Silencerco’s Osprey family of pistol suppressors (or silencers, as often called) is a perfect blend of form and function.
With the modern combat handgun in mind, Silencerco set out to create a silencer that performs well and looks like it belongs—the best possible marriage between host weapon and silencer. Silencerco went to work to make a suppressor that maximizes sound suppression levels, allows the use of more host pistols with factory sights, and has more operationally friendly features. What was created was the Osprey pistol silencer available for 9mm, .40 S&W, and 45ACP.
The Osprey is an eccentric silencer, which means that the bore does not run down the middle of the tube.
Although round silencers are very effective for many applications, for a centerfire handgun round it has its limits. To obtain the most suppression, silencers must have as much internal volume as possible; but for a round tubular silencer, the only way to acquire more internal volume is by increasing the overall diameter and/or length. Increasing a tube’s diameter will obscure the sight picture of the host gun and inhibit the possibility of holstering a weapon with the silencer still attached to the host gun.
The Osprey is an eccentric silencer, which means that the bore does not run down the middle of the tube. Because of this eccentric design, most of the baffles and internal volume is beneath the centerline of the bore and out of the way of the gun’s sights, thus leaving the shooter the ability to use factory sights with little or no sight or target obstruction. The Osprey has flat side walls and angled edges that mimic many modern combat handgun slides and is just slightly wider than most host pistols. This feature allows the host weapon to be holstered with many popular open bottom holster designs with Osprey attached. The Osprey contains approximately 30% more internal volume than a traditional round tube silencer at the same length, but does so without obscuring the shooter’s sight picture or adding excessive width and length.
Other Benefits
Besides having the best suppression levels available for centerfire handguns, the Osprey silencer family has other benefits and features that are unique to the industry.
Mounting System
Because of its eccentric design, the Osprey must have a way to index to the host gun. Silencerco designed the patent pending cam lever locking system that allows the shooter to time the silencer to any host pistol. To mount, simply thread the Osprey on the muzzle just as you would a traditional silencer with the cam lever in the locked position. When the Osprey shoulders, hand tighten to ensure a tight fit then release the cam lever and rotate the Osprey to the proper orientation. Finally, move the cam lever back to the locked position. The Osprey will return to this index point for subsequent mountings until you change the host pistol or remove the piston assembly for cleaning.
Booster and Accessories
Working in harmony with the patent pending cam lever locking system, the Osprey has a unique booster, or Nielsen device, that allows flawless cycling with all relevant semi-automatic handguns. All of the boosters are the same dimensions on all three Osprey calibers, which means you can interchange the piston portion for different thread specs and subcalibers. For example, you can shoot a 9mm or .40 S&W through a 45Osprey or a 9mm through a 40Osprey. Silencerco also offers a fixed barrel spacer for use on subguns/pistol caliber carbines and host weapons that have fixed barrels.
Nomenclature
Tax stamps are expensive and take a lot of time. Silencerco believes that one tax stamp is enough for your silencer. With this in mind, Silencerco designed the Osprey for quick repairs and placed the serial number on the part least likely to be damaged by baffle strike or other mishaps. Warranty repairs are quick and easy.
Lightweight and Compact
The Osprey is very lightweight and does not greatly affect the balance of the host pistol. The 45Osprey and 40Osprey weigh 11 ounces, and the 9 mm Osprey weighs 9.84 ounces. Many people feel Osprey actually improves the balance of their host firearm. The Osprey also is a handy 8 inches long in the 45Osprey and 40Osprey models and only 7 inches long in 9mm. This design makes them “short” for their performance level.