Folks, it has nothing to do with the calibers you shoot, but the AMOUNT you shoot, whether it is hearing or recoil sensitivity!

Example, sighting in three of my rifles, a .300 Weatherby, a .340 Weatherby and a .375 H&H.

Muzzle blast from the two Weatherby's and the snappy recoil was about my limit after 10 rounds from either from the bench.

20 rounds from the bench with the.375 was no problem.

Never liked them, had a 460 Weatherby once , one of the early German Mak V's . Had a brake on it that made is a joy to shoot but hell for anyone around !

Then I bought two Ruger Guide guns, one in a 338 Win and the other a 416 Ruger ! Won't shoot them without their brakes ! I absolutely love the brake on the 416 ! Makes the 416 a pussycat to shoot off the bench !

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

20 rounds from the bench with the.375 was no problem.

Try one of the German or Jap light barrel 378s. The US made have the heavier barrel, same contour as the 416 and Accumarks but without the fluting.

No Mike, the .340 Weatherby, while a great caliber was the upper limit of my recoil threshold, my .375 H&H isn't.

Why shoot something that is uncomfortable to shoot?

Whether it is recoil or muzzle blast, WHY shoot something that you dread pulling the trigger on??????

That is dumb as hell and proves nothing to anyone! For my own hunting and anyone I am guiding, I do not want anyone shooting something they are afraid of when it goes BANG!!!!

Lot's of interesting and strong opinions here. LOL I think what I will do is do my initial zeroing with the muzzle brake and once I am happy, I'll replace it with the thread protector and do a final sight in.

Thanks.

BH63

One or the things I found with muzzle brakes is they seem to disguise (probably wrong word) for the first few shots. By that I mean for the fist couple of shots or so the recoil seems much less than what it is after more shots.

For example, a 460 Wby with the old Pendleton Dekicker for a couple of shots seemed a fair bit less than a 458 M70. However, after a few shots it felt much heavier than the unbraked 458.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

Whether it is recoil or muzzle blast, WHY shoot something that you dread pulling the trigger on??????

Personally they did not worry me. However, you eventually pay the price with neck and back. I was able to shoot a 375 H&H all day from the bench. My comment to was on the basis you said 20 375 H&Hs was enough and on that basis the light barreled 378s would be an almost out of this world experience.

Being able shoot a big kicker a real lot without problems is not a toughness things etc., it is just a matter of how you are built etc. A first grade footballer might find a 300 Wby unbearable.

quote:

Originally posted by BuffHunter63:
Lot's of interesting and strong opinions here. LOL I think what I will do is do my initial zeroing with the muzzle brake and once I am happy, I'll replace it with the thread protector and do a final sight in.

Thanks.


BH63

This!!! memtb

Another way of reducing recoil is by using a suppressor. May not be an acceptable choice for your hunting rifle but it will both reduce sound and recoil.

quote:

Originally posted by xausa:
Muzzle brake? I don't need no stinking muzzle brake!

If you need a muzzle brake, you're shooting too much gun.

When I ordered ny custom .458Win, I got asked by the smith about the brake...and the answer was NO WAY!

Who needs a brake when hunting?

You may hunt with them if you like, but they are hell at the range. I lost my spotting scope to a 7mm Dakota two benches down.

I now avoid them at the range like the plague.

quote:

Originally posted by rodell:
You may hunt with them if you like, but they are hell at the range. I lost my spotting scope to a 7mm Dakota two benches down.

I now avoid them at the range like the plague.

Your range must have some mighty close benches.

I get a kick out of the nay sayers repeating each other most of which never used one..but the day is coming when all guns will come with a brake and perhaps ear protection..

I hated them for years because I was supposed to, then I traded for a big gun with one..It was so nice at the range, and when I hunted I took it off..It helped me get used to recoil and not to flinch..and eventually I quit using them, the later I returned to using one in the Ruger African model and low and behold it soothed the 84 year old body, I even hunt with one on the gun now..

I carry some ear plugs for the whiners that haven't yet leaned what God gave the fingers for..TO put in yours ears son!!

BTW the fabled PH or outfitter who professed you can't hunt with me with a brake, went broke and is selling shoes at Sears, in Johannesburg I hear...

Id rather have a hunter with a brake and no flinch than macho man with no brake and a gut shot buffalo.

This brake thing is just BS imo..the result of yellow journalism, and passed on down BS by word of mouth...Give me a Lott with a brake and I'll shoot circles around most without one..

Every year you will see more and more Alaskan shut ins with a brake on their rifle. They live amongst the bad ones..

quote:

Originally posted by buffybr:

Your range must have some mighty close benches.

On ranges something a bit different with muzzle brakes. A big range outside Sydney had to install like an over hand from the roof over the benches. This was a safety requitement that came in to stop anyone elevation a rifle to shoot. Maybe about 15 or 20 feet behind the benches was a shed where people reloaded, by food etc.

The braked rifle was best of all. Much better in the shed when someone like was letting a 378 go and from a bench directly in front of the shed and also for next to me. Reason, the gases diverting sideways meant not much of them hit the over hang in front of the muzzle.

I won't hunt with anyone (if they're going to be close) or have a guide that uses a muzzle brake. I've kept my hearing for too long to lose it to someone who has too much gun for them to handle without it.

I'm not a recoil Wuss but I did have some issues with my 375 H7H when I first got it..

I thought about a brake, but decided to try a recoil reducer in the stock first.. That was more than enough for me.

I'd recommend trying a recoil reducer before going to an obnoxious brake.

^
The Ruger Guide Gun came with a detachable muzzle brake.

I shoot my .416 Rem Mag just fine without any recoil suppressors. It is a Winchester Safari Express.

I do think that detached retinas are a real risk, especially as you get older.

BH63

Detached retnas come from recoil not noise, so there ya go, the brake saves your eyes and ear plugs and fingers save your ears...Do you guy really think that a 300 Wby or a 222 won't kill off your hearing! It pretty much did mine without brakes, the didn't exist in my early days or rather nocody used them or even gave them much thought, and the ones they had like the Pendleton didn't seem to work all that well...All of old geezers of the shooting world are deaf to one degree or another and big bore shooter have Bursitas in the neck and shoulders.

Our range seldom has two people on it at the same time, but if I went to a crowded range I would make a decision on using it based on the circumstances, and if not Id go to the desert and take a target with me, my ear protection and set about my business..

For heavens sake, one has to have some degree of intelligence to use one in public or as to those around him, with or without a brake. and if you really belive an 06 or a 222 doesn't require the same degree of proper use as to noise, then stay home..

I can find no down side to a brake if used properly, or a rifle without with or without one. Its all BS or ignorance...

Atkinson,

OK, you convinced me!
I am getting my tongue out of my cheek, especially when shooting.

Now I want a muzzle brake on everything.
Especially this .458 WIN LongCOL that shoots like a .22-250 now, recoil-wise, and almost trajectory-wise:



350-grain TSX at 2800 fps
450-grain TSX at 2450 fps
500-grain TSX at +2300 fps

Nothing wrong with hearing aids of various sorts, muffs or plugs or both, as needed.

Rip ...

This thing about various sorts of muzzle brakes, one being superior to another, is pretty much hogwash.

As long as the brake has the bullet-exit hole (muzzle end of rifle) no bigger than 0.020" over bullet diameter,
and "some" gas-exit holes on the sides of the brake (gas ported 90-degrees to bullet travel),
then the brake is going to be effective.

The rest is hype.



My .458 WIN brake has a muzzle exit hole of 0.475" diameter,
best I can tell with my caliper.
It is very effective.
I was so shocked when I first shot it that I thought I was shooting a BB gun.
This was with 350-grainers at 2806 fps MV.
OK.
I exaggerated a wee bit.
It was more like a .22-250.

Rip ...

From a guides standpoint I hate them. On fall brown bear and forest moose hunting it's like being in a blast chamber,often we are very close to bears and I like to see what the hunter see's and where the bear is hit. At the range they are fine but in the field they are rude.

I'm with Alf on this topic.

I have a pair of Ruger Guide Guns in 375 and
416. The brakes make them pussycats off the bench
and very easy to manage off the sticks.

Like having option being able to easily remove it.

Ive graduated to the brake, but a bit late, My hearing was ruined by unbraked guns..I get a kick out of a guide or professional that whines about a brake, like he thinks and unbraked rifle won't ruin his hearing, wake up boys get real...guns are loud..and they make ear plugs with a string on them for $1.50..use them in the field they work well enoght with both braked and unbraked rifles....

Muzzle brakes are for lazy hunters, the bench rest crowd, and Sunday afternoon Fuddleys.

Real hunters and marksmen don't need them, have never needed them, and in fact many hunting outfits - here and in Africa - have banned braked rifles for the auditory-damaging devices they are.

That you might get a 'warm & fluffy glow' over shooting a particular cartridge but require a MB to do so without emitting a girly scream, merely indicates the need to step down a caliber or three from your current chambering. It doesn't mean you're a homo. It's just more realistic for what you can actually shoot.

If an expert hunter like Elmer Keith never used a braked rifle, why should you?

The rest of us - who love the sounds of the outdoors - would rather keep our current level of hearing.

Finally got around to sighting in my Ruger .375.

What a pleasant surprise!

There was no recoil at all to speak of. More like a playful push.

Once I got the bullets on paper at 25 yds (I forgot to bring my laser borsight, it took 7 shots!).

I sighted it in at 50 yds and after one minor scope adjustment I was dead center on the bullseye.

I sighted in using .270 gr Hornady SP-RPs, and after the first bulleye, I switched to a Swift .300 gr A-frame.

That shot just widened the bullseye hole just slightly!

I shot 9 rounds total and had absolutely no physical effects from shooting the rifle off the bench.

When I shoot my .416 Rem Mag off the bench, even though it is a much heavier rifle than the Ruger Guide Gun, I get a headache after about 7 or 8 rounds and my shoulder starts getting a little tender.

I decided to just leave the muzzle brake on, since I am only going to use the rifle for black bear over bait and I will just stuff soft ear plugs in while on stand.

Absolutely amazing how well this muzzle brake works!

The biggest difference I experienced between benchrest shooting the .416 and the .375 with muzzle brake, is that I don't have to concentrate as hard with the .375.

I regularly hit the bullseye at 100yd with the .416 Rem Mag on my first shot, but I have to concentrate more.

With the .375 and the muzzle brake, I can squeeze off the shots fairly quickly without any degradation on accuracy.

However, as all hunters know, when shooting at game, you never feel recoil, regardless of what your are shooting (at least in my experience).

BH63

Quote: However, as all hunters know, when shooting at game, you never feel recoil, regardless of what your are shooting (at least in my experience).


My wife has made that comment many times.... to those making a remark about her shooting a 338WM. memtb

Muzzle brake tests and slo motion. Lots of difference in brake performance-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...ue=341&v=cpkhjzFF8Yw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...ue=243&v=_W4HviShfEs

Hydell, your such a little stud muffin!!

quote:

Originally posted by 86thecat:
Muzzle brake tests and slo motion. Lots of difference in brake performance-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...ue=341&v=cpkhjzFF8Yw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...ue=243&v=_W4HviShfEs

Very interesting, thanks.
So, do not control muzzle rise with unopposed top ports.
Got it.

Rip ...

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
Ive graduated to the brake, but a bit late, My hearing was ruined by unbraked guns..I get a kick out of a guide or professional that whines about a brake, like he thinks and unbraked rifle won't ruin his hearing, wake up boys get real...guns are loud..and they make ear plugs with a string on them for $1.50..use them in the field they work well enoght with both braked and unbraked rifles....

Ray Quite a bit of hunting in Alaska involves listening for splash's in the stream and the tick of an antler on brush,,my opinion,, nothing more.
As far as AJ he has been on ignore from about his 2nd post on here!

My .30'06 BSA Imperial Featherweight came with a muzzle brake from the factory. It was made in 1957...

BSA made a slide-on cover for the muzzle as an option, to block the brake ports. Presumably it was for indoor rangers or shooters who didn't care for the brake blast.

I thought 1957 was pretty early for a brake, but after a bit of searching I found Colt offered a variant of the BAR called the "Monitor" back in 1932 with a factory-installed "Cutts Compensator" brake.

Nowadays, for some unknown reason, if it's on a rifle it's a "brake", but if it's on a pistol it's a "compensator."

quote:

Originally posted by A.J. Hydell:
Muzzle brakes are for lazy hunters, the bench rest crowd, and Sunday afternoon Fuddleys.

Real hunters and marksmen don't need them, have never needed them, and in fact many hunting outfits - here and in Africa - have banned braked rifles for the auditory-damaging devices they are.

That you might get a 'warm & fluffy glow' over shooting a particular cartridge but require a MB to do so without emitting a girly scream, merely indicates the need to step down a caliber or three from your current chambering. It doesn't mean you're a homo. It's just more realistic for what you can actually shoot.

If an expert hunter like Elmer Keith never used a braked rifle, why should you?

The rest of us - who love the sounds of the outdoors - would rather keep our current level of hearing.

Automobiles and planes are not need, they are for city slickers that are too pansy assed the walk or ride a horses.

Waterat,
Your correct and I wear my corks on a string while hunting, If I have time I will have them handy around my neck to slip them on,if not I do what I did for years, just take the shot...Like I said one has to use his head when hunting or shooting, be polite to your hunting partner, give him a set of the string/corks, they cost very little..I have enven unscrewed my brake when time allowed for my hunting partner, or left it in camp under some circumstances, but I have the option and I will determine its use, I think that's the answer to all these non issues.. If someone set off a blast in my ears, and they have with non braked guns there is hell to pay and someone gets a cussing like they were a red headed stepchild!

I've never really been a fan of them. The range I go to is usually fairly busy, and I found I was always taking the brake off the 375, so while it was at the shop I had it cut down and turned into a thread protector (never had one from the factory). For the range I can see a use for them, but not when there's other people around. For hunting I never use the brake, because I rarely wear plugs or muffs.

I will not have a muzzle brake on my own guns. I think it is rude to use one around others who are trying to do some serious shooting. If you can't handle the recoil use a smaller gun.
Just my opinion.
Dave

quote:

Originally posted by crf:
I will not have a muzzle brake on my own guns. I think it is rude to use one around others who are trying to do some serious shooting. If you can't handle the recoil use a smaller gun.
Just my opinion. Dave

Well said.

I sometimes use brakes on big-kickers when practicing. I use them because they work.

I also use double hearing protection when practicing, meaning plugs and muffs. All else being equal, a braked rifle is MUCH louder than a non-braked rifle. I use double hearing protection whether I'm using a braked rifle or a non-braked rifle, because so many others are using brakes on their rifles these days.

So far, I have never used hearing protection when hunting. That may change going forward, as I suffer some hearing loss in my left ear. But even if I did use electronic ear plugs when hunting (the ones that enhance faint sounds, and block loud ones), I still would not use a braked rifle.

When hunting African game there are always trackers and a PH to consider, and I have too much respect for them to risk increasing the damage to their hearing by using a brake.

quote:

Originally posted by Michael Robinson:
I sometimes use brakes on big-kickers when practicing. I use them because they work.

I also use double hearing protection when practicing, meaning plugs and muffs. All else being equal, a braked rifle is MUCH louder than a non-braked rifle. I use double hearing protection whether I'm using a braked rifle or a non-braked rifle, because so many others are using brakes on their rifles these days.

So far, I have never used hearing protection when hunting. That may change going forward, as I suffer some hearing loss in my left ear. But even if I did use electronic ear plugs when hunting (the ones that enhance faint sounds, and block loud ones), I still would not use a braked rifle.

When hunting African game there are always trackers and a PH to consider, and I have too much respect for them to risk increasing the damage to their hearing by using a brake.

I am sure that the above is what most of us would say if honest about the subject,
including the part about being more deaf in the left ear, for right-handed rifle and shotgun shooters.

Rip ...

quote:

Originally posted by crf:
I will not have a muzzle brake on my own guns. I think it is rude to use one around others who are trying to do some serious shooting. If you can't handle the recoil use a smaller gun.
Just my opinion.
Dave

No it’s not rude, muzzle brakes work and make shooting accurately much easier.

I am not a fan of muzzle brakes. However, with that being said, I have 2 or 3 rifles with them. Those rifles already had the brakes on them when I purchased them, and all are removable, with replacement caps or, in the case of the Brownings, the solid BOSS piece. I do know that most of my African PHs are definitely not fond of them.