The box
This is the Griffin Armament Optimus
9 Silencer, I purchased it July 2017 through silencershop and received it from
my dealer, Hansohn Brothers, March of 2018. The Optimus is my second suppressor
and first centerfire suppressor, I purchased it after several months of research
and comparing it to other options on the market at the time.
What's in the box
I decided to purchase the Optimus
because I wanted a versatile can to use on my 9mm handguns and 9mm AR upper receiver,
my 5.56 and 6.8 SPC AR’s, as well as my .308 bolt gun. The Silencerco Hybrid
.46 was another option, but I didn’t care for the fact that the length wasn’t modular,
and I prefer the taper mount system. So far with almost 2 years of use I have
been very happy with my decision, I still want to get dedicated rifle and
pistol cans because as I’ll mention later it’s not easy to switch configurations
at the range.
A comparison of the Minimalist blast shield, taper mount extension, and the main body.
Now that we have the have covered
my reasoning behind purchasing this suppressor lets go over what comes in the
box, included in the box are the suppressor, rifle blast baffle, rifle
extension, 5/8x24 minimalist muzzle brake, 1/2x28 Piston Assembly, 9mm and .22
cal endcaps, Rubber multi-tool, Griffin Armorers wrench, and a baffle pusher
tool.
Baffle pusher tool
Griffin Armorers Wrench
Side 1 of the rubber multi tool
Side 2 of the rubber multi tool
And last but not least, the 9mm and .22 endcaps
A quick breakdown:
Caliber(s): 9mm/.30 cal up to 300
Win Mag
Mount: Taper mount and Piston
assembly included, 3 lug, A2 and direct thread options available.
Caliber rating: 300 Win mag in full
length configuration, .308 in mid length and A2 configuration, and 556 and 9mm
in the pistol length configuration
Diameter: 1.375”
Length: 9.4”/8.4”/ 7.9”/6.6”
Weight (oz): 17.6/17.4/15.7/13.5
Full length----^ A2^ ^Minimalist blast shield and the last is
pistol configuration
MSRP: $1,095, I got it from SilencerShop
for $899, plus a $1 to donation to ASA and $205 for the tax stamp.
The Griffin Optimus in the mid-length configuration
I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect the first time I used it, on the 40-minute drive home from the dealer I called my cousin and asked if he wanted to help me break it in and he agreed. When we got to his parents’ property that we used as our range we took it out of the box, dissected how it worked, glanced at the manual and configuration page, and then promptly assembled it to the rifle configuration and installed it onto my 12.5” SBR AR15. I had already purchased a 1/2x28 Minimalist brake and installed it on my rifle prior to the form 4 being approved so it was ready to be used as soon as the suppressor was in my hands. I put the first 5 rounds through the rifle, and I was blown away that I could shoot a 12.5” 556 rifle without earplugs and not have ringing in my ears. I quickly put the other 25 rounds through the rifle and stood in amazement that I could still hear normally.
12.5" AR with the Optimus in the full-length configuration
Next up was installing the Optimus on my Savage Model 10 FCP-SR chambered in .308 Winchester, I installed the included 5/8x24 minimalist brake and then put the suppressor on and my cousin got to fire the first few rounds, the longer barrel made the larger caliber even easier on the ears than the short AR. The sonic crack was more noticeable with the .308 but I believe that is because there is less noise from the muzzle. I would probably still wear earplugs while shooting just because I want to protect my ears the best I can but for hunting use I see absolutely no need for hearing protection other than the silencer.
Savage Model 10 FCP-SR with the Optimus in full size configuration
And lastly, we have we have the
caliber that I use the least with a suppressor, 9mm. I had a 9mm threaded
barrel for my M&P 40 so I got some 9mm magazines and installed the barrel and
suppressor. With subsonic ammo it sounds like a handclap, however with
supersonic ammo it is quite a bit louder, it’s loud enough that shooting a 17
round magazine will make my ears ring, however I think it may be because of the
action. Overall, it’s still fairly quiet as we shot a few magazines of both
subs and supers behind the house and didn’t wake up a sleeping 3 year old that
was 15 yards away in the house. I also
use it on a 4.5” barrel 9mm AR upper, I find it’s a little bit quieter than the
M&P even though the barrel lengths are very similar.
S&W M&P with a Holosun HS507C and Optimus with booster
AR9 with the Optimus and fixed barrel spacer.
Final thoughts: Overall, after
almost 2 years of use I’m very happy with the purchase, total cost ended up being
about $1,350 with the tax stamp, additional Minimalist brake, the minimalist
blast shield and the fixed barrel spacer which is used for the 9mm AR. It’s a
great “do all” suppressor, I can use it on all my guns except shotguns and
handguns larger than 9mm, and it was much cheaper than buying both a rifle
suppressor and pistol suppressor. I do wish that the minimalist blast shield
came with in the box instead of the full-length blast shield. There are 2 major
downsides to this suppressor, the first is switching configurations, particularly
from pistol to rifle, is extremely difficult if the parts aren’t ambient
temperature. The second downside is that even with the minimalist blast shield
it’s still almost 8” in length, about .3” longer than a dedicated .30 cal can
from Griffin Armament. It lives on the 12.5” SBR pictured above in the
mid-length configuration and the setup stays at my bedside for the bumps in the
night, eventually I’d like to get a more compact suppressor but I’m in no rush
as the Optimus 9 paired with my Griffin Armament Checkmate QD covers all of my
needs quite easily even if I still have a few wants left.
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