Dead Air Primal - Very Different but Similar to the Wolfman

 I own both the Dead Air Primal and Wolfman. Both silencers are multirole and can handle a variety of tasks. While the Primal is a 45 caliber, full rifle cartridge rated, fully welded can, it's not segmented. The 9mm bore Wolfman is segmented and can handle some of the most popular smaller calibers though it but can't handle anything over 350 Legend. Both are great cans and they look related. So let's compare.

At first glance, both silencers have the same outer diameter, length and construction. Even the finish is similar. 

The baffle stacks look very similar until you look closer. Firstly, the blast chamber on the Primal is substantially longer. The baffles themselves on the Primal are shorter compared to the Wolfman. Both have 12 baffles or cups. 

The bores are different given the calibers. The Primal is able to handle .458 caliber cartridges with the Wolfman being a 9mm or .36 caliber bore. 

This is the front of the silencer without the included caps. The Primal is on the left.

The Primal and its 45 caliber end cap are on the left.

Mounting patterns are different between the two. The Wolfman is at heart a pistol caliber silencer. It's meant as advertised for submachine guns and pistol caliber carbines. Dead Air setup the system to use the mounts that the Ghost M uses such at the booster assemblies and tri-lug adapters. Because the Wolfman is more stout than the Ghost M, Dead Air came up with the KeyMicro system which shares the matting surfaces with the KeyMo system found on their rifle silencers but small enough for the P type mounts found in the Ghost M. This allows someone like myself to setup several rifles like an AR-15, Remington 700 (.300 Blackout in my case), Henry Homesteader and Marlin 1894 with muzzle devices that are all KeyMicro compatible. This allows me to switch either the Wolfman or Primal around as needed as long as either is configured with a KeyMo or KeyMicro mount. 

The Primal, however, uses the industry standard HUB or 1.375x24 thread pitch. This lets you use the same mounts the Nomad and Sandman series silencers use. Alternatively, a 3rd party mount can also be used since the thread pitch can be found elsewhere. If you had invested in SilencerCo mounts but want a Dead Air can, you can buy the Primal and use a SilencerCo mount under certain circumstances. The inverse is true as Dead Air offers a version of the KeyMo adapter for Saker/SilencerCo cans. You'd have to test to see what options you have if you want to mix brands. Otherwise,  because of this, I am able to use mounting options from other manufacturers should I choose to do so.

The Primal has an additional trick of using an included ring adapter that allows the use of the Ghost/Wolf/Wolfman P accessories such as the booster. In my case, I didn't have the regular KeyMo mount yet so I used the ring adapter for the KeyMicro mount for testing the Primal.  For me, the Primal is the only silencer I have that lets me shoot 45 ACP. By combining the ring adapter and booster assembly, I am able to plink away with a first generation M&P 45 Full Size with a SilencerCo barrel. 

Until I own a rifle in a full rifle caliber I want to suppress, the Primal will primarily exist with the pistol booster on it. The Wolfman was the center of my suppressed shooting world and all my rifles were setup for that. Having a silencer with the booster on it helps make life a little simpler as moving mounts around can be a huge pain. On a side note, I'd like to just have the booster permanently on a Ghost M for pistols only and put either a Xeno mount or KeyMo mount for rifles which is really what the Primal is for. 

The Primal is a long suppressor. When you add a mount, it gets longer. While the Wolfman can be about the same length, I usually run it in the short configuration. 

Because of the designs that Dead Air likes, the cans are able to share mounts, end caps and other accessories. That also includes other silencer's baffle segments. I'm not sure you should use that but I may give it a try after checking alignment. 

You can put the Wolfman's extension stack onto the Primal in place of the end cap. You now are limited to 9mm bore. I've never shot this configuration. I think the Ghost M could also be added.

All in all, I think the Primal was a good choice given how I think my financial situation and life focus will likely change in the next few years. I would like to round out my stamp collection with a Ghost M and maybe a Nomad Ti both for dedicated reasons.