.223 Muzzle Brake?

Gatorgrizz27

New member
So I shot my new .223 the other day and its great, however I am a bit disappointed that it recoils slightly too much to watch hits through the scope. It weighs 8 lbs scoped and obviously is not uncomfortable to shoot, but being able to see hits is one of the main reasons I went with a .223 instead of a .22-250.

I plan to buy a suppressor in the future, so since the cost and hassle of threading the barrel will happen sooner or later, it is basically irrelevant. It seems there are many muzzle brakes/compensators available for .223's due to the AR-15, but obviously they will work on a bolt gun as well.

I'm looking for any recommendations either on particular models to look at, or from anyone who has put a muzzle device on a .243 or smaller, and if it made any difference. Thanks.
 
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I have a Levang type brake on one of my 16" hunting ARs...Most muzzle jump is a problem with the shooter not holding tight enough against the shoulder, but the Levang type brake discharges the blase to the front and is not quite as loud on the ears and does reduce the recoil somewhat...
 
Quite a few years ago when I had master gunsmith George Vais build me a .220 Swift I had him put one of his famous muzzle brakes on it. Even though a Swift is not going to bruise even the most dainty of shoulders it does get a bit tiring after a while. And seeing your hits though a high magnification scope were difficult at least.

With the Vais muzzle break on my gun I could now watch prairie dogs turn into a kaleidoscope of colors though my 24X scope. Even those as close as 100 yards. The proverbial "red mist" was now more like a red shower. Delightful to the eye indeed.

After I got my HTG Arias suppressor I lost a bit of recoil reduction but now I have a nice quiet gun as well as lesser kick. So now I get a "poom" instead of a "BOOM!" that was made even worse with the brake on it.

So yes, a brake will help your .223 to be more controllable and allow you to see your hits better at the expense of a bit more noise. To me it's worth it. At least until the day you get your first suppressor anyway.
 
If you want one to reduce muzzle flip, check out the BattleComp. The are great at reducing muzzle flip without the super annoying/deafening side blast.
 
Start your suppressor stuff now so you can have it in the future. My paperwork has been since April 1st and my SOT tells me another 6 to 8 weeks which will be about 11 month turn around. With wait times like that... The future is today!

I wouldn't spend a bunch of money on a fancy muzzle break if your going to suppress it later anyways. That break will just end up in a drawer collecting dust. The levang OT mentioned is pretty good at lowering noise levels on a shorter barreled AR by directing them forward (vs. the old bird cage flash hider) but I don't know how much it helps with muzzle climb, it been years since I used it.

Its laying around here somewhere in a drawer collecting dust. I would sell it to you if your interested. Took it off when I got my suppressor and havnt touched it since.
 
I have had my first muzzle break installed on a Rem 788, many years ago. I used the rifle as a trolling gun on Dog towns. We hammered the heck out of the dogs and standard operations was to shoot the 7 Mags empty, reload them all, keep shooting till the barrel heat would not allow you to see out of the scope. With the muzzle break on the sporter, you could easily see the bullet impact, hold for wind and elevation accurately.

Next 223 was on a 11 lb rig, custom Benchrest. I did not have a muzzle break installed thinking that it would not be needed. On the first dog hunt, I got tired of giving the gun a death grip trying to stabilize it, to see the exact point of impact. So, gunsmith Joe Wagner installed a muzzle break as soon as I got home.

I soon learned that on dog towns, I wear ear plugs and electronic ear muffs, hear normal conversation from your hunting partner this way.
 
I'm not really concerned about the extra noise, I have the beginnings of hearing damage so I wear earplugs constantly. I look at the brake as a simple $50-$100 expense since I will need the barrel threaded anyway, and may still use it after I get a can in areas where it isn't legal to hunt with them.

I'd love to order a suppressor today, but it's hard to swallow spending a grand on something I'm not going to see for the better part of a year, especially when I still need to buy a proper scope for this gun.

Thanks for the confirmation that it will help with seeing hits.
 
Get a good comp if you must have a muzzle weight. Best yet get a suppressor, flash suppressors and brakes are loud, redirects the gas hence sound more towards you. AR devices are flash suppressors, not brakes or comps. If you go AR get the A3 not A2. A2 is cut on the bottom as well and blows a dust cloud prone. A3 is better, solid on bottom, no cloud. Brake is even louder than a flash suppressor (I explained the design diff elsewhere, need to know ask) Proper designed brake will direct your muzzle down and back.
 
Originally Posted By: ShawneeBGet a good comp if you must have a muzzle weight. Best yet get a suppressor, flash suppressors and brakes are loud, redirects the gas hence sound more towards you. AR devices are flash suppressors, not brakes or comps. If you go AR get the A3 not A2. A2 is cut on the bottom as well and blows a dust cloud prone. A3 is better, solid on bottom, no cloud. Brake is even louder than a flash suppressor (I explained the design diff elsewhere, need to know ask) Proper designed brake will direct your muzzle down and back.



There are plenty of AR devices that are not just flash suppressors, and are I fact brakes or comps. I would even wager that more brakes and comp designs have been invented/marketed because of the AR, mainly because of things like 3 gun.
 
That's right, I stand corrected their have been. A2 and A3 junk seemed to stick in my mind. Haven't built them for at least 7 years, new stuff up. I still prefer suppressors.
 
Originally Posted By: Gatorgrizz27

I'd love to order a suppressor today, but it's hard to swallow spending a grand on something I'm not going to see for the better part of a year, especially when I still need to buy a proper scope for this gun.



The government hopes your turned off buy spending the money and having to wait... Don't let the bastards get you down... MAKE them give you one!
 
Gave up my SOT 2007 Too bad what it has turned into. I had a good examiner back then, when there were some. I had cans for stock in 6 weeks, turnover for customers usually 2 month wait, never more. That stinks the games they play. Even back they though, wait depended on your states assigned examiner, some were fast, some should rot in that firery place.
 


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