Trojan Firearms sent me one of their “Gen II, The Grater” muzzle brakes when they sent the straight trigger that was reviewed earlier. Trojan is probably more noticeable for their pistol caliber carbines and California compliant rifles. This muzzle brake is the same one that they install on their “1776” rifle. This muzzle brake was supplied for review.

The Grater is a nice looking muzzle brake. It has a Black Nitride finish, so it should hold up for a long time. Trojan manufactures the brake out of 4140 steel and it is threaded ½-28. It has 3 chambers to help mitigate the recoil impulse, in which it does a wonderful job. It also comes with an aluminum anodized jam nut, so you can index the brake wherever you like without having to use a crush washer. The jam nut concept is not new, but it does work, and since it is aluminum, you won’t have to worry about messing the threads up.

More important, is the fact that it has 10 tuneable ports. 2 on top, 2 on each side at 90°, and 2 on each side at 45°. These ports are threaded 6-32 and have set screws that can be installed or taken out. The screws bottom out so that you can’t screw them into the bullets path. With these screws, one cane tune the brake for particular ammo or if they primarily shoot right or left handed. It does take some patience to get it dialed in, but the results are worth it. Say your recoil impulse moves the gun up and right. Just remove one of the 45° screws, on the side of the movement, and shoot it again. If it moves a bit left, start by removing one of the left side 90° screws. Hopefully you get the picture.

As I mentioned earlier, The Grater does a wonderful job mitigating recoil. Even before “tuning” it to my ammo, I could tell a difference over the previous brake that I had on the rifle. I set up some targets at around 25yds to do some double taps on. At first the rifle moved a little bit up and right. After a little time spent messing with the screws, I think I pulled out a 45° and a 90° screw, it now shoots super flat. Double taps can be done as fast as I can pull the trigger and the sight picture barely moves. As with all true muzzle brakes, it does have the flaw of being extremely loud.

I think Trojan Firearms did an overall good job when making the Grater GenII. It does what a muzzle brake should, and has the added benefit of being “tuneable.” Yes it is not some fancy titanium, or have some space age looks, but it also won’t break the bank at $79.99. Go take a look at Trojan Firearms, they make an effective brake, if not other stuff one might like.

Firearms Insider Reviews - 8 Key Points

Claim to Fame:

Tuneable muzzle brake

Target Market:

3 Gunners, shooters, or anyone wanting to reduce recoil

FNBs (Features & Benefits of this product):

1/2-28 thread.
BLACKNITRIDE™ protective finish.
4140 Carbon Steel.
Ten position 6-32 tapped gas ports for fine tuning.
Three Baffle chambered system engineered for optimal recoil reduction and muzzle control.
3/4 wrench required for muzzle brake, 11/16 wrench for jam nut.
included jam nut 6061-T6 aluminum with black hard coat anodize
0.860” outside diameter
2.75” length.
Made in USA

What other aesthetic options or finishes are available?

None

What others are saying?:

Nothing found

Link to other reviews:

Nothing found

Price point:

MSRP = $79.99

I need it now! Availability:

Trojan Firearms

Our Rating:

Pros:

Tuneable
Effectively reduces recoil
Jam nut
USA made

Cons:

Loud
Takes some time to tune

Score: 8.00 Great

Favorite Link: Freedom Flag Products

Trojan Firearms is a company that is probably more know for their pistol caliber carbines. Besides this, they also make some other bits and pieces for AR style rifles. That leads us to the new single stage TFA-15S Flat trigger assembly. They also manufacture a curved version for those that don't like straight triggers. Trojan supplied one of each for review, another reviewer was sent the curved version.

Besides being flat, this trigger has some nice touches. First off, it is a cassette style drop in. So all you have to do to install it is remove the safety and the old trigger, then it drops right in. The TFA-15 uses a shoulder bolt mounting system unlike any drop-in trigger I've seen. This eliminates the need for anti-rotate pins and for trigger pins period. Just install the screws, on each side, where the trigger pins would sit and tighten down. They also supply star washers to go on these screws. I don't think they are needed and they could possibly mar the finish around the pin holes. Another really nice touch, is the adjustment lock screw. The lock screw puts pressure on the adjustment screw so the trigger adjustment remains consistent even after long periods of use. The trigger also has 2 setscrews facing downward to lock the trigger against the mounting bolts.

I like being able to adjust the pull weight of triggers. The TFA-15 uses the somewhat standard single screw adjustment method. Screw the adjustment screw in for a heavier trigger pull, and out for a lighter one. But, with the single adjustment screw, comes reset adjustment also. Basically when you lighten the trigger, the reset becomes lighter also, or not as positive. If you adjust the trigger too light, you don't get any reset on the trigger and have to reset it manually. I was able to adjust the trigger from 2.5 lbs to around 7 lbs. But to get 2.5 lbs, I had to measure the pull weight at the tip of the trigger. So where I normally rest my finger, it came in at 3.5 lbs. The first trigger that Trojan sent didn't pass a safety check, it would fire the hammer when the safety lever was moved to the fire position. Trojan immediately sent me a new one. They even called me to help figure out the problem. Also note worthy, the TFA-15S has a longer trigger bow length. The bottom of the triangle shaped shoe sets just slightly above a standard trigger guard. I really liked how it rested on my finger when using the lower portion of the trigger.

After using the TFA-15 for some time now, I really like the straight shoe. As noted above, I have it adjusted almost all the way down. When you pull the trigger really super slow, you notice what feels like creep, but is actually the sear sliding on the hammer. There is virtually no creep! Because I have the pull weight tuned down, the reset is a little spongy when releasing the trigger slowly. If I bump up the pull weight by 1/2 lb, the spongy feel basically goes away. Even though you can feel the sear sliding, it is so smooth. It somewhat reminds me of a 1911 trigger. I also couldn't distinguish any over travel of the trigger. Plus, if pulling the trigger at a somewhat normal pace, the pull just feels crisp (like breaking a glass rod). Yes, I have broken a glass rod to know what it feels like.

Every time I review an AR trigger, I try it with my .22 lr conversion. The TFA-15 is one of the few aftermarket triggers that actually worked! Most don't have enough hammer energy to set off the rimfire cases consistently. Another great feature of this trigger is the ability to cycle the action while the safety selector is in the "safe" position. Hey, why not be able to load a round with the safety on.

I really liked how the trigger arrived with a super smooth pull. Other triggers I have used take some break in until they felt like this. If you are looking for a decent drop-in trigger system, go look at Trojan Firearms. Their customer service is top notch, and they manufacture more than just triggers.