AR muzzle brake

[GJM]

A few weeks back, I got to take the Carbine Mastery class at TPC. Lead instructor, Brian Nelson, made the comment that in terms of controlling recoil with the carbine, it goes in this order of priority — stance, then grip, then the muzzle device, then the various operating components.

To date, most of my AR15 carbines have worn regular flash hiders, and I have avoided muzzle brakes because of their increased noise. I do have a BCM MK12 18 inch upper, with a rifle length gas system, that I would like to set up for max performance. Right now, I believe it is wearing some BCM muzzle device, and I wonder what would be the most effective muzzle brake in reducing muzzle rise that would be appropriate for this upper?

[SteveB]

A few weeks back, I got to take the Carbine Mastery class at TPC. Lead instructor, Brian Nelson, made the comment that in terms of controlling recoil with the carbine, it goes in this order of priority — stance, then grip, then the muzzle device, then the various operating components.

To date, most of my AR15 carbines have worn regular flash hiders, and I have avoided muzzle brakes because of their increased noise. I do have a BCM MK12 18 inch upper, with a rifle length gas system, that I would like to set up for max performance. Right now, I believe it is wearing some BCM muzzle device, and I wonder what would be the most effective muzzle brake in reducing muzzle rise that would be appropriate for this upper?

I like JP:

https://www.jprifles.com/1.4.3_tre.php

26173

[LittleLebowski]

I like suppressors.

[Clusterfrack]

Like this? I’ve got a Surefire brake on my 18” BCM, but I also have a SF Mini that goes on it.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180509/347e880f2f32f28cd4a4ca53616186b5.jpg

That brake is no fun to be next to. One time, the blast split a 2x4 on a wall, fragged the RO, and stuck splinters in his face.

[Bart Carter]

... I wonder what would be the most effective muzzle brake in reducing muzzle rise that would be appropriate for this upper?

I started with this series of articles to decide on mine:

Muzzle Device Shootout (http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2014/11/jeremy-s/556-muzzle-device-shootout/)

[joshs]

I use the Precision Armament M4-72 because it's effective, not too heavy, and not terrible blast-wise to the shooter (certainly not fun to RO though). I think the Lund/SJC Titan may be a little more effective, but it is heavier and the concussion seemed worse on the shooter when I've used them.

[GJM]

At the class, I had shooters on either side of me with muzzle brakes. Despite plugs and muffs, the concussion was remarkable and at each shot I got a whoosh of air strong enough to blow out contact lenses if you didn’t have glasses on. No fun at all, but I want a rifle set up to maximize performance at certain things.

[MK11]

I can speak to the BattleComp and PWS (ban state resident where brakes were OK but flash hiders were not).

I bought the BattleComp several years ago when the SMEs on a few different boards were talking it up. It's not quite as blasty as other brakes but I've grown to dislike it because it creates an impulse in which the muzzle dips down. Locked in tight as can be the dot will still quirt off the target. Not bad, but annoying. It's also a pain to clean in my situation since it has to be permanently attached. I'm stuck with it but I wouldn't recommend it.

The PWS is like a flash bang going off but shoots incredibly flat. It's old tech at this point but I think it shoots as flat as anything, particularly at the price-point.

[Bart Carter]

Your results will vary depending on your rifle.

I chose a VG6 Gamma 556 EX and it is almost like shooting a .22. Muzzle doesn't move, but it is loud.

I chose it because of weight (3.00 oz.) and cost (($72). I have a 14.5" barrel, so I went with a 2" pinned and welded comp. My 5.56 weighs 5.72 lb. with a Vortex Venom and is easy to carry in an 8 hour class.

[Default.mp3]

I started with this series of articles to decide on mine:

Muzzle Device Shootout (http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2014/11/jeremy-s/556-muzzle-device-shootout/) The problem with that article is that it's measuring performance of muzzle devices acting as muzzle breaks, while GJM is looking for the best compensator; the two aren't necessarily correlated, though generally most competition-oriented muzzle devices will attempt to mitigate both rearward recoil and muzzle rise.

[Bart Carter]

The problem with that article is that it's measuring performance of muzzle devices acting as muzzle breaks, while GJM is looking for the best compensator; the two aren't necessarily correlated, though generally most competition-oriented muzzle devices will attempt to mitigate both rearward recoil and muzzle rise.

Yes, the article didn't measure the rise of the barrels. But it lists which ones are combinations, like the VG6, and includes some additional information besides measured recoil.

GJM, next time you drive through Las Vegas, you can try it out. :)

[Leroy]

Patrick Kelly did a series on comps and photographed the tracking with a laser. Google it.

[DamonL]

I found this with google.

https://www.scribd.com/doc/22829785/AR15-Compensators-pt-2

http://www.multigunmedia.com/pk-compensation.pdf

And this one too.

http://precisionrifleblog.com/category/rifles/suppressors-and-muzzle-brakes/

[hufnagel]

I'm very partial to Strike Industries J-COMP type 89

[GhastlyTT]

I've been considering the compensator Jerry Miculek uses and designed with DPMS. I don't have any experience with it but reviews are favorable and it's nicely priced.

[littlejerry]

I'm very partial to Strike Industries J-COMP type 89

I've been using this one as well. Very inexpensive and works well enough. Not terribly blasty. A little longer than I'd prefer.

[Clobbersaurus]

In another lifetime, I spent almost a year of my free time researching a developing muzzle brakes for AR-15 pattern rifles. I quickly found out that to design them properly you really had to have an engineering degree and VERY specific specialization. Which I didn’t. Just finding quality information on the subject was highly difficult, and most of the stuff I found was decades old. I once tried to calculate by hand the efficiency of a brake I “designed” using a formula I found in a dusty text. I got stuck 3 pages into the calculations.

Anyway, the best of them are designed to be barrel length specific. From my research, as I remember it, three baffles are the max on .223/5.56 rifles before you start getting deminishing returns on their effectiveness. Some of them work quite well, some not so much, but in general the large port, side baffle designes worked best.

My current AR, which I hardly shoot anymore (I blame IPSC), wears just a plain old A2. These days, I would probably only use a brake if I was competing. They do work to keep the gun flat during fast strings of fire, but they are obnoxiously loud and disorienting the movement you shoot them near barriers, or inside any semi enclosed structure. Shooting on a line in a class beside folks with brakes is horrible, and going prone, or urban prone, kicks up a horrific amount of dust. IMO when using brakes outside of competition, the juice is not worth the squeeze.

[NH Shooter]

These days, I would probably only use a brake if I was competing. IMO when using brakes outside of competition, the juice is not worth the squeeze.

Agreed, I have arrived at the same conclusion. I prefer effective flash suppression on a carbine.

http://www.canonshooter.com/photos2/bcmcarbine-3.jpg

[hufnagel]

I've been using this one as well. Very inexpensive and works well enough. Not terribly blasty. A little longer than I'd prefer.

Pretty much my experience as well. Since I'm not allowed to use anything that is a "flash hider" in the description, and i'm required to pin/weld/permanently attach it to a threaded muzzle, it's been my go-to choice for boom sticks.

[pastaslinger]

I've been considering the compensator Jerry Miculek uses and designed with DPMS. I don't have any experience with it but reviews are favorable and it's nicely priced.

It is a fantastic brake and comp ignoring the extremely low cost

There are many copies and you know what they say about imitation and flattery...

[Maca]

I recently swithed to from an A2 to a VG6 Gamma, and dont find it to be obnoxious while making a noticeable difference in muzzle rise

[GJM]

Night and day difference for me, in shooting fast splits to a small target with a muzzle brake vs a stock 6920. Whether that difference means anything depends on what you are doing with the rifle.

[MistWolf]

I'll tell you a very flat shooting, soft recoiling combination for me. Lothar-Walther 20 inch HBar profile barrel, A5 RE with A5H2 buffer, Sprinco green spring and Battlecomp. It's amazing.

The Battlecomp works harder the shorter the barrel. The shorter the barrel, the more pressure and the more push the BC has. If you drive the AR like you would with an A2 birdcage, the muzzle tends to dip. But if you let the rifle do the work, it stays flat.

Muzzle blast is soft on a 20 inch barrel, a bit more blasty on a 16 inch but not bad. I liked it on the 20 & 16 inch barrel. Go as short as 11.5 inches or less, blast became downright brutal. Not as bad as a brake, but my shooting buddies didn't like it. But the shorter the barrel the flatter and quicker the recoil and it was soft, especially with an adjustable gas block for fine tuning.

In my experience, beyond stance, controlling recoil starts with the gas drive, reciprocating mass and recoil spring. The A5H2 and Sprinco green spring seems to work best with every upper I've got. Get the gas, mass & spring sorted out before worrying about a muzzle device. As much as I like the BC (including the BABC on my 308), my favorite muzzle device hands down is a suppressor.