To Muzzle (break) or not to Muzzle (break) n Related Questions...

[DonNikmare]

I'm waiting to receive my 1st rifle - CETME .308
It will come muzzle breakless.

Some folks I have talked to say a muzzle break could be "tuned" with the barrel's vibrations in such a way that a "sweet spot" is achieved and accuracy is greatly improved.

One guy reported that he observed an experienced shooter go from about 1.5'' to 0.5-0.7'' at 100 yrds just by "tuning the mb."

What your thinking and experience with this?

Can they really be that beneficial?

If they could help, could they also hurt accuracy, ie be rifle could be better off without them than with them?

I imagine there are some lucky few who install a mb in it's "sweet spot" or have one that came that way intalled at the factory but luck aside...

What tunable mb/flash suppressors would you recommend (provide links if possible)?

Nik

 

[Triad]

I think they must be talking about Browning's BOSS.

I've thought about the possible benefits to EBRs, but I've never heard of a BOSS being attached to one.

 

[Andrew Wyatt]

also, they're Brakes, not breaks.

They brake the muzzle without damage.

 

[lycanthrope]

Yes, the BOSS system can help tune the barrel to different loads to some degree. It is also a muzzle brake, but not a particularly effective one compared to others on the market. Most muzzle brakes are fixed and are not "tuneable". Their purpose is to reduce recoil.

You can gain the same result by usng different powder charge/bullet combinations and find the sweet spot that way.

There are a lot of other factors that will enable you to get good accuracy out of your rifle such as good load developent, a clean cut muzzle crown, free floating the barrel and taking care of the bore.

A tuneable brake system may help a rifle that has a good bore and crown, but won't help much if you have problems there. These rifles aren't tack drivers and you will likely have difficulty getting it to shoot under an inch, particularly with military ammo.

Spend the $150 on a reloading press and good bullets.

Edited to add: My 7 STW shoots 1/4" groups with a fixed brake. It will only do this with two types of bullets: Hornady's and Ballistic Tips. Very few rifles do not like Nosler Ballistic Tips and they are on the cheaper side of the premium bullets.

 

[bdhawk]

brakes

the brake you are probably thinking of is on a threaded barrel with a locknut. you can index the brake 'till you get the best accuracy.

brakes have their downsides. they vector the sound so the report seems louder to the shooter. they can be a P.I.T.A. to clean. they make your barrel longer.

if brakes helped accuracy very much, they would adorn the barrels of sniper rifles. with the exception of .50 BMG, you seldom see a brake on a sniper rifle. in the .50 BMG, the brake is to help manage recoil, which makes it easier to shoot the rifle accurately. it doesn't necessarily make the rifle more accurate.

 

[shoobe01]

I have never cleaned the Smith Vortex brake (not flash-hider of the same name) on my FAL. Pistols get real dirty, especially with lead bullets, but not rifles in my experience.

I am seeing a suprising number of flash hiders and brakes on US army and marine snipers of late. Not sure why.

A small number of supressors and flash-hiders have been shown to improve accuracy on certain rifles. I suspect if anyone knows why, they could extend that to the design of a brake. Mine seems to affect accuracy not at all. But I'm not gonna put anything on my PSS.

 

[lycanthrope]

The report will only seem louder to the shooter if the ports are facing rearward or at least to the 90 degree mark. For most shooters the noise is marginal but the muzzle blast is the real detriment. My STW is burning powder at the brake but is much more pleasant to shoot than an AR-15 .223 Bushmaster with a "Y Comp". The Y Comp feel like someone belts you in the forehead lightly everytime you fire.

For most rifle powders, cleaning is marginal and a thread on brake will only add 1/2"-1" to the length.

Brakes do not make accuracy, but can help due to changing how the barrel "rings". Consider a barrel a tuning fork and clear notes produce tighter groups. Varying pressures on the metal can help or hinder. (I had to change my load after installing the brake, because my brake initially expanded my groups). They can also bleed of velocity in rifles that need long barrels and slow powders to make speed (NOT a problem in .308).