The buffer system on an AR-15 can be noisy. Which is kind of expected, since it’s a giant spring that sproings back and forth right next to your ear every time the gun goes bang. In normal guns this isn’t a problem, but when you’re running something whisper quiet (like a 300 AAC Blackout rifle) it becomes very noticeable. Thankfully, John Paul at JP Enterprises has a solution for that very problem: the silent captured buffer spring . . .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl0Vng0qMFo
First, let’s outline the problem a little more clearly. This video was shot immediately after I got the stamp for my SBR back from the ATF and I immediately noticed a problem. I had been using a fixed stock on my old 300 AAC Blackout build that had a little more material surrounding the buffer assembly. But with the lighter SBR I opted for an M4 style stock with a thinner wall. The result is that after every shot you can hear the buffer jangling around, adding to your noise signature. It’s not much, but it’s enough to be annoying.
When you’re trying to get a rifle to be as quiet as possible, every little bit counts. Heck, I’m looking for ways to dampen the sound of the trigger resetting. So until I figure that out, I needed to kill the buffer noise.
JP cooked this up with a couple of his engineers as a way to make a gas gun feel more like a bolt gun. John Paul is a veteran of the Soldier of Fortune 3-gun competitions and numerous sniper matches. His vision of his rifles is to prove that semi-automatic guns are on the same level as bolt guns in terms of accuracy and usability. From what I’ve seen his are pretty damned close already.
This buffer assembly (available for both .308 and 5.56 and ships with an insert for rifle-length tubes) is one of the small details that John Paul is working on to make the experience of shooting one of his gas guns nearly indistinguishable from a bolt action rifle. And for such a relatively small problem he’s put a ton of time and effort into this one part.
The spring comes pre-assembled and ready to drop into your lower receiver, but JP recommends that you completely remove the small detent located in the lower receiver itself that keeps the buffer from flying out first — you won’t need it with this assembly. I, uh, didn’t follow those instructions and while getting the thing in is fine and dandy, it was a royal pain in the ass to remove. Word to the wise: listen to the man.
JP also has a set of springs that you can order that will fine tune the system for your specific gun and loads, either increasing or decreasing the cyclic rate and resistance as needed. That’s all well and good, but how does it work? Well . . .
If you listen really closely to the second half of the video, you’ll hear four things in sequence. first, the gun goes off. Then, since there’s no sound coming from the buffer spring anymore, you can hear the bullet slamming into the dirt berm. Third, the spent case hits the ground. And finally, that loud and obnoxious trigger reset. That’s all the sound the gun makes anymore and it is glorious. Here’s a little longer video if you’re at work and need something to do:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i90j-HcqfAI
JP’s gizmo completely eliminated the noise that the buffer spring makes. And, as an added bonus, it makes the recoil from the gun much more pleasant. John Paul designed this assembly for one specific purpose and it does its job flawlessly. If you’re looking for something that eliminates the noise from the buffer spring and eases recoil at the same time, this is what you need.
Silent Captured Buffer Spring
Price: $139.95
Available from Brownell’s HERE
Ratings (out of five stars):
Overall: * * * * *
Worth every single penny for those looking to eliminate that buffer spring noise. And some recoil.
Worst – Buffalo Gun Center
Pros- Good selection overall.
Cons – About half the staff seem to have either a bad attitude most of the time or a “hurry up and buy something or I’m moving on” attitude.
Prices are high and they don’t negotiate, even on used guns, at least in my case.
I was interested in buying THREE used handguns and made an offer that was 10% below asking price. I felt this was fair since they were already not priced at “deal” prices and I would have been buying THREE guns. This with the fact that I have heard them offering people insulting trade-in values numerous times makes me confident there was PLENTY of wiggle room. As a result I bought ONE handgun.
Generally, in CA, unless you’re on your own property or business good luck with any open carry activities of a handgun even in “rural areas”. Open carry of long guns/shotguns must be unloaded and if defined as an “assault weapon” by PC 30510 or 30515 must also be in a locked container being transported directly from point A to point B.
See CA Firearms Laws Summary put out by the CA DOJ
http://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/firearms/pdf/cfl2013.pdf? (Pg. 10-11, Pg. 7)
Pen Code, § 26350
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=pen&group=26001-27000&file=26350
Open carry in CA…HAH!
This incidents have happened for.. ever. Every year some kid breaks down and kills some others. The only difference is we have to hear about it every time it happens with a firearm now.
A year before I went to high school, the high school I would go to had an incident where a kid got sick of the bullying, grabbed a claw hammer from shop class and killed 3 kids and severely injured 2 more (as in one was in a coma with brain damage, and the other lost a kidney). Nobody outside of the local area heard about it.
To blame this on firearms or even weapons in general is disingenuous, but consistent with the modern media. You could make a case that raising awareness about bullying has some merit, but the emphasis should be on bullying, not waiving the bloody shirt and blaming the gun.
Too bad the shopping malls even in gun-friendly States like to post the “No Guns” signs. Or is it not the same everywhere?
Wow. My hearing is worse than I thought. I didn’t hear the buffer spring in the ‘before’ video. . .
“Unfortunately, the story is all too familiar.”
The story is familiar. But the event is rare.
“The issue is that we have a problem in this country. Kids are getting shot at school.”
No kids were shot here. While it’s awful that a good guy without a gun was killed. He was still only one person. That’s fewer than the average day in Chicago.
So school shootings are a political problem. Statistically they are insignificant. They attract attention because they are rare events, not because they are common. Nor is there any evidence that they are increasing.
Although I do agree that gun owners should do their best to keep their guns secure. Gun owners failing to do so is not the cause of school shootings. The causes are complex — bad parenting, mental illness, media publicity, gun free zones, a culture that increasingly devalues individual life and responsibility, etc. But it is not easy access to guns. The worst school shooting ever was in Norway, which has very strict gun laws. The country with the most school shooting per capita is Germany, which also has very strict gun laws. The deadliest school shooting in the U.S. was Virginia Tech, where the shooter did not take unsecured guns. Neither did the Columbine shooters. While the exact situation regarding Sandy Hook remains undisclosed. Even if the guns were locked in 500 lb. vault, who is to say he didn’t know where his mother kept the combination? How many kids know their parents’ password to the cable box, or where they hide the key to the liquor cabinet? Regardless, anyone intent on mass murder is going to find another way to get gun, or use other means.
So rather than blame innocent gun owners, let’s put the blame for school shootings where it belongs. School shootings are the fault of the shooter.
Out of curiosity, did you try this spring assembly with supersonic + can, supersonic without can, subsonic without can and have it work fine? I’ve been eying this for a build I want to do and while I can’t have a can it’d be nice to switch between super and subs with no problem.
Being a current Keene resident for a number of years and having volunteered this year, I’m very grateful for the police presence. We have a huge college population from Keene State that treats this event like some kind of massive concert. If you what this looks like check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I90WeyyFZ9s I love Pupmkin Fest and think it is an amazing thing for our community, but there are 70,000 plus people in our very small downtown area. This is supposed to be a family friendly event and for the most part it is, but each year this somewhere between 150-200 arrests made. As to the bearcat, I don’t think it is such a horrible, society is coming to end, piece of equipment. The area has a very prevalent drug problem as well as other issues; just because it’s a small town doesn’t mean there isn’t crime. It must be great to be able to blog about whatever comes into your mind without actually having done any research as to why these precautions may have been put in place…..don’t be that guy Jim Barrett
That schpronnng noise against my muffs really is annoying.
JP makes great stuff.
Huuuhuhuh… schpronng….. muffs…
“And finally, that loud and obnoxious trigger reset. That’s all the sound the gun makes anymore and it is glorious.”
That is awesome.
And once the trigger reset is silent, the only sound left will be the operator going on about 300 Blackout.
Good review Nick. I too thought long and hard about this for my 300BLK SBR for the same reason you mention, but decided against it. The main problem with this product for me is the inability to use heavy buffers which, IMHO, are a requirement if you are going to run a 300BLK gun suppressed with supersonic ammo. I know AAC says otherwise, but that’s marketing BS. It approaches laughable to say that the same gas system and buffer will work for both unsuppressed subsonic and suppressed supersonic. Anyone objective will admit that the gun is monumentally over-gased in the second condition. If you don’t mind a face full of blowback and beating the heck out of your gun, that’s fine. The only real solution I found was to use a +20% spring (polished and greased, which eliminates 85% of the noise) and a heavy T3 buffer… I then add the Tubbs carrier weight with the tungsten insert for supersonic ammo.
That said, if you only run subsonic, this may be a good solution.
I tried to get one of these on my last AR build, but it was just after Obama’s 2nd election and they weren’t in stock and then, for obvious reasons, stayed impossible to get for a long time after. I ended up using one of JP’s ‘center-less ground and polished’ buffer springs ($20), which was their original product to reduce buffer spring noise before they came out with this captured setup, and I was very happy with the results. While I can’t compare it to the captured setup because I still haven’t made the leap to trying one, I can say that it’s MUCH quieter and smoother than a standard spring, no question. None of that sproing noise or feel at all.
300 yards?
Sadly, I don’t get to do it all, these days. 100 yards is the longest range close to where I live.
300 yards long range…..really? Any AR 556 can handle that….in a sitting position…open sights…with instant coffee.
Bench rest, 1K with a tripod & no wind, and a berm break….please. You only get your shoot stamp if your prone, open field with wind from 3 directions.
What I do like about long range is the the discipline required. Controlling breathing, wind read skills, body position. All translate to shooting well any non crew served weapon at any range.
Geez, two posts in a row of my two favorite shooting hobbies.
I love hunting yodel dogs with NV. I’ve got one on my AR that has a out port for hooking up to a recording device.
Way cool.
You have to keep your head on a swivel when you’re using a monocular NVG. Basically, your FOV is like looking through a toilet paper tube. Also – no depth perception. Ranging becomes interesting. I currently own a night vision scope that has ranging stadia incorporated into the reticle for that reason.
Kevin,it’s past your bed time Adults are taking here!
A Garand named Big Dog, and an 870 named Franken-gun for being put together with a crudely shortened stock to get the length of pull right. The rest are cherished and loved too, but without given names.
What color spring should I put in my lr .308 using subsonic loads? To get it to function semi auto
To me where the badge holster comes in handy is if you actually have to use deadly force. Your in the mall or whatever and an active shooter breaks out. When someone sees you reach for your once concealed pistol they may also see the badge on the holster, instantly informing you are a good guy who can help and not the active shooters accomplice.
http://www.armslist.com/posts/1734354/madison-wisconsin-holsters-for-sale–concealed-carry-holster-with-cc-badge