. I’ve been shooting since I was 8 years old and at 53 my ears never stop ringing. Granted, when I was young we never used hearing pro, but then again we didn’t use seat belts either. Shooting is fun, reduced noise shooting is even more enjoyable. All of this. Gun mufflers. We require them on cars; we should allow their easy purchase for use on firearms. It’s a safety issue. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/32 "2020-08-10T21:17:31Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > I was just wondering where Hollywood got the “pyoop” silenced gun sound from in the first place. At some point someone must have been the first to use it. I would LOVE to know this answer. There are a few things in movies that everyone “knows” that were never true. Silenced weapons that go pfft\*, the fact that tarantulas and scorpions and probably black widows kill you with one bite/sting, and that quicksand sucks you in to your death. None of these are true, nor were they ever true, so how did they get to be such staples, such “truisms” of films that everyone knows them and they get used so many times? \*especially silenced revolvers, which for the most part have gone away. So someone in Hollywood got that one explained to them sufficiently that they stopped. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/33 "2020-08-11T01:28:42Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > How do pellet guns and bb guns compare in volume? Depends on the pellet gun and how you’re using it. I have a multi-pump .177 air rifle that can go supersonic if you’re not careful with how much you pump it up. When you break the sound barrier, it’s indistinguishable from a .22LR auto rifle a friend of mine used to have. When you keep it below the sound barrier, it just sounds like a very quick pneumatic air tool. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/34 "2020-08-11T05:20:53Z")
There are a few deadly scorpions, maybe 6 species of the 1500 worldwide. Likely the most dangerous is the Indian red scorpion. The sydney funnelweb is the only spider that puts 10% of it’s victims in the hospital, and kills maybe one person a year. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/35 "2020-08-11T15:19:15Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > Depends on the pellet gun and how you’re using it. I have a multi-pump .177 air rifle that can go supersonic if you’re not careful with how much you pump it up. When you break the sound barrier, it’s indistinguishable from a .22LR auto rifle a friend of mine used to have. When you keep it below the sound barrier, it just sounds like a very quick pneumatic air tool. I remember reading that some people would intentionally “diesel” a spring-piston air rifle to boost velocity. i.e. put too much air gun oil in and rely on the compression of the air to ignite it. those would basically be as loud (or louder) than a .22LR. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/36 "2020-08-11T18:55:27Z")
[More](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQPsf_wDbmU) from Gun Jesus. ---
**Author:** ![Acierocolotl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acierocolotl/32/6241_2.png) [@Acierocolotl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acierocolotl)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/37 "2020-08-11T20:11:38Z")
There is also a sort of curiosity of a Soviet weapon, the VSS Vintorez, which was designed to be as quiet as possible. It uses highly specialized ammunition to fire exceptionally heavy (for a rifle) subsonic bullets. Here’s a Wikipedia link: [VSS Vintorez and AS Val - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VSS_Vintorez) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2020, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/38 "2020-08-13T21:09:54Z")
There are some crazy powerful air guns out there right now. Crosman makes a break-barrel rifle that uses a nitrogen-filled capsule to store the energy, and it can shoot 1350 fps. Since it’s supersonic, the pellet will still make a fair bit of noise. Not to be outdone, a company called Airforce makes an air rifle that can shoot .50 caliber projectiles over 1000 fps. The company claims 650 ft-lbs of energy at the muzzle, which is close to that of a .357 magnum pistol round. You can take down deer with the thing. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/39 "2020-08-14T14:25:16Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > None of these are true, nor were they ever true, so how did they get to be such staples, such “truisms” of films that everyone knows them and they get used so many times? The term of art you’re looking for is “trope”. Eons ago I got to shoot gyrojet emergency flare guns. It sounded about like a bottle rocket. Maybe a little “bigger”, but the same basic whoosh noise. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683/40 "2020-08-14T15:18:20Z")
> [@Acierocolotl](#): > > There is also a sort of curiosity of a Soviet weapon, the VSS Vintorez, which was designed to be as quiet as possible. It uses highly specialized ammunition to fire exceptionally heavy (for a rifle) subsonic bullets. Here’s a Wikipedia link: [AS Val and VSS Vintorez - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VSS_Vintorez) Loads of fun in the STALKER video game series, and the endgame gun of choice in the first installment. 270 ish grains at 1,000 feet per second. Trajectory like a baseball, but that’s going to be the case with all of these subsonic weapons. Like an overgrown .300 Blackout. I’ve no idea how accurate real world examples are, or how quiet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-guns-that-are-actually-silent-or-nearly-so-as-the-movies-would-have-it/917683.md?page=3)