Recoil question and comparison

[MidRoad]

So finally got my feet wet today in regards to heavier recoiling handguns. Up to this point the biggest I had shot was 240g federals through a 7.5" sbh.

Started out with 180 grain buffalo bore through my 2.25" sp101. Recoil was sharp and you could feel it in the hand,but really wasn't too bad.

Next was my dad's TC contder with the fallowing barrels/loads

10" octagon 45 colt - shooting lever revolutions,pussy cat

14" bull barrel 35 Remington with Remington 180 grainers - pretty stout,but the barrel helped tame it

10" octagon 30-30 ,150 great Cor lokts which were a little less stout than the 35 ,but the gun is alot lighter with the thin octagon barrel so it was sharper.

10" octagon 30-30 with 168 great lever revolutions ,definately had the most recoil ,again the thin octagon barrel is a pretty light gun

So my question is to the folks who have shot these contenders with the rifle rounds,how would you compare their recoil so say a real hot 44 mag from a revolver or a 454 from say a srh? None of my pals have one to shoot and I'm curious to how they compare. Ive read of people complaining the contenders in 35 had ALOT of recoil,and I really didn't find it bad at all. It's there but wasn't painful.

Anyways I probably shouldnt have shot the contenders because now I want to try bigger and badder things! we

 

[mcb]

My brother did 450 Marlin in a 10-inch TC Encore barrel. Between the two of us we shot 12 rounds. The recoil was very... dynamic. Hot 357 Magnum in a 340PD hurt me more but in the 6 rounds I fired I never manage to keep my weak hand on the gun. He sold it shortly there after and bought a 10-inch 44 mag barrel and it is very mild shooting even with hot 44 Mag.

Look up free recoil energy. There are calculators on line that you can plug the data (bullet weigh & velocity, propellant weight, gun weight) into and it will estimate free recoil energy (it does not take muzzle brakes into account). It not perfect but it is a nice way to compare recoil of different cartridges in different weight guns.

 

[RecoilRob]

While there ARE guns around that actually will hurt you if shot very much, most will just be unpleasant if the recoil is above your threshold of fun. In heavy handguns my Encore 30.06 15" kicks a bit with the real heavy 200-220 grain bullets but it's mostly muzzle blast that gets your attention. The hand won't start complaining if the grip fits it well. The really Big Stuff like Linebaugh's in Bisley Rugers can swat you bad if you don't know what you're doing and are beyond my enjoyment level in such a light handgun. Heavy 44 Mags in 5" Bisley is about it for me these days.

Heavy 454 Casull in SRH also not a painful thing unless you might be trying to rapid fire double-action where you can't let the pistol move in recoil so you do take more punishment to the hand and fingers. For me heavy recoiling pistols are more of a challenge to HIT with...not just shoot. Anyone can just blast away but actually putting lead on target is what the game is really about and most people find it difficult to master the heavier recoiling handguns.

One word of caution: I once had a 3" round-butt 629 Smith and about 250 assorted 44 mag loads that I wanted to dispose of to consolidate everything on another loading....so I shot it all up one evening. That was a mistake as my wrist wasn't right for a long time afterwards and the nerves had been compressed and damaged. It was glorious fun and the muzzle flashes very entertaining, but it's one of those things you look back on and with the wisdom of age say 'that wasn't very smart'.

 

[BobWright]

Many years ago I was introduced to the Thompson Contender. I was visiting my daughter and her family in Ohio. There is a man who lives down the road from them who makes custom barrels. My son-in-law had a friend who had a few of these barrels, and we all went out one day to introduce me to that pistol.

Now at that time I was familiar with the .44 Magnum in both the Smith and Ruger. So they started me out with the .30-30, very mild recoil. Worked up to the .35 Remington, .43 JDJ, .338 Woodswalker, .444 Marlin and finally the .45-70. Even the .45-70 was not too bad with 300 gr. cast bullets. The big kicker was the .45-70 with 500 gr. cast bullets.

At the end of the day my hand was sore from those blamed rubber grips! If the guns had been stocked with decent wood grips everything would have been O.K. But those rubber grips abraded the web of my hand until I had a blister from them. To this day I will not tolerate rubber grips on my guns!

The recoil was stout enough with those .45-70s that the forearm finally came off, pulling the screw and ferule through the wood of the forearm. But what an impressive impact it made downrange!

Bob Wright

 

[Varminterror]

I’ve always felt the recoil of specialty pistols in my elbows. Big cases in small guns will push hard, but the longer profile and longer barrels mean less muzzle flip. The recoil is spread over the hand well, so the movement is really in your elbows, bending to redirect the pistol up instead of back. The grips are typically generously large as well, to ensure recoil is spread around the palm.

Shorter profiled, high recoil revolvers are a lot more snappy in the hand. The revolver rolls and digs into the web of your thumb and index finger, and crashes the joint at the base of your thumb much more than a specialty pistol. One of the worst behaved handguns I have ever owned has been the Ruger Redhawk 2 1/2” Kodiak Backpacker .44mag. The grip neck is tiny, and the muzzle flip with 300grn bullets is extreme. I can shoot 50 rounds or more from my Contender 45-70 without any pain day of, or day after. That Redhawk .44mag leaves my hand in pain for a couple days after 20 rounds or so, if fired without a better fitting T grip.

Specialty pistols hit hard, but you get a lot more hand and body to soak it up compared to a hot revolver.

 

[MidRoad]

I’ve always felt the recoil of specialty pistols in my elbows. Big cases in small guns will push hard, but the longer profile and longer barrels mean less muzzle flip. The recoil is spread over the hand well, so the movement is really in your elbows, bending to redirect the pistol up instead of back. The grips are typically generously large as well, to ensure recoil is spread around the palm.

Shorter profiled, high recoil revolvers are a lot more snappy in the hand. The revolver rolls and digs into the web of your thumb and index finger, and crashes the joint at the base of your thumb much more than a specialty pistol. One of the worst behaved handguns I have ever owned has been the Ruger Redhawk 2 1/2” Kodiak Backpacker .44mag. The grip neck is tiny, and the muzzle flip with 300grn bullets is extreme. I can shoot 50 rounds or more from my Contender 45-70 without any pain day of, or day after. That Redhawk .44mag leaves my hand in pain for a couple days after 20 rounds or so, if fired without a better fitting T grip.

Specialty pistols hit hard, but you get a lot more hand and body to soak it up compared to a hot revolver.

Flip definitely makes a deference in the perceived recoil. The long heavy barrel of the 35 rem Contender drove it straight back so it wasn't bad at all. I mean it thumps but was bad. I prefer that to a flip. I really like the contenders platform,and may have to pick one up one of these days.

I did put a box of Underwood 255 gr rnfp's through my sr1911 as well. Those were more uncomfortable to me than the TC's. I fractured my growth plate on my right wrist when I was a wresteler in high school. And the flip from those hot 45's was more unpleasant to me than the straight back recoil.

Lastly I was finally able to take out my new 44 special flat top too. Shot some cheap LAX 240 gr fmj's through it. And I have to say it is one sweeeeeet shooter. Hands down my favorite gun I own.

 

[340PD]

With smaller guns,
a Seecamp .32 and 340PD with wood grips and full house .357 magnum loads will get your attention.