Wanted to see of those of you who either own or have shot Surefire Suppressors, If I wanted one for a Short barrel 10.3’‘-12.5’’ barrel which one would be ideal.
They are all in the same price range(i know the new 556SB for short barrels isn’t out yet) would the mini even work well on a SBR or would a 212 or SB be a better overall choice?
For 10.3-12.5" I would recommend the FA556-212.
I’ve used a Mini on a 12.5" several times and it does bring down the noise levels to “acceptable” levels and reduces the dust/folate signature. It does, however, occasionally cause a large flash of unspent propellant which can really jack up your night vision. It can also be very telling during the day. No way really to predict it or lessen it with diffent ammo or muzzle devices. For a 10.3-5 or 11.5" I would absolutely go with a FA556-212. The Mini was designed primarily for 14.5-16" guns. Where the Mini works the best is on a 16" mid-length system.
The FA556-SB is basicly a FA556-212 with a beefed up first blast baffle and a enlarged bore. It was designed for 10" and down, ie 7.5" PDW type guns where projo stability and muzzle pressures are an issue.
I have and shoot both a Mini and FA556-212
My friend has a Surefire Mini on a 10.5 and it’s quite underwhelming. Lots of flash and bang. Works pretty decently on a 16" though.
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Thanks but that’s not really helping anyone decide whether they should go short on a shorty.
Sorry, posted in wrong place.
I would whole heartedly suggest going with the 212 over the mini if you are running it on a short SBR. At one point I had a Noveske 10.5" upper, Surefire 556-212 and a SF MB556k. To me, the combo was completely comfortable without earpro. Not saying it was/was not hearing safe but it was certainly pleasant to my ears. I also ran my 212 on a 12.5" which was nicer yet.
I do not have any personal experience with the mini.
I have heard the SF Micro on a 12.5 and it was loud. (I know it’s not what the micros are intended for.)
A slight side note while on the subject: I ran the muzzle brake as a primary blast baffle. It served that purpose extremely well. The first wall of the brake looked like it had been in a sandblast cabinet with aluminum oxide. When the suppressor was removed and the rifle was fired with the brake only, it was miserable. My solution was to run the upper suppressed all the time. With the short barrel, you might want to account for erosion.
Edited to add: I know nothing of the SB so I can’t comment there.
I appreciate all the insight! I’m still at a little bit of a loss. I’ll either go 212 or the new SB whenever more information on it is released. I don’t think I would run it 100% suppressed so I wouldn’t want to run a brake on it.
I’ve shot a mk18 with a brake on it and I swear it rattled fillings loose. So I would definately run a flash hider.
As a civilian, if this is your first, or main can, go with the fullsize 212.
Performance will be much better than the mini.
The other side of the coin of course, is that 5.56 is loud as hell, even suppressed, so it doesn’t really matter. 
Good luck.