SilencerCo Omega Blows Off Gun and Ruins Mule Deer Hunt!

[Hunting4Fun]

I was hunting in AZ with my 308 Browning X-Bolt rifle in 308 and new Silencerco Suppressor on an expensive guided mule deer hunt. 5 days of tracking a big muley and I finally got my shot opportunity after 2 hours of lying down in the dirt in prone waiting for the 180+ bedded mule deer to get up to stretch his legs. During that 2 hours I could imagine how awesome that deer was going to look on my wall since it was an easy shot for me from prone. I pull the trigger and BANG my Omega suppressor goes flying off the end of my gun about 50 ft. Ears are ringing from the noise (since I didn't bring ears since the suppressor was supposed to be hearing safe) and hunt is ruined!!! I examined the end of the suppressor and it appears that the ASR mount fatigued since it's made from thin metal - the threads on the ASR muzzle brake don't show any wear. Also they confirmed a baffle strike on the first ball out of the blast chamber. I'm going to investigate it more thoroughly but looks like sloppy tolerances on the ASR mounts and threads or other possible design flaw.

What happened looks exactly like this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQ-KG1odvLs but I only fired 1 round and was in the field.

I used brand new factory Hornady 150 GMX. I've shot around 100 rounds through the suppressor total and at least shot 10 rounds through the exact same suppressor/gun/combo at range before bring it on the hunt. I checked it for obstructions and tightness every time I had a possible shot. I only fired 1 shot through the suppressor before it flew off.

Anyway this seems like a pretty common thing that Silencerco knows about. I called them and the guy that answered my phone says the ASR mount sometimes fails to lock but /usually/ works right. I googled around for "omega baffle strike" and came up with several threads like http://www.theoutdoorstrader.com/thread ... ke.862764/ and it happened to this guy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kVFna5EWRY

Doesn't this sound like a defective product if they know it happens quite frequently?

I'm sure they will fix the suppressor but what about the $5k spent on the hunt or any medical for hearing damage?

If I were on the range target shooting and it just blew off the end of my gun it would be annoying that it'd be out of commission for a bit but in this instance I was counting on my equipment to work in the field and it failed costing me a lot more than minor frustration.

Has anyone ever had something like happen to them before where the damage due to the failing device was more than just range time cut short?

Also SilencerCo's replacement warranty has always been great for me that's why I own 4 suppressors for them but if the product is poorly designed/unsafe this is a bigger issue that great replacement warranty doesn't cover. When the stuff need to work you need it to work! I'm thinking some safety corners may been cut to make it quieter/easier to attach/detach and going back to direct thread only.

[Zombie1969]

OK now I want to hear the deers side of the story.

[fishman]

everyone always seems to need the coolest new fancy QD muzzle brake flash hider. Screw that (no pun intended), direct thread is the way to go in my opinion. K.I.S.S.
that really sucks though that it failed on the one shot you needed it most.

[mars]

to each his own. direct thread on for me. sucks about your hunt and any possible ear damage you may have.

[doubloon]

If you're serious about your claims you should be talking to a lawyer instead of squealing about it on the internet.

[Ramius]

Pretty much every manufacturer is going to have limits on their "implied warranty" of loss to repair or replacement of the product. You will need to talk to your attorney to see if you can overcome this by proving other elements were in play that may let you overcome it.

Not an easy thing to do.

[Hunting4Fun]

Ya talking to a lawyer has crossed my mind. Will see how Silencerco offers to deal with it...

I'm totally going direct thread whenever I'm hunting or anything critical for sure - lesson learned but it wasn't in the manual so how was I supposed to know? I also bought an alignment rod that I'm going to check every time but again not included or in the manual.

Things I think should happen:
1) They should put an alignment rod in the box and tell you check it every time before you use it
2) They should tell you that this sort of stuff happens and always wear hearing protection even with the suppressor.
3) Don't use the QD mounts (now I know why they include both the direct and ASR mounts but they could have put this in the manual...)

Whenever I've taken training classes or at the range they insist you wear hearing protection which is of course a good idea since guys next to you don't have suppressors. But again I never imagined it to blow up esp after I fired 1000 rounds through the Saker I've owned for a few years. I still don't think it's an unreasonable expectation to expect expensive cans to work however.

[Historian]

OK now I want to hear the deers side of the story.

Thank you for the side splitting cartoon image you generated!

What is so new about lobbing down range a wad of metal?

In 1950's prehistoric times this was part of the training:

<< https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... g_line.jpg >>
<< http://www.90thidpg.us/Equipment/Projec ... G_6215.jpg >>

Look at the ultra secure way the launcher was attached to the barrel.

Seriously, sorry that an expensive hunt was ruined and especially the hearing endangered.
Pray no permanent damage.

As for the can, did anyone at Silencerco do any destructive testing with P+
for the calibers that the can was supposed to be used on?

Perhaps for high powered rounds there should be a coupling-behind-the-sight
safety clamp. Easy to imagine.

[hardcase]

If you're serious about your claims you should be talking to a lawyer instead of squealing about it on the internet.

+1

Good luck with trying to prove hearing loss and get compensated if you are an active shooter. You should be able to find a lawyer as long as you pay their hourly rate up front and have deep pockets.

There are other means to check proper alignment other than a rod. I don't know of any suppressor builders that include an alignment rod.

Your story has convinced me to not get any type of QD mount. To date, all my cans are direct thread.

[a_canadian]

I see a lot of quick detach mounts being discussed here and on nfatalk, and have wondered many times just why they're wanted/needed, especially considering that such devices add huge potential for alignment problems. Unless one is a super-secret squirrel who needs to conceal a short firearm and quickly attach, use, then detach and re-conceal the firearm and suppressor (so, say, 0.000001% of the population?), use of a QD mount seems more a convenience for multi-firearm swapping of a single suppressor. But even there it seems more sensible to use threaded, shouldered mounts just for security of alignment. Ideally each firearm would be tested with a muzzle-mounted laser and a piece of paper on the endcap to check for perfection of centering. But no one seems to do this, perhaps because manufacturers haven't seen fit to introduce a simple, accurately aligned bore sighting device which can fit into the muzzle without interfering with a suppressor. Eyeballing it can be useful, with practice, but most folks would probably not see accurately enough to make any sort of solid determination.

So it comes down to trusting the machining, whether your own or some manufacturer's work. Aligning threads and a shoulder to concentricity with the bore at the muzzle has got to be easier than aligning a convenient QD mount. So as said above, K.I.S.S. seems to apply. Considering that you had 2 hours to lay out in wait of that very expensive deer's decision to stand up, it seems you had plenty of time to screw on a suppressor. As one would, in any hunting situation. Or just leave the dang thing on the rifle.

As for lawyering up... well it seems you have lots of money to play with so if you're feeling moved, after SilencerCo's support gets back to you with whatever decision they make, no doubt you can afford to make the legal profession even richer. But it does seem a bit of a 'check your privilege' sort of situation. Your desire to have a bad-ass QD suppressor mount and to pay $5000 to stick a stuffed head on your wall may tug at the heartstrings of some judge and win you a decision, if your lawyer's convincing enough somehow. Or maybe you could just take responsibility for using lame, pointless hardware on the end of a high powered rifle and not repeat your mistake.

[mars]

Question for you: did you reload the GMX yourself? If you did, did you chrono it past supersonic? If so, just wondering why you didn't have your ears on.

[Aaron]

Stupid bullshit lawsuits are a big part of what has gone wrong with this country. Good luck with your frivolous lawsuit. Nothing lasts forever and SiCo stands behind their products like no other.

[TROOPER]

Without commenting on whether or not this lawsuit is ethical or moral, why do you think it will succeed? Given the totality of parts used, as well as the fact that it was you yourself who attached it, what kind of liability does the manufacturer have?

Let me be clear: I'm not blaming or insulting you. These are legitimate questions.

How can you prove that this wasn't operator error? Did the mount fail?... or did you fail to attach it properly? If it's the mount failing, how will you be able to prove it? I assume that the baffle-strike which forcibly separated your can from the muzzle also caused some damage to the mounting, so how can you show an objective jury that the damage existed prior to the forcible disconnect?

Additionally, the point that you had shot the system successfully a number of times prior to the final incident shows -- to your perspective -- that the mount spontaneously failed. But wouldn't a counter-argument be that your successful prior uses simply shows that it was an operator error on the final shot?

Finally, to what extent is it the manufacturer's fault -- even if it is the manufacturer's fault that the system ultimately failed -- that this one shot ruined your $5,000 dollar hunt? A counter-argument to that would be that you didn't test the to-be-used end-product once you re-attached the can.... and how is that their fault?

To repeat: I'm not insulting your or arguing against you or anything of the sort. But objectively, I think this case is a loser. I do not think you can win this in a court. I also think that the few other similar instances fail to prove your stance at all, and are anecdotal evidence of nothing as they could all be operator error, or manufacturer error, or a blend of both. You just do not have evidence that it was their fault. Not that it is or isn't, but that you do not have evidence to support it.

In my opinion, this is a "please-and-thank-you" situation where you talk nicely with them and maybe they'll repair your unit at no cost, or discounted cost, or who-knows-what. However, the cost of the hunt is likely a total loss. The hearing damage is likely non-actionable.

I empathize with your hardship.

[Bmountt]

I totally empathize and agree that sucks, but you know s--t happens. I have an omega and have shot hundreds of 5.56, 300blk, and .308 with the qd and not a single problem. Every time you blow a tire or the fridge dies and ruins your food do you want to go sue someone? If someone got injured I might agree but just because it didn't go as planned doesn't mean it's everyone else's fault

[Fulmen]

What if the firing pin broke instead? Would you sue the gun maker?

Nothing is 100% reliable, stuff will fail sooner or later.

[Zombie1969]

The deer came forward and is starting to give a better picture of what happened.

[Bobby_V]

The deer came forward and is starting to give a better picture of what happened.

[Kramer]

everyone always seems to need the coolest new fancy QD muzzle brake flash hider. Screw that (no pun intended), direct thread is the way to go in my opinion. K.I.S.S.

My feelings exactly. This is why I have a dozen cans and none are QD.

[strobro32]

Sounds like you had a great vacation. I'm sorry you did not take the animal.

Think of all the things that could have gone wrong. This is not close to one of the worst.

s--t happens. What defines a man's character is what they do after s--t happens.

[Dcarelli]

you have no case