AK Brake Comparison -very unscientific ;-)

[Smith]

I ended up with a few different muzzle brakes I wanted to try on my Vepr x39. Figured I'd run a mag through each and see how they stacked up against each other. Going strictly on feel, off hand shooting, with no sling or any other brace, and no video. Very scientific ain't it? ;-)

 

 

1. '74 brake. 24m thread on a 14m adapter. - this was my standard as I knew what to expect and many folks have run it and know the comparison. Performed well as expected.

 

2. CNC Warrior Nightbrake - these intrigued me as they are a bit of a cross between an SLR brake, that works really well, and a Vortex FH and doesn't cost a fortune. Got to say I was impressed! All the others tended to have a bit of an up and to the left recoil. The Nightbrake just kinda recoiled in place. I believe this to be because while it is essentially a single port brake, the bottom the port is much wider than the top. That gives you the side to side stability but also pushes the muzzle down at the same time. It is the same port design as the '74, but the Vortex styled end must help keep the secondary blast more linear. Recoil absorption was just as good or better than the '74 but stayed on target better than the others. Don't know how it affects flash but if it helps, it's a plus.

 

3. Phantom - great inexpensive muzzle device that does better than average as a brake and as a FH. It had the most recoil of the group but it was still decent. The fact that it is also a decent FH makes it a great inexpensive hybrid that actually works.

 

4. Damage Industries (non-ported) brake - love how small this thing is and I love the price! Recoil reduction was very similar to the '74. So much like the '74 that I had to try it again. Cheapest of the bunch, smallest of the bunch and also loudest the bunch, but it works as well as a '74 brake. Bottom line -I really like the Nightbrake from CNC Warrior. I could get faster follow up shots and stay on target easier with my Primary Arms 1-6. It's a lot smaller and lighter than the '74 and looks pretty good as well. If it does anything for flash reduction then it will beat the '74 by quite a margin in my book. Hadn't seen many around so I was surprised it worked so well.

 

Overall all of them worked fine and I could see using them all in the future on different builds, but the Nightbrake stays in the Vepr.

 

Only wish I had a Manticore NightBrake in 14m to compare it to, as that is what I've started to run on all my pistol AK's. Those work phenomenally well but cost nearly twice as much or more than all the ones I tested today.

Edited June 25, 2014 by Smith

[Hershmeister]

Great review - thanks!