Prototype Muzzle break

J E Custom

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Jul 29, 2004
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We all know the ups and downs of muzzle breaks. The better the break is at reducing recoil
the louder it is. The quieter it is the less braking it does.

Having dealt with the 50 bmg and other large cartriges there is another element that has to be
dealt with, Pressure wave/concussion (Muzzle blast) from huge amounts of pressure and
volumes of gasses at super sonic speeds exiting the muzzle.

So not being one to leave things alone I decided to try a new concept/theory and use the Barrett
M82 A1 50 bmg as a test bed because it is recoil operated and would not rely on perception of
felt recoil.

The existing break on the Barrett does a good job of making the recoil reasonable but it has a
terrible muzzle report that requires ear plugs and ear muffs to protect your ears and sinuses.
The snipers report that after 30 or 40 rounds they had some cases of nose bleeding from the
pressure wave and that if you try to shoot it with only ear plugs it was known to blow them
out of your ears from the pressure inside of the sinuses.

The goal of the prototype was to end up with close to the same volume of the ports as the factory
and see if the new design could compete or improve the recoil reduction while reducing the
pressure wave and signature of the big 50 bmg.

I talked to several muzzle brake manufactures to find out there opinions on the breaks they make
and the performance of them. Jim See has a great break and I knew it would be tough to beat it
or even match it in recoil reduction. (I still don't know because I have not tested a small version of
the prototype break).

So the new design has progressive ports,(Each port has a greater angle as they get farther away
from the muzzle) In theory, as each port is opened up the pressure drops and the next port is less
efficient as far as recoil reduction. So by increasing the angle they will contribute more/equal to the
past port making it more efficient.

Also the design of the ports are an attempt at moving or minimizing the pressure wave away
from the shooter.

After the initial test I am very pleased with the break and intend to produce some smaller ones
for testing on 30 cals and 338s. we will see where that leads.

You can find the test on You Tube Under http.//www.youtube.com/watch?v=20 pG5euY3s

Or if the link doesen't work, just look at YouTube and look for Barret M82 A1 .50 cal prototype
muzzle brake.

Thanks: and I hope all of this theory is not to boring.

More to come.

J E CUSTOM
 
Last edited:
here you go. Looks good by the way!!

[ame=http://youtu.be/2Q_gG5euY3s]Barrett M82A1 .50 Cal - YouTube[/ame]

iframe>
 
Looks promising


Thanks.

It definitely reduced recoil because the 660 grain loads only ejected around 2 feet from the rifle.
the 750 grain loads did well and went around 5+feet from the action.

The main gain was in the signature of the shock wave/pressure wave. It was practically gone
making the 50 very pleasant to shoot, and almost no muzzle flash.

We tested the rifle In the worst possible position, Prone and as close to the ground as we could
get to try and measure the recoil and the footprint of muzzle gases.

Unfortunately I tightened the brake only hand tight so I could change breaks for different ammo
and it wanted to unscrew (Cant imagine why).but if you notice even out of time the shooter was
still in the clear and well away from the pressure wave.

You cant see the how bad the factory brake covered us up with dirt and grass while shooting it
and how close the pressure wave came by us (Within 1 foot of each ear) Because we were trying
to look for muzzle flash and pressure wave and didn't have the camera on the shooters.

Another Plus, was the ability to keep the target in site 100% of the time while firing. this was a
new experance with the big bores and especally the 50 BMG and a 750 grain bullet traveling at
2820 ft/sec and 13,241 ft/lbs of muzzle energy.

My next test will be at dusk so we can see the extent of the efficiency of each port.

J E CUSTOM
 
JE

That was an interesting video & no, Theory based discussion is not boring in my world. I think you may be on to something with the progressive port angles. If you need a test pilot, I have a factory 700 BDL in 338RUM that could use a little taming down :rolleyes:

Thank you for sharing that.


t
 
JE

That was an interesting video & no, Theory based discussion is not boring in my world. I think you may be on to something with the progressive port angles. If you need a test pilot, I have a factory 700 BDL in 338RUM that could use a little taming down :rolleyes:

Thank you for sharing that.


t


Thanks .

In fact I am in the process of getting one made in .30 cal and .338 but will talk to machine shop and see if I can have 6 in each caliber made while he is set up.

I have the utmost confidence that it will be a realy good brake but your idea of letting other people
test it is a good one.

I will let you know when I get them and we can get one to you.

J E CUSTOM
 
Thanks .

In fact I am in the process of getting one made in .30 cal and .338 but will talk to machine shop and see if I can have 6 in each caliber made while he is set up.

I have the utmost confidence that it will be a realy good brake but your idea of letting other people
test it is a good one.

I will let you know when I get them and we can get one to you.

J E CUSTOM


Sir, you have a deal. :D
 
Anything cloth near a muzzle break will be shredded, that goes for skin too.
I shoot over the hood of my truck with a vias type break and put a towel down to keep the blast from burning and pitting the paint, if you got withing 6 inches of the towel it would rip big holes in it. A lotta hot gasses coming out of those things.
 
Great video and good idea. I would be interested to see the brake in action with a wet sock over the brake. Also are you considering adding set screws and index marks, would make it nice for using a suppressor?

Jon

When I do the night/dark test it may answer your questions.

I have/am considering using a set screw with belleville washers for those that don't have a
Gunsmith handy, But I prefer the shoulder to shoulder make up and timed (I think it looks better).

If you look at the video there is little or no disturbance under the break (Fresh cut grass with
lots of clippings with the prototype but the factory brake will cover you up.

Index marks are easy to add after the brake is installed.

J E CUSTOM
 
How well would you think this brake would tame a 7-7.5 lb 300 RUM shooting 180 grain bullets? 30-06 level?
 
Anything cloth near a muzzle break will be shredded, that goes for skin too.
I shoot over the hood of my truck with a vias type break and put a towel down to keep the blast from burning and pitting the paint, if you got withing 6 inches of the towel it would rip big holes in it. A lotta hot gasses coming out of those things.

One of the objects of this break was to direct the gas as far as possible away from the shooter.

There is no down or up gases, only horizontal to lower the signature of the flash and pressure
the wave and move it away from the shooter.

I would caution against shooting over the hood of your truck unless you want to drive home
without a windshield (On the high intensity cartriges the shock wave will/may blow out the
windshield) also tail lights can suffer the same results while shooting off the tail gate.

J E CUSTOM
 
I always wondered what a side discharge break would do to a windshield on an aggressive caliber, guess I will pass on trying to find that one out.
I know the circular breaks do not function well from prone, only took me one time to figure that one out in the dirt:)
 
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