Muzzle Brake on Hog Hunter

[wingspar]

I’ve been toying with a bolt action in .308 for a long time but have never shot a .308 and have no opportunity to do so. I’ve looked at the 10 FP off and on, but just can’t pull the trigger. Then, a couple of days ago on another forum, one of the Mods was selling his Hog Hunter in .308 with a 4x Leopold scope for $500 shipped or best offer. I thought about it too long before I PM’d him. He sold it. The fact that it has iron sights and a threaded barrel has sold me. I’m pretty sure I’ll be ordering one. Now, for one of maybe a few questions.

I don’t mind a little recoil, but I have arthritis in my neck, so I have to be careful with heavy recoil. My Mosin hurts, but I love to shoot it. Never shot them side by side, but the recoil of my 30-06 seems less than my Mosin and someone just told me that the recoil of the .308 is similar to 30-06, but they said putting a muzzle brake on would make the Hog Hunter in .308 feel like a .223. Is there some truth to this?

[jonbearman]

The muzzle brake will make it enjoyable to shoot. It wont be a .223 but certainly way less recoil than you could imagine. It will make your mosin feel like an anti tank round after you shoot it with a really good brake. The JP Enterprise is big and ugly but with it you could see recoil like a .223 . Check them out.

[pdog2062]

I put a brake on my hog hunter in 223 to cut out any jump so I could see the splat on prairie dogs.Off sand bags with just a finger and thumb on the trigger the crosshairs only move about two inches at 100 yards.With a good hold on the gun you can't see any movement.And you can really see the bullet impact.Works great.

[olddav]

The rifles I have shot and were equipped with a muzzle break were down right mild in regard to recoil. If I had a physical reason for needing a muzzle break I would say Yes they are worth every penny.

[D.ID]

I use Ross Schuler's 3-port brake on my short barreled 308 (non-hog hunter) and on my 338 win hog hunter and it took the wallop right out of them so I can see my hits threw the scope with either one. Not as bulky as the JP style, super high efficiency and super cheap at $40-45.

[Bigeclipse]

I’ve been toying with a bolt action in .308 for a long time but have never shot a .308 and have no opportunity to do so. I’ve looked at the 10 FP off and on, but just can’t pull the trigger. Then, a couple of days ago on another forum, one of the Mods was selling his Hog Hunter in .308 with a 4x Leopold scope for $500 shipped or best offer. I thought about it too long before I PM’d him. He sold it. The fact that it has iron sights and a threaded barrel has sold me. I’m pretty sure I’ll be ordering one. Now, for one of maybe a few questions.

I don’t mind a little recoil, but I have arthritis in my neck, so I have to be careful with heavy recoil. My Mosin hurts, but I love to shoot it. Never shot them side by side, but the recoil of my 30-06 seems less than my Mosin and someone just told me that the recoil of the .308 is similar to 30-06, but they said putting a muzzle brake on would make the Hog Hunter in .308 feel like a .223. Is there some truth to this?

most would say recoil is cut in half with a good brake. I have shot a 300 win mag before it had a brake installed and after a brake installed the thing kicks less than my wife's 243 so id say yes the 308 would probably feel similar to the 223 depending on the quality of the brake. That being said, the 308 is a rather mild rifle by itself. What type of shooting do you do? Full range sessions of 50+ rounds? Occasional plinking 20-30 rounds and hunting? My 30-06, with full power loads, does kick a bit but it is also a very light rifle (~7lbs). If I shoot 10 shot strings it will start to hurt(more uncomfortable than actual pain). If I shoot 5 shots and take a break, then it is fine. It also highly depends on how heavy the rifle is, the quality of recoil pad, and how the rifle fits you. To me, I hate brakes...they are loud. You NEED hearing protection when you hunt with them. I would only use one if it was strictly a long range set-up where I have time to put my hearing protection on. 308 is really on the boarder of being a rifle one can shoot all day long with out a brake. With full power loads in a light rifle set-up and you want to shoot all day, a brake would be good. For a hunting set-up(under 400 yard shots), a brake is NOT needed in my opinion. When shooting further where you may need to "see" where you are hitting, then a brake would be desired to eliminate muzzle jump.

[mikgarus]

Are there any brakes that direct the sound forward instead of to the side AND are still effective on cutting down recoil?

[Bigeclipse]

Are there any brakes that direct the sound forward instead of to the side AND are still effective on cutting down recoil?

I am by no means a muzzle brake expert and only have shot a few but to answer your question, some are better than others as far as noise go but all will be louder than a rifle without one. I have heard of some saying that theirs were "tolerable" in a 1 shot hunting situation. If you really want a muzzlebrake and still want to use it short range where you wont have time to put on hearing protection, then my advice would be to buy the hearing protection that actually enhances regular sound but when you fire it cuts out the gun shot. They sell some ear muffs cheap like this 50+ dollars but they are big and bulky. I use them at the range but don't like them in hunting situations. They sell hearing aid protection that are like ear buds that do this as well but they are in the 250 dollar plus range.

[mikgarus]

I am by no means a muzzle brake expert and only have shot a few but to answer your question, some are better than others as far as noise go but all will be louder than a rifle without one. I have heard of some saying that theirs were "tolerable" in a 1 shot hunting situation. If you really want a muzzlebrake and still want to use it short range where you wont have time to put on hearing protection, then my advice would be to buy the hearing protection that actually enhances regular sound but when you fire it cuts out the gun shot. They sell some ear muffs cheap like this 50+ dollars but they are big and bulky. I use them at the range but don't like them in hunting situations. They sell hearing aid protection that are like ear buds that do this as well but they are in the 250 dollar plus range.
I asked because I have sat next to guys at the range using brakes on their rifles. And it's not a pleasant experience even though I wear both muffs and ear plugs! Also it's not only the noise, but you get blasted by the muzzle blast.

[Bigeclipse]

I asked because I have sat next to guys at the range using brakes on their rifles. And it's not a pleasant experience even though I wear both muffs and ear plugs! Also it's not only the noise, but you get blasted by the muzzle blast.

sitting next to a muzzlebrake is probably the worst experience haha. Even worse than being the shooter. When you are the shooter, although it is loud, it is not as bad as being next to someone shooting the rifle.

[wingspar]

To answer some questions. All the shooting I do is at paper, steel and plastic bottles full of water. I do not hunt. I wear hearing protection 100% of the time, except for an occasional oops, and those are for one shot only. The number of shots I would take at any range session with a .308 would probably be 20 or less. I typically take several guns to a range trip, and try to shoot everything I take, so no one gun gets shot a lot at any one range session. I’m retired, and the cost of .308 ammo would probably limit how much I shoot it.

I’ve never shot with a muzzle brake nor have I been around anyone shooting with one, but I’ve read enough and talked to people about them, and I do realize they are loud. Standing off to the side and a few feet back does give one a different perspective on noise. One of my Mosins, the one I shoot the most, is a light short M38 Carbine. The muzzle flash in the day is impressive, but if I am standing about 15 feet in back and to the side of someone else shooting it, I get quite the thumping. Much different that being behind the gun and pulling the trigger. I will definitely shoot the Hog Hunter as it comes out of the box. No scope, no brake. I will be adding a scope, but as for the brake, I’ll decide after I shoot it, but I do like the idea of having the option to add a brake.

I found a video on YouTube last night where a guy tested 35 different muzzle brakes. Very interesting. He did the test with 5.56, but if I can directly correlate his results to muzzle brakes for a .308, then I have his 5 best performing brakes written down. The video is about 35 minutes long, but well worth watching if you are in the process of trying to decide on a muzzle brake. He has charts with the results at the end of the video and a separate web page with a full writeup. Let me know what you think of this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FD-Rou9-9A

[Bigeclipse]

To answer some questions. All the shooting I do is at paper, steel and plastic bottles full of water. I do not hunt. I wear hearing protection 100% of the time, except for an occasional oops, and those are for one shot only. The number of shots I would take at any range session with a .308 would probably be 20 or less. I typically take several guns to a range trip, and try to shoot everything I take, so no one gun gets shot a lot at any one range session. I’m retired, and the cost of .308 ammo would probably limit how much I shoot it.

I’ve never shot with a muzzle brake nor have I been around anyone shooting with one, but I’ve read enough and talked to people about them, and I do realize they are loud. Standing off to the side and a few feet back does give one a different perspective on noise. One of my Mosins, the one I shoot the most, is a light short M38 Carbine. The muzzle flash in the day is impressive, but if I am standing about 15 feet in back and to the side of someone else shooting it, I get quite the thumping. Much different that being behind the gun and pulling the trigger. I will definitely shoot the Hog Hunter as it comes out of the box. No scope, no brake. I will be adding a scope, but as for the brake, I’ll decide after I shoot it, but I do like the idea of having the option to add a brake.

I found a video on YouTube last night where a guy tested 35 different muzzle brakes. Very interesting. He did the test with 5.56, but if I can directly correlate his results to muzzle brakes for a .308, then I have his 5 best performing brakes written down. The video is about 35 minutes long, but well worth watching if you are in the process of trying to decide on a muzzle brake. He has charts with the results at the end of the video and a separate web page with a full writeup. Let me know what you think of this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FD-Rou9-9A

if at the range only id get the muzzlebrake then.

[FEENIX]

The muzzle brake will make it enjoyable to shoot. It wont be a .223 but certainly way less recoil than you could imagine. It will make your mosin feel like an anti tank round after you shoot it with a really good brake. The JP Enterprise is big and ugly but with it you could see recoil like a .223 . Check them out.

You must be referring to the JP Enterprise Recoil Eliminator. However, the Beenie Cooley is not as big or ugly but very effective. Here's a video I took on my .270 AI ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeIUjDC1zdg

[FEENIX]

Are there any brakes that direct the sound forward instead of to the side AND are still effective on cutting down recoil?

Yes, there are several but here's just one type but designs are similar -- https://troyind.com/products/claymore-muzzle-brake-762 . IMHO, not as effective as the ones with side ports.

I have the Benchmark tactical brake mini (http://www.benchmark-barrels.com/Benchmark_Barrels/Benchmark_Barrels_-_Muzzle_Brakes.html) being installed on my .300 WSM and should be ready by mid of January.

[FEENIX]

I use Ross Schuler's 3-port brake on my short barreled 308 (non-hog hunter) and on my 338 win hog hunter and it took the wallop right out of them so I can see my hits threw the scope with either one. Not as bulky as the JP style, super high efficiency and super cheap at $40-45.

Ross will also install it if your barrel is off the action. Probably has the best price in installation too. He also have a few videos of his MB in action on youtube.

[CharlieNC]

You may also want to consider a better / heavier stock. My 308 sits in a Choate Tactical; more ergonomic fit gives a more consistent cheek weld for better accuracy, and provides less felt recoil as well. No problem staying on target when shooting prone. It also has a decent recoil pad.

[wingspar]

The Precision Armament M11 looks like a nice brake. I have feedback from the guy that did the video I posted the link to a few posts ago on this brake on his Mosin, and he says it really tames the Mosin, and he linked me to the article on the M11 Muzzle Brake (http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2014/10/joe-grine/gear-review-precision-armament-m11-m41-muzzle-brakes/).

[wingspar]

Ok, I picked the gun up a couple of days ago and have 24 rounds thru it. It might not kick as hard as my Mosin Carbines, but I do want a muzzle break. 24 rounds left my shoulder pretty sore, and after watching the video when the bolt didn’t pick up the next round a couple of times, my flinch was Olympic in size.

The muzzle break on top of my list at this time is the Precision Armament M11. Spendy little bugger, but it is for 5/8-24 threaded barrels. I can not find the thread size anywhere in the manual, unless I missed it, so can someone tell me if the threads on the Hog Hunter in .308 are 5/8-24 threaded barrels?

[Twinsen]

Ironically, I stopped shooting my braked 308 because of my flinching. Guys shooting braked bolts still make me flinch at the range. I guess I'm more affected by the pressure than recoil.

[wingspar]

Ironically, I stopped shooting my braked 308 because of my flinching. Guys shooting braked bolts still make me flinch at the range. I guess I'm more affected by the pressure than recoil.

Yes, I wonder about flinching due to the extra noise and pressure. Only one way to find out for sure whether it will affect me or not. My range is in the woods with no one else around.