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Recoil and Rented Guns

3K views 20 replies 15 participants last post by  TMan 
#1 ·
I was reviewing a thread about the .44 RM recoil and saw advice about renting one to see if one liked it. My first thought was, well, the renter won't like it. And that will be that.

I was reminded of other things that are not liked but then become liked. Some examples: coffee. Does anyone like coffee from the first cup? Tobacco. Same. Beer. Of course, those products have addictive qualities too. But many people hated mushrooms, or fish, or oysters when first tried and now love them. We have our own Recoil Junky on this forum and I expect the first few times he shot magnum loads, he didn't like it. But now he claims to enjoy the adrenalin rush (Maybe the "Junky" tag is accurate). I would suggest to those who want to try a .44 mag or other heavy recoil gun to go ahead and buy one. It will cause you to go out and shoot it, even if you don't want to and you may very well grow to appreciate or love the experience. And, you can always sell or trade it in a year if it doesn't grow on you. And then try roasted grasshoppers. But buy 5 pounds so you give it an honest try.
 
#3 ·
In my experience, its much more likely to install a flinch that cost a lot of ammo to get over. Some never bother. That's why cops now carry 9mm instead of .357 mag, but that's always open to debate.
Imagine a line graph of 'cop gun energies'. From .32 S&W to .38 special to .357 to .41Mag and back to 9mm. The muzzle blast gurus insisted cops needed more gun but when they got them, marksmanship took a dive.....but the extra rounds offers better odds.
 
#4 ·
@BearBear etc 😁

I thrive on recoil because it was either 30-06 or 22lr, 44 Special or nothing until I was able/old enough to buy my own. I went "down hill" from there.

One of my "daughters" was 12 when she started shooting my 44 magnums. A "friend" from work says my KGP161 (6" full shroud Ruger .357) "stings too much" 😭👶

It's all in your head and your willingness to adapt and overcome.

RJ
 
#5 ·
Many factors to recoil. Weight, stocks, velocity & bullet weight and add in familiarity/experience. Flinching is now nearly financially prohibitive due to ammo cost and component availability. My two cents is the investment in a weapon known for recoiling, is now more than double and likely double that again. Depending on the individual.

For the record, I'll pass on shooting that J frame smith&wesson in .357 and 158 gr bullets.
 
#6 ·
Flinching is now nearly financially prohibitive due to ammo cost and component availability.
I hear you there. That is one of the reasons that I bought a cheap .38 Special revolver a couple years ago. I can practice trigger squeeze and sight picture without the great expense of shooting the magnums. The practice seems to help manage the recoil of the big boys when I do shoot them. The rifles on the other hand................... just have to tough out the expense and try to work on the mental side of recoil management while shooting a lot less with these.
 
#7 ·
Heavy recoiling firearms. There is a lot of truth in the “shoot it a lot” point of view, even though it is counter intuitive. I have two heavy rifles - “African“ rifles….a .375 H&H and a .416 Rigby. Using them taught me about how to shoot them and inured me to recoil. The .375 is my plinker gun. A model 70.
Reloading made the process affordable. It used to be that I could load up .416s for under a dollar a round (about 90 cents). I could afford to learn about the gun and how to use it and not hurt myself. (If I had to buy components nowadays the same load would cost me $1.20 (usd))
 
#8 ·
I was reviewing a thread about the .44 RM recoil and saw advice about renting one to see if one liked it. My first thought was, well, the renter won't like it. And that will be that.
I'm sure the "renter" was not an individual, but many ranges have rental firearms. I used to frequent a range that had a whole case dedicated to rentals (12-15) and before I bought my first 9mm I rented a Glock 17. Benefitted me and the range (rental fees and ammo costs). Didn't care for Glock but did purchase a Ruger 9mm a few years later...
 
#9 ·
It's not only just about general recoil tolerance, but how well a gun fits your hand. I passed on one gun, years ago, because it happened to smack the middle finger of my right hand pretty bad with the trigger guard. And it wasn't a particularly hard recoiling gun. Would have been an unpleasant surprise, if I had bought it and then found out.

The harder-kicking a handgun is, the more important that it fit your hand.
 
#10 ·
And/or a good glove.



Years of running big impact wrenches has taken a toll on my wrists (bilateral ulnar osteotomies) but I adapted and overcame.

Some revolvers (like the older Blackhawks with the square trigger guard) are brutal by design and some are just plain ridiculous. To quote Larry Callahan, "A man hasta know his limitations." I shot one of the first Freedom Arms 454 Casulls twice and figured twice was enough. The same cartridge/load in a Ruger Super Redhawk was much more pleasant.

Anyways

RJ
 
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#11 ·
It's interesting how sensitive one is to heavy recoil rifles at the range whereas, in the field, one doesn't even notice it with a reticle covering the buck.

The only weapons I have had a hard time with (so far) have been too-light-tor-load set ups. My .44 SRH with Garret or Buffalo Bore 330-340 gr and 1400 fps push the revolver into the web of my hand and sometimes break skin. I need to man up my grip, I guess. The other is a custom cowboy shotgun (for SASS) if loaded with anything but Winchester AA-Lite. The trigger traps my finger and breaks the skin too. I should maybe get gloves or change the finger position or make sure I use very light loads.
As a young man, my brother-in-law let me shoot his slug gun and, every time I shot, it felt like someone was wolloping me in the cheek. Somehow I evolved my hold so that was not a problem again. All of the heavy recoil weapons need some kind of adjustment in holds, it seems. The important thing is not to give up.

I do most of my shooting with mild loads but do enjoy my magnums as a change of pace.
 
#14 ·
When I started on line, the only gun forum was rec.guns on the old usenet in 1994.
The posters were obsessed with FBI one shot stop data.
The 357 mag 125 gr. was tops.
I had a pet conspiracy theory that 357 mag 125 gr snubbie made so much noise with the first shot, it gave law enforcement pause, and the perp a chance to fall down.
 
#17 · (Edited)
SP-101 of all things. For some reason that gun beat the crap out of my middle finger.... could have been shooter error, but it just didn't fit. Dunno why.....
 
#18 ·
Recoil is just something you have to get used to. I was hesitant about shooting a .44 mag revolver although I was very used to my .357 mag. Once I shot my new .44 mag I realized it wasn't a big deal. That's the thing though, I already had a lot of experience with .357 mag and although the .44 mag is a substantial jump up in power it wasn't a huge jump in recoil for me. For someone who hasn't worked their way up the recoil ladder it's a whole different story.

I shoot .357 magnum out of my Bond Arms derringer and it's quite a handful but tolerable for limited shooting sessions. I shot an SP101 with some warm .357 mag and it was easily the most unpleasant gun I've ever shot. I fired 3 rounds IIRC and I wouldn't touch another one. So the platform plays as much into recoil as the caliber. I will say I enjoy shooting the big boomers to a certain extent. Heavy .45 Colt and heavy .44 magnum are my limit though. Any bigger than that and it's more a exercise in endurance rather than entertainment.
 
#19 ·
Years ago I had friend who was a 45-70 nut, one of his guns was a Ruger #3, you've never really experienced recoil until you've shot a full power 45-70 load in a 5 1/2 pound rifle{Ruger listed them at 6lbs, not sure if this was true of all of them but his was 5 1/2 pounds}. The stock configuration was really well suited to the 22hornet which it was also chambered in, not so much the 45-70.
 
#21 ·
I was reviewing a thread about the .44 RM recoil and saw advice about renting one to see if one liked it. My first thought was, well, the renter won't like it. And that will be that.
Did that myself when I was deciding between a M329 and a M69. Two shots through the 329 with Winchester White box everyday .44M, and the gun went right back to the rental guys. Over time I don't think I ever watched a renter finish even a 20rd box of .44M in a 329.

SP-101 of all things. For some reason that gun beat the crap out of my middle finger....
Because the OEM grips are horrible. I swapped the Ruger grips out for a set of Pachmayr Diamond Pro's and it totally changed the little beast. Bought a set for my M69, that I've never been able to fit on the gun.
 
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