Thread: DPT Suppressor seized up

Allan Carr who l rate up there with gun smiths work l have seen any where in the world,did a lot of my rifle builds & he always said never to use any tape on the threads, only a lithium grease & the internals should be cleaned regularly with a good water/moisture dispersal spray like WD40 was all thats required ,the reason he said is suppressors suck in a lot of moisture especially if used with a cover & that moisture in turn soaks up the ammonia in the gun powder.This then acts as means for more corrosive elements to build up over time & around the rifle crown/rifling ,he always recommended a thorough clean after 40 rounds max for a short barrel hunting rifle (he did most of my Bush Pig builds)& the suppressor left off the rifles in storage with good air flow & a coating of WD40.

The last time l brought a DPT over barrel from memory it came with a sheet warning if tape was used on threads or excessive build up was found it would void any warranty.

While l was guiding in the US one of the clients had a huge gun collection & would have a machine gun shoot on his Ranch twice a month during summer ,guys would turn up with everything imaginable & a lot were suppressed, they all used high temp Locktite anti seize on all threads .

I use to race Dirt Bikes so still have a lot of tools for rebuilds etc & have helped a couple of mates over the years free up stuck baffles which would happen particularly after our regular hunting /diving trips to Stewart Island, where guns would cop salt spray for a couple of weeks in the sand dunes etc & from travelling around in the big boat & dinghy,always found a small bike oil filter wrench with a wrap of leather worked ,for really stuck ones put it in a oven to warm up first,always freed them straight up .

I bought a pair of clamps from DPT. Suggestion from Darren. One clamp on each adjoining baffle and twist in opposite directions. Great tool. Don't need to use it very often but it's there when I need it. Very important to always remove suppressor when finished shooting and clean carbon from crown and barrel threads.

Originally Posted by 223nut

I'm in a similar boat, never take mine apart. Have heard that the carbon builds up on the inside and reduces volume available therefore less effective, must have to put a lot of rounds through to see that happening though. Can see it being an issue with a 22 but not centrefire

After 500 rounds of CCI SV i notice mine gets considerably less effective. Also have a noticeable decrease in accuracy and get more fliers in my groups.

For hunting purposes you might never notice but on paper it's pretty apparent.
My ASE rimfire suppressor is exactly the same.

Would nickel anti seize on the threads not work better than a grease with the heat involved?

I didn’t real all the comments so something similar may have already been said but Take each baffle off, hose it down with wd-40, clean it, let it dry and then just wipe a smidge of Vaseline around each thread, job done.

Originally Posted by bunji

Allan Carr who l rate up there with gun smiths work l have seen any where in the world,did a lot of my rifle builds & he always said never to use any tape on the threads, only a lithium grease & the internals should be cleaned regularly with a good water/moisture dispersal spray like WD40 was all thats required ,the reason he said is suppressors suck in a lot of moisture especially if used with a cover & that moisture in turn soaks up the ammonia in the gun powder.This then acts as means for more corrosive elements to build up over time & around the rifle crown/rifling ,he always recommended a thorough clean after 40 rounds max for a short barrel hunting rifle (he did most of my Bush Pig builds)& the suppressor left off the rifles in storage with good air flow & a coating of WD40

Allan put mine on and that’s the advice he gave me - and my comment above

Originally Posted by jono7

Would nickel anti seize on the threads not work better than a grease with the heat involved?

I was thinking about the same thing... my issue is whether nickel will lead to galvanic corrosion.


https://www.jpcfrance.eu/technical-i...on-resistance/


A pure guess would be on molybdenum or Teflon grease to help reduce binding or galling... would probably pay to try it on an aluminium test thread first, but by all accounts they seem to fit the bill in that they are relatively inert with aluminium and not heat sensitive.

I suspect what's happening to people is a mix of things - some mild corrosion due to fouling and moisture, some mechanical binding due to fouling, some mechanical binding due to minute amounts of galling, and some mechanical binding due to heating and cooling allowing the threads to further lock together. Judicious application of heat and cold can often free up a stuck thread... so I'm told

If you get them stuck, you can get them undone without damage with a pair of strap wrenches (easy enough to make if you've some tie downs and bits of wood lying around.

No comment on whether a nickel anti-seize would actually cause galvanic corrosion in this application - I haven't looked into it to make my own mind up - but according to CRC for aluminum you want a zinc anti-seize. From their website:

Zinc Grade is for aluminum threaded components. Used to prevent seizing during assembly or disassembly of threaded or unthreaded components fabricated from aluminum or its alloys, engaged with components fabricated from similar or dissimilar metals. It is also intended to provide corrosion protection to the metal surfaces. This type is typically used in airplane manufacturing.

Currently on clearance pricing at NZSafetyBlackwoods for only $50.49 for a 1lb can. Should be enough to keep your suppressor from seizing for a millennia or two Or maybe someone wants to sell it on the forum at $5 an ounce?

Another vote for gentle heat with an oven or blowtorch, just to warm it up a little, then strap wrenches, homemade or otherwise, and/or wrap one end in leather and stick in a vice. Even without cleaning I'm pretty sure the life of a suppressor is a higher round count than the barrel it's on in most cases, I wouldn't sweat it if I couldn't get it apart. I think the Sonic/Neilson brand one's have a slot in each baffle and you can get a pair of wrenches for them that hook into said slots for unscrewing. It wouldn't surprise me if DPT went that way at some point.

It's the people who's suppressors have seized onto their rifles that scare me =/

I can imagine Dpt staff sitting down at smoko and laughing at all the what to do's on here and what product to use "thinking what a pack of turkeys"

Originally Posted by bigbear

I can imagine Dpt staff sitting down at smoko and laughing at all the what to do's on here and what product to use "thinking what a pack of turkeys"

Be nice if one of them would chimed in and gave some advice.
I had to undo one once, 3 out of 5 baffles were really seized. Even with the outside completely clean I couldn't get hose clamps to hold tight enough, just slipped. Tried using a small hammer to tap away at one of the hose clamps screws like @Ingrid 51 suggested which worked on one baffle but didn't work on any others, ended up missing and hitting the baffles edge and denting it slightly. After three days of soaking in "break away" penetrating lude I managed to undo with bare hands and brute strength and a little help with some multigrips. This was from firing only half a dozen rounds after giving the suppressor a tharra clean and lubing the thread with lithium grease after the previous shooting session. 6 rounds caused that much work and stress.

My DPT came with instructions saying to clean with WD40, and use lithium grease on the threads, so that's what I do.

Moderators, like barrels, are ultimately disposable.

I understand the importance of maintenance, and own a DPT mod, but I won't be stripping the thing down after every hunt or range trip.