How do you guys feel about adding a muzzlebreak to a barrel VS buying a barrel with a intergrated muzzlebreak?

I feel that you should avoid either option at all costs. But if you must make some noise you may as well use the most effective brake you can get. Bigger brakes work better, period, although maybe not as sleek as an in-line ;-)

This is not for a hunter Im looking to put together a paper puncher.

it depends on what you want, you have more options with a thread on brake than with a T/C fixed.

Thats what I was thinking too, off for hunting ,on for punching paper unless you know something I dont know.

Just curious, why would you not use it for hunting? If it helps you to shoot better on paper; why not use for hunting?

You can use a thread protector if you want when hunting but the ,main thing I was getting at with options is that you can choose the style and size of brake you want whereas the T/C brake is machined into the barrel so your stuck with what they give you unless you have it cut off and start over. It also depends alot on the caliber and your own comfort level with recoil. A gun isn't any more accurate just more controllable. Some people say they cause a loss of performance but any such loss is minor and there is even a line of thinking that the projectile has already run the full length of the barrel so there would be zero losses if not minor gains because you still have a partial amount of the pressure behind the projectile for 1 or 2 more inches. I personally have found on my testing of my own guns that there seems to be a zero to very minor loss of performance.

I was going by what Ive seen. I was at the range one day and a guy next to me was shooting a 300 win mag with and ithout a muzzlebreak . I too asked him if the break reduced the recoil why not use it to hunt too. Im not sure of what his answer was though.But thats what I was informed.

Thats was another concern was the performance.

If the brake reduces muzzle flip, your POI will change moreso with a handgun than a rifle. Most rifles don't rise, they recoil rearward. With a handgun the muzzle rises after ignition, and as the bullet is traveling through the tube the POI is affected by the amount of rise as it exits the muzzle. Hunt with what you practice with.

Gotcha!

Now for the next question, any suggestions for a break? Itll be going on a TC model number 1913 243 barrel.

I have brakes on several barrels and can't see a difference in preformance. Big guns are much more pleasant and easier on the hands and wrist with a brake. Most of us shoot a lot more targets than game ,so why not make it more comfortable. I for one do not shoot long strings of fire with heavy kickers as groups suffer after a few rounds,45-70 factory brake .358 jdj magnaported .The .308 striker has a brake I can turn off, it shoots about 1 1/2 inches higher at 200 yds with brake closed. Makes them loud but I always hunt with hearing protection anyway ,to protect what little hearing I have left and to hear game. I can say wearing muffs has never cost me a shot at a game animal.
I have spent a lot of time and effort gaining what skills I have, and brakes on my big guns, and knowing when [ I ]have had enough, help me keep them.

Very well put Junebug!

Out of my 5 Encore barrels 3 of them have breaks. IMHO, if a caliber merits a break then by all means utilize one!

This is a muzzle brake I use the most, this one is on my 300 Winchester Encore pistol barrel. It works great and yet is reasonable. I install these for 75.00 parts and labor. You can get fancier if you want although not needed with the 243. They have the shark gill brakes which work well on the larger calibers or I also like the Vais brakes but they start at just under a 100.00 for the brake alone. The brake shown here is a Shrewd and sells on Brownells for 59.99 but I sell this model for 50.00. You can go with oversized like this or have it match the barrel diameter.

Thats a very good price Rod ,and a good looking brake. The brake's work better than the magnaporting for recoil reduction,as most have an expansion chamber built into them, and more ports. Magnaporting just goes thru the barrel itself with 1 to 2 trapezoid slots. With a brake you can unscrew it and cover the threads with a thread protector if you don't like it,with magnaports you have to cut them off and lose barrel length.

For hunting or field use I would go with a solid bottomed brake.
Holland's Radial is my fav.

For bench only, the full profile brakes work great.
Vais is my choice here.

I would purchase a brake after I got the barrel.
The larger the brake is the more effective it is because there is more surface for the gases to work with.

Thx for all of your input on this. Im planning on building a paper puncher in 243 but until I get my ducks in a row . I have a Encore 243 that Im gonna put a break on to get the feel for it.

I think the reason some don't like breaks for hunting is the NOISE. I have shot a couple deer in the last couple years where I didn't have time to get plugs in.

I know there are other options to use while hunting, but for the amount of time spent sitting vs. the number of shots fired, I just can't bring myself to wear hearing protection in the field.

My 44mag SBH is sooooo much easier on the ears than my old 44mag 629 with the power port.

Don't get me wrong, I like my hearing, and will put in the plugs if I have time, but if I have to act fast, a couple shots a year without protection is worth being able to sit for many hours with nothing in or around my ears.

MN

My Contender 7-30 has T/C's Muzzle Tamer brake. I wear electronic muffs while hunting because the muzzle blast is painful. One shot deafens me and causes ringing. The muffs' slight uncomfortableness is a small price to pay.

I picked up a pr of electronic muffs about 2 months ago and they are sweet. They still let me hear nature at its best but they also reduce the gunblast when its time to fill the freezer.

I wear electronic muffs when hunting ,if they get uncomfortable I push them up off of one or both ears. It only takes a small movement to put them back on. If they ever cost me a deer it will be a small price to pay, compared to loosing the rest of my hearing.The ringing in my ears now never goes away. The first time I wore electronic muffs it took a while to figure out what all the noise was I was hearing. It was birds singing, I hadn't heard them in so long I had forgotten what early morning sounded like.

X2 what junebug wrote
NEVER EVER With out protection.
Its to late for me.

I'm in with the pro hearing protection crowd. I've been using hearing protection while hunting (big game, small game, water fowl, migratory birds, upland game birds, etc...) for approximately 21 years; as my memory serves me, hearing protection has never cost me a shot. It takes me no longer to depoly my hearing protection than it does to cock the hammer on my revolver.

I do most of my hunting on foot, moving, and no hearing pretection has ever worker for me. When in a tree or stand, yes, but not on the ground. You need to hear and discern direction in a flash and even the electronic stuff doesn't cut it. No brakes for me on my woodswalkers, benchwork okay but not in the woods.

Exactly! Hearing is paramount for hunting. Once it's lost you can never get it back. Just think how hard it will be to hunt when you can't hear. To use hearing protection when hunting, it doesn't have to be in/on your ears during the whole hunt; just when you shoot.

Problem is you never know when the shot will present itself.

Thats why I like my muffs, you can still hear your surrounding with them on.

No game animal is so big, or important,as to loose your hearing over.If I miss getting a shot because of muffs,so be it .It was the deers day not mine. Sometimes you have no choice,like when something big with teeth or horns is doing you,are is about to do you bodily harm,then you won't hear the gun,or know how many time you shot. But when hunting always!!!!!

If it works for you, great. It doesn't work for me and my deer hunting. Big bore revolvers loaded moderately don't bark all that loudly anyway, until you start poking extra holes in the end of the barrel at least.

If it don't make your ears ring that does not necessarily mean that it does not affect your hearing. To each his own. As long as we all take ownership of whatever we do to ourselves all is good.

People wouldn’t say anything if they didn’t care. I live by my ears, I am a musician. The Navy issues us the strongest hearing protection they can get. Custom molded plugs that are not cheap. No one wears them because you can’t tune when you were them. They are so effective you can’t here the pitch of the people around you. I have even gone to Medical and asked to get a pair that weren’t as strong, completely shut down. Oh well, consequently, the band goes threw a box of fomies a month. LOL

I'm with s4s4u.

It's why I don't like brakes for hunting.

I wouldn't shoot that power ported 629 without protection-EVER AGAIN-hunting or not!! My ears rang for a day and a half.

But...my standard SBH isn't so bad, and my 15 inch 7 08 is quieter yet.

I could be wrong, but I don't think 1 or 2 shots a year(or none) with my non-braked guns will do much if any damage to my hearing.

Keep in mind this would only happen if I didn't have time to pop the plugs in. I always have them handy, and it doesn't take long.

I do take precautions...I put in plugs while running the chainsaw, and such, but I like just my own ears in the field.

I do appreciate the concern. And I appreciate the advice from those who chimed in that have lost hearing. And If I thought I was doing real long term damage I would stop.

Thanks
MN

We freely share our advice and concerns with each other on this site, as we should. I would not wish this constant ringing in my ears on any one,[tinnitus] is the proper name I think. A lifetime of construction as much as anything else hurt mine.You say your ears rang for a day and a half ,imagine the rest of your life 24/7 like that. We all make and live by our own decisions,I sure wish I had made better ones.

TALK TO YOUR HEARING SPECIALIST
He/She will tell you JUST ONE SHOT damages your hearing

IF You have every had your ears ring at all, That is A Lot of damage.

Mike S

I wear electronic muffs for all my hunting needs...treestand or on foot. I've always relied more on my eyes than ears...but I've never had really good hearing even as a young kid. If I spook game while still hunting chances are that I'm not going to shoot anyhow. I WON'T shoot at quickly moving or running game unless I'm toting a shotgun. To me it's not worth risking a shot to potentially wound game. Keeping the round in my barrel allows me to possibly see that animal again and get another attempt whereas if I wing a round at it, that baby is heading for another county.

So, wearing hearing protection and my hunting style work very well together. I usually wear them just above my ears but it really depends on the weather. Then as one hand is bringing up the gun, the other is pushing the muffs down and as the gun hits target both hands are on it and ready to shoot.

As for a recomended brake, there is a fella named Ross located out west somewhere (like that's a bog help) that makes a GREAT brake similar to the Holland Radial. Some guys on here know who he is. They are like $45 delivered for SS in about any thread size you may need. They are awesome. I usually buy them 6 at a time and keep them around in case anyone around me needs one.

Dan, get me the info on this Ross I may have to look into his stuff and see how I like it compared to the Shrewd brakes I'm using now.

We still hunt right next to an interstate. So i don't usually hear much in terms of wildlife anyway. You get over it and learn to rely on your eyes more. I've had that ringing in my ears before along with some pain after firing about 8 shots from a .45 w/ no protection. One shot may not be bad, but I'll keep my hearing and use the plugs. good luck to ya...

I have a brother in law that has had the ringing for about 8 years now from shooting a rattler with a 357 in a canyon. I dealt with it for about a week after firing 3 shots from a 460 S&W at a coyote. I would have probably had it longer but I've already damaged my hearing from years in shops with no protection. I use the walker quad muffs and found that if I'm wearing them I still have good directional abilities and if need be I can get them on in a hurry if I just leave them resting on my neck.

Here is Ross's info http://specialtypistols.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/4356023635/m/637107435?r=228108435#228108435is