For what it's worth, during a recent night pistol shoot we tested my Bushmaster "Dissipator" AR-15 with a newly installed Wilson Tactical Muzzle brake.
Looking like an M-16A2 flash suppressor with a 1/4" front opening instead of a 1/2", the Wilson muzzle brake is professionally fitted and installed. No sign of welding is evident ... it appears to be a factory attached accessory. On the short barrel "Dissipator" it has a mean, no-nonsense appearance, and satisfies my frustration with the post-ban "emasculation" that we auto rifle owners are forced to suffer.
Long story short, the muzzle brake, uh, works quite well. Noise doesn't seem any worse than any other 16" barrel 5.56, and to be honest, I couldn't tell if there was reduced recoil; this was never much of a problem since my rifle is an heavy barrel model. Most important, instead of the dreaded "flaming beachball" we were treated to three small jets of dim orange light; one each left and right, and a third vertical one in line with the front sight. Odd, in the dark you could see the front sight silhouetted by the quick flash with each round. Night vision wasn't terribly affected, not like before when the muzzle was naked. We didn't have another rifle to compare with at the time, but if memory serves correct, muzzle flash was similar to an A2-type.
Ammo, by the way, was South African military. This may or may not contribute to flash size and brightness.
If you want to restore a proper military appearance to your post-ban AR and have a hard time justifying the cost of a pre-ban gun, I suggest you consider the new Wilson muzzle brake. It's not perfect, but it's close enough.
Looking like an M-16A2 flash suppressor with a 1/4" front opening instead of a 1/2", the Wilson muzzle brake is professionally fitted and installed. No sign of welding is evident ... it appears to be a factory attached accessory. On the short barrel "Dissipator" it has a mean, no-nonsense appearance, and satisfies my frustration with the post-ban "emasculation" that we auto rifle owners are forced to suffer.
Long story short, the muzzle brake, uh, works quite well. Noise doesn't seem any worse than any other 16" barrel 5.56, and to be honest, I couldn't tell if there was reduced recoil; this was never much of a problem since my rifle is an heavy barrel model. Most important, instead of the dreaded "flaming beachball" we were treated to three small jets of dim orange light; one each left and right, and a third vertical one in line with the front sight. Odd, in the dark you could see the front sight silhouetted by the quick flash with each round. Night vision wasn't terribly affected, not like before when the muzzle was naked. We didn't have another rifle to compare with at the time, but if memory serves correct, muzzle flash was similar to an A2-type.
Ammo, by the way, was South African military. This may or may not contribute to flash size and brightness.
If you want to restore a proper military appearance to your post-ban AR and have a hard time justifying the cost of a pre-ban gun, I suggest you consider the new Wilson muzzle brake. It's not perfect, but it's close enough.