Rifles that kick like a mule, what you got and what's your work arounds

[skeeterfogger]

06 kicks enough. Was shooting up some older loose ammo. Always shoot 150-167g in it. Well somehow I got a 225g mixed in and didn't notice. Talk about surprise!
Remedy? Went through everything 06 and got rid of any over 167g.
Wouldn't have been so bad had I been ready for it. Shoulder ached for a week.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Oh, another.
Though, if you haven't shot one and shot it in a tee shirt, I don't wanna hear about how you've been shooting Enfields all your life and they don't hurt.

Shoot a No 5 Mk I while wearing only a tee shirt and have that already significant recoil concentrated down by that linear hockey-puck, *butt-pad* and then imparted to a shoulder with a camel's hair width of cotton 'twixt you and the hurt.

Sure and I faked that it didn't hurt for a full magazine but dog-my-cats! THAT hurt!

My "work-around"?

Wear a damn jacket. Even in an Arizona summer!

Todd.

 

[silicosys4]

My M70 Stainless Classic in .300winmag is no fun to shoot, very sharp and painful recoil. My solution was to buy a limbsaver recoil pad...attached to a .375H&H Ruger No.1. The M70 stays in the safe now.

 

[LoonWulf]

I'm not sold on the prospect of selling a gun is a "work around" thats more like a "fail, I give up" situation. When you have a gun, and a need to keep it...and exercise its qualities...what's your work around to do this.

A good recoil pad, either worn like the PAST, or installed on the stock (slip ons fine also). Another option is changing stock design, or adding weight to transfer less energy, or to transfer it differently.

The one .300 that didnt end up being brutal was an old savage 110, and only weighed 7.5 lbs scoped. It wore an old boyds thumbhole stock that was cored out (front, rear, and grip) and thinned as close to minimal as i could get it, and had a very good recoil pad on it. I eventually got bored and sold it, but it was quite pleasant to shoot.

 

[Dunross]

I have a Spanish FR8 carbine in 308.

As it came out of the box it was a kicker to be sure. Made me appreciate my 03A3 in 30-06.

Still, they're neat little guns and I like them so my work around was to remove the steel buttplate and have a nice red rubber buttpad fitted. Had the bolt bent at the same time.

It's still the last gun I shoot at the end of the day, but much better than what it had been. I imagine those Spanish Guardia Civil troopers were not well taken with their issue long arms.

 

[daniel craig]

I have mosin that I Sportsterized, lighter than original, slip on limb saver for sure...or that "strap on"
Leather cheek piece...
View attachment 907867
Ebay, sell left or righthanded, I bought this left used on ebay cheap, I'm right handed, doesnt bother me. I also cut a slot so I could pull out the foam cheek rest and get a little lower with the iron sites...
View attachment 907868
I trimmed the foam

I need to get higher on my mosin because of the scope and this would be a great look! Thanks!

 

[Olon]

I used to compete in BPCR competitions with an Uberti clone of an 1885 Winchester high wall in .45-70. I used 65 grains of blackpowder and a 515 grain cast bullet. For steel silhouette matches, you fired 40 rounds either standing or laying down.

I put on a rubber/gel Limbsaver pad to avoid discomfort. I already had bursitis in my right shoulder from an old Army injury, so shooting a match really didn't help it.

View attachment 907826

The .45-90 used for 1000 yard matches got the same treatment...

View attachment 907828

now THAT is a cool setup.

 

[PapaG]

1960s 94, 44 mag. Birch stock, steel buttplate, Norma steel jacketed softpoints. Nasty! Newer Rossi Rio Grande 45-70. Just as bad. Fifty years ago I helped a great friend "unload" 40 rounds of 458 Win Mag through a #1 Tropical. Different, but not much.

 

[Paul R Zartman]

I also bought a couple shooting shirts on ebay used, they have a quilted shoulder pad along with a pocket on the inside by the shoulder area...2 slim beer coozy's fit perfectly in that pocket...

 

[Howland937]

For hunting purposes, I've only fired muzzleloader with 3 pyrodex or 777 pellets. Turkeys, 3" 12 gauge #4's. Guess the adrenaline dampens recoil (and report since I've never had ringing ears). Off a rest, I shoot everything off a lead sled with sandbags. Still remember those commercials with the eggs but never tried it.

 

[denton]

Remington Mohawk 600 in 308.

My father in law had it, and was cussing at it, especially since whenever he lent it out, the borrower came back cussing at him. I opined that with a little tinkering, it might be a whole lot more comfortable to shoot. He said, well, if you like it so much, when I'm gone, come and get it out of the cabinet. And I did.

Sure enough, it had a brilliant amount of recoil, and a tendency to firmly smack me on the bottom of my cheekbone.

The cure was a recoil pad, 150 grain bullets, and dropping the charge back a grain or two from max. Now it's very pleasant to shoot.

Oh.... The Rossi 22/20 gauge switch barrel. Nobody would shoot the shotgun barrel a second time. Sold that, quick and cheap.

 

[earlthegoat2]

My hardest kicker with my workaround installed. Marlin 444.

That thin hard rubber recoil “pad” Marlin has for these is a hilarious joke.

This rifle is currently stripped down for modifications and lightening. One of the mods is a Decelerator recoil pad. It’s going to really need it after I shave a pound or more of weight off this thing.

 

[Kleanbore]

Careful with repeated shooting.

Cumulative effects an include disk problems and detached retina.

Not fun at all.

 

[Llama Bob]

I've got a fair number of big rifles - a .416 Rigby (with full power 450gr loads this is gnarly), a .375 H&H, a nitro .50-110, two nitro .45-90s, and all sorts of small and medium bore magnums. The worst of the lot is one of the .45-90s on a Browning 1885. I shot one shot, this was only with factory .45-70 ammo to get a feel for it, and thought "That's impossible. It can't be that bad. There's no reason for it to be that bad." So I shot it again. It was that bad. I think it played a part in losing a filling and eventually having to crown the tooth, although it wasn't the only cause. I still don't know why it's so horrible other than the recoil pad being hard. But it is. Something in the stock design, and it's not super heavy but it is a 28" octagon barrel so it's not light either.

Otherwise, there are lots of things that work. The 1" thick Limbsaver is well named, and far superior to the decelerator IMO. Mercury cylinders work. The shoulder recoil pads work, bags of sand or lead work better, but then what's the plan in the field? I don't use them much. Good stocks like the ones Accurate Innovations make are very helpful.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

I had a Ruger No 1 chambered in S&W 460 magnum. Shooting it sucked.

My work around was to sell it to pay for a gun I had more use for and actually enjoy.

If I decide to pick up another sledgehammer, it’ll be another lever action.

 

[Legionnaire]

I'm not sold on the prospect of selling a gun is a "work around" thats more like a "fail, I give up" situation. When you have a gun, and a need to keep it...and exercise its qualities...what's your work around to do this.

Fair enough. I owned the .300 Win Mag fairly early in my shooting career, before I got into reloading. I might have learned to load lighter for general use and keep the stout stuff for purpose. My hardest kicking rifle right now is a .375 Ruger. It wears a slip-on Limbsaver while I'm working up loads. I also wear an elbow pad on my right arm when shooting from the bench to keep recoil from driving my elbow into the bench top. It really helps.

 

[illinoisburt]

Youth size 12 gauge with slugs. Absolute worst. Too light with short stock.

Shooting form has a lot of affect on recoil. It's been my observation that slip-on recoil pads tend to be quite effective not just by putting a squishy end between you and the gun, but also that they make the length or pull longer and encourage the shooter to hold the gun more securely in the shoulder pocket. Shotgunners often go through a good volume of fairly stout kickers (compared to most centerfires), but often dont have an issue with recoil since they are mostly shot standing with a tight hold on the gun against the body. You will usually see the shooter rock with the recoil, while more often than not rifle users are stationary while the gun moves. Coaching people to hold the gun tighter to your body seems counterintuitive, but it definitely works.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

Lots of lever guns mentioned here. I worked up a load for a friends Rossi lever 357 mag a few years ago. Even that little gun, with it's steel butt plate, was no fun shooting from the bench. A taller bench so I sit straight up to shoot helps. I have a very solid, adjustable stepladder that works well for a rest. Shooting from a standing position lessens the abuse to the shoulder.

 

[herrwalther]

I always prefer a Limbsaver, Kick-eeze or similar pad on the rifle whenever possible. That way you are not remembering to put on your vest or add on decelerator pad when shooting your rifle that hurts. If nothing works I would rather sell the rifle than deal with pain. Shooting should be as fun as possible whenever possible.

 

[Bfh_auto]

Mine is a H&R handi rifle in 35 Whelen. It's synthetic stock makes it weigh less than 6 pounds with a low power scope.
It was a 3 legged ninja with Federal fusion ammo.
Then I started loading cast bullets for practice.

 

[Bfh_auto]

Lots of lever guns mentioned here. I worked up a load for a friends Rossi lever 357 mag a few years ago. Even that little gun, with it's steel butt plate, was no fun shooting from the bench. A taller bench so I sit straight up to shoot helps. I have a very solid, adjustable stepladder that works well for a rest. Shooting from a standing position lessens the abuse to the shoulder.

Is that a 16 or 20 inch one?
My 20" quit leaving a screw shaped bruise after I took a file to it.
Cast 180's with Lil gun still make you know it went off.

 

[Electricmo]

I have a Ruger M77 7mm mag that I stuck a fiberglass ram line stock on with a limb saver pad. Recoil is brutal with175 grain pills. Target shooting sucks. My work around is putting the scope on a deer. Recoil not noticeable then.

 

[Bfh_auto]

Youth size 12 gauge with slugs. Absolute worst. Too light with short stock.

Shooting form has a lot of affect on recoil. It's been my observation that slip-on recoil pads tend to be quite effective not just by putting a squishy end between you and the gun, but also that they make the length or pull longer and encourage the shooter to hold the gun more securely in the shoulder pocket. Shotgunners often go through a good volume of fairly stout kickers (compared to most centerfires), but often dont have an issue with recoil since they are mostly shot standing with a tight hold on the gun against the body. You will usually see the shooter rock with the recoil, while more often than not rifle users are stationary while the gun moves. Coaching people to hold the gun tighter to your body seems counterintuitive, but it definitely works.

I don't think that combination of words should be in the same sentence.
Your coaching ideology is spot on. I was taught push on the forearm, pull on the grip. It helped with hard kicking guns.

 

[.38 Special]

I really like using Trail Boss for when I'm trailing a wounded engine block into the tall grass of the garbage pit.

Yes! I have a .416 Rigby which kicks me into next week. When I finally realized that I'm never going to go to Africa, I bought a 350 grain mold and a keg of Trail Boss, and now the rifle and I are on real good terms.

 

[jeepnik]

The Marlin GS 45/70 will let you know when it goes off. Especially with some of the Garrett or Buffalo Bore stuff. I use a Past shoulder pad. I've found it makes even moderately recoiling rifles more pleasant. Nice thing is that since it's on me not the rifle it works will all of them.