To Brake or Not to Brake?

[Jon Boy]

I have a tikka superlight 7mm mag that I'm thinking of putting a brake on. The recoil is very manageable to me as far as recoil to my shoulder is concerned. My problem is when I'm shooting longer ranges (off a bench with bipod and bags) the muzzle rise on it is quite violent and always lifts the bipod off the bench. When it comes back down its obviously way off target and I don't get a chance to see my bullet splash for corrections. My concern isn't so much for recoil but more for muzzle rise.

Also, I have never liked muzzle brakes for there noise increase. Guiding over the last few seasons I have lost a significant amount of hearing from hunters with brakes. I plan on it being more of an open country mid-long range gun where I should be able to get hearing protection in before shots on big game. But, having a brake thats threaded so I can screw on or off if I decide to spend a day hunting the timber would be very nice.

With all of this said, do you think its necessary to have a brake? If so, what brake would you recommend?

Thanks!
JB

 

[robtattoo]

I know it's a little more involved & 'old skool' but have you considered having the barrel drilled (magnaported) at 11 o'clock & 1 o'clock to mitigate the rise?
I'm considering this very thing with my .280 ackley for the exact same reason.

 

[robtattoo]

It's not quite as effective as a break, but nowhere near as noisy & you don't end up with the big carbuncle on the end of your nice, sleek barrel.

 

[pyroducksx3]

I'd use a phoneskope on your spotting scope if you want to watch your shots. Just record video, it's how I do it even with a brake.

 

[Justin Crossley]

I'm a huge fan of brakes. The Micro Bastard is my favorite one on factory Tikkas.

[video]https://youtu.be/EASb0fjY6zg[/video]

 

[kbaerg]

Maybe not what you want, but have you considered a suppressor ? I went this route after I had used a break on my 300 win mag. I have so far been really pleased.

 

[colonel00]

I'm in the same boat as you Jon Boy. I still can't decide what I want to do with my 300WM. I have basically the same "complaints" as you as the recoil isn't that bad but the muzzle jump will make a follow-up shot very difficult. Magnaport is one option and I've heard good things about the Micro Bastard as Justin points out. Also, I'm sure GKPrice will be along shortly with a couple suggestions. I'm interested in something he's working with a gunsmith on developing.

 

[mt100gr.]

I have the same rifle and have been weighing the same question. I prefer no brake, for the noise issue. I got a chance to shoot a lot last year (probably 250 rounds) from 100-900+ yards and with my setup and the way I shoot the rifle, I find that I can spot about 90 percent of my shots over 500 yards fairly easily. The time of flight at that range gives me enough time to get back on target if my scope isn't quite at full magnification. (On surfaces where spotting them at all is possible.) If the target is in deep snow or brush it's anyone's guess. That said, I shoot more comfortably when I have someone with their eyes on the target and I know I could shoot better if the recoil and muzzle rise was lessened.

 

[tenth1]

You nailed the pros and cons of the brake dilemma. Hearing or seeing shots. I always chose my hearing, being that I will never remember (or have time) to put on protection.

 

[Nuke Man]

I was in the same boat on my Tikka 300 win mag. I chose not to put a brake on it. However now I wish I had after shooting it a couple years. As mentioned the micro bastard from APA is a great choice. You are definitely not going to want to remove/reinstall the brake though. It needs to be timed correctly and could cause you accuracy issues if it's different each time you put it back on.
My suggestion is if you think you want it, do it. I'm going to have a micro bastard installed, even though I'm going to wreck a $200 cerakote job. We'll worth the extra noise to be able to stay on target! Plus it's mostly your spotter getting the worst of the blast....

 

[30338]

Maybe not what you want, but have you considered a suppressor ? I went this route after I had used a break on my 300 win mag. I have so far been really pleased.

I'd go this route as well.

 

[StrutNut]

I love to shoot the big bores braked but I too see a suppressor in my near future.

 

[colonel00]

Won't a suppressor add a good bit of weight and length to the barrel?

 

[Thinkingman]

You have a rifle issue, not a recoil issue.
A T3 Superlight is a rifle meant to be carried a lot, shot a little.
I doubt that a brake will settle it to the point where you will see impacts.
Get a 12lb Savage to shoot and see splashes. Or get a spare stock and fill every space inside with #9 lead shot secured with silicon caulk.
Heavy rifles for lots of shooting, light rifles for miles of hiking and lots of vertical.
Personally I hate brakes and will never own one.
My and my partners' hearing is too valuable.

 

[kbaerg]

Won't a suppressor add a good bit of weight and length to the barrel?

Depending on what substantial is to the shooter. I went with a Yankee Hill titanium. Added 15.3 o.z. and 8.50" for length. My rifle is setup for long range and comes in at 14 lbs. With gun, scope, bipod, and suppressor.

 

[flyinsquirel]

Personally I hate brakes and will never own one.
My and my partners' hearing is too valuable.

I'm in this camp. You only get 1 set of ears and hearing aids suck major hind tit. Ask someone who has them. I'd rather not spend the rest of my life saying "huh?"

I'd go the suppressor route if I could.

 

[colonel00]

Depending on what substantial is to the shooter. I went with a Yankee Hill titanium. Added 15.3 o.z. and 8.50" for length. My rifle is setup for long range and comes in at 14 lbs. With gun, scope, bipod, and suppressor.

Yikes! At 14lbs (13 w/o the suppressor) you still needed to tame the recoil/muzzle jump? Or you just got the suppressor just to have a suppressor?

Regardless, let's keep things in context. The OP and a few others like myself are talking about lightweight rifles coming in at half of your weight. Adding 8.5" and almost a pound would be very substantial in my book. That's a 12.5% increase in weight and ~16% increase in length. I'm sure your LR setup is great but it's not something I would want to haul around for an extended time or in thick brush.

 

[kbaerg]

I just got the suppressor cause I wanted too. Yes looking at numbers it is a lot of weight when one is counting o.z. in lightweight carry rifles.

 

[Justin Crossley]

I guess I don't really get the "I don't like brakes because of noise" comments that always pop up in these kind of threads. Rifles will damage your hearing whether they have a brake installed or not. If you guys care about your hearing, you will always use hearing protection when shooting.

 

[dotman]

Never used a break but the added level of the blast sound hasn't kept me away, I have always heard they blow dust and dirt everywhere. So that would be my concern but not sure it is even a real concern.