muzzle brake comparison

[Crazycooydog]

I am thinking of putting a brake on my 22-284 and was wondering which brake would be the quitest. I will be using it mostly for long range coyote hunting so it will have to be a varmint type brake. I think I have settled on the Holland gunsmit brake,it is sloted instead of holes.I don't realy want to have to remove it each time to clean the barrle.

How would it compare to ...say the Vias brake style,or opps inc.

Only really need about 35-40% recoil reduction.
Sound is the big issue.
Would a Edwards recoil reducer be better???
[ 03-02-2004: Message edited by: Crazycooydog ]

[ 03-02-2004: Message edited by: Crazycooydog ]

[ 03-02-2004: Message edited by: Crazycooydog ]

 

[Sako7STW]

When I started to look into brakes I was retedly told the Vias brake is the quietest. It would have the reduction your looking for. I ended up going with the KDF brake as it is supposed to be one of the most effective and I can atest that it made a world of difference on my STW.

Just curious why your worried about noise? Is it for the other shooters or for spooking game? There has been alot of talk on the various websites concerning this. IMHO when you add a brake the sound is directed out at a 90 deg or greater angle from the muzzle. This makes it seam louder to you and those to the sides of you. If your shooting under a canapy you will hear the report off of it as the sound has been directed that way as well. So what does that mean? Well I think that the sound is actually not as loud towards your game. Thats why I went with effectiveness over sound. I have experienced this with my brother shooting his gun with a brake and my dad shooting one without a brake during hunting. The 2 shot about five minutes apart and i was on the ridge over from them. There was a substanial difference between the braked gun VS the non-braked gun. Dad had shot once and my bro had shot twice.

I used to desighn professional car audio systems and got very good at the science of directing sound. I have considerd doing some tests on this and stuff but have no idea what good it would do me LOL.

just a few thoughts

 

[Guest]

I have both a Vais and a Holland and both are on 243Ai's , I can't realy tell which one reduces the recoil the most both work great abd have reduced the recoil to a slight bump in a 15lb gun.
Now as for noise , their both loud the Holland break seems to have a more pronounced high pitch crack where the Vais is just louder.

I have a Badger break on a 300Win mag that works very well also cuts recoil to by about 50% I guess , it actualy helped accuracy with VLD type bullets , I think that this is from the crown being cut at 0 deg and letting the gass out away from the bullet better ?? my next break will be an OPs , as they are suposed to work great and not be as loud.

 

[demarpaint]

Hello Varmint Hunter:


It's a good idea to remove the brake when you clean the barrel. Make sure you clean the brake and the threads. I use a tiny amount of Mobil 1 grease on the threads when I put it back on. The key word here is "tiny", so everything goes back together nice and comes apart again.

Crazycooydog you might want to have a look at S1's Anti-torque brake. You can email him for info, not only does it cut the recoil, it cuts down on the torque as well.
[email protected].

Frank D

[ 03-06-2004: Message edited by: demarpaint ]

 

[Varmint Hunter]

CoBrad,

I can not sit at a bench and shoot worth a crap when someone is firing a braked rifle (normally magnums) within SEVERAL benchs of mine. Apparently neither can anyone else because you rarely see anyone pick a bench anywhere near the brake guys unless the range is packed. Today there was plenty of room.

No flame here, and maybe I'm more sensative to blast and concussion than the next guy but brakes disturb me.

VH

 

[Crazycooydog]

#1.Sound.
I Don't wear ear protection at the range and never hunting coyotes.Yes I think it is better from a spoking the game stand point to have the sound at the gun and stay there. I don't shoot at the local range,we have our own range(A 3 section field)When I shoot the other guy moves back and when he shots I move back.

#2.Cleaning.
I thought you needed to remove the brake to clean the gun,as to make sure to keep all the cleaner and gunk out of the brake.

#3.Seeing the bullets.
I would like to see the bullet path as much as the bullet impact on the target,as I mostly hunt alone (no spotter).

The reasoning for only needing a bit of recoil reduction, is this gun is a switch barrle(22-250 and 22-284) and I really like the way my 22-250 FEELS,so by putting a brake on the 22-284 I hope they feel very close to the same.

The Vias is not an option,I normally shoot off a bi-pod hunting AND when practicing at the range.I need one that will not kick up dust or snow.

PS. Has anyone used a Edwards recoil reducer on a rifle.
I'm thinking it's not an option,as it would take away from balancing the two guns to feel the same.But may try it on another gun.

Thanks for the input guys.

[ 03-06-2004: Message edited by: Crazycooydog ]

 

[Varmint Hunter]

I can't imagine that it would make much difference. No matter which brake you choose you will still need to wear at least one set of hearing protectors. Some guys wear plugs AND muffs to salvage their hearing in the long run.

I would much rather deal with recoil than muzzle blast which is directed out at 90degs. The other shooters/hunters appreciate it too.

I have considered installing a brake on my varmint rigs many times. Mostly I just wanted to see ALL the hits. I recently came very close to ordering a Vais brake for my 6.5x284 which is currently being built, but once again, resisted the temptation. My groundhog huntin' buddies don't know how lucky they are.

Why would you have to remove the brake each time you clean the barrel?

VH

[ 03-06-2004: Message edited by: Varmint Hunter ]

 

[COBrad]

I'm a real fan of brakes. I have them on everything from my daughters 7-08 to my .300 jarrett. Very effective at reducing recoil. I'm considering putting one on my 22-250 so I can see hits. They're loud, but I always use plugs and muffs at the range, or 'doggin from the truck. Walking for chucks I carry a pair of plugs. I live with the one or two shots at big game if I don't have time to slip in my plugs. For me the slight inconvienence is far outweighed by the advantages I feel I get. I've never had any complaints at the range either.