How many muzzle brakes are there in market? What do they cost and wich of them is most effective? I have heard that weatherbys accubrake will take awa 52 % of the recoil. Is this true?

Thanks!
//Overkill

Overkill, it sometimes seems to me that there are more muzzle brakes out there than leaves on a big tree.

But I've only used two:

(1) the Answer Products muzzle brake, made by Sam Johnson in Davison, MI, USA which really works great at reducing recoil; and

(2) the AHR (American Hunting Rifles, Inc.) X-Brake, made by Ed Plummer in Hamilton, MT, USA, which also really works (although perhaps not quite as well) but has the offsetting advantage of being quieter, since none of the gases are vented out to the sides.

Here are links to the websites:

Answer Products

American Hunting Rifles

By the way, there are some nice photos of my engraved .458 Lott AHR Safari 550 DGR on the engraving page of the AHR website.

These brakes both go for less than US$200 installed, and for an additional 50 bucks or so, you can get a screw-on cap to protect the muzzle threads when the brakes are removed for field use. (I only use them at the bench.)

Hope that's helpful.

Most any gunsmith worth his salt can whittle out a muzzle brake and they all work the same, no magic, but a lot of hype out there..the bigger the brake the better it works, the louder the muzzle blast the more recoil reduction, all simple despersion of gase and heading them in different directions....

Go the middle road and just get one that is slim line or barrel diameter for $100 to $150 installed and don't buy the advertisment hype.

Overkill,
I have 2 Weatherbys equipped with the Accubrake. A .338-378, and a .460. This brake works well. My .338-378 has no worse recoil than my unbraked Remington 700 in .300 Win. Mag. The .460 is reduced to about the level of an unbraked .375 H&H. I personally like muzzle brakes. A lot of shooters don't, saying things like "shooters who use them are disrespectful to others at the range". Guns are loud. The bigger they are, the louder they are, and the more recoil they have. Muzzle brakes reduce this. They are here to stay, like them or not. Bill T.

Not sure about the wby accubrake but I know the pendelton dekicker on the weatherby's is pretty useless.
The 585 I had built had brakes by the two gunsmiths who worked on it.
The first a massive screw on tank style brake. and another 4 " long brake matching the lines of the thick barrel.

Lesson one-Don't build a tank brake for a 25" barrel.

And maybe 25% less recoil with the sensible brake.

I don't think I'll bother getting any hunting rifle braked again.

Karl.

Having observed and shot some muzzle brakes at the range my feelings are to avoid them on all but the largest calibers. Then I would avoid all but the largest calibers unless I really needed that power for dangerous game.

When someone starts shooting a rifle with a muzzle brake at our range I leave. If I have just got there then I put in both ear plugs and use muffs. To me muzzle brakes on rifles are an abomination. Again really heavy kickers of course can injure you from the recoil. I see the benefits there.

On top of that most of the shooters I see are shooting groups with the brake off and then putting it on for hunting!

The last M 70 that I just got came with the Boss and the brake and also the attachment that replaces it and is solid. I have no intention of using the brake. Of course the rifle is a nine lb 300 WM. The thing is that there are guys here shooting 16" semi auto Bushmasters with brakes. Good grief!

How many % of recoil can a good muzzel brake take away??

Well,no big brake experience here but I have a Sako TRG-S with the factory brake in 338 Lapua Mag. Not a "Big Bore",though but I post here anyway.

It feels like my lightweight .243 Tikka on bench,the muzzle does not even rise so I can see the impact right away without supporting it with my left hand.

No kidding,I am still surprised. I have the brake on all the time. Very nice - and loud. Hard to talk about percents.

Recoil is such a subjective thing,I am becoming immune to it because I shoot a lot all the time. Not necessarily a good thing,one starts breaking guns because of that. Experience here lol:

Petander,

Those pics bring back memories of my old G21 that I smoked with cast reloads. Learned the hard way to stay away from those (big chamber + leading = case rupture).

John

Well,this was just another experiment of mine. A 50% overload with Vihtavuori 3N37. Took almost ten minutes to repair. That�s where Glocks shine.

Out of topic badly but I shoot cast bullets with this old G22 all the time,no leading. I simply have no mercy for these tupperware things and after a few weeks with heavy 44 mag and 357 mag shooting the .40 felt like a .22 at max loads. 30 percent over is quite okay with slow powder...

-----BUT I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT!----

Excuse me getting out of topic,had to make this clear.

Pics from a test,not an accident.

Overkill,
If you go to Weatherbys website and click on accessories, they have a felt recoil comparision chart that tells you what percentage of recoil is effectivly removed by the Accubrake. Bill T.

I use good muzzel brakes on nearly everything I own (excepting english double rifles of course). I build my own essentially on the Vias design and they usually result in about a 40 - 50 percent recoil reduction with NO LOSS OF accuracy!I've hunted in Africa 6 times and have never had a PH complain"not even once" about the noise.I'd fire one in a second if he did! Who really cares anyway! When your actually hunting and shooting versus spending time at the range, Noise is really not a factor. RECOIL IS! A good brake cuts recoil to tolerable limits so why not use it! Most folks who complain about the "noise'" of a muzzel brake have not really had any real hunting experience(outside of the local range ). IMHO-Rob

I have had the opportunity to try LOTS of different brakes while assisting Dr. Taylor on the development of the .408 Cheyenne.
http://www.cheyennetactical.com/

The brake they settled on because it reduced the most recoil, and doesn't require a "trick" recoil pad was the brake made by Bruce McArthur in Clarkston, Mi.

John Ross("Unintended Consequences" author) did a test for the magazine "machine gun review" before it folded where he tested the brakes available side by side and for reduced recoil AND accuracy he chose the McArthur brake also.

I have them on my .340s and my .375H&H.
My 8 pound .375 I shoot offhand like a large pistol and the recoil is like a Model 19 with stiff loads.

What I like about the brakes is that without having to think about what happens at MY end when I pull the trigger, I can concentrate on what is going to happen at the other end.

TC Hunter Brake: works great on a 15" .45-70.
T/C Huner Brake: Reduces recoil on the .309 to the point the pistol hardly moves when shot.
SSK Brake: Also works great on a 12" .50 AK
I don't have any reference to compare the three above to as I have never shot them without the brakes.
KDF brake: Reduces recoil from the .416 Rigby to less than a 180 gr. .300 Wby. Allowed me to keep shooting it when my shoulder went south and allowed it time to heal. My load was a 325X at almost 3000 fps and it was absolutely brutal, on both ends.
Armalite AR-50: By far the most affective brake I have ever used, but completely out of the question on a hunting rifle of any caliber smaller than .50 BMG.