I'm considering getting a new rifle once I can convince momma I really, realllly need another one and am thinking about a Browning 325WSM with the BOSS. Range shooting is in the back 40 on my own property so noise isn't a problem. As I understand it they have a non-ported sleeve for hunting. How much does it help with recoil? I'm not a wimp (I have a 300 Weatherby) but don't enjoy extra recoil just for the fun of it. I'm sure this has been discussed ad nauseum in the past but after searching the campfire I didn't come up any threads discussing the merits/demerits.

From what I've heard they do work, but they do detract from the looks of the rifle.

It will make a 30-06 feel like a 243 . Another plus, my A-Bolt SS Stalker groups every load i have tried under a inch both factory and handloads.

If sleeved, one will absorb the recoil and point of impact may shift from the ported state. On the upside, one can pick his bullet, load or velocity and make the rife to shoot well. Most of us play with slugs and loads, and maybe compromise on velocity and slugs until we find something that works.

In hindsight, they should have simply started with a non ported tuner. That concept is a good one, but the noise drove many away.

You will probably use the muzzle brake version of the BOSS precisely once. They count the length of the BOSS as part of the barrel length. That is something they carefully conceal. So if you order a 22" barrel, you will get 20" of real barrel and 2" of BOSS. The muzzle blast from a short barrel like that is impressive. With the brake version of the BOSS, it is more than that. Of course, the brake version does substantially reduce recoil.

The good news is that the BOSS does improve accuracy. My 30-06 reliably puts 5 shots into 3/4" at 100 yards. That's really useful for long shots on pronghorn. The bad news is that it can be a booger to adjust. The other good news is that if you set it at the factory recommendation for your cartridge, you will probably hit the sweet spot.

The vented BOSS is the loudest muzzle brake I have ever heard. It would deafen a brass elephant--but it will reduce felt recoil considerably.

The BOSS works as an accuracy device--witin certain limits. Once you get it tuned with a certain load, any variation from that load will change things. This includes muzzle velocity variations due to to temperature, with are a lot more common than most hunters realize. In other words, if you tune a BOSS with a certain load at 70 degrees, the same load at 30 degrees may not shoot nearly as well.

I have a 1971 Belgium BAR in 30-06 Grade 3; Shoots lights out; recoil is like a 243; Best there is; Smooth rotating nine lug bolt; dead on acurracy out to 250 yds;

I wouldn't trade it for anything

Don't buy a Boss if you like to try a lot of different loads and bullet weights. You will be constantly changing settings, firing a few shots to settle the thing down and then determining if the combination works.

I had a varmint model in .223 which the factory didn't provide a "sweet spot" for. I have no idea how many rounds I fired before the sweet spot was found. After that I just went back to the old system of changing loads on the single setting. It was remarkably accurate though after being set.

Jim

It can't possibly be louder than my Magnaported 35 Whelen..........



Casey

Wanna bet?

I shot next to a Boss equipped rifle once and I'm siding with John. You could not give me one of those things.

The Belgium Browning rifles are the best in the world;
Thats why they demand the prices;
If you have a BELGIUM BROWNING firearm, It's worth a lot more money than one made in Portugal, or JAPAN;
WhY?
Hand made original machining; All hand made from local forged steel;
Original BELGIUM specs;
A machined piece of equipment ( A Hunting Rifle)

Will take a Belgium Browning over anything else;

My Favorite is a 1971 BAR in 30-06, that kills, and kills;

enough said

I got a 7-08 with the ventilated Boss right after they came out, which I sighted in while wearing hearing protection. No problem. Then I used it in Wyoming for Mule Deer. I took a shot at about 165 yds and no hearing protection. It was really loud, and my ears rang for about a day.

I contacted Browning and told them that they should warn their customers about the very loud noise blast. They told me that I could buy a non-ventilated device that would not cause hearing damage. I told them I did not plan to pay for something that they should have warned their customers about ahead of time. They sent the non-ventilated device without charge. It works pretty well. But the ventilated device is pure trouble.

And hell, I did not hear that well to begin with.

Steve

So let's see, we've got a device that may give a marginal improvement in accuracy over what we expect from a well put together rifle anyway these days, it significantly detracts from the rifle's appearance (in the opinion of most of us), it's one more thing to dink around with when accuracy seems to slide or when working with a new load, it requires significant attention to hearing protection even when used for hunting...

And the benefits are??

I think I'll pass.

FROM THE MANUAL: WARNING: THE "BOSS" INCLUDES A RECOIL REDUCING MUZZLE BRAKE WHICH PROVIDES SUBSTANTIAL INCREASED NOISE/MUZZLE BLAST. ALWAYS WEAR HEARING PROTECTION TO PREVENT HEARING LOSS OR DAMAGE.

Read the manual!

It's enlightening to see that those who have never used a B.O.S.S. don't like them and those that have used one usually swear by them. There's a pattern there and here on this forum.

I did switch to the B.O.S.S. CR (without ports) and it works just as well without the noise. Recoil isn't affected much in an auto like my BAR.

My dad and brother both have BOSS versions of the A-bolt II in .300 Win Mag. Neither gets out of the safe much these days and it's primarily due to noise. The other reason is that they aren't needed for our deer hunting Both are very accurate rifles and they don't handload so they have simply moved the BOSS to the recommended setting and shot factory stuff.

At the range one day, I did hear a lady in the next booth say to her husband "can you please ask him to stop shooting that thing - it's making me have to pee!". I managed to hold back laughter until I was a safe distance away THEY ARE LOUD!

The BOSS should be used as an example of marketing failure. Had Browning/Winchester not included the muzzle break it could have been a success. Asking people to pay extra for the CR version not to lose their hearing was a fatal mistake.

I agree and that's why I've never owned one. I figure if I can't handle the recoil of a certain combo without brake, I should step down.

However - I bought my brother a CR boss (no ports) and he's never even shot it. Can't understand that one as I certainly don't think a brake is required on a .300 Winny.

I bought an SS 338 M70 when they first showed up. Mine was very, very accurate and did in a lot of bears and deer. It worked well with factory loads (250 Nosler, 225 Fail Safe) and was fun to reload for and fiddle with settings.

Everything written here about them is pretty much true - definitely helps accuracy and definitely makes more noise. I wear ear protection when hunting so that was not a problem. As for looks, it is hard to hurt the looks of any dull-finished silver and black rifle - not an issue to me.

I had mine cut off - after recrowning it had 21 1/2 inches of barrel left. Looked better, kicked a LOT harder and I was never able to get it to shoot like before. I traded it off wishing I had left it alone.

did they change this? I bought two rifles with BOSS soon after they came out. Both rifles included both the Brake and the CR in the box. (I cut and re-crowned soon after, but the gun did come with both.)

The bad news is that the vented version is loud. Much louder than even a custom triple magnaported system I compared it to, during review. You could not hunt with this rifle ulnless you wore plugs at a minimum.

Secondly, many of the BOSS equipped rifles have their barrels cropped 2 inches to accommodate the BOSS unit and retain the same OAL as the standard rifle. This means velocity loss.

The asthetics of this devise remains subjective. You decide.

The good news is that it works both in reducing recoil substantially, and in generating accuracy.

When first released, I kept my test rifle (a Browning in .270) for 6 months as there was a rush to get reviewes published and they were sloppy and lacking in details. I tested the rifle without the BOSS unit to determine the basic level of accuracy achievable from the barrel and unusual bedding system.

It was sad, around 2- 2 1/2 inches with most loads. The BOSS unit I found, was much more sensative than the instructions (which I saw later as they never accompanied the rifle)indicated, so I played with it a considerable amount until I did factually get many groups under .5MOA and several around .2 MOA.

What I needed to do then was determine whether this rifle was representative of what the consumer could expect so I followed up with additional reviews, a Model 70 also in .270, a Browning BAR in .308, as well as a Browning Heavy barrelled .22/250.

In my tests, I found that the first rifle was an above average performer as the accuracy levels I obtained in the later rifles, particularly, the .308, could be had from a miriad of over the counter rifles unequipped with the BOSS unit.

It is not for me. As for muzzle breaks. there are only two I actually like, and the caveat is that I only mean with certain chamberings, a .340 weatherby, yes, any .300 Magnum, no, that being the Magnaport system, and the defunct Pendleton Dekicker.

JW

UtahLefty,

I know the first rifles with BOSS if you didn't want the muzzle brake noise you had to buy the CR sleeve seperately. My comment was directed at how Browning undermined itself when they first brought out the BOSS. First bad impressions last and get told and retold.

Sure you can!

I had a 'Bossed' M70 in 300 Win back when I was about 20 years old. Shot it maybe 30 times without hearing protection.

Worked great(if you like permanently ringing ears).
One of the top 5 dumbest things I'd ever done, tough lesson.

Yep. Dropped my first Elk with my .338 Win with the Boss installed. Ears rang for three days, sinuses and teeth ached for two days. Tossed it and installed the CR.

Even the CR is useless as you have to tune it each time you try a new load.

My ears are still ringing 12 years later!
Background noise makes it very hard to follow a conversation.

(chainsaws and 12" subwoofers didn't help either)

This is from a call I made to Browning this morning.

�All Browning guns marked assembled in Portugal on the barrel were assembled using parts made in Belgium. If fact a lot of the people doing the assembling in Belgium transferred to Portugal to keep their jobs. Some guns assembled in Portugal were better than some guns assembled in Belgium. And some guns assembled in Belgium were better than some guns assembled in Portugal. But they were all made out of the same steel machined on the same machines in Belgium. You just can�t say that the Brownings assembled in Belgium are the best Brownings ever made.�

He did say that collectors place a higher value on those assembled in Belgium. Also pointed out that no BOSS equipped Brownings were assembled in Belgium.

I suppose that it would be natural for those who like them to buy them, and for those who don't like them to not buy them.

I have two, and give the system mixed reviews.

On my 223 the BOSS and brake system works very well. That little rifle routinely gives me five-shot 5/8" groups at 100 yards, and is a pleasure to shoot.

My 30-06 is another story. I gave up on the muzzle brake version right away. When I bought mine, they had already started shipping both the brake and non-brake BOSS with each rifle. If you're hunting pronghorn, which are small and tend to keep their distance, the extra accuracy is worthwhile. OTH, I have a 6.5x55 Pac-Nor on an FN action that is just as accurate, and would tend to be my first choice for that application.

I use the -CR version (no brake) on a couple rifles with excellent success. The brake version is quite loud, I would not recommend shooting it without protection, even once, after doing so a couple times. Eh?

In my relatively small sample of a few A-bolts my Dad and I have with and without BOSS, the BOSS-equipped guns have shot better, independent of messing with the tuning. Perhaps because they are factory bedded differently, sorry, I don't remember the details on that.

the only downside I see was pinpointed above, you lose about 2" of barrel, so a touch of velocity

Me don't like 'em. Had one on a BAR 30-06. The roar that came out of the end of that thing was horrendous

I had to hunt with ear plugs.

Me and a buddy were hunting for some meat and were in the same box stand. 2 Does came out in the field and I put my ear plugs in. He asked, "Why are you doing that?". I said, "You'll see". We were both going to shoot on the count of 3.

When I said 3, My doe fell. I noticed the other running off and shot her, thinking Scott had wounded or missed. I looked over and he was in the corner of the stand holding his ears with both hands, never even shot...and couldn't hear for 3 hours.

That's the one and only Browning I ever sold. Maybe the Boss CR would be better. ( No muzzle break)

JM

This is why i use the CR on mine. Recoil doesn't bother me halve as much as noise.

My 30-06 shipped with only the brake version of the BOSS. There was no CR then. The CR was introduced a bit later, I guess. When it came out (or when I knew about it), I called Browning and asked for one, and they shipped it to me no charge and no question.

I really dislike the fact that they reduced the rifled barrel length in order to accommodate the BOSS into a same-overall-length package.

I really love the brake itself, and the tunability of the rifle.

I was struggling a lot with how to develop handloads for the rifle, until I had a supremely obvious epiphany: The rifle is the tuning device, the loads are not. You don't try to fiddle around burning up powder, bullets, and the barrel developing the perfect handload. You make the handload you want (bullet and velocity) and then adjust the rifle to shoot it well. And shoot well it will. Mine gives outstanding results with Win 180-grain Silvertips (my preferred factory load), and will shoot any handload I've tried somewhere between quite well and beautifully. That alone makes the BOSS and the rifle better than the competition, IMO.

Don't try to shoot the brake boss without ears on, though. I, too, had to dispatch a creature quickly and didn't put ears on when I fired (not a hunting situation). My ears rang the rest of the day, and it HURT. Wear ears or use the CR.

When they came out I bought a very rare Browning Stainless Stalker in left hand 7mm-08 with BOSS. This gun is a true tack driver, never bothered me with the muzzle break BOSS but when I called Browning they sent me the CR unit free. That is what is on it now.
I love this rifle, it's light, extremely accurate using the reloads I wanted (not the reloads I needed for the accuracy I wanted)
Not worried about the looks, I'd rather have a very accurate rifle than a pretty rifle that can't group the reloads I like.

My son has one,and I load for it.He only used the BOSS once hunting,then I had to buy the CR.It was used LH rifle. I tried to work it a bit,it didn't seem to do much,but the rifle shot great at any setting,so what the heck.

I had one on my Browning .300 Win Mag. It helped with recoil just like a muzzle brake. It never made a difference with accuracy though. I wound up having my gunsmith friend re-barrel the gun with a nice heavy Shilen barrel. It shoots better now. I would think if they offer a non ported hunting model, it would not help with recoil, but wouldn't ring your bell either.

i had to buy mine

None of the 4 rifles I reviewed had these. They were an afterthought.
JW