Seems like everytime someone mentions a brake, a thousand other guys start complaining about them. Now I know they aren't pleasant to listen to, or stand next to, but they do what they are supposed to. It seems to me that practicing with a braked big bore (wearing ear protection, of course) would keep people from flinching or developing bad shooting habits because of heavy recoil. I would never hunt with one because my hearing is too important, but I am quite fond of a brake when practicing or plinking. I don't shoot at ranges I can just step outside, but last week I went to the range with a friend who just bought a 378 with brake. He was treated like the anti christ when he pulled that thing out, of the other 8 people that were there 2 wore ear muffs. Seems the others don't think an unbraked gun will damage hearing.
While I haven't much experience with braked rifles I've practiced a lot over the years with regular rifles. I always wear *both* ear-plugs (soft-foam) and ear-muffs. I have shot quite a few rounds while hunting (and some for fun in my youth) without protection and now have a slight loss of hearing in my left ear
If you have a brake you always run the risk of damaging your-self or someone else by chance! (Someone forgets to wear protection or you forget to remove the brake). On the other hand I've heard that some brakes aren't as loud as other, for example Mag-Na-Port.
Posts: 544 | Location: Sweden | Registered: 27 October 2001
Muzzle brakes won't do anything that MAGA-NA-PORT won't do as well, with less noise. I have three rifles that were braked, one by drilling the end of the barrel it's self, and two fitted with brakes on the end of the barrel. All three were removed, barrel re-crowned, and MAGA-NA-PORTED, and nothing changed except the noise level, and they no longer are BUTT UGLY as they were when I bought them.
These rifles shoot the same way in the field, as they do at the range, and look like rifles instead of wooden handled, torque wrenches! But that is simply my taste in rifles, and isn't cause for anyone else to not like the way they look. The recoil is the same with the MAGA-NA-PORT, as it was with the brakes. So, to me, the value of the brake is not justified, considering the extra 3" of barrel that does nothing better than MAGA-NA-PORT but make the barrel longer, and increase the noise. Just my.02 cents
------------------ ..Mac >>>===(x)===> also DUGABOY1 DUGABOY DESIGNS Collector/trader of fine double rifles, and African wildlife art
Posts: 14634 | Location: TEXAS | Registered: 08 June 2000
I shoot some big bores and I have no problem with brakes..Mine are detachable with a thread protector...
Forget that garbage about brakes making you deaf, rifles will make you deaf with or without a brake..You should never shoot without ear protection except when hunting and thats the trade off..that is, people who hunt a lot usually end up with hearing problems, ask any Law Enforcement person, they also have hearing problems...
As to making the guy next to you deaf, that can certainly happen with or without a brake and anyone who fires a gun with someone standing next to him and a little forward with no warning should be stringhaltered and gil flurted.
At least with a brake on your gun, experienced people will have since enough to give you a lot of room and I like that concept....
I have noticed that clients with brakes on their rifles shoot better on the whole. The don't flinch.
The brakes made by George Vais will not make you an outcast at any range...I guarantee that if you put one of his brakes on your .300 WinMag it will be quieter than any .300 Weatherby or .30/378 Weatherby WITHOUT a brake that you ever heard.
Posts: 4360 | Location: Sunny Southern California | Registered: 22 May 2002
Some brakes work better than others. It is important for the brake to be close to bore diameter or it won't work.
When I shot my kudu, there were 2 trackers ahead of me. They laid flat on the ground and I shot offhand. One was almost under the brake on the 470 and the other was 3 feet ahead of the end of the muzzle. They said it was loud.
Posts: 18352 | Location: Salt Lake City, Utah USA | Registered: 20 April 2002
I've installed a few Vais brakes and they are definately not as loud as some other brakes. They have a very clever design that routes a jet of gas accross the ports, creating a vortex which breaks up the gas flow and noise.
The loudest brake I've installed is the KDF, conversely they are the most efficient.
Posts: 1551 | Location: North Texas | Registered: 11 February 2001
Do you guys have any experiences with gentry quiet muzzle brakes? Are those any less damaging to the ears? I read from their website that they can reduce recoil by up to 80 percent.
Posts: 1282 | Location: here | Registered: 26 January 2002
Cool guy, I don't have any experience with Gentrys, the only braked gun I have is a 10lb Ruger 1 chambered for 500 Jeff. A gentleman on this forum, goes by the name of "Bearclaw", built it for me. It is a copy of the KDF, and it works great. He did an excellent job and I highly recommend him. I had no more sent it to him and he had one turned out and a picture emailed to me, when I got it back it looked great on the gun. I will admit it is very noisy, but I really don't care, can you imagine a 10lb 500 Jeff, without a brake?? Last week I loaded up two rounds (535 gr sp's at 2450 fps) fired one with brake and it had very little muzzle jump, just a straight, hard kick. The next one I unscrewed the brake and fired it. To make a long story short I have a deep gash in my right nostril and a black right eye, and a very sore shoulder! I can stoke the fire up to 2600 fps with this rifle and with the brake it's about like a fully loaded 460 WBY. I don't have the guts to try it without the brake.
Like Ray always says , You spit your dip out before you shoot this one!
PC, Without getting it out of the safe and looking, I think my brake is about 4 in long overall. Are you thinking of using the last three inches of barrel to cut into a brake or are you going to have a seperate one threaded on? I like the ability to unscrew it and not have to listen to it. Brakes are not the same as porting, if I remember correctly "porting" is where holes are cut in the top of the barrel, to reduce muzzle jump and a brake has holes all around. Another thing I have noticed is the bulk of the noise seems to echo off the ground and back up to me. It will also kick up one heck of a dustcloud if you are too close to the dirt.
Todd.....if you are shooting prarie dogs etc on your own the muzzle jump will keep you from spotting your own misses (I do miss once in awhile when the range gets out there) and if you get a good hit muzzle jump can keep you from seeing the results. I've got an 11 pound .22BR with a Vais brake and I love the show when it goes off.
Posts: 4360 | Location: Sunny Southern California | Registered: 22 May 2002
Sooner my friend and I (who is also building a .585) are planning on a 26" tube with three inches of break threaded on, it will be removeable and a thread cap will be able to be placed over the thread. We were thinking of a 24" tube but we want to burn most of the powder and we can always go shorter if we find the need but it is pretty hard to add length back on
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Posts: 7505 | Location: Australia | Registered: 22 May 2002
I had a friend who had a very heavy 223 loaded with 40 gr. Bal tips and it had a big brake and a big 16X scope on it..I shot a rockchuck with it and WOW, that chuck puffed up like a baloon and popped, I went into plasmic shock......I saw the whole thang!!!
For the record as I understand it... A Magna ported barrel will take the lift out of the recoil and push the rifle back to the shoulder, in other bring all the recoil backwards and some folks like this....a KDF or one of its type will take both the lift and rearward recoil out of the gun...From the ones I have shot I believe this is a fair analysis. The magna ported barrels are much more pleasing to the eye, the KDF's are more effective but plain butt ugly...
Sooner you get to try that thing on any bison lately?
------------------ NRA Life member
Posts: 8351 | Location: Jennings Louisiana, Arkansas by way of Alabama by way of South Carloina by way of County Antrim Irland by way of Lanarkshire Scotland. | Registered: 02 November 2001
Bearclaw, No I haven't, so far he's pretty well kept them contained. He's almost out of hay though and those critters are eye-ballin' my wheat!!! Im sittin on go! He's got a big nasty one that I would love to cristen that 500 on.
I will have a chance to test a few more loads tomorrow, I'll give you a shout and let you know how it goes.
BTW that brake is awesome, I couldn't manage without it.
Ray, I understand "stringhalt". As for brakes I had one 30.06 with one-a KDF. It as wonderful to reduce recoil but it made a shockwave that would blow your glasses off. The noise was unbearable even with earmuffs. I sold it and never had another. My Bwana Companion has a Mag na Ported 416 and it's not bad.
Posts: 1275 | Location: Fla | Registered: 16 March 2001
I have to agree with Ray, if you fire an unbraked rifle without hearing protection you will suffer hearing loss. I would not fire any rifle braked or unbraked without hearing protection period. As for magna porting it will help tame muzzle jump but it does next to nothing to tame felt recoil especially on a hard kicking big bore. If anyone thinks magna porting tames felt recoil as good a muzzle brake try magna porting a 460 wby. and see how much recoil reduction you get.
I have very limited experience with braked rifles of varying calibers. I own 2 braked rifles,375 H&H and 450 Ackley. This statement only pertains to my rifles and is my opinion and my son's, we can not tell a great noise difference with or without the brakes. My guess is we have shot 200 rounds in the 375 without the brake and 800 or so with the brake with the 450 I guess 50 without and 450 shot with the brake. There may be some noise difference but it is not tremendous.
Mike
Posts: 1879 | Location: Prairieville,Louisiana, USA | Registered: 09 October 2001
I like brakes, because they work. I will install the Weatherby Accubrake if the rifle I am going to shoot for myself has none. It is one of the cheapest and best. My rifles above .300 win mag have brakes. I shoot 1500 plus shots per year, 95% of which are magnums. All shooters should wear hearing protection, even in the field you can cover the ears at the moment of the shot. I shoot on my private bench, therefore I don't have to listen to the guy that shoots once or twice a year and has no hearing protection and little reasoning ability. Every shot fired on my bench has the warning, "FIRE IN THE HOLE" before each shot. Ray, I too would like to know what "Gil Flurted" means. Good shooting.
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[This message has been edited by phurley (edited 02-22-2002).]
I have found that when using a brake, it is advantageous to select a fast burning powder so that more of the powder is burned before the bullet reaches the brake. For example, I have found a braked .338 burning H4831 is a lot louder than a braked .375 burning IMR4064.
Posts: 18352 | Location: Salt Lake City, Utah USA | Registered: 20 April 2002
OK all you seekers of truth and of poor vocabulary:
Gil Flurted: When one gets his cod of purse split and his leg run through the slit..very uncomfortable but duly appropriate for some. A West Texas remedy for ignorant cowboys, makes it hard to ride all day..
Thanks for the warning Sooner. I was thinking of taking the brake off of my 500 Jeffery until I read your post. Mine only weighs 9 pounds 14 oz. I don't think it kicks too aweful bad though. Of course I have only been shooting 440s through it. I just loaded up some 570s that I hope to try out this weekend!
Kent
Posts: 116 | Location: Cleves, IA | Registered: 14 July 2003
Good luck Kent, You should try it, it's not that it kicks "too" hard, it just more or less caught me by surprise. The rifle slipped out of my forehand and off my shoulder, which in effect woke me the hell up! My rifle weighs 10 lbs with a mercury tube, it will weigh just about 9lbs without. Thats lighter than I wanted but when you drill a half inch hole through a barrel it just don't leave much metal for weight.
that some brakes aren't as loud as other, for example Mag-Na-Port.