EC Brake-Tuner
- Thread starter remington jim
- Start date
Apparently KT IS AVOIDING answering ? RJ
I look forward to someone giving us a first hand report of how it is working for them. The videos show how to tune it, Cortina does it with 3 shot groups. But I'd like to see someone show a string of groups before and after tuning so I observe the tune actually working outside of the 3 shot adjustment group. I know for me personally, not being 100% consistent in my technique, without changing anything I get good and then great groups, then just good again. I worry that if I held my tongue in a certain manner during the great group, that I might erroneously attribute my success to that and then spend the rest of the shooting session moving my tongue around trying to find it again.
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. RJ
My report above is first hand, altho no pics here as i dont have pic posting access.
It worked exactly as the videos showed; any pics i take of this would be exactly as you see in the video other than i took 3 shots at each tune rather than 2.
As videos stated, dont get sucked into the wee bitty group in between so-so groups. I saw directly the groups tighten up, almost all my 'pet' loads tested went into one hole at 200, and were repeatable in the SAME weather conditions. If weather was different, had to tweak the tuner 1/8-1/4 turn one way or another. PM me and i will send you photos.
I tested common loads too - had small batches of odd bullets - some i could tune, and others simply did not work with or without tuner. Could not get 80bk/Varget loads in 6mmbr to shoot. Same with 75vmax. Same with 142/150 LRAB in 6.5PRC.
So in summary, if you have some pet loads that already group good, a tuner will prob get the groups smaller on that range day, imho. Will it make all loads shoot good? Didnt for me.
As for EC tuner brake, it is meh. The Spearhead is better at recoil reduction and muzzle jump, and the APA Fat/Little Bastards are leaps ahead of the EC in recoil reduction.
That is first hand info, not internet folklore.
It worked exactly as the videos showed; any pics i take of this would be exactly as you see in the video other than i took 3 shots at each tune rather than 2.
As videos stated, dont get sucked into the wee bitty group in between so-so groups. I saw directly the groups tighten up, almost all my 'pet' loads tested went into one hole at 200, and were repeatable in the SAME weather conditions. If weather was different, had to tweak the tuner 1/8-1/4 turn one way or another. PM me and i will send you photos.
I tested common loads too - had small batches of odd bullets - some i could tune, and others simply did not work with or without tuner. Could not get 80bk/Varget loads in 6mmbr to shoot. Same with 75vmax. Same with 142/150 LRAB in 6.5PRC.
So in summary, if you have some pet loads that already group good, a tuner will prob get the groups smaller on that range day, imho. Will it make all loads shoot good? Didnt for me.
As for EC tuner brake, it is meh. The Spearhead is better at recoil reduction and muzzle jump, and the APA Fat/Little Bastards are leaps ahead of the EC in recoil reduction.
That is first hand info, not internet folklore.
I use a tuner on my 22, and on my 6.5 CM. I always video my range trips, so I have footage of setting them up, and tuning them, and seeing the different groups, but have no way of posting 10-15 min videos on here, nor do I want to on youtube. I did have the one on the 22 first, and after using it regularly had no qualms about getting one for the 6.5 CM bench rifle when I set it up. Started at zero when I set up a load, and then will tune it after. Now when I go to another bullet weight, I just set up my load with were ever the tuner is already set, then just fine tune from there.
The 22 I use the tuner on now is a 18" standard barrel, so the tuner, a "kinetic" tuner the different settings make a difference. The 6.5CM is a combo brake/tuner, and sitting off a 26" heavy stainless barrel. Usually more moving to get a response. The thicker the barrel, shorter the barrel the more you will need to shift the weight of the tuner to get "response" so the larger tuners will be more responsive here. Pencil barrels will get response on the lighter tuners because they already tend to "whip" more.
If you still think they are snake oil, you need to do some more research. There are variations of "tuners" with with many earlier models being just larger barrel ends with deeper cut backs to get the right tune. There was a HUGE discussion in the 22 forums most recently on tuners, if you have a few hours of reading time.
Positive compensation occurs when slight differences in MV between rounds are compensated (mitigated or made less consequential) to enable those rounds to have the same POI despite their MV differences. In other words, it is supposed to allow slightly faster and slightly slower rounds to strike the same place.
If positive compensation is what explains how a tuner does what it does, it follows that a tuner that's correctly adjusted for 100 meters will not compensate at other distances.
Of course, positive compensation may be only part of the explanation of how tuners work.
I’m not sure that it does positive compensation. I mean it’s a possibility. Although tightening a group at 100 meters, I don’t think you would need positive compensation at such a close range to shoot them into one hole. Once a load was tuned via tuner, you would have to do an OCW type test with the tuner and watch for group impact comparisons to see if it goes back to where your original tuner setting was.
One explanation of a tuner I read was that it permits you to time the exit of the bullet from the barrel when the barrel is temporarily stationary at either swing of its extreme. I would imagine the barrel would have the highest velocity of change during the middle of its sweep, and the lowest velocity, and eventually pause to reverse direction at its extreme.
25 Years ago or so I had a fascinating discussion with a long time DCRA Target Shooter. He explained to me in the days of issue ammunition and Lee Enfields there was a whole cottage industry of folks trying to tune for positive compensation. it entailed packing the fore-end with all sorts of stuff to get the magic amount of upwards pressure on the barrel. If I recall correctly he indicated that they did it at the furthest distance that they shot at the time.
Pretty sure Erik C tunes his at his match distances which are mostly 1000yds, sometimes he shoots 600.
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That is one hypothesis.
And there's a lot of assumptions being made in that hypothesis that aren't confirmed with rigorous scientific testing.
I installed one on my 308 which has an IBI barrel. I haven't played with it much because I spend much more time shooting my 22's and 6.5's.
My 308 is frustrating me because I am having a hard time getting my ES and SD where I would like them to be.
No only did i change barrels but I went from shooting Sierra 175 SMK's to Hornady 178 BTHP Match.
Every other rifle I load for is in single digit SD's.
I'm not blaming the EC tuner brake because it shoots the same ES and SD with and without the brake.
I may try shooting some 168 SMK's that I have on hand or switch primer brands to see if there is anything there.
I may even try using IMR 4064 instead of Varget .
Once spring rolls around and I do some more testing I'll give my opinion on the Tuner Brake.
I did the 3 round test and I did find a repeatable tightening of group sizes at a certain setting within the first turn outwards.
Try changing your firing pin spring.
