I have been shooting an unported Super 16 tapered barrel chambered in 45-70 Government for ages. When I first bought it a good twenty years ago I could handle the recoil but now I find myself more sensitive to it. I guess that happens.

I want to reduce the felt recoil with some sort of system. I am wondering what is the experience to others as to the change in recoil between Magnaporting vs a brake.

Thanks for all responses.

A good brake is more effective but also louder and it can cause some problems if you shoot GC bullets.

On a 45/70 I would go with a brake. Porting helps with muzzle rise moreso than recoil. As previously pointed out though, a brake can cause problems with gas checks, or sabots on ML's.

A brake will definently reduce the felt recoil more that magnaport. It also adds length whereas porting doesn't.

ya, ditto on magnaport and muzzle flip. That's what it was designed for and is marketed for also. The say you will get a little, 15%, reduction in recoil. I had my Kimber 325wsm magnaported, light barrel and lots of flip. Same with my 4" 454 Redhawk, made a big difference. Magnaport = reduced muzzle flip. Muzzle brake = reduced recoil.

A good brake does both. My WSM XP-100 has a brake w/ very little muzzle flip and recoil like a .38 Special.

What model of brake do you have if I may ask? Thanks

It's a Defensive Edge. Since I've had that brake installed I've tried others and found one that works better, the Holland Radial brake. Some folks make copies of this brake for less money and they work equally well. I'm not sure who is making them now. I have one of these on a .260 Remington Striker...it kicks like a .223 Contender.

Is that Defensive Edge the one where you can unscrew the brake and screw on a "cap" if you don't want to use the brake? I know a guy who put one like that on his 338 RUM. He use's the brake for benchwork/load development, etc. but takes it off for hunting.

I have a magnaported 475 which is nice for maintaining the appearance of the gun but there is very little recoil suppression. I install brakes on any of the guns where someone is having issues with recoil and the appearance of the brake isn't an issue.

A thread cap is not specific to a DE brake. Just about any competent 'smith can make a thread cap if you want to remove the brake and cover the threads. My concern with doing this would be a change in POI. I've never tested this but sounds like a good reason for some range time since I have several braked handgun that I could experiment with.

brake def helps more than magna porting.

Like the other have said the Brake helps on recoil more than Magna porting...it's just makes the gun way louder!! I personally dont like brakes because of the noise I dont mind the recoil...maybe later in life?

I had a Winchester Model 70 .375 H&H Magnaported and cannot feel any reduction. My Model 70 .30/06 was Magnabraked and it helped tremendously.

I have guns with both brakes and mag-na-porting. Muzzle brakes will reduce more recoil then porting. They have a tendency to direct the gases back towards the shooter resulting in a louder report. Porting has the advantage of not loosing any barrel length. This helps with velocity.

If I am looking for all the velocity I can get out of a long range pistol, I go with porting. If I am looking for maximum reduction in recoil, I go with a brake.

Most brakes dont have a classic look, where MNP keeps the original look of the gun. I have many SSK braked guns that make a fantastic difference. Jd will work with your particular caliber and design a specific brake to work with your needs. Reeder does a 5 port MNP, that helps with flip and recoil a bit more than a 2 or 4 port process. I preffer a brake on any gun with a sharp crack, more than a hard push. (example) My FA83 .454's have brakes, my FA83 .475's have MNP's.I can shoot the .454's one handed with the brakes, but they dont have the classic look.