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muzzle brake help

PRSDietitian

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Minuteman
Jan 11, 2023
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Texas
I'm building a rifle off a craddock RTR 22" 6.5 creed barrel. Per staff, it's 0.870" at the muzzle. So I'm looking at brakes that are near that diameter within maybe 20 thou or so.

I'm currently looking at the seekins ATC and the Precision Armament Hypertap slim(0.900" 4 port

Anyone have any experience and if so which do you prefer and why? Also any other brakes better than these for a gasser?
 
I've got a couple of both. Hypertap is absolutely more effective. The shooter won't notice, but bystanders would say the Seekins is nicer. The ATC is by no means ineffective but the Hypertap is among the very best.
 
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This will be my gas gun division rifle so F bystanders hahaha I just want the best brake...that will match my barrel contour. I'm picky about that because it flares up my OCD
 
I take it due to your OCD (I completely understand) you are opposed to a self timing brake with a nut?
Not at all! I believe the hypertap has one. I thought the barrel was .850 before so i was going to go with a Meraki machine 3 port brake but that'd look weird. another one i contemplated was a lantac dragon
 
Not at all! I believe the hypertap has one. I thought the barrel was .850 before so i was going to go with a Meraki machine 3 port brake but that'd look weird. another one i contemplated was a lantac dragon
I run an APA Little Bastard on my 7RM. The diameter of my barrel at the muzzle end is .830

This brake is phenomenally effective with my magnum rifle, but absolutely obnoxious to others who are next to me. A few baseball caps have been knocked off, etc...

It fits the profile of my barrel quite nicely and since yours is slightly larger it would be even better I would think. Here's a picture of my rig with the APA Little Bastard. Again, this brake is highly effective and turned my 7RM beast into a toddler with recoil and barrel jump.
 

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PS: Mine is a Gen2. The Gen3 Little Bastard is tunable, but I believe has the same or similar dimensions. I don't care for tunable brakes as I have found the tuning stuff to be relatively ineffective.
 
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i do like how the HT is 4 port with tunable top ports. that reminds me of a smaller APA Little bastard gen 3
Yes but the ports aren't threaded for plugs like on the APA, so you drill the blind holes out a little at a time till you're happy. I actually drilled then threaded the holes of one so I could play with fine tuning.
 
Not sure if you are aware...

For me, "better than these" can be a complicated subject.

Some brakes are "better" at recoil moderation, but blow a lot of the blast back at the shooter. That drives me a little nuts.

Enough so that I would forego the little better % recoil reduction to avoid that rearward blast.

You might find these articles interesting.

Note the direction of the blast differences
https://precisionrifleblog.com/2015/08/12/muzzle-brake-blast-ground-signature/

And...
https://precisionrifleblog.com/2015/08/21/muzzle-brake-summary-of-field-test-results/

And, while I know all barrels can have their own preferences ammo wise... scroll down the link and read about his 6.5CM articles
https://precisionrifleblog.com/category/reviews/
 
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The Little Bastard is very shooter friendly as it directs the gas backward at 60 degrees and you are in the cone of solitude. Those next to you, however, are directly in the "I'm moving somewhere else" zone. Again, be forewarned that you're going to get some dirty looks and the occasional "WHAT IS THAT!!!!!".
 
I took a screenshot of the Field Test Results and as I suspected, the Little Bastard ranks pretty much the best in all areas except for being obnoxiously loud to others, but not the shooter. The author of the article seemed to prefer the Little Bastard over the others as well
Brake Results.jpg
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Are these still the PRB articles from almost ten years ago? A lot of brakes have come to market since, and some of those listed aren't made anymore.
 
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Are these still the PRB articles from almost ten years ago? A lot of brakes have come to market since, and some of those listed aren't made anymore.
I just bought a Kinetic Energy Solutions ATS brake that is new on the market and is arriving on Saturday. Supposedly it's much more friendly to others next to you and allegedly still has solid recoil reduction. I'm skeptical, but I'm trying it out in an effort to be nice to others when I'm on the firing line. I'll run it on Sunday and see if they're full of crap or not. LOL
 
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Are these still the PRB articles from almost ten years ago? A lot of brakes have come to market since, and some of those listed aren't made anymore.
Yes. The article referenced above was published in August of 2015.

I’m not sure what happened to the Precision Rifle Blog, but tests like the one above made it a great reference for shooters.

I wish they would bring it back.
 
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Yes. The article referenced above was published in August of 2015.

I’m not sure what happened to the Precision Rifle Blog, but tests like the one above made it a great reference for shooters.

I wish they would bring it back.
He just posted in Feb
 
I've got most of the the big name players in Muzzle Brakes and you really can't go wrong with either of them. My Precision Armament Hypertaps have all been drilled and tapped and to be honest I haven't really felt the need to fine-tune them yet. I'm running a Slim Body .30 cal Hypertap on a 14.5" LaRue LW50 Barrel that I've had for close to 10 years now and I'm extremely pleased with the recoil impulse/reduction, very little muzzle rise.

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My Precision Armament Hypertaps have all been drilled and tapped and to be honest I haven't really felt the need to fine-tune them yet.
I could see that for your purposes. 90% of my shooting is offhand and on a timer, in that case the ability to tune out vertical and horizontal muzzle movement makes a big difference.
 
I could see that for your purposes. 90% of my shooting is offhand and on a timer, in that case the ability to tune out vertical and horizontal muzzle movement makes a big difference.

I understand that completely, I was just saying that out of all the muzzle brakes I run the Hypertap seems to offer the best rearward recoil impulse with very little horizontal or vertical movements. I'll eventually dial it in, and I'm sure it will make it even better.
 
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Just submitted my paperwork to precision armament and I got my 20% off so I’m probably going to go ahead and get the hyper tap because it’s only like $50 more compared to the Seekins ATC once you apply the discount and that’s good with me. Still keeps the entire part list under $2200 for this build.
 
Are these still the PRB articles from almost ten years ago? A lot of brakes have come to market since, and some of those listed aren't made anymore.
Yeah.. the reports are old, but still full of useful info to me.
Even showing how much a brake can alter POI, is good to know.
The one link showing the blast direction, helps show the brakes exhaust with the baffles ( ? ) being angled towards the shooter.

I would love to see a newer , up to date review.
 
Yeah.. the reports are old, but still full of useful info to me.
Even showing how much a brake can alter POI, is good to know.
The one link showing the blast direction, helps show the brakes exhaust with the baffles ( ? ) being angled towards the shooter.

I would love to see a newer , up to date review.
No efab tested. Best all around muzzle device for me. Braking without blasting your neighbors or yourself. Flash hider to boot.
 
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Thank you, PA definitely makes an exceptional product. I should be finishing up the review on the Hypertap soon, pending on if the weather plays nice and stops dumping snow on us.
How’s the hypertap compare so far? Or have you not been able to gather enough data?
 
How’s the hypertap compare so far? Or have you not been able to gather enough data?

Well the Hypertap and EFAB are two different animals, but I’ve been running the Hypertap on a 14.5" P&W. 308 now for a few hundred rounds and am extremely pleased with the results, just as good if not better than Hellfire and APA GEN 3's.

I really like that you have the option for a standard or slim body profile to best suit your barrel contour. My only critique on the hypertap is I wish they would just go ahead and drill and tap the top ports for user adjustment.
 
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Well the Hypertap and EFAB are two different animals, but I’ve been running the Hypertap on a 14.5" P&W. 308 now for a few hundred rounds and am extremely pleased with the results, just as good if not better than Hellfire and APA GEN 3's.

I really like that you have the option for a standard or slim body profile to best suit your barrel contour. My only critique on the hypertap is I wish they would just go ahead and drill and tap the top ports for user adjustment.
i agree with that, that's one thing the litle B has over this but good to hear it's comparable to that and the hellfire
 
Initial recoil impulse with the .308 brake on a .223 AR was slightly less than 6.5mm and .223 brakes.
 
Quick detour.

For everybody here that has built an AR 10 and has a lot of experience with various receiver sets if you were doing a buy ones cry once and you don’t want to wait for a LMT MWS, upper
What receiver set and handguard would you go with?

Right now I’m probably going with a receiver, set from the same folks that make the ones for gray ghost precision, as well as a rail from Cross machine tool

That being said, because I can’t find the Seekins SP 10 builder set in stock. What would be your next best option? I asked that because I just got some word from Zev that they will be having the MML maten upper receivers back in stock within the next couple of months
 
Quick detour.

For everybody here that has built an AR 10 and has a lot of experience with various receiver sets if you were doing a buy ones cry once and you don’t want to wait for a LMT MWS, upper
What receiver set and handguard would you go with?

Right now I’m probably going with a receiver, set from the same folks that make the ones for gray ghost precision, as well as a rail from Cross machine tool

That being said, because I can’t find the Seekins SP 10 builder set in stock. What would be your next best option? I asked that because I just got some word from Zev that they will be having the MML maten upper receivers back in stock within the next couple of months

The 3 main receiver sets I personally build off of for my own rifles are as follows..

Seekins SP10
Mega Maten
JP Enterprises

And if rebuilding/rebarreling used rifles, it's Larue with thier true free floating handguard design.

All three of the main ones listed above utilize the extended upper receiver with the internal barrel nut which increases the surface area and rigidity and prevents any direct pressure from the load/torque applied to the handguard transferring to the barrel essentially providing a free-floating barrel.

The only receiver sets that provide a "100% True" free floating barrel design is Larue, but!! You even have to do your due diligence with them because I've had several that required material relief from inside the handguard because the Barrel Nut was rubbing inside the handguard.

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Every one of the above mentioned receiver sets has its own individual unique requirements to maximize thier performance. For instance if you go with JP Enterprises the upper receivers are machine to a tighter tolerance which makes them a mandatory Thermofit with most standard size Barrel extension.

Now when working on the Seekins or Mega receiver sets I make sure to measure the inner diameter of the upper receiver where the barrel extension slides into, so that way when I order my Custom barrels I make sure to order the appropriate oversized Barrel extension for each individual receiver set so that I get the same Thermo fit with the barrel to upper receiver as I do with my JP's ultimately increasing the barrel rigidity.

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With the Seekins and Mega receiver sets I hand fit the Takedown pins on a Case by Case basis, some sets require it and some don't.

If you've got to have it now JP is the answer they keep a variety of receiver sets on hand with a very minimal delay in shipping time, you can choose from Side, Top or both charging Handles.. I use the LRI-20 with the Side Charger.
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Hope this Helps...

And if you happen to already own a LaRue There's Hope for them as well...

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Jake.
 
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Gotcha! I was curious because I talked with the guys at Craddock(I'm getting my barrel from them and they're building my upper) and they said when THEY are building, they found it better to go with a more conventional design like I was going with. They said for them it was more trouble than it was worth. And I asked them because Zev said the mml stuff is going off to anodizing soon and SP-10 sets are unobtanium. It's my first ar-10 so i like being 100% certain
 
If the Mega Ma-Ten Small Frame was still available, I would want that, but it requires a special BCG as well.

Big Jake nailed it though for large frames. I was going to say almost the exact same set of recommendations, and also mention SLR Rifleworks.

iu


I like the aesthetics of the Mega Machine receiver sets and how their handguard blends with the upper.

I like the LaRue handguard/upper mating for true free-float.

I like the 2” OD JP float tubes that feel just like an AR-15 front end.

A new option that I would use for the heart of the BCG is the Bootleg adjustable LR-308 carrier.

iu


I would want the barrel extension and bolt made by the same company, preferably a BAT Machine extension matched with a JP bolt with the small firing pin aperture and firing pin. I just wish the Bootleg would have a sprung firing pin like ArmaLites and KAC does now. I do not like the floating firing pin in the AR-10.

The Savage MSR-10 has basically every feature I wanted many years ago in a production gun, but they discontinued them I think. Can’t find any evidence they even exist on there website.

I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a 7mm SAW barrel made for my 16” .308 MSR-10 to match and exceed .270 Winchester performance.
 
Craddock sells bcg made by azimuth and I would assume that'd probably be the sensible solution if i'm getting a barrel from them. no clue who they get extensions from
 
They found it better to go with a more conventional design like I was going with. They said for them it was more trouble than it was worth.

This is the key part of that statement.

Craddock has his hands in a lot of cookie jars, and doesn't have the time to do anything that is outside of what they offer as complete uppers, so to simply builds he keeps them basic. Paul has mentioned to me several times that he doesn't care for the Upper Receivers that use a internal Barrel Nut or as some people call them "Semi Monolithic", regardless I have found no evidence to support his claims. In all honesty I think he may have worked on a couple that turned into Problem Child's and he just washed his hands of it and went back to conventional upper receivers.
 
Talked to a gentleman here on the boards and he had a lot of success with the Mega arms MML set and won the gas gun finale a coupl years ago. I think that'll be the way im going and brake wise. Talked to craddock and said he can get me a custom .936 rock creek barrel for only $50 more. So going with that and saw muzzle brakes and more has a 4 port brake with a .935 diameter, which looks sick and would go perfect with the barrel and at $125, that's a solid deal.