Dead Air Sandman

7.62x51 / 308 Win / 300 BLK / 6.5 Creedmoor suppressor

Available in 5 versions

Sandman K

Dead Air · 7.62x51 / 308 Win / 300 BLK / 6.5 Creedmoor

$899

MSRP

Specs on the box

Differs between versions

Mounting

Mount type (differs between versions): Proprietary
Rear thread (differs between versions): Proprietary
Included mount (differs between versions): Keymo
Mount removable (differs between versions): No

Build & use

Length (differs between versions): 5.4"
Diameter (differs between versions): 1.5"
Weight (differs between versions): 12.5 oz
Material (differs between versions): Cobalt 6, Stainless Steel
Method: Welded
Finish: Cerakote
Rated backpressure (differs between versions): High
User serviceable: No
Full-auto rated: Yes
Made in: USA - TX

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Sound

130.6

LIAeq100ms (dB)

Muzzle · 16" AR-10 · 7.62x51 Lake City M80

Backpressure

−18.0

Change in cycle time (ms)

Primer strike → bolt closed, vs bare host

Flash

Not yet tested

Metric TBD

Stand-in — not yet defined

Sound · Muzzle Left

Sound · Shooter's Ear

Comparison available once dials are wired for this caliber

SCOUT REPORT

The Dead Air Sandman series are versatile 7.62 suppressors built for hard use. They ship with the KeyMo mount, making them compatible with any KeyMo-equipped muzzle device.

Scout Report

SilencerScout Sound Test

Metered August 18, 2026

Our take

Not yet tested — our read on how this suppressor handled the sweep is published here once this suppressor runs the battery.

Sound sweep

Host sweep — AR-10, bolt gun, 5.56 and 300 BLK

Metric	16" AR-107.62x51 Lake City M80		20" Bolt Action7.62x51 Lake City M80		14.5" AR-155.56 Lake City M193		7.5" AR-15300 BLK Hornady Black 208gr ELD Match
Metric	SE	ML	SE	ML	SE	ML	SE	ML
LIAeq100ms (dB)	122.8	130.6	119.8	128.6	123.4	129	113.1	115.9
Peak (dB)	150.6	159.2	144.5	156.8	153.6	160.5	142.6	146.9
Peak (dBA)	144.8	157	141.1	154.4	147.2	157.8	137.4	142.6
Impulse (Pa·ms)	154.4	358.8	89.7	260.1	228	352.7	37.5	62.7

No image available

The AR-10, bolt-action and AR-15 hosts used for the 7.62 sweep

How to read this report

Our core performance metric is LIAeq100ms: the whole pressure curve, A-weighted to approximate the human ear, integrated over 100 ms. Peak and impulse are shown alongside for context. Every configuration is metered at SE (shooter's ear) and ML (muzzle, left side).

Sound metering methodology

About the Test Platform

Same .30-cal load, two very different hosts. 7.62x51 Lake City M80 is the reference cartridge for this battery — a plain 147gr ball load that is easy to source and easy to repeat — so the gap between the 16" AR-10 and the 20" bolt gun is the action itself, not the ammunition.

A gas gun vents a second report back through the ejection port and straight past your head; a bolt gun keeps everything sealed until you lift the handle. The last two columns are the small-frame AR-15s a 7.62 can spends much of its life bolted to: 5.56 Lake City M193 through a 14.5" barrel, and 300 BLK Hornady Black 208gr ELD Match subsonic through a 7.5".

Those two bracket the range. The 5.56 column is what you give up buying one can to cover both rifles, and the subsonic 300 BLK column is the quietest this suppressor will ever meter — no supersonic crack to hide behind, so what you read there is the can and nothing else.

The AR-10, bolt gun and AR-15 hosts behind our 7.62 tests — write-up not yet published.

Cold-can first shot

First round pop

On the first shot, unburnt propellant mixes with the oxygen sitting inside the suppressor and burns a second time in the can. That secondary combustion often makes the round louder than the ones behind it. Once that oxygen is burnt off, follow-up shots settle into a quieter, steadier number. This is commonly called first round pop, or FRP. Because a hunter, marksman or defensive shooter may only ever fire one or two rounds, we isolate the first-round data rather than bury it in the average, and present it here. The magnitude of first round pop varies substantially across designs.

Shooter's ear · LIAeq100ms (dB)

Host	First round	Subsequent	Pop
16" AR-107.62x51 Lake City M80	125.2	122.8	+2.4
20" Bolt Action7.62x51 Lake City M80	120	119.8	+0.2
14.5" AR-155.56 Lake City M193	123.3	123.4	-0.1
7.5" AR-15300 BLK Hornady Black 208gr ELD Match	117.3	113.1	+4.2

Performance for its size

Efficiency metrics

These metrics nest raw decibel performance in the important context of how well a suppressor performs for its size.

Quoted off 16" AR-10 · 7.62x51 Lake City M80. Each value is dB reduction ÷ the listed dimension, at shooter's ear (SE) and muzzle left (ML).

Per cubic inch (dB/in³)

Suppressor	SE	ML
Sandman K · thisestimated volume	1.39	1.32

Per ounce (dB/oz)

Suppressor	SE	ML
Sandman K · this	0.9	0.86

Per inch (dB/in)

Suppressor	SE	ML
Sandman K · this	2.07	1.98

Tuned vs untuned

Tuning overhead

This metric captures the tuning overhead of the suppressor when paired with sound-mitigating part choices. A valuable metric for understanding what overhead you, the end user, have to push the performance envelope. Both rows are the same barrel and the same load. Only the parts used change.

How we tuned

Not yet tested — the parts and settings we tuned this host with are published here once this suppressor runs the battery.

Metric	16" AR-107.62x51 Lake City M80		16" AR-10 Tuned7.62x51 Lake City M80		DifferenceTuned − untuned
Metric	SE	ML	SE	ML	SE	ML
LIAeq100ms (dB)	122.8	130.6	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested
Peak (dB)	150.6	159.2	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested
Peak (dBA)	144.8	157	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested
Impulse (Pa·ms)	154.4	358.8	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested	Not yet tested

No image available

The 16" AR-10 host used for the 7.62 tuning comparison

Same host, different loads

Ammo test

Metric	16" AR-107.62x51 Lake City M80		16" AR-107.62x51 Lake City M118LR
Metric	SE	ML	SE	ML
LIAeq100ms (dB)	122.8	130.6	122.8	130
Peak (dB)	150.6	159.2	149.6	159.8
Peak (dBA)	144.8	157	144.7	156.5
Impulse (Pa·ms)	154.4	358.8	159.8	316
	No image available		No image available

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Where to Buy

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