Recoil

[Tom W.]

Yup, back when I was younger my buddy got a very light Single shot H&R 12 ga. 3.5 inch and two boxes of turkey loads. I believe I shot it twice.

My Ruger #1B that I had in 7mm Rem Mag wasn't too bad, nor was my same rifle in 30-06. When I put a Limbsaver on both of them I was VERY surprised, as well as pleased.

I don't care for the recoil of a .44 Mag in a SA revolver, but the same loads in a Ruger Super RedHawk don't bother me at all.

I ain't shooting another .454.....Unless it's with Ruger only .45 Colt loads. Or ported.

[762 shooter]

I've always wanted a Siamese Mauser in 45-70. So when I ran up on a Winchester Model 70 Super Express in 458 Win Mag I said why the heck not? A 45-70 on steroids. Then I remembered I had rotator cuff surgery about a year ago. I knew I could Trailboss anything, but I wanted to shoot some full power stopping loads. You know 500 grains at 2150 ft/sec. I started looking for ways to manage the recoil and found this You Tube video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDwhiTkM668

Stand more square to the target and place the butt of the rifle farther over into your chest. Over your pectoral, not into the shoulder joint. I shot 20 rounds of 458. Ten rounds of 350 grains at 2450 ft/sec and 10 rounds of the aforementioned 500 grains.

I was shooting off cross sticks and shot some tiny groups at 50 yds. The next day my chest muscle was a little sore but my shoulder was still attached. Maybe a touch of Shaken Baby Syndrome, but I thoroughly enjoyed the range session.

The guy was right about the stance. It works for me.

762

[brewer12345]

The funny thing is that I never notice or recall recoil when I am shooting at game. A few rounds of .30-06 at the range and I can feel it. The same at an elk, don't have any idea the butt of the rifle even hit me.

[OldBearHair]

You guys reminded me of younger, stouter days a while back (1980s) I was working up a load of 190 grain Jwords and had 4 sets of three rounds to fire. The previous sets of four were nearly up to what I thought I needed without pressure signs. Laid myself down prone with a couple sand bags and at the report realized that would not work. Jarred me all the way down to my left hip. Of course a standing shot with same load seemed do-able going with the flow.. Found out that bullet shot just fine about three steps back down the ladder.

[Walks]

I've been crippled by recoil, my neck has 3 malformed vertebrae and all of my cervical discs are crushed or non-existent. The A/C joint in my right shoulder is crumbled to dust. The entire right shoulder is disintegrating.

I started Competitive TRAP (ATA) Shooting & SKEET (NSSA) Shooting at 12yrs old. I averaged 200+ rds a week. And I loaded all my own Ammo & most of my DAD'S & little Brother's. We used what is today called the HEAVY TRAP LOAD; 3 Dram Eq. 1 1/8 oz of shot.

For 5 years. I have permanent tennis elbow in my right arm, that can only be corrected with Surgery.

After I came home from Overseas, they had closed my TRAP Range to build the container yard at the port of Los Angeles. Couldn't stand waiting an hour & a half to shoot at the only other TRAP Range.
So I got into Handgun Metallic Silhouette. Big HARD Kicking Handguns.
And Big-Bore Rifles from the bench.
Had a complete right shoulder rebuild at 39yrs old. Now everything around it is crumbling.

PLEASE KEEP HEAVY RECOILING GUNS AWAY FROM GROWING CHILDREN.

You maybe dead before it effects them in their 40's or 50's, but it will effect them.
I was feeling it by the time I was 33yrs old.

Now the best I can do is a Win 73 with Cowboy Loads. I'll never fire a shotgun again.

[country gent]

I have competed in NRA rifle with 308 243 and 223, 50 rds to 88rds in a day plus pit duty and BPCR Shilouette with 34-90, 45-70, 40-65, and 38-55. 50 rds plus sighters and an side matches.
The NRA match rifles were service rifles in 308 and 223 ( M1As and AR15s) rifle weights were in the 13-14 lb range. The match rifles were 243 and 223 and in the same range for weight. A full match with the 308s was tiring but not painfull. As the day went on I did have to concentrate harder due to the fatigue. The match rifles were even easier on me due to the adjustable butt plates cheek pieces and the better fit in position. The BPCR rifles Are the same as far as fatigue and recoil they run 12 lbs and recoil isn't an issue at the stat but as the match goes on it takes its toll. The 45-90 with 550 grn bullets can be tiring. coil and fatigue affect more than just the shoulder and arms, as you tire eyesight gets weaker, the minds ability to focus becomes harder. Your ability to hold or maintain a position becomes harder. Learning to relax and just hold the rifle up helps a lot.

I watched a few Long range shooters with 300 win mags and bigger start out strong but as the day go on things start dropping.

Mindset is a big part of handling recoil, as is position and actual fit of the rifle.

[Rufus Krile]

Just started playing with a Shiloh Sharps 50 X 2 1/2 and, as much fun as that is, I don't think I'm going to be shooting it near as much as my 45/70. When you get into these things torque becomes a factor and us right-handed shooters start getting slapped around if we lighten up on our hold. Sort of self-correcting...

[nicholst55]

A lot of times the stock design and rifle weight have a lot more impact on perceived recoil than the cartridge the rifle is chambered for. The absolute worst recoiling rifle that I have ever owned was a little Mosin-Nagant M44 Carbine in 7.62X54R. That gun literally beat me to death every time I jerked the trigger! After 5-10 rounds off the bench, I had what the English call 'gun headache,' and my shoulder was bruised. I'm 6'2" and currently weigh 240 pounds and shoot a full sized M91/30 rifle (and many larger bores as well) without complaint. I wasn't set up to load for that gun at the time, and Boxer-primed brass was both scarce and very expensive (either Norma or Lapua). Milsurp ammo was dirt cheap, but it was absolutely no fun to shoot through that gun. The short, skinny stock, steel buttplate and impressive muzzle blast all combined to make that gun no fun to shoot at all! I struggled through perhaps 100 rounds over a couple of years, and then sold it.

[white eagle]

My 45/70 Marlin 1895 with 400 gr boolits pushed to 1800-1900fps is like standing behind a mule when he licks an electric fence!

I now load them to 1400 fps, and the deer don't know the difference, and I doubt if a buffalo or a grizzly bear would either!

alot said there
my Guide gun has a decelerator recoil pad on it it still beats me up
my bil caould not shoot his 338 wm so I ended up sighting it in for him

[ThomR]

I have an acquaintance that bruises from shooting 223. He is quite possibly the biggest wimp I've ever met.

[samari46]

Ruger #1 in 45/70 with factory 300 grain ammo, recoil was just a quick jab. But when I got to about 2000 fps wasn't fun anymore. My go to deer rifle is a Sako 75 hunter in 30-06 pushing a 165 grain Nosler ballistic tip at 2800 fps and with their well designed stock and a good recoil pad is a dream to shoot. Did fire some warm loads from a friends Marlin 1895 in 45/70. Definitely not fun. Have fired a bunch of 375H&H and while controllable wasn't my cup of tea. My Russian M44 carbine in 7.62x54r with yugo heavy ball is fun. Lotta boom and muzzle flash. With all that said have been shooting the '06 in various rifles both military and commercial for years. Just feel comfortable with that cartridge. 308 win.7.62x51 meh, never had a 308 that shot as well as the '06 and I have 3 308's. Frank

[fatelk]

I've been crippled by recoil, my neck has 3 malformed vertebrae and all of my cervical discs are crushed or non-existent. The A/C joint in my right shoulder is crumbled to dust. The entire right shoulder is disintegrating.

I started Competitive TRAP (ATA) Shooting & SKEET (NSSA) Shooting at 12yrs old. I averaged 200+ rds a week. And I loaded all my own Ammo & most of my DAD'S & little Brother's. We used what is today called the HEAVY TRAP LOAD; 3 Dram Eq. 1 1/8 oz of shot.

For 5 years. I have permanent tennis elbow in my right arm, that can only be corrected with Surgery.

After I came home from Overseas, they had closed my TRAP Range to build the container yard at the port of Los Angeles. Couldn't stand waiting an hour & a half to shoot at the only other TRAP Range.
So I got into Handgun Metallic Silhouette. Big HARD Kicking Handguns.
And Big-Bore Rifles from the bench.
Had a complete right shoulder rebuild at 39yrs old. Now everything around it is crumbling.

PLEASE KEEP HEAVY RECOILING GUNS AWAY FROM GROWING CHILDREN.

You maybe dead before it effects them in their 40's or 50's, but it will effect them.
I was feeling it by the time I was 33yrs old.

Now the best I can do is a Win 73 with Cowboy Loads. I'll never fire a shotgun again.

Thank you for the warning. My 12yo son was shooting the M1 Garand the other day, and he's very small for his age. He only shot a few rounds, it was a bit much for him.

I know different things affect different people in different ways, but abuse to a person's body can sure come back to haunt you later in life. My wife broke her ankle badly when she was a kid, then 30 years later it started having troubles again. Multiple surgeries later, it's probably going to end in amputation.

I ain't shooting another .454.....Unless it's with Ruger only .45 Colt loads. Or ported.

The worst recoiling handguns I ever fired were a S&W 329, and a Redhawk in .480 Ruger. I have no interest in ever pulling the trigger on either of those again. Ouch!

[reivertom]

I've had to down grade from 45-70 and 30-06, to a Savage 99 in .243 this year. I have neck problems and can't take the jolt until something heals or surgery.

[Markopolo]

I had a xbolt 375 H&H’s mag that had a synthetic stock and stainless.. I hated that rifle. Even with cast, my bear loads just plain hurt me. Took 3 guys to sight in. I would flinch before I ever pulled the trigger. Call me a whimp, but I took it to a gunsmith buddy and he ported it. While is was very loud, it was more in line with 30-06 levels and manageable. Turned out to be a good cast gun after that, and the wife even took a 60 in moose with it after that. She couldn’t get the moose to turn broadside, so she shot it through the nose and the shot passed through the front of chest and recovered the boolit under the rump hide.

Very gutsy shot if you ask me. Porting Tamed the 375 right down.

[Lance Boyle]

Heavy recoil was a lot more fun when I was younger, kind of a manly, tough guy thing. I’m older now, nothing to prove; it’s just not fun to get beat up anymore.

Right now I have a minor shoulder thing going on, some kind of rotator cuff sprain I think. I was out shooting the M1 Garand and K31 a week or two ago, neither of which has ever bothered me before, and my shoulder hurt for a couple days. I may have to lay off shooting anything with much kick for a while.

Yep. I was never a recoil junky per se but I know I shoot more precisely when recoil, gun fit and me having a good day is all together. I have days where my normal garand load was inconsequential and others where my position was different due to a bad pitch in the firing line and I was getting my knuckle into my lip. Toward the end of the match I was nursing that lip. I still scratch my head on that one. Scores were good though enough that the state team guy asked me if I could hit some more practices. Sadly I could not due to distance and work.


These days I have no issue carrying a .30-30 or .260 instead of a .300 win mag. My shoulder was “ frozen” most of the summer. Therapy has it coming back. Qualifying or more shouldering the 870 with slugs at work was a pain but went well enough.

[Three44s]

Check out the Shooter’s Friend recoil pad:

https://www.dowdlesports.com/Shooter...d_p_38123.html

They sure do not look “sexy” but a friend of mine is ecstatic about his.

Three44s

[Walks]

I bought one of those pads years ago to fit the curved brass buttplate of a Win 94 Chief Crazy Horse in .38-55 Win. The only way I could get target accuracy ooh of that RIFLE was a max load of IMR3031 under a LYMAN #375449 cast of LINOTYPE. That pencil bbl kicked hard, but that recoil pad fit like a glove. A bit hard on/off, but did a great job.
A PAST Magnum pad under my shirt helped a lot.

[higgins]

I started using a PAST recoil pad several years ago, the one that's about 1/2" thick. Thick enough to do some good but not so thick that it makes getting your head on the stock in the right place difficult.

[Lloyd Smale]

I kind of chuckle at it too. Ive had many around here claim an o6 is just to powerful and kicks to much but they spend most of the fall hauling around there 12 gauge pump.

[Echo]

Both Lyman & RCBS make dang good 200 gr molds, the 357315 and the 35-200, that I shot in my Whelen. Gave the gun to my son as a birthday present (1917 Enfield re-stocked and cera treated), and still provide boolits for him. Even at only 1500fps, the recoil is noticeable...