Managing Heavy Recoil

The advice I give to my buddies is:
"Take your pink panties off & squeeze the trigger!"

The advice I'd give to you has already been given above...

The mental part of the equation is probably the hardest to overcome.

As above, relax & be the gun's friend. Trust that it will not hurt you & believe it!
You stated that the gun has already whacked you twice. That memory is no doubt in the back of your head everytime you pull it's trigger. Do your best to build & maintain a solid shooting position through the trigger break and subsequent recoil. Trying to see the bullet hit through the scope helps keep you down on the comb...
If your shooting form is sound and the gun fits YOU correctly then there is very little chance of getting bit by your optic, given the average eye relief of most optics. Believe that fact!

I'd also try shooting prone & keeping your body squarely behind the rifle. Then your whole body weight will be working for you to absorb the impact.

I've been there when a buddy broke his nose with his 12ga. while shooting a big tom at an awkward angle. He had the gun shouldered on his bicep and payed the price dearly. NOt a pretty sight. At least he killed the turkey though! But he flinches pretty bad to this day...never got it out of his head.
 
Quote:
Shoot a lighter recoiling rifle. A 308 will work well for what you want with a lot less recoil.

Use a heavier rifle. A big bang 300 is easy if it weighs 18 pounds.

Jack



Excellent advise. As I get older, I've moved from big bore rifles to smaller bore. .308 is about as big as I go these days, and I've found I just don't have a need for anything bigger any more.

Also, get a limbsaver recoil pad. These things are magic. The new TC Triumph muzzleloaders come stock with them and I can shoot mine all day long without feeling any recoil at all - even with 150gr loads.
 
What stock is on that Win 70? I have found them just below the Ruger stock as recoil amplifiers.

Shooting off bags? Make sure the forend is well placed in the sandbags. Create a groove for it to fit in. As described above use the left hand to control the rear bag to provide up and down movement of the sight picture (in the field a jacket or hat can be used this way too). Draw the weapon into your shoulder by pulling in with the right hand and pistol grip. Pull the trigger straight back to the shoulder using the first articulation not the finger tip. Of course don't slap the trigger (sounds like you know that one already).
 
Bustaduck,
Most people get hit by the scope for two reasons, usually at the same time: they crawl their face way forward on the stock, and their scope is set too far back in the rings.

When you look at most people's scopes, they are set very far back in the rings. If you are fairly upright as in standing (or sometimes the bench), this is okay, because when you are more upright (your spine closer to vertical) your head will be back away from the scope the most distance. When you get into a position where your spine starts to tilt forward (like a forward-leaning sitting or the prone position) your head is now closer to the scope.

If the rear end of your scope is about even with the back of the rifle's trigger guard, you should have plenty of room for recoil without getting whacked. This may require an extension (forward offset) ring on the rear mount due to the very wide power adjustment rings most scopes have these days.
 
I shoot a .416 Rigby and a .416 Taylor and a host of other stuff including hot loaded .45-70 loads in a Ruger #1,.375, 550gr bullets from a .450. Pretty much across the board these rifles have to be controled but "softly". I pull them back firmly to my shoulder then allow th recoil to push my whole body. In a controled rock. They still kick but tolerable. I am going to try a friends Caldwell lead sled this weekend to see what it does. reflex264
 
I was recently given a fairly light rem 700 300wm by my father who is getting to old to take the beating it dishes out. I must be recoil sensitive because i think it kicks pretty good. I have found, like many have stated, that I make better shots by relaxing a letting it do its thing. I know when I have made a good shot because the scope will brush my eye brow. My father had a tasco on it and cut his eye many time over 30 yrs or so. I put a leupold with more eye relief to solve this problem. I finaly decided that i needed to reduce the recoil because I can shoot my heavy barrel 308 and 243 so much better and I enjoy shooting them more. To reduce the recoil i just put a heavier b&c medalist tacticle stock on it with a pachmar decelerator pad. I haven't had a chance to shoot it yet but I have read that this should make a big difference. I too didn't really mind the recoil, especially when a bull elk was in the cross hairs, but I have recently started shooting out to 600+ yards and I want to be able to shoot this rifle as comfortably and accuratly as my other rifles.
 
This gun is an older Model 70 classic stainless with synthetic stock. It isn't a great stock, but it seems to me to be a bit better than some of the newer synthetic stocks. I glass bedded it last summer and added a piece of thick metal rod to the forearm thinking it would help in making it stiffer as well as add more weight. It does seem stiffer and heavier, but I couldn't honestly say that it helped reduce the recoil noticably.

I think I am going to look at moving the scope forward and maybe getting a new one with more eye relief. Probably add a new recoil pad also. I had been planning on trying to do that and just haven't gotten around to it.

As far as the grip and holding the rifle. It sounds like I just need to focus more on being consistant. I will definatly try some of the techniques that you guys have given.

I am going to hold off on the muzzle break for now. I have some experience with one on a 300 Weatherby that my dad had and I am worried about forgetting to put on the earmuffs. It did make the shooting more enjoyable, but I did shoot a deer once without hearing protection and my ears are still ringing because of it. That was 15 years ago.

Thanks again!
 


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