Q Trash Panda vs AAC 762-SDN-6

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These two silencers are very interesting. Not at first sight but with a little history on both the AAC 762-SDN-6 and the Q Trash Panda, you’ll quickly learn that these two silencers have more in common than you realize.

Disclaimer: I’m just a guy who owns a company that makes gun bags. I’m not an expert on silencers and don’t know everything about them. I love learning so if I said something wrong or sideways kindly leave a comment and I’ll correct it and even credit you for taking the time to bring it to my attention!

History of Kevin, AAC, SIG, and Q

One might think that I have a man-crush on Kevin, to be clear I don’t. However, I do love the products that he makes. At least the ones I’ve gotten to shoot and use thus far. *cough* Honey Badger SD *cough*

But a quick history on Kevin Brittingham. If you don’t know him he is the owner of Q, LLC the makes of the Honey Badger, Trash Panda, and many other great products. What makes this comparison of silencers interesting is that Kevin started Advanced Armament Company (AAC) which he later sold to Remington.

Kevin continued to work for Remington-owned AAC for some time but later left after things went sour. He then worked for Sig Sauer for some time and my understanding was he helped bring the MPX line from concept to reality.

Kevin left Sig and later started another venture known as Q, LLC. Kevin was finally able to make the Honey Badger a reality and bring it to market. He also created the Trash Panda, El Camino, Half Nelson, Full Nelon, and Thunder Chicken silencers. All with their respective roles and uses.

So it’s interesting to compare a silencer that Kevin’s original company developed and made to one that his current company is making. Let’s dive in.

About the AAC 762-SDN-6

The AAC 762-SDN-6 first made its debut sometime in 2012. That makes it the “get off my lawn” silencer in the industry. The SDN-6 is a 7.62 NATO, or 30 caliber, silencer made specifically for 300 Blackout.

From the factory, the SDN-6 claims a 126dB rated with subsonic 300 AAC Blackout ammo. Which would make it quieter than the 9mm H&K MP5-SD that the 300 AAC Blackout round was created to replace.

This suppressor was designed for military applications where durability was a key consideration.

Factory Spec Sheet

  • Caliber: 7.62 NATO, 300 BLK
  • Weight: 20.0 oz
  • Length: 7.66″
  • Length added: 6.10″
  • Diameter:1.5″
  • Finish: Cerakote™
  • Sound Reduction: 25dB 7.62 NATO, 39dB 300BLK
  • Mount: 51T Ratchet Mount™; 51T 5/8×24 Blackout® Flash Hider Mount (deep socket) included

About the Q Trash Panda

The Trash Panda by Q was released in early 2017 but really didn’t gain traction until 2018. The Trash Panda was designed primarily for the modern consumer with weight being a key consideration. It’s a can that can be at home on an Alaskan sheep hunt where every ounce matters, rolling around a southern ranch in a side-by-side hunting pigs with might vision or at a weekend range session with your buddies.

Factory Spec Sheet

  • Cailber: 7.62 NATO / 300 BLK / 300 WM
  • Silencer Weight:  11.8 oz
  • Muzzle Brake Weight:  2 oz
  • Diameter:  1.75″
  • Overall Length:  6.9″
  • Attachment: Quickie Fast-Attach
  • Materials(s):  100% Titanium
  • Finish:  PVD
  • Minimum Barrel Length: None

Comparison

Weight

Silencer weight can be a big deal, especially if you have your silencer attached to the end of a long barrel. The weight floating at the end of a 16″ barrel can cause your arms to get tired and you will start becoming less accurate.

AAC 762-SDN-6 Weight

aac weight

The AAC can comes in at 1 lb 5.3 oz and is an all-steel construction can. You can definitely feel the weight of the 762-SDN-6 on the end of your gun if you have it on a larger rifle. I’ve run it for many years on a 10.5″ SBR and it didn’t bother me much. Granted, at the time I had nothing to compare it to.

Trash Panda Weight

trashpanda weight

The Q Trash Panda comes in at 12.5 oz which is a noticeably lighter silencer than the AAC. This weight reduction is mostly because the Trash Panda is 100% titanium, a much lighter material than the all-steel construction of the AAC silencer.

Length

I remember back in 2015 when I first got my AAC 762-SDN-6. I was like a kid on Christmas! But before I purchased it I distinctly remember worrying about it’s length.

I knew I was going to be putting it on a Short Barrel Rifle but what I remember thinking was “I just spend all this money to make this gun short and here I go slapping a silencer on it and making it the same length it was”.

However, I think my thoughts were somewhat misguided because I was still excited to be getting a silencer.

AAC 762-SDN-6 Length

The 762-SDN-6 comes in at 6.10″ and the mounting system (Flash or Brake discussed later) doesn’t actually add any length to the silencer.

Q Trash Panda Length

The Trash Panda comes in at 6.9″ and the cherry bomb mounting system doesn’t add any length to the silencer either. While the Trash Panda only comes in .1″ shorter so it really shines when it comes to the weight.

Size

The diameter is something not many people focus on but can have a big effect on weight as well as sound suppression. A larger diameter means more weight when you’re using the same materials but it also means more volume inside the silencer. More volumes mean more trapped gasses which makes the gun quieter.

AAC 762-SDN-6 Size

The diameter of the SDN-6 is 1.5″ which is actually smaller than the Q Trash panda. The AAC is slightly longer than the Trash Panda but the diameter is not as large. It’s somewhat more noticeable than you’d think just looking at the numbers.

Q Trash Panda Size

The Trash Panda diameter clocks in at 1.75″. The extra .25″ is noticeable but once you look at the weight comparison you probably won’t be complaining.

Mounting System

The mounting systems on the two silencers couldn’t be more different. Once is a crank-type design with a push-button release. The other is a taper-style mount with no release.

Personally, I love the Trash Panda’s taper mount because of the simplicity and ease of use. The Crank/ratchet-style system of the SDN-6 is prone to a lot of wear and tear and the teeth will eventually wear out.

AAC Breakout 2.0/ Muzzle Break /Flash Hider

The AAC 762-SDN-6 is a 51T ratchet style design that allows you to quickly mount and dismount the silencer. The 51T is short for 51 Tooth, as they also have a 90T model, which you can guess means it has 51 grabbing teeth on the ratchet lockdown.

AAC offers three different quick attach/detach muzzle devices to include the Breakout 2.0, Muzzle Brake, and the Flash hider. All three of their pros and cons but they would most show those pros and cons shooting unsuppressed and who’s gonna do that?!

Q Cherry Bomb

The Trash Panda has only one option for a muzzle device and that is the Cherry Bomb. The Cherry Bomb is a tapper design that allowed you to screw on the silencer but there is no locking mechanism like the AAC 762-SDN-6.

The tapper design is said to prevent carbon lock and provide the best sound suppression. The inspiration for this design came from the machining world. For years tapers have been used in spindles to consistently index tooling and maintain a consistent position despite a large amount of vibration. It makes sense that it would work on firearms as well.

Materials

Just holding the two silencers side-by-side you know immediately that these two silencers are not the same. From the weight and size to the coating they are just wildly different animals. There are pros and cons to both titanium and steel and depending on your mission it should be a clear choice.

Metals

Titanium in the Q Trash Panda

The obvious advantage of a titanium silencer is weight, but there is a reason you don’t see all silencers made of titanium. For one, it’s more expensive, but another potentially massive disadvantage is it gets hot rapidly, but at the same time, it also dissipates heat quickly as well.

If you’re planning on mounting your silencer on a full-auto gun that you’ll shoot multiple magazines back to the back, then this probably isn’t the right choice, but if you’re going to fire a mag or two through your AR-15 and let it cool, then it’s more than durable enough.

Steal in the AAC 762-SDN-6

The AAC is a steel silencer using Inconel 718, 316L Stainless steel. When you pick this can up you can tell the biggest difference right away, weight. Due to steel being much heavier than the aluminum used in the Q silencer.

The steel does provide a more durable and rugged silencer but I have not seen any true advantages, other than sound suppression, why steel is an overall better silencer.

Coating

Let us talk about coatings briefly, as I’m not a coating expert.

Trash Panda and PVD Coatings

Q uses PVD coatings on a few of their products, the Trash Panda being one of them, what is PVD you ask?

PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) coating is the application of a hard, thin film to a plated surface to add both decorative and functional properties, depending upon the application. … In these applications, the PVD coating adds a brilliant, decorative topcoat finish that is very hard and wear-resistant

Master Finishing Co

Q uses the PVD coating because it is the hardest and most durable finish available.

Q also uses clear-coat anodizing, a different process than most, on some of the Honey Badger parts giving it its unique color combination.

AAC-762-SDN-6 and the Classic Cerakote

Things change. Technology improves. The AAC silencer has been around for quite some time, and the overall design hasn’t changed since its release. The 762-SDN-6 finish is the tried and true Cerakote.

Cerakote is a fantastic finish and looks great, but it doesn’t provide the same durability level as PVD coating.

Sound Suppression

I’m not a sound expert; I’ll leave that to the professionals. I will give you quick side-by-side comparisons of the noise levels from both guns on similar platforms. Shooting the same ammo.

Setup:

  • 10.5″ 5.56 Noveske Barrels (Different Guns – Same Barrels)
  • 115 GR FMJ
  • Shooting from the same place

In Conclusion

Silencers are a hotly contested topic and as I said in my initial disclaimer, I’m not a silencer expert.

I think both of these silencers are great and serve their purpose. However, they both have clear advantages and disadvantages.

I can’t tell you which you should buy but rather give you the information and let you make a more informed purchasing decision. If you want to boost your cans life span be sure to look into suppressor covers.

Michael Savage
Michael Savage

Michael is the President of Lynx Defense and an avid gun owner and outdoors man. He's passionate about helping find the best bang for your buck and helping others learn about firearms and the industry as a whole.

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