Muzzle Brake Use

Ridgewalker said:

I wonder how many times we will all give the same opinion until we each get health issues. Hopefully none of you healthy guys will get our afflictions.

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Honestly, I don’t think anyone is saying a brake shouldn’t be used ever.

Certainly advisable when there’s a medical condition.

tarbe said:

Shake and Brake.

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I was going to throw in while using DGX Cripple-shok ammo but why complicate things!

tarbe said:

Honestly, I don’t think anyone is saying a brake shouldn’t be used ever.

Certainly advisable when there’s a medical condition.

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That guy that was shooting the 460 Wby next to me at the Big Bore Shoot was very close to having a medical condition after he pulled the trigger next to me without warning! I’m still scared of dark places, loud noises and clowns since then!

@Outdoorbound is a suppressor an option for you? It’s not an option in Australia but simply a given in New Zealand.
As someone else said manny outfitters a
In Africa have them on camp guns. I will be interested in trying one if I can.

Most of this ground has been covered ad nauseam.
The one thing I will add is the same as @Major Khan and a few other PH's have stated.
Deafining your PH/guide with the first shot seriously compromises their ability to assist you further in the hunt.
The problems will be compounded when DG is added to the mix.
Being considerate as @Ridgewalker and @Shootist43 (and many others) are goes a long way.
If you are going to use one, make sure EVERYONE in the hunting party (or at the range) is aware.

BeeMaa said:

Most of this ground has been covered ad nauseam.
The one thing I will add is the same as @Major Khan and a few other PH's have stated.
Deafining your PH/guide with the first shot seriously compromises their ability to assist you further in the hunt.
The problems will be compounded when DG is added to the mix.
Being considerate as @Ridgewalker and @Shootist43 (and many others) are goes a long way.
If you are going to use one, make sure EVERYONE in the hunting party (or at the range) is aware.

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You made an excellent analysis , Bee Maa. Having one's senses disoriented any time is bad enough as it is . But when you are blind and deaf , and there is something that looks like this on the loose which weighs 2000 pounds and is wounded and angry , it is a recipe for disaster .

Outdoorbound said:

For those that are anti brake, what is an option for introducing a young hunter to our sport. I'm sure all have children or grandchildren that they want to share their passion with. I myself have a 9 year old son that will accompany me on our 2020 safari and he will be shooting a 308 with a brake. Why, because he is a 68 lb, 9 year old boy that cant quite handle the recoil of larger caliber rifles. Should i have told him he isn't man enough to handle the recoil so he would just have to spectate? It's no secret that hunting in general is under attack. I personally believe introducing and involving the youth as early as possible is key to the survival of a sport we all enjoy. If this means that we have to use a brake, then use it. Inform those you are with including all staff and have a memorable experience.

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Fair question. I started my son with a Ruger No1 in .22 Hornet. He burned through a couple thousand rounds on prairie dogs the year he began big game hunting. He used my 7x57 (without a brake) to harvest a 15 1/2” antelope, a 6x7 bull elk, and a gnarly old 5x5 muley that year. After all that work with the hornet his technique was excellent and the recoil of the 7x57 didn’t seem to bother him at all.

Illinois is a shotgun slug only state for whitetail, with a minimum of 20 gauge. It makes it hard for young shooters to shoot hit what they’re aiming at because of recoil. It doesn’t help that a lot of them use full size guns. If I were buying a rifle for kid to hunt deer it would be a Ruger American 300 blackout. It’s short light and handy. Loaded with 165s you have a bolt action 30-30 basically.
I feel the added muzzle blast Of a brake might do more harm than the lack of recoil does good with young shooters.I failed the hearing test to get into the army, so I don’t shoot braked rifles, not that I have one anyway.

I do have a muzzel brake at my 300 Win Mag for the last 25 years and it is working exelent. Today nobody is shooting any gun without ear protection. It defenitly lift the results at any shot. One can concentrate at the oncoming shot and just leave the thougts about recoil. I also have a brake, since 30 years, at my competition 308W, where we shot 2 rounds in 4 seconds, on the running Moose target. Some people without earprotection is complaining to the noice, but today nobody is permitted to visit any Swedish shooting range without earprotection.

CBH Australia said:

@Outdoorbound is a suppressor an option for you? It’s not an option in Australia but simply a given in New Zealand.
As someone else said manny outfitters a
In Africa have them on camp guns. I will be interested in trying one if I can.

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Suppressors have become almost a “given” here in SA as well. Normally the only unsuppressed rifles on view are classics / heirlooms or DG cartridges...

Appreciate the feedback! My son loves his time at the range and has sent thousands of 17 and 22 rounds down range. He went from 22 to 243 to 6.5 creed and finally a 308. I challenged him to work towards a 30 cal if he wanted to hunt. He is at about 250 rounds into his 308 and i cant help but think the brake has made that possible, he is comfortable with 25 or 30 rounds per range session. It has been his dedication to learning his firearms and making well placed shots that has earned him a trip to SA with us. I will look into suppressors again. I have done a little research in the past but the US system for obtaining a suppressor just seems like highway robbery! Hopefully one day our government realizes that a suppressor is nothing more than a piece of metal without the firearm its attached to. Handing over hundreds of dollars to simply have another background check done seems ridiculous.

Lars Blomqvist said:

I do have a muzzel brake at my 300 Win Mag for the last 25 years and it is working exelent. Today nobody is shooting any gun without ear protection. It defenitly lift the results at any shot. One can concentrate at the oncoming shot and just leave the thougts about recoil. I also have a brake, since 30 years, at my competition 308W, where we shot 2 rounds in 4 seconds, on the running Moose target. Some people without earprotection is complaining to the noice, but today nobody is permitted to visit any Swedish shooting range without earprotection.

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A shooting range is not the African bush...

One very good reason to spread awareness and correct information about suppressors. All the recoil reducing of a brake plus less damage to ears.

Th

Charles de Ribeau said:

I'm told that the 50 BMG has lost some of its luster among snipers for that basic reason - and that a brake can give away their position by kicking up dust when shooting prone. It's all second hand info, but it makes sense to me.

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There are no 50BMG in military use without muzzle brakes. I know this first hand. At least not in Canadian or US military.

As a matter of fact most military rifles used by snipers are braked. Only ones that would not, would be 308 that are typically used in urban areas and shorter ranges.

My argument for brake. Why not. Yes it's louder. I wear electronic ear plugs. That fit inside my ear. I can hear better while hunting with them as the magnify sound. When I shoot. Dead as a door. No sound at all.

I'm proud to be called a pansy by the grumpy crusty guys. It's the same folks who think every rifle needs to have a wood stock. Same guys who say you have to use fixed Broadhead and not expandable. Same guys who swear polymer tips don't expand and that's why they lost that animal. They just oppose change.

I do understand there argument of the range though. Under those covered shelters a brake is a lot for people around. Just be cognizant of others in those situations. But in the field. I don't find it nearly as bad as people say. And I have asked every single guide I've hunted with prior to coming. And none have ever had a issue with braked rifles.

Chago said:

And I have asked every single guide I've hunted with prior to coming. And none have ever had a issue with braked rifles.

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I understand the points you have made.
However you are still the client and they are still the guide.
The client is alway right.

Ask a PH or professional guide with no vested interest if they would prefer a client with or without a brake.

It's one thing for a PH to not have a problem with it and tolerate the situation.
Completely different as to what they may or may not prefer.

Chago said:

Th


There are no 50BMG in military use without muzzle brakes. I know this first hand. At least not in Canadian or US military.

As a matter of fact most military rifles used by snipers are braked. Only ones that would not, would be 308 that are typically used in urban areas and shorter ranges.

My argument for brake. Why not. Yes it's louder. I wear electronic ear plugs. That fit inside my ear. I can hear better while hunting with them as the magnify sound. When I shoot. Dead as a door. No sound at all.

I'm proud to be called a pansy by the grumpy crusty guys. It's the same folks who think every rifle needs to have a wood stock. Same guys who say you have to use fixed Broadhead and not expandable. Same guys who swear polymer tips don't expand and that's why they lost that animal. They just oppose change.

I do understand there argument of the range though. Under those covered shelters a brake is a lot for people around. Just be cognizant of others in those situations. But in the field. I don't find it nearly as bad as people say. And I have asked every single guide I've hunted with prior to coming. And none have ever had a issue with braked rifles.

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338 Lapua is the best sniper round...no need for a brake.

How many African "guides" you have hunted with had no issue with a brake? How many of these African hunts were DG?

And hunting DG with a expandable broad head on DG is a big NO NO....

IvW said:

338 Lapua is the best sniper round...no need for a brake.

How many African "guides" you have hunted with had no issue with a brake? How many of these African hunts were DG?

And hunting DG with a expandable broad head on DG is a big NO NO....

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Every 338 in USA and Canadian military is braked. Define your definition of need? And define your definition of "best sniper round"

I've never hunted DG. Nor have I contemplated it yet, so I haven't done any research on it. So I won't speak for something I don't know.

BeeMaa said:

I understand the points you have made.
However you are still the client and they are still the guide.
The client is alway right.

Ask a PH or professional guide with no vested interest if they would prefer a client with or without a brake.

It's one thing for a PH to not have a problem with it and tolerate the situation.
Completely different as to what they may or may not prefer.

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I can appreciate that.

I watched a documentary some time in 2019 about volunteers from the US who after mustering out return to conflict in the Middle East as irregular forces would be the best descriptor. Definitely not currenttly members of the armed forces of any nation, and similarly, not contracturally hired guns or soldiers of fortune. These dudes were using what looked to me to be modified former Soviet PTRD-41 anti-tank rifles with muzzle brakes to snipe, and received counter-sniper fire from in a semi-urban (partial rubble) environment. These rifles use the same 14.5X114mm cartridge as a long-serving former USSR / former Warsaw Pact et. al. popular heavy macine gun externally mounted on Cold War AFV's as a dual-use anti-aircraft and antipersonnel weapon. This is a larger cartridge than .50BMG and its Opfor USSR et. al. 12.7X108mm cartridge. These rifles have a fairly recognizable buttstock in addition to other features. It was both amusing and amazing to see these small arms from early WWII still in effective practical use though in a different role than originally designed to fulfill.


I wonder what response these gents would give to stern instruction they should step down to a smaller / less energetic caliber they can handle without using a muzzle brake. I can imagine, but it would be far more interesting to not only hear their response but to also see their body language. There is no question they were engaged with what's colloquially referred to as The Most Dangerous Game.

BeeMaa said:

I understand the points you have made.
However you are still the client and they are still the guide.
The client is alway right.

Ask a PH or professional guide with no vested interest if they would prefer a client with or without a brake.

It's one thing for a PH to not have a problem with it and tolerate the situation.
Completely different as to what they may or may not prefer.

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Is it any different if like I did, the client offers electronic hearing protector for the PH to use if he chooses, before any booking is made, that the PH can keep as a bonus, with a reasonable (Sam's Club or equivalent) package of standard AAA batteries that the electronic hearing protection equipment uses?

If so, why?

If not, why?