Anyone like muzzle breaks on their hunting rifles?

[madcarpenter]

I was wondering what everyone's opinion on muzzle breaks on hunting rifles? Is the noise a far trade for the reduction of recoil? - madcarpenter

[rottie]

Hi madcarpenter, speaking from my own experience i will never put another muzzle break on a firearm again. I found it to be way tooooo noisy when actually hunting and not wearing any hearing protection. I traded off a real nice Sako .300 win mag because of it.
I try now to stay whithin my recoil tolerance,everbodies is different ofcourse.
Hope this helps

[Solothurn]

Nearly all of my rifles wear brakes, that being said I like big calibers like 338Lapua and 50BMG. Shooting 1 without a brake is crazy.

Most brakes are obnoxius for noise, but some designs are far better than others at shielding the blast from the shooter, this does nothing for the guy besdie you though. The brakes I build are less offensive than many, but you still have the concussion of the escaping gasses being redirected 2 feet from your nose, which accounts for a lot of the noise 1 hears as a shooter.

There is another option that I use for those who do not want the noise, a mercury filled suppressor inside the stock will take about 25 to 30% of the recoil away from the shoulder, not as effective as a brake, but no noise enhancement.

[MountainTi]

I have a .338 with a brake that I just bought off a friend, and I am going to get rid of it. Otherwise I don't have one on any of my other rifles. I know I sure don't like being around anybody else that is using one though. A buddy was using a .300 win. with a brake last year when he shot his antelope, and he still has ringing in his ear from it, pretty much permanent it looks like. He was shooting off a bipod, so being close to the ground probably had something to do with it, but regardless, they can be nasty things without ear protection.

[catnthehat]

I detest muzzle blast, from myself or someone else's rifle, and as far as brakes on pistols go, I shot the kid's 38 Super open gun for one stage last weekend - that'll NEVER happen again!! I'll keep my 625 wheel gun that you very much....
Cat

[07icanam]

I have a Browning A bolt 270 with the BOSS for my wife and it is sure nice to shoot at the range, we use plugs then throw a set of muffs over top. No noise what so ever. When we are done we screw on the CR and shoot it like a normal rifle. I shoot a 270 WSM mountain Ti and it would be nice to have the BOSS just for the range but in the field the recoil on all my rifles is non existant, with adrenaline pumping you don't feel it. If you get a rifle with a brake I would recomend one that can be switched back and forth. They will peel paint of a vehicle as well as break windshields. Never had it happen to me but have heard many stories, besides it is illegal to shoot from the vehicle anyways.

[7 REM MAG]

ive said it before and ill say it again, i refuse to hunt with people with muzzle brakes, i got "muzzle blasted" 4 times in africa by a 375 H&H in a 2 week period and my ears are screwed. I will never again hunt with a muzzle breaker

[Rackmastr]

I hate em....would NEVER have one on a hunting rifle of my own.....as I dont want permanant hearing damage....

I wont go as far to say I will never hunt with someone with one.....but I am very cautious about my hearing protection when around anyone with em.

When I was guiding, several hunters brought rifles with muzzlebreaks and my hatrid evolved from having them shoot in bad positions that ended up taking their toll on my ears....

[Chet]

I'm not a huge fan of them either and I would never put one on any of my < 35 cal rifles, however, I do plan to order a 416 Weatherby with one in the near future. I will never shoot that 416 without hearing protection. Anyone hunting with me better plug their ears when they see me settle that 416 on the shooting sticks to deal with that grouchy old Cape Buffalo.

Chet

[depopulator]

Muzzle brakes certainly have their application. For me, my long range rifles (300 RUM and 338 lapua) get shot more than any of the others and I have the brakes for obvious reasons. Further, under a LR hunting scenario, there is usually plenty of time to use hearing protection, and in this application, I want the brakes.

I have another 300 RUM that is a lightweight version for sheep and elk, and this one does not have a brake. Instead, it has a custom stock and LOP fit to me and a 1" pac decel pad, and I use a limbsaver thingy on my shoulder when at the range, and this all works superbly at mitigating recoil and I have no need for a brake with this set up. For field use, the recoil is not an issue. My other hunting rifles are sans brakes as well.

Unless you are shooting a big boomer, I would try and go without a brake. If not easier on your ears, your buddies will certainly appreciate it.

[Cappy]

I shoot a .338Lapua with a brake on it and the noise is pretty brutal. If you are outside the cone directly behind the rifle and anywhere close to it, the noise is obnoxious and it feels like getting a kick in the teeth. I couldn't see me ever putting one on a hunting rifle.

[Skinnydipper]

I would echo the comments of most of the others here. If the gun is large enough to warrant recoil suppression, then I would have a brake the is either removable or has the ability to be made inoperative (Browning Boss system).
I have a brake on a 300WM but will never use it in the field.......ever. I've hurt myself with it before so never again unless it's from the bench with adequate hearing protection.

[Dick284]

A couple of FYI's on Brakes:

In many instances even one shot without hearing protection when using a muzzle brake can cause irresversable hearing loss.

Some shooting ranges take a rather dim view of the use of muzzle brakes. If not the range specifically, then definatly anyone else using the range especially if it is covered, or the benches are fairly close to one another.

[depopulator]

I know what you mean D284. I love to take out my braked big boomers out to the range on a Saturday here when they're trying to shoot slow-fire rimfire competition or something. I'll set it up at one end and use the pressure from the brake to blow all their little Anschutz and CZ girlyman guns out of their hands. Just kidding !

Seriously though, I definitely pick my range time carefully to avoid the crowds when shooting the braked boomers.

[madcarpenter]

Thanks guys for the help! I guess everyone has the same opinion on brakes. I kinda thought the same thing but wasn't sure!!! - madcarpenter

[stand junkie]

Ive got one on a 300ultra (put on by dave henery) and I dont think it is to bad. I have shot it in the field hunting and down at the range with out plugs or muffes and it doesnt make me want to sell it. I also have a buddy that has one of the same brakes on a 7mmstw and thinks the world of it. I guess it depends on who you are

[Jester]

Originally Posted by stand junkie

Ive got one on a 300ultra (put on by dave henery) and I dont think it is to bad. I have shot it in the field hunting and down at the range with out plugs or muffes and it doesnt make me want to sell it. I also have a buddy that has one of the same brakes on a 7mmstw and thinks the world of it. I guess it depends on who you are

What did you say??

Speak up sonny.I can't hear you..lol...just joking ofcourse..

[Tundra Monkey]

You slay me Jester

I must be the only guy out there that likes the boss.....turned my 300 into a tack driver.........ear plugs are cheap........really cheap when they come from work

50-60 rounds at the range in a couple of hours at the range and you can still head to the beer league and make a throw.....pretty good deal actually.

tm

[Iron Brew]

This is a curiousity question, sort of on subject.

I heard that the British police are giving out permits for silencers under their health and safety rules, and that silencers are common (mandatory?) for parts of europe. Is there any chance of this happening in Canada? What about for our military, who have a severe occupational noise hazard? When you are in combat you can't exactly pull out the earplugs, and you need to be able to hear prior to firing. Given my ears, anything which helps would be really, really helpful. G'mt of course, probably doesn't realize it is just the "bang" which is suppressed (on supersonic rounds), not the bullets.

[magoonpointboy]

When I bought my A-Bolt composite in 7mm Rem Mag, (before such thing as the BOSS), the recoil was just too much to enjoy shooting. So a 'smith put a muzzle brake on it for me. I love it. It kicks less than a 30-30 now, and a pleasure to shoot. I hunt and shoot alone, so the discomfort for others around me is negligable. The report is loud, but it hasn't caused me any hearing damage. One or two shots a year at game without hearing protection isn't something I would worry about. Being able to select it on or off sounds good, but does it not affect POI, especially freehand?

[Dick284]

Originally Posted by magoonpointboy

When I bought my A-Bolt composite in 7mm Rem Mag, (before such thing as the BOSS), the recoil was just too much to enjoy shooting. So a 'smith put a muzzle brake on it for me. I love it. It kicks less than a 30-30 now, and a pleasure to shoot. I hunt and shoot alone, so the discomfort for others around me is negligable. The report is loud, but it hasn't caused me any hearing damage. One or two shots a year at game without hearing protection isn't something I would worry about. Being able to select it on or off sounds good, but does it not affect POI, especially freehand?

Have you had annual hearing tests to determine if your hearing is indeed OK or un damaged?

[magoonpointboy]

Yes. And no change. About 20 years now.

[Donkey Slayer]

I have one to tame my 338 win mag for the last 15 years. It does reduce the recoil to about a 270. Very pleasant to shoot.

My was made by a gunsmith in Edmonton. The noise was not a real issue since I only shot in the field maybe 1 or 2 rounds per year without hearing protection. And after those fews shots, my ears were never ringing.

[Tundra Monkey]

Originally Posted by magoonpointboy

When I bought my A-Bolt composite in 7mm Rem Mag, (before such thing as the BOSS), the recoil was just too much to enjoy shooting.

Being able to select it on or off sounds good, but does it not affect POI, especially freehand?

My brother shoots the 7mmRemmag in an A-bolt and it is wierd....it has a sharper crack to it and seems to hurt more than it should.....and I do not like shooting it Might just be a design thing with the Browning as I've shot 300's in other rifles that were more pleasant to shoot.

Not too sure if it changes POI as my CR is still covered in factory grease but I "think" that it is a clean swap out......but I'm guessing here.

tm

[Skinnydipper]

There is no question here as to whether muzzle brakes control recoil. Some are designed better than others but all make noticable improvement. I just like to have the ability to not use it in the field where it's affect is seldom noticed anyway. I have shot my 300WM both with and without the brake and point-of-impact is unaffected.

[Kutenay]

I recently bought a Browning Safari in .458Win. and it came with a brake. Im am going to customize this rifle and have so far only shot hotloaded 400 gr. cast bullets in this piece, the recoil is very soft.

I have 400 gr. SAFs, 450SAFs and 400 Kodiaks for this rifle and I am going to have the brake removed as recoil does not bother me much and I intend to have Recknagels put on a shorteded bbl. I see no good reason to have a brake on a .458WM and really dislioke them on any hunting rifle.

I once shot a full-house .378Wby. with and without a brake, now, THAT rifle might be the one candidate for such mods. that I would agree with.

[bradtothebone]

I shure like the brake on my .338 LAI from ATR...... Ricks breaks definiatly provide a good "cone" for the shooter, as I use mine for various uses...Quite often without hearing protection.... AND I also have had baseline hearing tests done years ago and go every year and I have negligable hearing loss over the years.... I DO have custom built earplugs with filters that i do use quite often tho.


At the range.... Well, I have limited time to go to the range, so I dont exactly go out of my way to choose a quiet time to shoot the braked rifles.

Tell me this......MR. Blackpowder fogging the area out, the guy shooting the braked rifle... ANY diffefrence??? Not to me. One clouds everything out, ones noisy...

Whatever....... WHAT DOES BOTHER ME is Mr Semi auto with his mega clip flinging hot .223 brass at me, bouncing off my bench..... The guys with brakes and blackpowder doing there own thing, minding there own business suddenly are no problem after MR SEMI leaves.....

Brad

[deerslayer]

I have hunted for years with different rifles that had brakes and loved it, along with the recoil reduction the brake reduces muzzel jump which means you can see the deer fall over, or run away, also I found that the deer were confused as to where the boom came from and don't know which way to go. They are loud but it allowed me to shoot my 300win mag better. If you get a brake make sure it stays tight on your barrel at all times, and if you take it off it the point of impact might change, did on my rifle, also get the threaded cap to put on barrel if you ever want to get rid of the brake.