How effective are muzzle brakes on ARs?

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I don't see the point. Even the lightest .223 rifle is only going to have a modest increase in recoil compared to a .22 LR IMO. Personally I think your money would be better spent picking up a few PMags instead.
 
Very effective if you tune them to cancel out twist and muzzle climb.

And don't mind getting your ear drums blown out from the increased muzzle blast right in front of your face.

rc
 
As effective as anything provided you don't develop a flinch from them. As loud as some of them are, I don't see how that is possible.

TCB
 
Muzzle breaks can be extremely effective. They do make the gun much louder though. The load concussion does take getting use to but the mild, straight back recoil makes it worth it. I don't shoot mine at the range next to other people though, it is not considerate.
 
Hello,
I have a muzzle break on my AR that blows all of the blast out of the front of the break, it really saves the people next to you from being blown away noise wise from each shot. Dave. 01/25/2014
 
gunnutery said:
So I saw this brake for sale and for once it seemed affordable. I've been building my first AR15 and I like the look of muzzle brakes, but I've never thought 5.56 produced much recoil to begin with.

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.a...ALG+SCB+Single+Chamber+Muzzle+Break&groupid=6

So, how effective or noticable is a muzzle brake on an AR15?
Click to expand...

AAC makes a similar single chamber muzzle brake as the ALG and I really cannot tell any difference of recoil with a 223 Remington AR with and without the ACC muzzle brake.

I bought the AAC brake to try but also it is alot shorter than typical flash hiders. I wanted the shorter overall length and plaine thread protectors do not ring my bell.

I have a 20" barreled AR with a multiple chamber muzzle brake on it and I can feel a little bit less recoil than a similar rifle without.

For the shooter, my 20" rifle is a little noisier but the ear protection handles that well. It is noticeable, barely. Not like a larger caliber rifle with a muzzle brake might be.

As far as someone next to the rifle, I cannot say.

As long as you do not have to permanently attach the brake to the rifle, it is easy to change if you do not like it.
 
@hentown: sometimes I too get annoyed at misuse of terminology. I have also found that some people actually do use voice-to-text software that has problems with homophonic words: its for it's, their for there or they're, break for brake.
 
Back to the OP's question: If you're shooting @ long range, e.g., 400 yds, then using an effective brake will permit you to see your shots through your scope.
 
Very effective. I have a SKC Titan on my 3 gun AR. The 5.56 does have little recoil to start with, but when you are shaving of fractions of a second a brake helps a bunch. My AR does not move when fired. I can double tap as fast as I can hold the gun steady. The recoil is not a factor with a good brake.
 
I don't think you will be competitive in runaround shooting games (3 gun, etc), but I find no need otherwise. It is less about felt recoil than muzzle rise for followup shots
 
68wj said:
I don't think you will be competitive in runaround shooting games (3 gun, etc), but I find no need otherwise. It is less about felt recoil than muzzle rise for followup shots
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This. Muzzle brakes may not do much to address muzzle rise and they are not considerate to those shooting next to you. If you're shooting in some of the "tactical" positions like you would in a carbine class, the muzzle can be right next to the ground or your leg. In either case the blast from a muzzle brake can be an issue by blowing a lot of dust or the blast hitting your leg can actually be painful. (There's a thread on m4c started by a guy who put a brake inside his rail, so the muzzle was at the end of the rail, and the blast actually split his rail apart!)

For these reasons, some folks choose to get a compensator like the Battlecomp, Dynacomp, MAMS, or other ones. They offer some recoil reduction. But mainly focus on mitigating twist and muzzle rise.

But, if you plan on getting a suppressor, you can go ahead and get the muzzle brake mount for it so you'll have a brake that takes some of the impact instead of the suppressor.
 
Very effective if you tune them to cancel out twist and muzzle climb.

And don't mind getting your ear drums blown out from the increased muzzle blast right in front of your face.

rc
Click to expand...

Or right next to you. I had a guy with such a device on his MINI-14 at the range last month. He set up next to me and I could no longer shoot.
 
Very, very, very effective at converting gas jet velocity into noise, blast, and muzzle flash. Also effective at reducing the already-very-mild .223 recoil and muzzle jump. The question to ask is whether, for your intended purpose (plinking or target shooting? USPSA/IPSC/3-gun? defense of home?) is worth the increased concussion and flash.

Unless this is a dedicated sports gun, I'd be much more inclined to go with a good flash suppressor than a brake. A brake can make a pleasant-shooting .223 downright unpleasant to shoot, or to shoot next to, and I certainly wouldn't want to fire one indoors. I believe the loudest gun I have ever shot next to was a .223 with a 14.5" barrel and a brake.

If you don't care for the plain A2 flash suppressor (I don't), there are plenty of other options. Here is one that's very well regarded:

http://www.advanced-armament.com/BLACKOUT-Non-Mount-Flash-Hider-556mm_p_449.html

Or the Smith Enterprises Vortex (the one my AR came with):

http://www.smithenterprise.com/products06.05.html

Or the YHC Phantom:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-part...s/phantom-5c1-comp-flash-hider-prod24939.aspx
 
benEzra said:
Very, very, very effective at converting gas jet velocity into noise, blast, and muzzle flash. Also effective at reducing the already-very-mild .223 recoil and muzzle jump. The question to ask is whether, for your intended purpose (plinking or target shooting? USPSA/IPSC/3-gun? defense of home?) is worth the increased concussion and flash.

Unless this is a dedicated sports gun, I'd be much more inclined to go with a good flash suppressor than a brake. A brake can make a pleasant-shooting .223 downright unpleasant to shoot, or to shoot next to, and I certainly wouldn't want to fire one indoors. I believe the loudest gun I have ever shot next to was a .223 with a 14.5" barrel and a brake.

If you don't care for the plain A2 flash suppressor (I don't), there are plenty of other options. Here is one that's very well regarded:

http://www.advanced-armament.com/BLACKOUT-Non-Mount-Flash-Hider-556mm_p_449.html

Or the Smith Enterprises Vortex (the one my AR came with):

http://www.smithenterprise.com/products06.05.html

Or the YHC Phantom:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-part...s/phantom-5c1-comp-flash-hider-prod24939.aspx
Click to expand...
Agreed on all counts. I have a vortex on my M21. Can't live without them.
 
The A2 flash hider is just that, a flash hider. I am not going into why the military uses it vs a brake. The A2 flash hider does very little to help with muzzle rise or recoil. I have both and shoot both enough to know my SJC Titan reduces both to the point of not noticing it and the A2 flash hider doesn't reduce either. The titan reduced my splits by half. In long strings of fire that adds up.

As far as not considerate to the person shooting next to me. At my range more shooters have brakes than don't. It is part of shooting these days. Besides, the M1A next to me is not pleasant either.

If you're going to shoot 3 gun precision steel, get a good brake. Maybe also for long range steel matches. Otherwise, a brake is not needed. Definitely not needed for home defense, if you ever want to hear again. Least of your worries at that moment, but still something to think about.
 
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