Low recoil rifle

CZ 527 in 22 hornet, Not a mil surp but fun to shoot. Unless you go with a 5.56 AR, recoil will probably be an issue with most milsurps.

http://www.thecmp.org/22targetsurplus.htm

Milsurp .22lr

Most milsurp, at least what I thikn of like Enfields, Mosin Nagants, Mausers etc., rearrange my shoulder when I shoot them, and I haven't injured mine. An AR is a good choice, as is a AK-74. I would honestly go with a .22lr or somelike close to it. Shoot more, hurt less

If you intend to hunt big game, the various Swedish Mausers in 6.5x55 are VERY mild in the recoil department...and EXTREMELY accurate.

dogsoldier0513 said:

If you intend to hunt big game, the various Swedish Mausers in 6.5x55 are VERY mild in the recoil department...and EXTREMELY accurate.

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The Swede would be a fine choice, especially if you're only interested in surplus rifles.

However, most other old military rifles have metal butt plates and are chambered in hard-hitting rounds like the 8mm & .303. Now I'm not sure how bad your shoulder is but you might want to try something more modern in a smaller caliber before decideing on what to buy.

Try an SKS. Practically no recoil there. They're lightweight and accurate. A new batch of good Yugos recently came in, and are available from various retailers. If you can find a Romanian in good condition, they're also an excellent choice. Good-condition Romanians are a bit hard to find, though.

I picked up a Century Golani about 10 days ago. It's not milsurp, but it's an accurate civilian clone of the Israeli Galil rifle, and a very good quality build. It's a heavy 5.56 rifle with a good muzzle brake. It's probably one of the gentlest rifles I've fired. No sharpness whatsoever. The included magazine is bad, but brand new Tapco replacements are cheap.

For deer-size game, consider a 250 Savage. Less recoil than a 243.

Also, I use a PAST shoulder pad to protect my shoulder joint.

If your concerned about recoil with a larger rifle, I bought a NOKICK hydrolic/spring recoil system and installed it on my .338 win mag, I shoot 200gr winchester ballistic silvertips out of it and can shoot it all day long, the first day i installed it I shot 80 rounds out of it with no soreness during or after, NO kick at all. I would compare it to a standard issue M4

I'd suggest a 5.45x39mm AK, or a .223 AR. If you like milsurps, you could build a retro "early M16"-looking AR with a slickside upper, fixed carry handle, pronged flash suppressor, and triangular handguards.

http://pullig.dyndns.org/retroblackrifle/index.html



I have to disagree with the characterization of a 7.62x39mm SKS or AK as having near-zero recoil. Recoil is certainly less with 7.62x39mm than .308 or .30-06, but 7.62x39mm is considerably sharper than .223 or 5.45x39.

Actually 7.62x39 isn't sharper. I have a Saiga .223 and a standard AK, as well as an SKS. The Saiga actually hurt a bit because of its short, sharp recoil, whereas the 7.62x39 round was more pleasant because it had a longer, more gentle recoil. The Saiga doesn't hurt anymore now that I converted it, though; the new stock has a spring plate on it.

If you're looking for military pattern rifles your best bets are either an AR in 5.56 or a AK in 5.45x39. Eitehr rifle is going to be very soft shooting.

5.45x39 has the advantage of being very, very cheap right now. Of course, the cheap ammo is corrosive milsurp.

BSW

I also agree on the 6.5x55 if hunting game where you need that size of cartridge.

ever consider black powder rifles??

Depending on how much you shoot (?), if only practice and hunting, say 2 boxes a year, you could get a nice early Arisaka in 6.5. Ammo is out there from Norma and Shaw & son. You'd just need to stock up as you won't find it in stores. Since they were made for smaller framed soldiers, they have short stocks. Get a good LimbSaver slip-on 1" butt pad and you should be good to go. And it won't cost you a ton either

If true mil-spec "as built" is not required, I have seen some nice Arisaka 6.5 sporters come up for reasonable $$ and they could be fitted with a recoil tube inside the stock bolt hole and a LimbSaver butt pad for not too much. Then you'd have a tough bolt gun and a softer shooter

M1 Carbine, hands down as 1st choice

Then the Swede 96

An AR15 while not milsurp per se, with the buffer, should be easy shooting.

If you've got the money, an M1922-M2 would be choice!

Actually 7.62x39 isn't sharper. I have a Saiga .223 and a standard AK, as well as an SKS. The Saiga actually hurt a bit because of its short, sharp recoil, whereas the 7.62x39 round was more pleasant because it had a longer, more gentle recoil. The Saiga doesn't hurt anymore now that I converted it, though; the new stock has a spring plate on it.

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In the same gun, though, with the same stock and same barrel length (the only difference being caliber), 7.62x39mm will produce about 70% more recoil than 5.56x45mm. The momentum of a 55gr .223 round at 3000 ft/sec is 3.26 kg-m/s, if I figure it right; the momentum of a 122gr 7.62x39mm at 2350 ft/sec is 5.66 kg-m/s, neglecting the momentum of the gases.

I have a Romanian AK in 7.62x39mm with a metal sidefolder, and it will leave bruises if you don't pocket it just so. Out of a gun with a wider stock (or with a butt pad), it would be much gentler, but a 5.45x39 out of the same gun would still have about half the recoil due to the lighter bullet weight, which results in commensurately less momentum.

One of the nice things about the AR, for someone with a shoulder problem, is that the AR's buttplate is wider than a typical AK's, making the rifle seem even gentler than it is. The direct-impingement system may also result in a somewhat softer recoil pulse, though I've never shot a piston AR so I have no point of reference.

AK74 or AR.

AK74's recoil less than AR's they are very light shooting rifles.

Retro M16?

One of the heavy Yugo SKSs w/grenade launcher wouldn't be too bad, especially if you put a slip-on recoil pad on it. It has a pretty short length of pull anyway.

Surplus military trainer .22s are sometimes good. I have a BRNO Model 1 that I love.

jm

What about something like the Biakal (sp) semi in x39, seems like a nice sport semi in a relatively mild and effective round.

Recoil is a function of bullet weight, powder charge weight, bullet velocity and weapon weight. You can also reduce recoil by using a muzzle brake (which reduces the recoil cause by the propellant mass).

So, a heavier rifle will have less recoil than a lighter rifle of the same caliber.
With equal weight rifles, one firing a lighter bullet than the other at the same velocity will have less recoil. With equal weight rifles, both firing the same weight bullet, the one with the lower velocity will have less recoil.

I wrote a simple web based form to estimate recoil energy in Joules, which will give you a basic comparative number for two rifles (or other firearms)

http://guntech.com/ke.html

I have a Romanian AK in 7.62x39mm with a metal sidefolder

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That, my friend, is your problem. Those stocks tend to be rather abusive to your shoulder due to their minimalist design. Switch it out for a regular stock or a better side-folding stock and you'll see the difference. My Romanian underfolder is very gentle. Granted, I did put a brake on it since it came with a threaded barrel.

A little more complicated solution, but learn to reload. Then you can shoot any rifle you like, with minimal recoil
Second choice, the PAST strap on recoil pad. Makes even milsurp ammo not so bad to shoot.

Prevost,

My AR clone has no recoil, my Winchester 100 has a little...I am shooting left-handed now because of a Mill.$$$ of surgery/reconstruction to my right shoulder. Neither of those make my bad shoulder hurt...but then my 7 x 57 and .270 don't really bother me either.

Have you tried shooting with the other shoulder, it is different but can be learned.
good luck!

you can't reduce a load for a semi-automatic, gas-operated rifle too far and expect it to cycle. Get a 10/22 and have fun on the cheap.