This weekend, I was fortunate to be part of an impromptu flashhider experiment. We were fortunate that 4 of us showed up for a shoot in the dark all armed with AR-15's. We also had 3 different types of FH's (GI, Vortex and Phantom) and a post-ban. We also had 4 different types of ammo, Q3131A, PMC, American Eagle and Hornady TAP(sp?).
We did a side-by-side comparison. There were some differences between the FH's depending on ammunition. IMO, the Vortex slightly beat out the Phantom which slightly beat out the GI A2. Hornady TAP beat out the Q3131A, PMC and American Eagle for lowest flash.
As far as the post-ban goes (Bushmaster 16" dissipator), the owner first fired Federal American Eagle 55 gr. Actually the flash was not bad at all. You could see it but it was a dull red. Q3131A was a little worse. By far the biggest flash was with PMC 55 gr. It was like a friggin' flashbulb going off!
Too much fun.
Regards,
SOL