Suppressors in Africa

[Green Chile]

I see a lot of photos of suppressor use in Africa but I think all of them were owned by the guides. Has anyone taken their own from the US into Africa...or for that matter Europe, etc? I was thinking of taking one for some night hunts but wasn't sure of the paperwork or legality of traveling with a suppressor overseas. Would you put it on a 4457 or is it legal to take one into Africa?

 

[Mekaniks]

Yes put it on your 4457 before you leave the States and take your tax stamp with you. Getting it into SA is no problem. Bigger hassle potential getting back into the US....

 

[BourbonTrail]

There’s another couple of threads on this, but yes,@Mekaniks has captured the gist of it.

 

[Green Chile]

I didn't find the topic in a search. I will look again and thanks!

 

[Green Chile]

I saw this online topic...

Traveling Internationally With a Suppressor – Silencer Central

In previous blog posts, we’ve covered what it’s like to travel domestically with a suppressor and internationally with guns and ammo, but we haven’t covered international travel with a suppressor.

www.silencercentral.com

 

[KMG Hunting Safaris]

I see a lot of photos of suppressor use in Africa but I think all of them were owned by the guides. Has anyone taken their own from the US into Africa...or for that matter Europe, etc? I was thinking of taking one for some night hunts but wasn't sure of the paperwork or legality of traveling with a suppressor overseas. Would you put it on a 4457 or is it legal to take one into Africa?

A suppressor is not a regulated item in South Africa, such as in the case of a firearm. We literally walk into a store, choose one, pay for it and walk out.
As long as you have proof that you left the USA with it, i.e listed on the 4457, there will be no issues with you travelling here with one.

 

[Fryeguy]

I have several suppressors and chose not to deal with traveling with one. Mainly as we flew over in and out of Newark, I think they are completely against the law there in NJ. I might also mention they are cheap in SA as well. As in $150-300 depending on what you want. The store we visited had an entire shelf of them. They asked caliber and what the threads were. It was that simple. The outfitters already had purchased one for us before we got there, and we were there to pick it up. They had several requests from guys coming over and thought getting one was easy enough to have one in camp to use.

 

[Philip Glass]

There are many posts on this And yes many people take hem.

I see a lot of photos of suppressor use in Africa but I think all of them were owned by the guides. Has anyone taken their own from the US into Africa...or for that matter Europe, etc? I was thinking of taking one for some night hunts but wasn't sure of the paperwork or legality of traveling with a suppressor overseas. Would you put it on a 4457 or is it legal to take one into Africa?

 

[Hyde Hunter]

I see a lot of photos of suppressor use in Africa but I think all of them were owned by the guides. Has anyone taken their own from the US into Africa...or for that matter Europe, etc? I was thinking of taking one for some night hunts but wasn't sure of the paperwork or legality of traveling with a suppressor overseas. Would you put it on a 4457 or is it legal to take one into Africa?

my buddy and I took ours this past April nothing was said about them, the only thing said when Customs in Atlanta looked at them in our rifle cases was " I wish everyone had their paper work in order like you guys do, no get out and get on your flight" very nice polite officer. just take all your paper work and put it on your 4457 and do not worry

 

[Fryeguy]

Maybe I need to fly out of Atlanta next time!!

 

[Clark8907]

Like others have said, simply put it on your 4457, take your tax stamp with you (I also put a copy in my gun box along with a copy of 4457) and you will not have any issues. There will be individuals on here tell you you can't do it and its illegal blah blah blah, but I spoke directly with ATF before traveling last year and you do not have to declare anything with them. Just make sure its on your 4457 and you have the tax stamp. I actually carried two separate 4457s on with rifle and scope and one with suppressor. When they looked at the 4457 in Atlanta they looked at suppressor one initially and said what is this, we dont need this, then looked at the one with the rifle. Zero issues and I will travel with mine anywhere I go to hunt.

 

[CamoManJ]

I’ll be traveling to Africa with 2 suppressors next year…no worries, follow the rules, have copies of rules, relax and enjoy the trip. It does help to mitigate the risks by traveling through friendlier airports, POE, airlines & countries. I refuse to worry about what could go wrong, just be prepared, smart & vigilant.

 

[mdwest]

An alternative if you dont want to deal with the potential hassles of traveling with a suppressor is simply to have your PH either buy one that has the correct thread pitch for your rifle for you ($150-$300 depending on what you want) and then just "gift" it to the PH/Outfitter when you leave (pretty small expense in the grand scheme of things when you look at the total cost of a safari).. or, ask if your PH has a suppressor in camp that you can borrow/lease for a small fee, and then get a thread adaptor that allows his suppressor to connect to your rifle (generally about a $20 investment for a decent thread adaptor)..

Most of the camp guns for PG have suppressors on them at @Bos en Dal SAFARIS .. and I know of at least 1 suppressor (.30 cal) that was purchased and then left behind by another AH member that could probably be used if he was asked nicely... I'd guess most other camps have a similar situation (suppressed camp guns and potentially additional suppressors laying around available for use while you are in camp)...

 

[Desperatezulu]

An alternative if you dont want to deal with the potential hassles of traveling with a suppressor is simply to have your PH either buy one that has the correct thread pitch for your rifle for you ($150-$300 depending on what you want) and then just "gift" it to the PH/Outfitter when you leave (pretty small expense in the grand scheme of things when you look at the total cost of a safari).. or, ask if your PH has a suppressor in camp that you can borrow/lease for a small fee, and then get a thread adaptor that allows his suppressor to connect to your rifle (generally about a $20 investment for a decent thread adaptor)..

Most of the camp guns for PG have suppressors on them at @Bos en Dal SAFARIS .. and I know of at least 1 suppressor (.30 cal) that was purchased and then left behind by another AH member that could probably be used if he was asked nicely... I'd guess most other camps have a similar situation (suppressed camp guns and potentially additional suppressors laying around available for use while you are in camp)...

This!
Just be aware that your POI will likely shift with the suppressor, so plan in a few extra 'sighter' rounds to get your rifle dialled in and zeroed.

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

Zimbabwe, suppressors are illegal to possess.

 

[kdenn]

Proper prior planning prevents piss poor performance! Learned this from my Uncle!!

 

[mdwest]

Proper prior planning prevents piss poor performance! Learned this from my Uncle!!

Good ole Uncle Sugar taught me several valuable life lessons like this one..

 

[Doubleplay]

An alternative if you dont want to deal with the potential hassles of traveling with a suppressor is simply to have your PH either buy one that has the correct thread pitch for your rifle for you ($150-$300 depending on what you want) and then just "gift" it to the PH/Outfitter when you leave (pretty small expense in the grand scheme of things when you look at the total cost of a safari).. or, ask if your PH has a suppressor in camp that you can borrow/lease for a small fee, and then get a thread adaptor that allows his suppressor to connect to your rifle (generally about a $20 investment for a decent thread adaptor)..

Most of the camp guns for PG have suppressors on them at @Bos en Dal SAFARIS .. and I know of at least 1 suppressor (.30 cal) that was purchased and then left behind by another AH member that could probably be used if he was asked nicely... I'd guess most other camps have a similar situation (suppressed camp guns and potentially additional suppressors laying around available for use while you are in camp)...

This is the way to go. There are tons of them for sale over the counter.
However the quality of the most suppressors in SA is nowhere close to the good ones in US and you definitely have to zero your rifle again.

 

[MTA]

I bought an aimsport triton 5 in SA and left it with KMG for future visits. If anyone is hunting with KMG and wants to use it, please send me a pm. It is .30 cal, 5/8x24 and the barrel max od must be equal to or less than .75.

The triton is superior to my Omega 36M back here in the US. There is always the risk that your rifle may not like the suppressor that you purchase in SA but I did not have this problem. The feature that European / African suppressors have that I really like is they have a portion of the body of the can that goes over the barrel. Same level of suppression but its much more balanced on a magnum length barrel. If you have iron sights on your rifle then this design will probably not be worth it.

I like many others returned to the US via ATL. All of the CBP officers I encountered were friendly couldn’t care less as long as you have your tax stamp and 4457 in hand. After experiencing that, I wouldnt hesitate to bring my own.

For now I know that when I hunt in SA with KMG, I have a suppressor that my rifle likes waiting for me. Best part is that it was $300. I wish they were that cheap and easy to buy here

 

[Daisy]

Seems like this board is behind on suppressors.
In Europe, Africa, and most of US serious shooters all use suppressors. It’s really not a big deal at all and makes it so much more enjoyable.
For 375 and down I can’t recommend this suppressor enough. Over the barrel/reflex, and if you get the 8 baffle it literally adds less than 6” to length of gun. I get mine cut to 20.5 inches. The suppressor acts as a faux barrel so it often speeds bullet back up some. And, barrel length with modern ammo is overblown. Many get same or better velocity from shorter barrel.

Raptor — AB Suppressor

The Raptor uses spiral shaped baffles to keep the gasses moving while reducing back pressure. Utilizing the Reflex mounting systems greatly increases the suppressor volume without increasing the overall length of the firearm.

www.absuppressor.com