How much difference does a muzzle brake make?

O

Oleg Volk

Staff Alumnus
I generally stick to 20ga in shotguns and always look longingly at 12ga, mainly for the variety of available ammunition. However, recoil of 12ga with buck or slugs is excessive for my taste. The only exception to that was an 1187 Police which was comfy even with 3" slugs. Hopever, I am not 100% fond of the design and can't drop $900 on it anyway.

I am looking at old Winchester 12 pump which has a five-shot tube, 18.5" barrel with a Polychoke/muzzle brake on it. I like the idea of the Polychoke, but have a question about it. It has to be removed in order to take down the gun. After re-assembly, how likely is the bead placement to be repeatable?

Also, how much recoil reduction can I expect from a 12ga brake? The one is question is two rows of vertical slits, similar to 155mm gun in looks. Would it be enough to keep the gun from smacking my face the way Benelli M1/Mossberg 590 do?
 
The shotguns with Polychokes that I've tried seemed to kick a little less but you'd have to try it to see for yourself. The other factor that may contribute to a lower percieved recoil is the weight at the end of the barrel.

I'm confused however. I've never owned a Model 12 but seen many of them. Why must you remove the compensator before taking the barrel off?
 
Pardon if naive, but couldn't you get a bracket that splits in two separate halves (the standard Choate bracket.)

That way clearance of the polychoke becomes a non-issue...
 
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