Brakes on a hunting gun

Slim13 said:
OK....talk to me people. Interested in hearing from those that hunt with muzzle brakes.

I wore out my heavy barrel on my 7mm Rem Mag. I ended up putting a #3 bartlein on it because I was tired of lugging a 15lb rifle into the backcountry. I'm not recoil sensitive in the least, but with the missing weight in the barrel I'm fighting some muzzle jump that I've never had to deal with before.

I'm thinking about putting a brake on her to help manage the recoil and get the gun to track better. My question is: Have any of you regretted doing it? What kind of hearing protection are you using while hunting?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts, advice and opinions. I've never had a braked rifle before and I keep going back and forth on the idea.
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I shoot a Remngton Classic chambered in the .300 Weatherby , I had to put a brake on it. When I hunt with this I use the Walker Game Ear Muffs. Because of wearing the
Game Ears I was able to hear and be ready for the shot of my best buck ever. I love the brake and will always wear my Game Ears .
 
I, like many of the others believe a brake is a good tool but must be used with some sort of hearing protection. I purchased my first brake after I got my 300 RUM the first year manufactured. I use two systems at once. I use the plugs on the end of spring half circle around my neck but never hunt without my electronic lightweight muffs. I carry them in a pouch on my pack waist belt.

Here is the best part of the electronic muffs. I use them all the time to increase my hearing ability while hunting. I learned this turkey hunting. After calling I could hear turkeys with the muffs I could not hear without. Moments later I could hear a turkey walking on leaves and harvested that big bird. Since that day I use the electronic muffs when ever possible.

Here is another benefit - you can communicate better with your spotter or guide. When I went on an African safari I brought my electronic muffs for myself and a set for my PH. My PH laughed at first but during our first time using them he realized we could whisper to each other and still understand directions and intent. It resulted in the harvest of a world class Blue Wildebeast. I left the muffs with him and he uses them on every hunt now.
 
J E Custom said:
Some may not agree with this but hear it is.

While doing brake testing for the quietest brake, we discovered something that went against all that i believed and had heard for years. In our test we used a DB Meter and tried as Many brands as we could and all of the different styles. Our goal was to find out what design was the quietest design.

We placed the DB Meter near the muzzle (3' to the side and out of the bullets path) to get the DBs at this point . we then moved the meter to the side (90o to the bore center). Then we moved the meter 3' behind the shooter.

Each test was with the same rifle and ammo and was conducted with a brake and without one for a comparison.

The loudest DB reading was out front of the rifle without a brake. The quietest reading was with a brake, and interestingly enough, the better the brake was at reducing recoil, the lower the reading on the meter. from this we Deducted/speculated that when a muzzle brake does its job well it brakes the sound into parts of sound that divide up the total effect of one major blast of sound (It redistributes the total amount) what ever it was, the DB Meter did not know what we were going to do so It recorded what It heard.

What we did find was that the position of the bystander effected the perceived sound to the person, and He could tell where and when he felt and heard more or less sound.

When we backed off and allowed the DB meter to sample the total sound It remained very constant for all test (It was measuring total sound produced by the firearm.

So to sum it up, Brakes redirect the sound and muzzle blast, but don't make the sound level increase. The shooter or a bystander receives a larger portion of the total sound emitted by the firearm and there fore "Perceives" that is louder. To him It Is, To the meter It is not.

Irregardless of all this data. NONE OF THE READINGS WERE SAFE LEVELS FOR THE EAR. The lowest reading the meter recorded was 105 DB, the highest was 108 DB. the range is way above what the ear can handle and ear protection should be used under any circumstance when firing a firearm because even though you don't notice it when hunting, the damage is still being done.

If you use a brake or not there will be damage to your ears if you don't wear some type of hearing protection.

These test convinced me (I hunted most of my life without hearing protection) that It was necessary to save what I had left i had to faithfully wear something to protect my hearing whether at the range or hunting.

J E CUSTOM
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I believe it. I just bought a cz455 (22lr)varmint and it showed up with a muzzle brake, surprised me and the guy selling it to me, so I took it out, unscoped and shot it. It is quieter than without the brake, now it hisses instead of pops. I came back and told him that and he ordered one for himself. Lol
 
J E Custom,

A friend bought a dB meter to test his brakes. He had someone hold the meter beside his ear. He finally came up with a very dumb looking brake that was quieter at the ear than no brake or any other brake he tried. He and maybe one of his friends use it.
 
Len Backus said:
I have brakes on all but one of our hunting rifles. They make me a better shooter under field position situations.

I developed mild tinnitus before I learned about SoundGear Electronic Hearing Protection.

I have saved further damage to my own ears by ALWAYS wearing them whether a rifle is braked or not. So comfortable I leave them in my ears all day long, even through lunch breaks.

I've worn them for about 4 to 5 years.

We sell SG in the LRH Store CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE.

View attachment 99470
Click to expand...

I would recommend these braked rifle or not. I also have some hearing loss from shooting as tests have shown left ear worse than right being right handed. I'm a Veteran of five years followed by 20 years as a state trooper so many rounds down range. I use a Walkers Game ear, one of the old original ones and it has helped. I have never owed a rifle with a "for real " break but have owned a couple of Browning Abolts with BOSS systems. The game ear works but these look waaaayyyy more comfy and user friendly.
 
="Canhunter35, post: 1449972, member: 101677"]I believe it. I just bought a cz455 (22lr)varmint and it showed up with a muzzle brake, surprised me and the guy selling it to me, so I took it out, unscoped and shot it. It is quieter than without the brake, now it hisses instead of pops. I came back and told him that and he ordered one for himself. Lol
Click to expand...

OF COURSE a DB meter will say it is quieter to the sides than out the front! THAT is how BAD it is out the front without the brake. We are talking about PERCEIVED sound to the person BEHIND or TO THE SIDES of the brake. Without the brake all of the sound goes forward, the air pressure goes away from the shooter, of course it goes out to the sides after it leaves the barrel. With a brake, the concussion goes toward the shooter! That's how a brake works. I don't need a meter to tell me that! Common sense. If the bystander is an inch in front of a muzzle (to the side of course) that total sound HAS to be louder than a brake which distributes the blast in multiple directions.
If a tree falls in the woods and there is nobody there to hear it, does it make a sound?!

Also, with a .22LR you have to consider the sound of the sonic Boom which is part of the loud sound! At sea level it needs to be moving at 1127 fps to break the barrier, and at higher elevations say 2000 feet and up it will break the barrier at about 1116.4 feet per second. .22LR can be subsonic or supersonic when they leave the barrel, depending upon the load and the length of barrel and tightness of the bore, etc. Also, if it is windy out, this could affect the perceived air pressure. Humidity also affects the air pressure and perceived sound.

If THOSE BRAKES are making the sound quieter then they have surpressor features which may or may not be legal. They may also not be as effective as louder brakes. I think we need more information on those. Just saying they are quieter than other brakes does not tell the whole story. I shoot a modified Lantac Dragon brake and they are unbelievably effective. Not quiet, but not the loudest either, but it doesn't matter if they were half the sound I'd still need to wear hearing protection. Arguably, the Jerry Miculek brakes for $35 were proven to have the least rearward recoil of 40 or 50 brakes tested in more than onbe test. They are just a little Goofy looking for my Varmint rifles. We have had brakes on Tanks for as long as there have been tanks. I think the military figured out a looong time ago what works!.
 
I like the recoil on my hunting guns personal preference. How do you guys keep water out of your barrel with a brake? Tape? water ballon? Glove? condom? I use electrical tape on mine but only have to worry about the muzzle.
 
Joefrazell said:
I like the recoil on my hunting guns personal preference. How do you guys keep water out of your barrel with a brake? Tape? water ballon? Glove? condom? I use electrical tape on mine but only have to worry about the muzzle.
Click to expand...

When it's raining I intentionally hold the muzzle down. The rest of the time it is pretty much horizontal.
 
Joefrazell said:
I like the recoil on my hunting guns personal preference. How do you guys keep water out of your barrel with a brake? Tape? water ballon? Glove? condom? I use electrical tape on mine but only have to worry about the muzzle.
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Conversely with a muzzle brake you do not have to worry about ever damaging the rifling on ur barrels crown.:)
 
I brake everything I have bigger than a 243.. Love them! Makes shooting so much more enjoyable but I do use electronic muffs. I try to use just plugs when hunting but sometimes things happen pretty fast and hard to get them in. Will try some other options this year to see if can deal with them during the hunt
 
Slim13 said:
OK....talk to me people. Interested in hearing from those that hunt with muzzle brakes.

I wore out my heavy barrel on my 7mm Rem Mag. I ended up putting a #3 bartlein on it because I was tired of lugging a 15lb rifle into the backcountry. I'm not recoil sensitive in the least, but with the missing weight in the barrel I'm fighting some muzzle jump that I've never had to deal with before.

I'm thinking about putting a brake on her to help manage the recoil and get the gun to track better. My question is: Have any of you regretted doing it? What kind of hearing protection are you using while hunting?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts, advice and opinions. I've never had a braked rifle before and I keep going back and forth on the idea.
Click to expand...
I use the walker electronic muffs so that I can hear clearly and remain fully protected. The best thing ever invented for Large Magnum calibers is the muzzle break....but forget your Muffs or Ear plugs.....and be ready to say "WHAT?" for the next few days
 
Slim13 said:
OK....talk to me people. Interested in hearing from those that hunt with muzzle brakes.

I wore out my heavy barrel on my 7mm Rem Mag. I ended up putting a #3 bartlein on it because I was tired of lugging a 15lb rifle into the backcountry. I'm not recoil sensitive in the least, but with the missing weight in the barrel I'm fighting some muzzle jump that I've never had to deal with before.

I'm thinking about putting a brake on her to help manage the recoil and get the gun to track better. My question is: Have any of you regretted doing it? What kind of hearing protection are you using while hunting?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts, advice and opinions. I've never had a braked rifle before and I keep going back and forth on the idea.
Click to expand...
Really the only place I use a brake is for hunting in case I need a quick followup shot in a hard hitting magnum. That said I have never bought one only have them on rifles that came with them from the factory. Few sanctioned competitions allow them and it is just poor taste to run one at the range.

I have no idea how anyone can hear anything while out hunting with hearing protection on for what will likely be less than 3 shots. Now when plinking or target shooting hearing protection is a must.
 
Oh to add to my previous response I often find myself in vegetation and I almost always stalk in as close as I can get. So the follow up shot being quick and on target as soon as possible is very important me. I like to always kill quickly and humanly. A muzzle break has help with that for me when hunting. It can be just as useful and shooting sticks in the right situation. No perfect answer though that is for sure!
 
johnlittletree said:
Really the only place I use a brake is for hunting in case I need a quick followup shot in a hard hitting magnum. That said I have never bought one only have them on rifles that came with them from the factory. Few sanctioned competitions allow them and it is just poor taste to run one at the range.

I have no idea how anyone can hear anything while out hunting with hearing protection on for what will likely be less than 3 shots. Now when plinking or target shooting hearing protection is a must.
Click to expand...

I think you need to read the thread again. The guys posting for ear muffs are pushing electronic hearing enhancer/protection. Some guys are suggesting electronic ear plugs.

This thread reminds me of thirty years ago when I introduced mandatory eye protection in a wood working plant. They didn't care enough about their sight to cooperate without the ultimatum: I'm boss and you will do it or you don't work here. Chips in the eye trips to the emergency room just didn't happen any more. One man's sight was saved when a piece of wood came out of a machine and literally ripped a hole in his polycarbonate lens directly in line with his pupil. I went home and brought back a ten pump pellet gun and tried to make a hole in the other side. Never happened. The salesman took the goggles on tour to all his customers.

Gentlemen, save your hearing.
 
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