game4lunch

I'm thinking about putting a muzzle break on one of my rifles and have never shot one before. I understand they reduce recoil and how. But I also understand that they increase muzzle blast volume considerably also. Not that that matters at the range 'cause you wear hearing protection anyway.
Are there any good or bad brands to look for? And how hard is it to install? A co-worker who is a fairly accomplished gunsmith/machinest says he can do it for about $150.00, parts and all. Is this something you should really have an experet do? And are muzzle breaks worth it? How much do they reduce recoil?

bigbulls

IMO if you need a muzzle brake to shoot a rifle comfortably then you need a lighter kicking rifle.

I feel it does matter at the range. I absolutely hate to shoot next to a person with a brake on their rifle. Even with double hearing protection on. Be curteous the those around you and let them know when you will be firing a group and/ or move to the far end of the firing line if you can.

As far as brand goes they all do the same thing. It's just a cylinder with holes drilled into it. You should definetly have it installed by someone that knows a lathe. It isn't something you want to do if you are not experienced. If your buddy is experienced with a lathe then he should have no problem installing a brake.

game4lunch

What do I know, can't even spell it right!
To put a finer point on it . . . I am "converting" my 25-06 into a varmint gun. Loaded with 75gr Sierra Varminter-HP's. I could be shooting this gun several hundred times a day. (Prarie dogs are bad around here). So reducing recoil is a wish, not a necessity. My gun-guru is telling me about a muzzle brake that has "tone chambers" to not only reduce recoil, but volume also.
I was just hoping someone out there might have some experience with these and shoot me some usable advice. Yeah, ney, . . .

Solitary Man

If you're concerned about your shoulder why not consider a Past recoil pad. I've got the Magnum version and wear it every time I go to the range. It works great. I could shoot my .300 Weatherby all day long and not have any problems as long I'm wearing the Past pad. It would cost a lot less than a muzzle brake.

I've neverhad a muzzle break on any of my rifles, so I can't comment on them other than to echo bigbullsby sayingthat I also hateshooting next to them at the range.

Highpower

Had Kevin at www.muzzlebrake.com install one for me on my 300 RUM. Beautiful craftsmanship and works like a charm. He also included a thread protector so I can take the brake off for hunting so you won't have the extra noise factor. It is VERY effective for reducing the recoil. Lets face it, a 300 RUM has a pretty good bark anyway, so even without the brake, most guys don't like sitting next to me at the range when I'm shooting the 300, and it's loud enough in the field that I wear protection.Regardless if the folks on this forum like them or not, brakes can be very effective and make a heavy recoil into a *****cat.

bigiron

They are very effective at reduceing recoil. It makes a 300 rum kick like a 30-06 or less. The gun I bought for a project had one on it. It was a rem bdl SS with a fox river brake. I talked to the guy that I bought the gun from and it was installed at gander for $150 including the brake figure you will reduce recoil by about 50%

TerryM

I have owned a couple rifles with them. Both were .338 win mags and they do exactly what they claim to do. Basically it made full power loads out of a .338 feel like an 06. That's the good part. The negative is that unless you are prepared to wear hearing protection while out in the field as well as everybody around you then everytime you touch one off you are causing permanent cumulative and irreversable damage. It took me too long to convince me of this but I finally clued in. My buddy now has hearing aids in both ears yet he stil shoots a 300 mag with brake on. Hey do what you want, you can even smoke a cigarette while you shoot but realize that you are doing damage.

KodiakArcher

I'm with bigbulls on this one. If you need to put a break on it, you need to be shooting a lighter cartridge. 25-06 is a whole lotta killin' for a prairie dog. Brockman's makes one with a sleeve over it that you can turn to cover the ports and shut it off when you don't need/want it. If you get one, wear hearing protection!

Paul L Mohr

Another thing to keep in mind is the more the gun kicks, the better they work. Putting one on a rifle that does not have that much recoil to begin with may not give you much of a return for the money. I think it would be cheaper to get a better recoil pad or shooting jacket

It may also change your barrel harmonics since you are essentially putting a weight on the end of your barrel. If you have a pet load don't be suprised if it shoots different now. You may have to work up a new load for it. Or switch ammo if you use factory loaded ammo. That's not a given, but don't be shocked if it happens.

Paul

wyotimberghost

Haven't heard anyone mention this idea yet, so I'll add it to see what you think. Since the 25-06 is not a hard kicker and you are trying to make a varmint gun, I'd recommend installing bull barrel, which means you'll also have to install a new stock designed to fit the barrel. The larger barrel and larger stock will both add weight to the gun, thus reducing recoil and helping improve your accuracy, and the larger diameter barrel will allow you to shoot for longer periods of time without your barrel overheating, which is a common problem associated with shooting p dogs. It may be a more expensive route, but you can sell your old barrel and stock for a little extra cash, and you'll be much happier with your gun p dog hunting and at the range, as will everyone else who is hunting with you.