Sidearms & Scatterguns Pistol muzzle brakes?

[THE MGD]

Dropped by the gun shop to pick up repair, and spotted a Glock 22 with a Lone Wolf muzzle brake (they look like the ones you typically see hanging off the barretts).
i Pointed and gave a raised eyebrow to the gunsmith. He just shrugged and gave me a "i dunno".
Had to look this up, but apperantly lone wolf makes the brakes specifically for the 40sw or 9mm. (meaning it wasnt somthing someone just slapped in vecause they had the extra parts)
So I look a little more and lone wolf has a video shooting a 45 with the brake claiming "almost no recoil". Now I know we've all seen "ported" barrels, but brakes? I cant see this really working. To me , this is like putting a bayonett on a pistol. (98% looks, maybe 2% of some obscure use)
My moneys on the springs really making the diffrence. But I gotta say I wouldnt mind my 40 being "snap free". Anyone want to shed some light on this and either validate or debunk the brake. If debunked can you sughest a better method (OTHER THAN PORTING OR SUPPRESSING) that would work

 

[excess]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

Very much analogous to a brake on a rifle. Depending on the design, they work very well! I in my younger days had a Glock 357 Sig with a similar setup to what you are talking about. It was noisy, ugly, and flat out worked. That said, for my current pistol interests I have no need for one.

Google "USPSA Open gun" and you can see some evidence of how well pistol brakes (or compensators) work.

 

[noname]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

most recoil reduction is done by the additional forward weight, acting through the length of the barrel or slide acting as a lever arm, not by diversion of ejecta mass. By adding the front sight to the compensator, it becomes stable and does not move with the sight, giving the shooter an advantage. Clarkes orginal pin guns were the beginning.

 

[THE MGD]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

So on a 40cal platform whats the estimated percentage in "felt recoil" adding this brake?

Would a different spring be more or less effective than the brake?

Also to be clear: im not exactly talking about a compensator (like your avg 1911 compensator brakes) im talking about this lone wolf pistol brake
Brake pic
Doesnt look like you can or should put sights on this

 

[LngRngShtr]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

I own a 10mm Delta Elite with a dual port compensator (brake)

with Cor-Bon or Double Tap ammo ( 185+ Power Factor ) I get hardly any flip the dot stays on target.. trick is to get a high gas volume striking the baffles not sure if a 9 can do that but my .38 Super does pretty good the dot tracks in the scope and pretty consistently recoil is also less but still exists.

check the Brian Enos forums for "Open Glocks" usually they down spring when they compensate the 1911 platform not sure on the open glocks though but likely

my Delta 10 has a 14 Lbs. recoil spring and my Super has a 12 Lbs. recoil spring

Some guys are running a compensated gun with as low as a 7 pound recoil spring.

John

Look up a local IPSC/USPSA match in your area most folks are friendly and would probably let you run a mag through to see what it is like...

 

[noname]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

the use of lower springs isn't due to the brake effects but simply the increased resistance to unlocking, due to the downward leverage of the increased wt. on the muzzle. if the gun with the brake in the pict. is shooting 45, say 230 gr loads that means 5gr powder or so or 5/235 or approx. 2% of the ejecta mass that creates the recoil is contributed by the powder, Do you really think this is going to make any effect? On the other hand the break weighs something like 5 oz on say a 45 oz gun, or 5/50 or 10% increase in the recoiling mass of the gun. A decrease in the spring rate is necessary to keep the gun operational, not such a good thing as this decreases the cycle rate unless the slide is lightened. It also decreases realiabilty. Severely reduced rates also create holstering problems. Using sights that add total weight to the gun help reduce recoil and flip, but should only be compared with guns in the same weight class to get any meaning

 

[LngRngShtr]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

I'd never carry one due to the blast if you are a speed rock sort of shooter..

and yes comparing a built 1911 to a glock with a drop in LW barrel is not apples to apples..

just swap a barrel out and try it with/without on the Glock and if you want to see if the ejecta makes a difference use about 7 turns of fiberglass packing tape and watch what your sights do

and as far as the "no recoil" claim,..that is marketing Physics is a cruel mistress.

Since I don't stick this in a carry holster no reholstering problems,.. as far as reliability is concerned properly built and fitted they are as reliable as any other pistol comp or no comp However just drop in a bunch of catalog parts and you know what happens.

I am of the belief that when we switch a 10mm over from a 5" stock barrel to a 5 1/2" comped barrel more is going on in recoil land than a 2-3 oz. weight can manage on its own.

For the record I have an old full profile Clark Pinmaster comp and barrel ( cone gun)conversion I never installed because it is heavy compared to a 5 1/2" "bushing gun" type comp. and some smiths are now making them of Titanium for a lighter quicker handling racegun.

So use it as an excuse to go to the range and burn ammo to see if one works for you. comps tend to like light bullets and lots of gas volume/pressure.

John

 

[G-31]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

I have a LWD .40 brake, bought it several years ago for looks/fun.

You can have it.

 

[THE MGD]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

G31 did you notice diffrence?

 

[G-31]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: MGD</div><div class="ubbcode-body">G31 did you notice diffrence? </div></div>

A negligible amount while target shooting, an experienced/competition shooter I'm sure could benefit but I'll I really noticed was a wave of hot gas and a lot more noise.

 

[3oh8er]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

After shooting limited class IPSC and IPDA since the early nineties I've been able to shoot a comped pistol from time to time. Yes, they are more comfortable to shoot. However, I began to hear from open class shooters stories of shoulder problems. Close observation of the differences in recoil management between limited and open shooters showed me that limited shooters used more elbow and open shooters used more shoulder to absorb the force of recoil. Anyone notice the same?

 

[kansas]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

I know that this isn't quite the same thing but I carry a G17C (C standing for comp) and read quite a lot about how they didn't work but...they do. I carry Blackhills 124+P and I don't get near the muzzle flip that my G34 does with even light loads. I originally bought the gun for kicks and grins, thinking that I would use it in IDPA however I didn't read the rules well enough before purchasing it and found out I can't use it in competition so instead of throwing it in the gun safe for the next 10 years I started shooting it and liked it so much I started carrying it in a Comptac Minotaur holster. It's as easy to carry as a G19 and a lot easier to shoot fast.

 

[ShakyDave]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

Muzzle brakes don't come into their own until you're pumping some serious gas through them, say .38 Super or 9mm Major. Maybe with a .40 or .45 shooting +P+, but then again, maybe not. They only work when enough gas is released through the channels to counteract the recoil force, so the bigger the bang, the more braking effect. And, of course, to get the big bang you have to run extremely hot ammunition which, in turn, requires a fully supported chamber and other stuff because you're holding a hand grenade.

On top of which the more gas tapped off for braking, the lower the muzzle velocity of the bullet, pretty much relegating muzzle brakes to the realm of the USPSA Unlimited Division. YMMV.

 

[tt350z]

Re: Pistol muzzle brakes?

Any pistol with a comp will be classified as an Open gun.

Here's a review between the LWD and Jager comps.
http://glocktalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=948912

I have a carver 3 port comp on my glock. Even with factory 9mm ammo, there is a huge difference on how flat it shoots compared to my stock G17.