Best Brake for a BIG .338

hank shaper

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2007
Messages
48
I have only shot two rifles with brakes on them. A 30-06 with a Vias and my 280AI with Bill Wiseman's brake. He drills his brake into your existing barrel. Both rifles shot very well( in the 2's). Both seem effective, but I have so little experience with them I don't know squat. I don't have brakes on my 7 STW or my 300 WM. If I was going to build a big 338 ( Edge, RUM or other), what would you suggest? Would the two that I mentioned be any good on the monster 338's?
Thanks
Hank
 
i personally dont like the vias or any brake with holes on the bottom.i do quite a bit of shooting off the ground and it's not pretty with this style of brake. they work fine but not off the ground.i think the defensive edge brake would be hard to beat for a big 338 or any caliber for that matter.
 
The baffel style brakes are more effective at knocking the recoil back to reasonable levels more so than the units with holes all over the place. You looking for a brake that has maximum surface area on the baffels to catch the gas and redirect it.
My number one choice if I were trying to wipeout as much recoil as possible would be the big ugly JP brake , my second choice would be the V-port desgine that Nathen Dagley uses its the same basic idea as the Holland and Defensive edge but his baffels have a bit more surface area due to their shape.
 
have a look at Nate's brakes on his web site in my signature box , I think he calls his V-port barke the "varmint vaporizer" very cool looking to
 
When I worked for Nesika, I used Vais brakes with good results on a number of customer rifles. I have several on my personal guns and with good ol fundamental machine work and a little attention to detail, they have always run very well. The only word of caution regarding these is that it is very important to pay attention to the directions with regards to wall thickness.The ports running parallel to the bore's axis can and will blow out if there is not sufficient material left on the OD. This is a big issue on guns that have the light contoured barrels where the brake actually ends up being larger than the OD of the crown. Also make sure that you have sufficient wall thickness down by the crown after threading. the harder hitting magnums will have a tendency to bell mouth the crown over time if this isn't paid attention to. I like a minimum of .060". Some would argue this is a little too cautious, but it has worked for me. If it's not broke, don't fix right?

I realize the holes on the bottom are a turn off to some, but I have always gravitated towards the notion of radial dispersion of the propellant. Just seems to have less of an inclination to fuss with shot elevation this way. I have built several guns that performed exceptionally well with Vais brakes.

The most famous probably being the 300RUM that a guy in Wyoming used to dump a prairie dog from an excess of 2500 yards. (it may have actually been closer to 2000 yards, I can't remember exactly). (Check the back issues of Small Caliber News)

I think that settles the debate about braked guns shooting well.

Hope this helps.

Chad Dixon
Baghdad Embassy Security Force
Baghdad Iraq
 
I got a Holland on my 338-378. Im a big boy so it dosen't move me much. But some of my smaller friends say its not fun to shoot.If you dont care about looks or if you think they look cool the JP is the most effective brake I have ever used bar none.
 
A brake needs two things to be effective at reducing recoil. One fast pressure release of muzzle pressure and second surface area for the escaping case to act against to ****** the direction of the rifle put in motion by recoil energy.

The partition style brakes will dump muzzle pressure the fastest of any brake design. They also have the largest and most direct opposing surface areas for the gas to act against.

This is also why they are the loudest and most effective.

Compared to the Vias style brakes, there really is no comparision to be honest.

Kirby Allen(50)
 
I have a custom brake on my 30Rum, it is an anti torque and recoil, works vary well. I am able to stay on target with one hand shots of a by pod.
 
What is your definition of a BIG 338?

There is quite a range of 338 rounds to choose from.

Also, what type of rifle, weight and muzzle diameter?

Kirby Allen(50)
 

Recent Posts

Top