Best ultra-quiet compact .22 LR pistol setup? Custom short-barrel Mark IV vs PCP vs integral suppressor?
I’ve been going down the rabbit hole on ultra-quiet .22 setups and wanted to get some opinions from people with real experience.
My main priorities are:
Extremely quiet (pellet gun / BB gun quiet if possible)
Compact / backpackable / easy to carry
Reliable
Still enough power for small game
Easy ammo availability
Practical overall setup
Right now I’m leaning heavily toward a custom short-barrel Ruger Mark IV setup in the ~3" range with a suppressor (like one.om the picture - ignore the suppressor in it), because it seems:
smaller than most PCP setups
easier to use
easier to feed
more reliable
still extremely quiet with subsonic ammo
A few questions:
Is a custom short-barrel Mark IV actually the best option for this use case, or is there another platform I should seriously consider instead?
For people with ultra-short suppressed Mark IVs:
what barrel length do you recommend for maximum quietness while still keeping enough power for small game?
2", 3", 3.5", 4.5", etc.?
What suppressor would you recommend if my priorities are:
shortest possible
still “pellet gun quiet”
lightweight
practical to carry
Is there a point where going TOO short on the suppressor starts making it noticeably louder?
Which ammo has been the quietest for you while still cycling reliably? I keep hearing:
Federal AE Suppressor 45gr
CCI Quiet Semi-Auto
CCI Subsonic HP
Are integrally suppressed .22 pistols actually worth it, or is a short Mark IV + removable suppressor basically better overall?
For anyone who has used both PCP pistols and suppressed .22 pistols:
which ended up being more practical in real life?
Even if you can only answer part of this, that’d still be appreciated.