How to Prevent Suppressor Walk Off
Suppressor walk off is the most common reason for a front cap or baffle strike on a pistol suppressor. Walk off occurs when the suppressor loosens itself from the threaded barrel while firing. To prevent this, we recommend making sure the suppressor is tight in between magazines.
Wrapping the threads of your barrel with teflon tape / plumbers tape drastically reduces suppressor walk off and is an inexpensive and easy solution. When wrapping your threads, make sure to only wrap the barrel threads. Prevent getting tape on the barrel’s shoulder or muzzle as it can throw off the alignment.
We have found that metric left-hand threaded (often referred to MLH or LHM) barrels have less suppressor walk off than traditional standard threads. Metric left-hand threads typically don’t have threading all the way to the muzzle and may have an o-ring near the muzzle. Standard threads on the other hand, go all the way to the barrel’s muzzle and typically have a more pronounced shoulder.
Some people will put o-rings on their barrels to stop walk off, but we DO NOT recommend using o-rings as they throw off the alignment and can cause front cap or baffle strikes. Make sure to check your barrel for an o-ring before use, as some barrels come with them to prevent the thread protector from walking off. There are a few metric left-hand barrels that are an exception, they have an o-ring built-in towards the muzzle as opposed to having one between the threads and shoulder.
If you have any questions or would like additional information on suppressor walk off don’t hesitate to contact us.
Learn more about suppressor use and how to optimize your firearms with our Suppressor Guide