Inexpensive Brakes Compared
I’ve got a comparison with 2 brakes: the Jerry Miculek 3 port brake as well as another 3 port brake from Colonel Mustard’s (I picked up a similar 308 brake for my Savage 10TR from them) These are both inexpensive muzzle brakes and they both make a pretty big difference in recoil, which can help in competition but makes things really loud. The finish on both brakes was less than perfect but for the price point, I can’t really complain. These are both incredibly low priced in the Canadian market. Primarily, these were for 3 gun competition in Canada, where a comp helps a bit for follow up shots.
Miculek Compensator: $89 from Select Shooting Supplies **edit: the exchange rate is killing us and now the Miculek brake is a lot more expensive.
Slightly lighter weight than the other comp, louder, darker finish. Uses a jam nut/lock nut instead of a crush washer, which ends up looking a bit off but is easy to install. Doesn’t screw in as deeply onto the barrel, so maybe it’s slightly less secure? The top of the brake has widened gills to redirect some gas up to drive the barrel down a bit. I couldn’t really tell which was more effective, so they must be very close.
Colonel Mustard 3 port comp: $40 from Colonel Mustard
Slightly heavier, lighter in finish. Uses a standard crush washer (included) to install and screws in much more deeply on the barrel. The top of the brake has 2 drilled holes to drive the barrel down a bit. I prefer the crush washer style install on this brake to the jam nut on the Miculek brake. Note that while the CM compensator looks longer, once you install it on an AR-15, it’s basically the same installed length because it mounts that much further onto the barrel.
Summary
So which would I buy again? They’re both more similar than they are different. They both use a 3 baffle design with a mostly closed bottom, some upward pressure to drive the muzzle down a bit, and they’re both incredibly inexpensive. On a non-restricted rifle that I might have the remote possibility of hunting with, I might go for the Colonel Mustard one just because the baffles aren’t quite so big and it didn’t feel as loud. On a restricted, 3-gun competition rifle, I might choose the Miculek brake because I don’t care if it’s louder as I’ll always be on the range with proper ear protection.
