Anyone have experience,good or bad, with clamp on brakes? Have a Winchester featherweight 30.06 22" barrel and kicks like a mule. Don't want to thread the barrel. Thoughts? Thx, Pete
Muzzle brakes require hearing protection with every shot. One unprotected shot can noticeably degrade your high frequency hearing. Constant ringing of the ears comes along sooner or later.
A 30/06 of that weight doesn't have what most would call excessive recoil. The issue, assuming you generally tolerate 30/06 level recoil, is the stock. Too much drop in the stock and an inadequate or nonexistent pad can make a gun hard to tolerate. If you aren't married to the rifle for some reason, get one that fits you better.
Thank you for your input. With all due respect the rifle kicks! I understand the "issues" with noise related to muzzle brakes. My hearing is shot and I wear double protection to save what little I have. Anyway...... Was looking for input on clamp on muzzle brakes. Don't mean to offend, just want info on the clamp on style brake if anyone has any. Thx,Pete
I haven't used one, but a guy on youtube I've been watching recently is a big fan of the Witt Machine clamp on brake. West Desert Shooter is the YT channel.
The outside of the barrel is tapered and rarely concentric to the bore.
This poses problems with bore alignment for proper muzzle brake use and efficiency.
Some of the best available will reduce the recoil 60-64%
Usually the bore of the muzzle brake is .020 over caliber
Hearing protection is a requirement.
I consider ear pro a requirement for all mid to large center fire rifles braked or not.
Worth the cost of a smith as a hunting rifle will likely last most 10-20 years.
I used the Whitt Machine clamp on muzzle brake on my 300 rum for several years with great success. It was a great option for that gun because I wasn’t planning on re-barreling it and it didn’t have a lot of life left. My only complaint was the weight it added to the end of the barrel. Most brakes unless you go titanium add wight to the end of the barrel but the Whitt is a tank. I would very much recommend them as a very cost effective option.
Just be realistic about the weight issues they possess. I’m not familiar with thee brands and can’t comment. I trust the Whitt because they require your exact muzzle dimensions and build it specifically for your gun.
I put a Witt Machine clamp-on on my 300 win mag about 18 months ago. One of the best things I did. I found that if you get your barrel measurements right and follow their install instructions, it works great. I would estimate it reduces felt recoil by 40% or so for me. It isn't the prettiest thing in the world, but effective. The greatest benefit for me was that I started shooting more, and more practice made me a better shooter. It also helped reduce muzzle jump greatly so I could watch impacts through the scope much of the time. I feel comfortable recommending them.
A couple of other options are from Grizzly Gunworks and Coretac solutions. I have a clamp on muzzle brake from each company and they are very high quality. I opted for the aluminum which only weighs a couple of ounces. Currently mounted on Tikka T3 300 Win Mag and 7MM Rem Mag.
I put a grizzly aluminum on my sons .308 and it makes a big difference. I’m pleased. The grizzly brakes are cut to your specifications, he seemed good to deal with and turnaround was good. They are big (very obvious) but they work well. There is absolutely no blast for the shooter on the brake I got (grizzly model), blast is impressive like all brakes to the side. Pretty expensive, you could probably get a barrel threaded and a brake installed for the same price.
Seems like the OP wants to keep it original. for me, the barrel is thin (.555 on a .308) and I didn’t want to deal with it, the clamp on was definitely easier too. I also wasn’t sure about it, so it was nice to try without modification. If I had a rifle that I needed a brake on in the future, I’d thread it if looks were a concern. Just another option for folks that worked well in my specific case.
A friend of mine had his newly installed Witt Machine brake go flying off with the first shot. The best guess is that the measurements weren't perfect, so it didn't have enough tension on the barrel. The bullet hit the target and the brake didn't have any marks suggesting a bullet strike. The brake made it 40 yards down range--impressive for such a heavy brake.
yea, i wanted to keep the gun "stock" as it was a gift from my late father when I tuned 18...... the damn thing hits hard with 180's. I have shot a .50 cal Barrett that hits less! anyway, appreciate the input. May try the Witt, but will look into the Grizzly.