To brake or not to brake

[Eagleye242]

I absolutely abhor muzzle brakes. they look ugly (to me, lol) and the noise levels they generate are substantial. They have their place on rifles that develop more than 50 ft-lbs of free recoil. I have an 8mm Rem Mag that is not particularly heavy, and it shoots sub-moa. It drives 220 A-Frames to just shy of 3100 fps. Do not believe a muzzle brake would improve that accuracy much. Dave

 

[5gauss]

In this case personal choice...less recoil is always good.....noisy however...

 

[George Dean]

But you don't need one to spot your shots, at least I dont. So if you can spot your shots with a creedmoor without a brake and you are man enough to handle the massive recoil from the creed - whats the point? Also, a brake doesn't mean more precise impacts - thats an incorrect statement as well.

Anything which mitigates ANY influence on a rifle will increase the probability of precise impacts on a continuous string of shots. Variance in the pressure of a cheek weld, grip, point of rest of the forearm, bipod load, bore-axis to shoulder pocket (coming off the scope between shoots) can, and will affect repeatable accuracy, IMHO.

 

[misterc01]

They put one at the factory, so I guess it makes sense. And yeah - it does look cool!

 

[hwy1strat]

My opinion, is that if I am hunting unsuppressed, I'll be wearing ear pro. If I am waring ear pro then the only negative part of having a muzzle brake is no longer an issue. Muzzle brakes definitely help with spotting your impacts/calling your shots. I fully understand fundamentals will get you pretty far, but when you are shooting off of some sort of unstable barricade, they definitely help. Hence why they are so popular in the PRS world. I don't think it is a going to be a big deal on a 6.5cm but it definitely won't hurt anything other than your hearing. And that's only if you shoot with out ear plugs

 

[javman]

Like brakes just to be able to see impacts!

 

[Mram10us]

I absolutely abhor muzzle brakes. they look ugly (to me, lol) and the noise levels they generate are substantial. They have their place on rifles that develop more than 50 ft-lbs of free recoil. I have an 8mm Rem Mag that is not particularly heavy, and it shoots sub-moa. It drives 220 A-Frames to just shy of 3100 fps. Do not believe a muzzle brake would improve that accuracy much. Dave

Try one and see. They help every other rifle

 

[Mram10us]

A brake doesn't make a rifle more accurate - a brake can help recoil shy people shoot a rifle more accurately. If you have good fundamentals, you shouldnt need a brake.

Wrong and wrong. I'm not little either, but they help in every large application.

 

[Mram10us]

OP, I'm done. There is a ton of evidence and opinion in this thread. You are now informed. Good luck

 

[AK6.5Guy]

I have a Bergara B-14 HMR in 6.5 CM. Recoil is modest to say the least but I was wondering if there is any benefit to putting a muzzlebrake on it other than a "looking cool" factor.
I'm so used to shooting my .45-70s that this is like shooting a .22 LR. So any benefit to the MB?

Now I want to know what kind of brake you have on your 45-70 that makes it shoot like a .22 LR?

 

[Mram10us]

It probably helps that I am 6'5" 240...shrug.

I am 5'2" 120 and have been a competitive pickle ball player for 20 years, so I'm obviously a high level athlete too....shrug

 

[Mram10us]

Wow, a simple question with so many responses in such a short time. It seems I've asked something that ruffled a few feathers between forum members! And reading all these responses I'm more confused now than before I asked..LOL
I was hoping to get a firm solid answer. I guess I'll just go get one and see for myself whether there is a benefit or not. I thank all of you for your opinions.

We worked very hard typing all this data and you got nothing!!! I can't do this anymore!

 

[Gater]

I already made a statement and it is fact. You may be correct sitting on flat ground where you have all the time in the world to set up your shooting position but you are wrong when you have to take a shot from an odd position. The FACT is the less the reticle moves upon firing the more likely your bullet is to hit where you are aiming, not a minute away, not .5 moa away. The spot you are aiming at. Use one, dont use one I could not care less. They will make your more precise over more shots.


Please explain to me why you think Benchrest shooters literally spend thousands on rests to get the rifle to track perfectly??? Now tell me a brake does not help achieve that same goal. You can't. If you can you have not fired many rifles with and without a brake. We can go around and around but you are wrong. I can't make you want or feel the need for one but these benefits are facts not opinions. The only opinion part is worth.

I have shot benchrest and F- class matches where breaks where not allowed

 

[Clem Bronkoski]

We worked very hard typing all this data and you got nothing!!! I can't do this anymore!

Oh Mram I got plenty. But a lot of opinions for either case. The reason I decided to get one is that almost every competitive LR shooter I've seen in the Youtube videos has one on their rifle. So there must be something to it. With my rifle I have no trouble seeing my impact but maybe there is something to that reticle jump. I'll take any edge I can get even if its only for plinking distant objects!