Lowest Recoil ??

HideStretcher

HideStretcher

New member
Gents, I have a shoulder injury that causes me moderate pain when I shoot. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif I am looking towards a new rifle for varmints, yotes, bobcats, etc. No deer or other big game. My question for you knowledgable shooters is: Which caliber is going to give me the most recoil relief? I am looking at .222, .223, .204, .17 Rem, & 22-250. (I hate to drop to a Hornet or .17HMR.) I am probably going with a M77 Ruger. Thanks for your help. I need to be able to keep shooting! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
Well, I can't speak of all the calibers you listed, but I can eliminate one.

Figure that the 22-250 will shoot the same bullets the 223 will... except with more powder... it looks like that eliminates the 22-250.

I've never done it, but a good many guys have talked about "Blue Dot" loads in a 223. Do a search and see for yourself.

It seems that, using Blue Dot, a 223 can be downloaded to essentially 22 Hornet level of performance, and in your case, recoil.

Hope this helps.

Jerry in PA.
 
Have you thought about a .221 Fireball rifle? I have one; a CZ. It is very accurate and fairly light weight and reasonably powerfull. You can fire a 50 grain bullet to about 3,000fps, and is not much louder than a .22 magnum rimfire.

If you hand load, you can get a tougher bullet than the factory Remington V-Max that will take care of all your predator shooting needs, out to over 200 yards. I have found the factory ammo very deadly on all critters that have enjoyed a serving (I like to call coyotes in very close). The CZ easily out performs the Ruger M-77.

Cheers,
 
The .223, .222, 17 rem, have very little recoil. For the least it would be the 17 rem. however it is not the only critter gun I would want to own. I own both the 17 and .223 and have owned the 222 as well, the 17 allows me to keep my eye on target through the scope easier than the 223 out of the same type gun.

My dad broke his back a few years ago and after the "turtle shell" was removed he did shoot his 22-250 on a limited bases and yes he could tell it. The blue dot loads in .223 may have caused an injury to a fellow board member here so I'd stay away from them.
 
Ever think about a pistol??? Less recoil on the shoulder than any rifle. Check out the classifieds here. Guy has a



"Remington XP100R in 223 comes with Leupold 2 pc. mount (dove tail front and windage rear), Redfield rings, Leupold M8 4X scope, Timney trigger plus factory trigger, box and papers."


Just a thought.


However, if you want a rifle (advantages/dis for both) I think any of the calibers below the 22-250 would be comparable. Especially if you get a "Varmit special" gun that weighs 8+lbs.
The .17 rem would be the mildest because of bullet weight/created energy.
 
My simple way of getting "relative recoils" is to go to the ballistics comparison tables at the Remington website and use the muzzle energies of each of the calibers/bullet weights. That will give you a pretty good idea - assuming they are all fired from a rifle of equal weight, equal barrel lengths, etc.....

me!

http://www.remington.com/ammo/ballistics/ballistics.htm
 
A 204 Ruger has about half the recoil of the 22-250 and a quarter of the recoil of the 223 or 222. I don't know about the 17. Hope this helps.
 
I think you'll find that the .204 has a recoil quite comparable to the .222/.223.....
All that velocity has to come from somewhere.



P.S.
Have you considered the Ruger 77/22 in .22 Hornet?
 
This is the "relative recoil factor" as Quoted From the book
ammo & ballisticsII written by Bob Forker:
.17 remington rrf 0.45 , .22 hornet rrf 0.54, .222 remington rrf 0.74 , .223 remington rrf 0.80 , .22-250 remington rrf 0.90 , .220 swift rrf 0.90.
Hope that this can help a little.
 
I had surgery on my shoulder 10 years ago so I feel for you.
I agree with 257-wby. Get any gun you like, then when you shoot it if the recoil is too much get a recoil pad. Sims and pacmeyer comes to mind. Good luck and let us know what works for you
 
ME- sorry I was trying to say the 204 has about 25% less recoil than a 223. This was told to me by a test writer. I see them as about equal too. Thanks!
 
Oops! I owe an appology, too..... I just went back and he said he doesn't want to drop to a .22 Hornet..... My bad!

Stretcher -

My coyote rifle is an approximately 7# (with scope) Remington Model Seven in .223. I'm relatively small (5'6", 140#) and pretty recoil sensative. I've also had chronic severe bursitis in both shoulders. I don't even begin to notice any recoil firing this rifle with 55 grain Remington factory loads! I think you'd be very happy with the .204, .222 or .223! (My preference for versatility and availablilty of ammo would be the .223.)
 
I had a broken collar bone a few years ago and a couple of Highpower matches I didn't want to miss.

I made about a 6" X 8" "shield" out of fiberglass cast tape I begged off the doctor, glued it onto a sweat shirt and wore a past shield over it. It was a little awkward at first and I still had trouble from prone because of the position but it reduced (.308) recoil to virtually nothing.

Good luck and Good shooting.
 
Hi, I have noticed that the design of the stock plays a little in actual felt recoil. It is especially noticed with higher end guns in larger calibers. Not the same as a muzzle brake but noticeable. In short the straight stocks kick harder.
 
I have a 223 and a 204 and by far the 204 has less recoil than my 223 and it has light recoil. The 204 is a Ruger VT and its a fine shooting rifle right out of the box, it came floated from the factory with a 2 stage trigger. The 223 is a Remington VLS both shoot pretty good and both are 2 of my favorite calibers, i would think it would be a toss up between the two.
 
I have a .17Remington in a Remington 700BDL. Recoil is really minimal. I can actually see the bullets striking home. The problem is the caliber is a finicy little devil, and fouls a lot. Mine will shoot groups as small as .264" and as large as 1.2" in the same range session. I've talked to other shooters who have this same difficulty, but it is a sweet little rascal to shoot, and quite popular with varmint hunters. If you get one of the larger calibers I'd suggest using a Past Recoil Shield. It will eat up the recoil. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal
 


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