Understanding Recoil Leads To Managing It

In elk camp during the last New Mexico season I ran into an old friend. I noticed he was hunting with a different rifle than his custom lightweight .300 Winchester Magnum based on a Sako action that he used to swear by. I figured I knew why he had changed guns. The one and only time I shot his “perfect elk rifle�?the recoil rocketed my eyeglasses clean off of my head. I suspected recoil had something to do with the change.

“The only time I shoot that .300 is when I have a bad head cold,�?he said. “It’ll knock the snot right out of you!�?

Recoil is challenging, or at least acceptable, to some and totally scary to others.

What is recoil? It originates in the laws of physics: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. When the bullet goes forward, the rifle goes backward. It’s that simple. The amount of recoil is determined by a bullet’s weight and velocity, but the gun’s weight must also be factored in. A heavy gun shooting the same bullet and powder charge produces less recoil than would a lighter weight gun.

Over the last few years I’ve developed an affection for the old .30-06. I own several '06s. Each of the guns has a different amount of recoil with the same loads, normally around 30 or so foot-pounds (ft-lbs). This compares to about 11 to 12 ft-lbs of recoil when shooting a seven-pound .30-30 Winchester using a 170-grain bullet and about 20 ft-lbs with a seven-pound .270 Winchester shooting a 150-grain bullet. The .300 Magnums generally average in the high 40 ft-lbs range.

Foot-pounds of recoil refer to “free recoil,�?the amount of recoil (backward movement) generated if a totally unencumbered gun were suspended in space. Just what is one foot-pound of energy? It’s the energy developed when a one-pound weight is dropped one foot. I don’t know about you, but for me that’s difficult to totally comprehend. For me, these figures best serve as a comparative entity, allowing us to compare various rounds, and even bullet weight and powder charges, whether we’re discussing foot-pounds of energy a particular load produces at the muzzle and downrange or the recoil produced.

Actual And Perceived Recoil
That said, there are two types of recoil: actual and perceived. Actual recoil can be determined and predicted based on various mathematical formulas. If you’re interested, I recommend you dig up a copy of "Hatcher’s Notebook" by Col. Julian Hatcher.

Perceived recoil is what a shooter feels or experiences when a gun is fired. For this there are no formulas or exact measurements. Factors that can influence and can affect perceived recoil are numerous, including, among many others, the shooter’s individual build and stature, how he or she holds the gun, and the position from which the firearm is fired.

For instance, if I shoot one of my favorite .30-06s, a single-shot Thompson/Center Encore, from a prone position, the perceived recoil is considerably more than if I shoot it from a standing or a sitting position. With the former the entire recoil measure is felt because of my shooting position, which essentially prevents me from “giving�?(rearward movement) with the gun’s rearward push. From a sitting position, I can give or rock with the recoil as it pushes back. The actual recoil in either of these two shooting positions remains the same. The perceived recoil doesn’t.

Also figured into perceived recoil must be stock design and the “fit�?of the firearm. The latter describes primarily whether the stock is too long or too short in terms of length of pull and the shape and design of the stock’s butt.

Riflestock designs have changed over the years. We’ve seen a shift away from “crooked�?stocks to ones that are considerably straighter. Today’s straight stocks encourage the recoil to be pushed almost straight back, rather than back and down. Among other things this reduces the upward movement of the muzzle, thereby making getting back on target for a second shot considerably quicker and easier. This also reduces the recoil felt in the cheek area.

I have shot a fair number of sizeable rounds. Shooting at paper those bigger guns really kicked! Yet when I shot them at game, I never really felt the recoil. That’s one of the reasons, other than determining how accurate various calibers and loads really are, that I’d much rather shoot at game than at paper.

The Importance Of Recoil
Why is recoil important? If you anticipate recoil, or the loud blast of the shot, you’ll flinch. Do that and you’ll pull the gun off target and either miss or worse: you’ll wound an animal.

If you are recoil conscious, or think you might be, the best thing to do is to choose a rifle and cartridge suitable for the game you intend to hunt that doesn’t produce tremendous amounts of recoil. As a guide I’d prefer to see a hunter use a .270 Winchester or even a .308 Winchester that he or she shoots accurately rather than a humungous magnum that causes flinching.

What can you do to reduce how much your gun kicks? One consideration is to add weight to the gun. The heavier the gun, the less the recoil.

I have installed a Pachmayr Decelerator recoil pad on most of my hunting rifles. This unique pad does a great job at helping “dampen�?recoil. It’s the best I’ve found thus far.

Another consideration is having the barrel ported or a muzzle brake installed. I own a couple of “serious�?hunting rifles that have been ported. My favorite is an extremely accurate (as in less than 1/2-inch three-shot groups) .300 Winchester Magnum built for me by Kerry O’Day of Match Grade Arms. It weighs about 6 1/2 pounds and has helped me account for animals both in North America and Africa. It’s fun to shoot as long as I don’t forget to put in earplugs. Nonported, this lightweight would be a mother bear to pull the trigger on. With muzzle brake, it’s a pleasure to shoot. But it’s horribly loud for both the shooter and anyone relatively close to the ported barrel. I make it a point not to shoot it without first putting in earplugs and making certain no one else is near. If hunting with a guide, I insist that he stays well behind and away.

The point I’m trying to make is that recoil is manageable. Hunters have options for living with or reducing the recoil of their favorite rifle and load combinations. Which one is most appropriate for you? You’ll have to make that decision yourself.