It hurts so good...

So what is the most painful handgun you've shot?

Took out my .38 Special derringer for it's maiden flight this weekend after some repairs (bought it broken). Shooting 158 LRN bullets...three days later it still feels like someone wacked me in the palm with a ball-peen hammer. I shot some Hornady Critical Defense out of the sake of my hand and found that to be more bearable. So far my most painful experience, can't wait to shoot it again.

The only thing that has left my hand and wrist sore for well into the next day has been a magnum 12G slug out of a pistol grip only shotgun. That was just stupidly painful and the effect stuck around for almost a week.

A round of.454Casull out of a Super Redhawk comes awfully close to achieving longer term aching. A .410 slug round from a Bond Arms Snake Slayer was up there too.

Shot some .38Spl from a J frame snub nose a couple of weeks back. It hurt a little but mostly due to the grips being so small that I couldn't get a proper grip. The actual power of the gun and rounds were fine. And with better fitting grips it would have been a non issue.

Try a real .357 Mag out of a 14 oz Scandium S&W j-frame.
Most won't pull the trigger a second time.
After you do it five times in succession, get back to me. :)

I did it several times with each of the three I owned (a 360 and two 340s). What was I thinking? Don't know, but I no longer own any of them...and almost five years later, my wrist still hurts. :rolleyes:

I know a lot of people say this, but the PPK in .380 has a very sharp recoil unlike anything Ive felt in any other gun. I also remember shooting a .44 Mag when I was a scrawny little highschooler. Scared the s@*t out of me.

I can't say that I have shot a handgun that was so powerful that I remember it hurting that bad. But the most painful handgun I shot was a older Walther PPK, only because I held it wrong, and the slide really bit the web of my hand, also known as slide-bite. Bleed like a stuck pig & hurt to the point that I nearly dropped the gun. LM

Ruger SRA in .454. With full house loads, it has more felt recoil than my .500 S&W. In short, it is no fun to shoot. With reduced loads or .45 Colt cartridges, that becomes another matter entirely.

500 Magnum, devastating, won't do it again.

A while back I fired a .44 magnum out of a single action revolver. Apparently, you have to hold a single action revolver differently than a double action revolver, and because I have no idea how to shoot a single action revolver it felt like someone hit my hand with a hammer.

Try a real .357 Mag out of a 14 oz Scandium S&W j-frame

And their N-frame cousin, the 25 ounce .44 Magnum 329 PD

My 41 ounce 3" 629 doesn't feel real good with heavy 300 grain loads, either. Right up there with my SRH .454.

How about a .44 Mag Ruger Redhawk that was modified into a 2" snubbie with wood grips (a well done modification, it was like factory), firing full-power .44 loads. I remember not feeling anything for a while after.

The Kel Tec P40
feels like someone is hitting you in the hand with a ball peen hammer, after two mags, most of your feeling goes, but then so does your accuracy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kel-Tec_P-11
Yep, .40 out of one of the lightest 9mm guns... need I say more,
didn't help that All I had was 180grn rounds.

500 S&W Magnum long barrel with stout hand loads. As pleasant as having your hand whacked with a stick.

A friend of mine has some tiny little .380. Each round is like a hammer smack to your palm.

My P64's recoil was unbearable until I changed the recoil spring and added a rubber sleeve. I'm pretty tough and have a high pain tolerance (seven major surgeries) but that really hurt and could have caused nerve damage if I kept shooting.

I've shot various .44 Mag's, heavy loaded .45 Colts, S&W 500 mag and my FA .454 A LOT. TOP of my list has been a Freedom Arms (which is relatively light compared to some hand cannons) in .475 Linebaugh! THAT sucker was something else again!

320 or 330gr hard cast slug loads at about 1300fps. It was .45LC stuff from Georgia Arms. Had to pass it to my friend who uses those in his lever rifle. He says it is very accurate high quality ammo. Apparently brass with stars at the base is very good stuff.

I shoot 50S&W Mag out of 4" pistol, Beowulf 50 (AR), and 50BMG(rifle) and find them much easier than my 454Casual, 44mag, 357, 9MM, and 38 out of a snubbie. The .45ACP, 45C, & 50 cal firearms push back. The others have a sharp snap back.
Now my .45ACP Downsizer which is a single shot palm gun HURTS. I only shot it once.
TMy Most painfull Handgun

http://www.adjunct.diodon349.com/attack_on_usa/wspcardsmall.jpg
Yep i have them all.

Apparently brass with stars at the base is very good stuff.

Many botique ammo makers use Starline brass, which has two stars (asterisks) separated by a line (curved on the case head). Very good quality brass. Starline does not make loaded ammunition, though.

http://www.thefirearmsforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=27309&stc=1&d=1246721605

.44 mag T/C Contender. It wasn't the recoil as such, it was that bleeping trigger guard whacking my fingers.

Try a real .357 Mag out of a 14 oz Scandium S&W j-frame.
Most won't pull the trigger a second time.
After you do it five times in succession, get back to me.


Yep. I put a full cylinder through one. It was zero fun. I've shot a .480 Ruger and a Desert Eagle .50. They were tame in comparison.

S&W 500 snubnose with some wood "boot" grips. 5 shot of of "medium-hot" handloads would actually tear a little bit at the web of the hand from abrasion. A piece of duct tape was all that was neaded to "cushion" the recoil from hitting too hard to tear skin. A .45acp round is shown for comparison. http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m247/matquig/DSC05273.jpg

^^^^^^
WHY
do you really need a broken hand that bad

Almost as bad as the Youtube of some guy breaking his wrist shooting a .45-70 derringer, yeah... that doesn't sound smart to begin with

Most of the time, I have it loaded with 440gr lead bullets/10gr Unique/700fps. You talk about a FUN gun! Think of the simple ballistics of a heavy revolver (I believe it is 6-8oz heavier than a S&W .44 Mag "Dirty Harry Special", so it IS portable) that lauches a flatnose bullet almost twice as heavy as a .45acp, with a much wider cross section. Even that "mild" load will penetrate deep and knock down dangerous targets smaller than a bear with ease. AND, it's a pleasure to shoot. I put the rubber grips back on if I'm shooting a lot of heavier loads in a session. The wood grips put it on the playing field with other standard "big frame" revolvers (N frames, etc), and are fine with the low level loads.

Try a real .357 Mag out of a 14 oz Scandium S&W j-frame.
Most won't pull the trigger a second time.
After you do it five times in succession, get back to me. :)

I did it several times with each of the three I owned (a 360 and two 340s). What was I thinking? Don't know, but I no longer own any of them...and almost five years later, my wrist still hurts. :rolleyes:
Tried it ONCE and will throw rocks before I will do it again.

Shot exactly that yesterday. Guy had it at the range. 3 shots and I was done. Can only imagine what it would feel like to be hit with that round.

I quickly off loaded a 340 after shooting 10 rounds out of it. Brutal.

My Bond Arms Snake Slayer IV smarts pretty bad when I shoot 3" .410 000 Buck shells out of it. My S&W 460V is a pleasure to shoot with full power loads compared to that gun.

http://media.skateboard.com.au/forum/images/Suicide%20Pistol.jpg

That one would hurt for sure!!

Kel-Tec P-11. Not because of the recoil, but because the way the grip is shaped and the non-skid surface, it just ground the skin off of my knuckle. 60 rounds and I had blood running down my arm.

Oh, and for those of you who have a problem with the recoil of the S&W 50 Mag, I’ll be glad to send you my address so you can solve the problem. :D

I have to agree with 460Kodiak. The little Bond Arms derrenger with 3 inch .410 shells is quite a handfull.

My S&W 329PD is not bad at all with 180 grain hollow points and a real pussycat with 165 grain .44 specials. It starts getting more serious with the 225 grain LeverRevolutions, which is the heaviest bullet I've put through it.

45-70Govt out of an extended relative's Thompson Center Contender, of what I own, on my cheapo judge/ super comanche single shot 45/410, the 3in slugs are kinda bad, can't shoot those all day.

S&W 642 Air Weight. I might as well have been holding the rounds in my hand and hitting the primers with a hammer.

The little Bond Arms derrenger with 3 inch .410 shells is quite a handfull.Mine was (is) an American Derringer. I've shot a 329, and all-steel revolvers in .460, .475 Linebaugh, and .500 S&W Mag. But that derringer is the only pistol that has actually injured me.Try a real .357 Mag out of a 14 oz Scandium S&W j-frame.
I have a 342--.38+P out of a 10.7 oz revolver. It convinced me that I never need a .357 scandium. And so I have never tried one. :)

The 342 is tolerable. "Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang. [Pause] Ow! [Places revolver in support hand, shakes shooting hand]." I typically practice with gloves, but one cylinder is bare-handed each practice session, with carry loads.

Really like that Downsizer. Well, like it to look at. :p

S&W 642 Air Weight. I might as well have been holding the rounds in my hand and hitting the primers with a hammer.

Yup. Fired 6 rounds and sold it. I am no recoil wuss. I used to love firing DoubleTap's 158gr. .357mag load out of my SP101. But something about that gun, perhaps the exposed backstrap, just made it very unpleasant to shoot.
I can't even imagine the .357mag lighter j-frames. That would be truly horrifying.

What a bummer thread.

My wife just read it and walked away shaking her head. Being a little gal you would think her 60 pro with full house mags in it would rip her little arm off.

If she's shaking her head because she can't understand why guys do these things, well, I get that. She's not supposed to understand, and frankly I'm not sure I understand why we do it either.

If she's shaking her head because guns don't really hurt, any number of us can reach into the back of our safes and pull out a gun that will change her mind.

And yours.

If I shoot a handgun that's painful to operate I sure as heck wouldn't own it. JIMHO

Mtn

Hot 158-grains out of an airweight smith with standard wood grips is no fun for me. I can't imagine .357s through one. I'd rather hit my hand with a ball-peen.

Hot "express" buckshot through a mossberg pump with a hard plastic pistol grip was quite painful for me also.

But the most painful I've shot was definitely the Seecamp .380. Ouch. :uhoh:

While a .38 Special Derringer has a noticeable recoil I think a 18.5" shotgun with a pistol grip firing slugs has a really impressive recoil...

I haven't shot anything that was worth not shooting a second time. The closest was a Bersa Thunder 45 that chewed on my hand with every shot. Nothing's had enough recoil to send me packing.

My 642 with buffalo bore 158 +p's is quite enjoyable in fact. I'm sure a full on 360 with full load heavy .357 would be a hammer though.

45/70 out of a American Arms derringer was the nastiest I have ever done.

I love the 320 cast GC 44 mag out of a Super BlackHawk or
the RedHawk both 7.5 BBLs.
Now after many years I went to the doctor & found out I had
Carpel Tunnel Syndrome. Turned out the Doc loved his 44 mag
Collection also. Well to make this a short story. The Doc
reccomended that I get some padded fingerless shooting gloves.

After my hands healed I started slow & after almost a year later &
over 2000 rounds of nothing less than 240gr. My hands are fine
also my accuracy has improved. We think nothing of getting a
good recoil pad for a 12 gauge 3.5 Shotgun with a hard plastic
buttplate. Just a bit of advice from a hand Dr. who studies what
happens to the hand from all that impact.

Mike.

The 2 most memorable that I've shot,a 45/70 Contender 3 shots and my wrists and elbows said "I quit" and my 454 Super Redhawk that's MagNaPorted. don't shoot many 454 loads but heavy 45 Colt loads aren't bad.

.44 mag T/C Contender. It wasn't the recoil as such, it was that bleeping trigger guard whacking my fingers.

I had one of those. Briefly.

Hands down the most uncomfortable gun I've ever fired.

If she's shaking her head because she can't understand why guys do these things, well, I get that. She's not supposed to understand, and frankly I'm not sure I understand why we do it either.

Easy answer: To say the we did. Bragging rights are a powerful motivator. Famous last words, "Hey y'all, watch this!!"

A while back, I had the bright idea to shoot a pistol gripped pump 12ga 3 1/2 magnum slug with 1 hand. Hurt so much I had to do it again...

329 pd.

.480 Ruger, even from a 7 1/2" Super Redhawk. Bought it at an auction ( I had to buy something), fired it 12 times, traded it for a Glock G34 in Nov 08, fired the G34 close to 6000 times so far.

Some guy at the range once let me shoot one of those light, light, light .357 snubbie with full power loads. It was frickin' insane. As far as I'm concerned, it was a completely uncontrollable and, thus, completely useless gun.

Most painful was 50 quick consecutive rounds of .44 mag through my Rugar Redhawk. I couldn't feel my right hand for an hour. Not gonna' do that again.

I've shot a custom .45-70 revolver, but it weighed over 5 lbs. and a S&W 500 with a compensator. Neither of those was unmanageable or painful. On the other hand, little .380s can really start to hurt after a couple of magazines.

Probably the Seecamp .380. But it's not like it's unmanageable.

A guy at the range let me shoot his 600 nitro contender.He said he used it in Africa to hunt something I don't know how to spell.So I had to shoot it never ever again it kills at both ends I went to the emergency room the next morning for xrays my hand was swollen so bad I thought it was broken for sure luckily it was just a severe sprain.Took a month for it to heal.Lesson learned.

Remington 240 grn
and Hornady 200 grn XTP
out of this
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a258/D-Ric902/IMG_2306.jpg
I carry it with 44 specials now

500 Magnum, devastating, won't do it again.

This. I put three cylinders down the pipe on a 10"? barrel. Never again.

Shorty ~2" .357mag of some sort with full house loads. It cut my middle finger under the trigger guard. I've shot more than one full house 44mag that was a lot more comfortable.

K-T p40 bought on sat, shot on sun returned on mon.
traded for the baby glock 40 (23?) shot on mon, returned on tues
for Sig p239/40 which i still have.

the shop likes me cause i recommend it to my students:D

I think we have a winner with the featherweight J framed .357 Mag.

Kahr P380, very uncomfortable to shoot. Out it went.

^ i thought the exact opposite...i find my buddies far more comfortable to shoot than my LCP, and even the LCP isnt that bad at all

I thought the Kahr CW 40 got a bit uncomfortable after a lot of rounds due to the grip.