MEDELMA@CMS.CC.WAYNE.EDU (Michael Edelman) (04/18/91)
From: Michael Edelman <MEDELMA@CMS.CC.WAYNE.EDU> The hammerhead shaped thing on the end of a barrel is a muzzle brake. It vents some of the gas from the propellent 90 degrees from the bore axis- sometime more. As a large percentage of the recoil of a gun is due to the gas, this results in a great reduction of recoil. The mass of the gas coming out of the barrel is roughly equal to the mass of the powder charge, and it emerges at a much higher velocity than does the projectile. Hence you've got a lot of recoil energy. Muzzle brakes can be found on guns of almost any size, from .22 short International Rapid Fire pistols, where gas is vented to prevent muzzle rise, up to the biggest artillery. --mike edelman medelma@cms.cc.wayne.edu