Surefire RC3 Review

[DarthRevan]

https://www.reddit.com/r/NFA/s/8FYlhhcBPo

Or, more appropriately, a less back-pressured Trash Panda.

Love the work Jay puts in, just hate that it proves leaves me feeling like I wasted money on one.
At ear and muzzle sound suppression worse than RC2 on same platform and muzzle devices (3prong FH vs Warcomp)



If back pressure issues aren’t enough of a bother for you, stick to the RC2

 

[AllaSnackbah]

Why is it a waste of money though? RC3 will probably be my go-to for SPR builds moving forward.

 

[DarthRevan]

Why is it a waste of money though? RC3 will probably be my go-to for SPR builds moving forward.

The combination of sound suppression vs cost compared to another RC2. Is reduced back pressure worth the ~$500 difference right now in a slightly worse performing can?

And then comparing it to other similar cans like the Flow 556…

Time will tell I guess, but I’m a little disappointed.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

The combination of sound suppression vs cost compared to another RC2. Is reduced back pressure worth the ~$500 difference right now in a slightly worse performing can?

And then comparing it to other similar cans like the Flow 556…

Time will tell I guess, but I’m a little disappointed.

Sound suppression isn't even a factor when I'm selecting cans.

Flow through technology is a niche thing, sf is adapting to demand while offering the best mounting system available.

I'll likely get one for my ridgeline lpr, I don't expect it to be a giant game changer and I'm in no rush to swap from my rc2s for sure.

 

[DarthRevan]

Sound suppression isn't even a factor when I'm selecting cans.

Flow through technology is a niche thing, sf is adapting to demand while offering the best mounting system available.

I'll likely get one for my ridgeline lpr, I don't expect it to be a giant game changer and I'm in no rush to swap from my rc2s for sure.

If not sound then what is a factor?

 

[AllaSnackbah]

If not sound then what is a factor?

Flash suppression, return to zero/impact shift, durability, quality of mount.

Idgaf about decibels tbh

 

[DarthRevan]

Fair enough.
Admittedly I haven’t watched all the videos people posted shooting the RC3 at night or how it compares to the 2, but at least for the FRP the few videos I have seen don’t bode well for the flash suppression. It throws fireballs.

I know it reads like I’m trying to convince you to not buy one but really I just don’t want someone to jump the hype train like I did and get disappointed when third party results aren’t what you expected.

 

[LakeTrout]

Flash suppression, return to zero/impact shift, durability, quality of mount.

Idgaf about decibels tbh

Have you tried flash hiders?

I’m joking. But seriously, if sound supression isn’t something we care about. But flash suppression, zero/impact shift, durability, and quality of mount is. Then why a silencer and not a flash hider? Flash hiders do all of these things better than a silencer. You can argue that some silencers do flash suppression better. But really in my experience they generally don’t except for silencers that are specifically designed with the intention of flash suppression in mind.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

Fair enough.
Admittedly I haven’t watched all the videos people posted shooting the RC3 at night or how it compares to the 2, but at least for the FRP the few videos I have seen don’t bode well for the flash suppression. It throws fireballs.

I know it reads like I’m trying to convince you to not buy one but really I just don’t want someone to jump the hype train like I did and get disappointed when third party results aren’t what you expected.

Well yeah, of course the rc2 is gonna suppress flash better.

Flow through suppressors are designed to allow more gas (flash) to flow through the can to prevent gas blowback in the shooters face.

SF has lost some pretty big contracts to companies like huxworx over the past year or two because less gas in the face at the cost of a little flash and sound signature is appealing to some crowds.

I don't think SF ever claimed the rc3 would be a better suppressor than the rc2, just a better flow through suppressor than huxworks or the gay sig trash.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

Have you tried flash hiders?

I’m joking. But seriously, if sound supression isn’t something we care about. But flash suppression, zero/impact shift, durability, and quality of mount is. Then why a silencer and not a flash hider? Flash hiders do all of these things better than a silencer. You can argue that some silencers do flash suppression better. But really in my experience they generally don’t except for silencers that are specifically designed with the intention of flash suppression in mind.

It's nice to have some level of sound reduction to at least somewhat protect your hearing, especially indoors where we tend to actually use them off a flat range, ever shoot an unsuppressed rifle in a commercial building with drop ceiling or a steel barn? Another reason we use suppressors is to help us ID friendly guns in the fight. When the badguys gun is going bang bang it's helpful knowing it's one of my guys guns off to my right or left because its going psh psh psh.

Also, suppressors are better at flash reduction than flash hiders and it's tougher to pinpoint the location of a suppressed shot than a unsuppressed when downrange.

#1 reason of course is that cans look cool brah

 

[LakeTrout]

It's nice to have some level of sound reduction to at least somewhat protect your hearing. Another reason we use suppressors tbh is to ID friendly guns, when the badguys gun is going bang it's helpful knowing it's one of my guys guns of to my right going psh psh psh.

Also, suppressors are better at flash reduction than flash hiders and it's tougher to pinpoint the location of a suppressed shot than a unsuppressed when downrange.

Great points about the sound reduction and friendly ID. That’s not something I that I knew.

My only experience with the two are on the flat range. But I will say that from what I’ve seen, in general, decent 3 prong flash hiders do a better job at hiding flash than suppressors. Some of this seems to depend on barrel length/load selection. But from what I’ve seen, suppressors don’t do that great of a job mitigating flash. A lot worse than I would have expected given their reputation for hiding flash that we hear about on the Internet.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

Great points about the sound reduction and friendly ID. That’s not something I that I knew.

My only experience with the two are on the flat range. But I will say that from what I’ve seen, in general, decent 3 prong flash hiders do a better job at hiding flash than suppressors. Some of this seems to depend on barrel length/load selection. But from what I’ve seen, suppressors don’t do that great of a job mitigating flash. A lot worse than I would have expected given their reputation for hiding flash that we hear about on the Internet.

A ton of that is gonna be ammo dependent, my rc2 throws first round fireballs out of my 11.5 and 14.5 with my 55gr federal training ammo but duty ammo it does an outstanding job of killing flash. Duty/mil grade ammo has flash suppressant shit in the powder that fmj training ammo does not.

 

[LakeTrout]

A ton of that is gonna be ammo dependent, my rc2 throws first round fireballs out of my 11.5 and 14.5 with my 55gr federal training ammo but duty ammo it does an outstanding job of killing flash. Duty/mil grade ammo has flash suppressant shit in the powder that fmj training ammo does not.

I didn’t realize it was flash suppressant. That’s good to know. The 77 grain loads seem to have a lot less flash out of shorter barrels. Less powder, different burn rates, etc. But holy Toledo do the 10.5s throw fireballs out of cans with 55 grain loads!

Theyre very loud at that length suppressed too. I start to wonder at that point why not just throw the extra 4-6” of barrel back on the rifle with a flash hider, save yourself some weight, get your velocity back, and actually kill the flash. Granted, it’s a different tone and a little louder at 16” than a 10.5 suppressed. But not by much.

You’re right about the coolness factor of the can though.

I’ll also add that it’s a different recoil impulse, and having the suppressor on can help a rifle stay on target easier.

 

[AllaSnackbah]

I didn’t realize it was flash suppressant. That’s good to know. The 77 grain loads seem to have a lot less flash out of shorter barrels. Less powder, different burn rates, etc. But holy Toledo do the 10.5s throw fireballs out of cans with 55 grain loads!

Theyre very loud at that length suppressed too. I start to wonder at that point why not just throw the extra 4-6” of barrel back on the rifle with a flash hider, save yourself some weight, get your velocity back, and actually kill the flash. Granted, it’s a different tone and a little louder at 16” than a 10.5 suppressed. But not by much.

You’re right about the coolness factor of the can though.

I’ll also add that it’s a different recoil impulse, and having the suppressor on can help a rifle stay on target easier.

Yeah for sure, surefire biggest claim to fame is their flash signature reduction, their cans aren't even close to the quietest yet they are by far the most selected suppressors by professional mil/le users.

When the rc3 was released there was a huge controversy over it being flashier than the rc2 but again, it's because the suppressors designed to push more gas out the front.

I'm not a turbo nerd reloader or ammo expert but I think the reason 77 match flashes so little is because it's a better powder designed to burn consistently opposed to fmj blasting ammo where nobody really cares.

 

[LakeTrout]

Yeah for sure, surefire biggest claim to fame is their flash signature reduction, their cans aren't even close to the quietest yet they are by far the most selected suppressors by professional mil/le users.

When the rc3 was released there was a huge controversy over it being flashier than the rc2 but again, it's because the suppressors designed to push more gas out the front.

I'm not a turbo nerd reloader or ammo expert but I think the reason 77 match flashes so little is because it's a better powder designed to burn consistently opposed to fmj blasting ammo where nobody really cares.

Are you still planning on going with the RC3 even with the greater flash signature? Are these the “flow through” suppressors? I’m assuming that may be why they’re letting gasses escape and continue to be burned beyond the suppressor vs those that capture the gas more but send more back pressure into the system.

Some of that back pressure can be mitigated with a bleed off gas block although I’m not sure something like that would be acceptable for duty use. But a setup like that does make for less flash and less perceived sound to the shooter at least. Not sure how much that matters for real world applications though.

 

[DarthRevan]

If you look at his initial posts you’ll find your answer.