Here are some techniques to apply to lessen the felt recoil of your rifle:-

If the stock is too long, it means you have to lean into it, with the result that the recoil will feel more severe. If this is the case, have the stock shortened to fit you better to provide a more relaxed shooting position.

A straight stock with little drop at the comb and heel, will not jump upwards to knock you under your cheek bone. Such a stock is advised for hard-kicking cartridges.

Pull your rifle firmly against your shoulder, but do not tense your muscles in your back, shoulder, neck and arms, so your can gently roll with the punch just like a boxer would.
Keep your cheek against the stock to form a firm triangle with your left hand and your right shoulder.

A standing position affords you the ability to roll with the punch, while the prone position (lying down stretched out facing downward) makes you more stationary and consequently you will absorb the full blow. Try shooting a 375 H&H, whilst sitting with your back against an anthill, to appreciate the difference.

Do not anticipate the recoil of your rifle or fear that the recoil will hurt you. Mentally condition yourself otherwise. Be relaxed and do not brace yourself against the blow or lean hard into your rifle.

If you are still unable to cope with the recoil, your rifle exceeds your recoil threshold, and you will be better off selecting a smaller or less powerful cartridge, as shooting should be fun and accurate shooting is what instills confidence in you.

Just some of my thoughts.
Take care
Chris

Good points, some add'l.:
Fit your rifle w/ a good soft recoil pad.
When sighting @ the bench, try for the most upright sitting position you can.
Start w/ lighter bullets & work up to the heavies. Shoot in short sessions.
Mercury reducers work, so do brakes, but I don't like brakes.

And to add a few more tips to some really great information already posted:
If you are trying to sight -in or work your way up in recoil to a big hard kicking gun limit your shots to 3 then shoot 3 or 5 with a real light kicking gun. For intstance to get ready for this last falls hunt with my 7.25 pound 375 H&H mag I would shoot a 3 shot group from the bench, then fire two from a standing position then switch and shoot 5 from my 22/250. This was very beneficial to stave off any bad habits one may develop by the pounding a lightweight 375 could give you.

If you're shooting from the bench it always helps to get a heavy rest like the Caldwell lead sled. I use one for load developement. None of my rifles bother me shooting from field positions, but after 20 rounds or so at the bench I begin to feel the effects of recoil. With a heavy rest you can cut recoil by 50%.

The PAST recoil pads really help as well.

I have also used one of the lead sleds, and found they work very well in reducing felt recoil. I shot a .450 dakota from a lead sled numerous times and recoil was minimized greatly, and point of impact did not change from the sled to standard sand bags, off my shoulder.

Use a standing rest, tripod(sticks), monopod, etc. As this will be closer to what you will be doing in the field. And the biggest help, isPRACTICE, PRACTICE AND MORE PRACTICE. The more you shoot heavy recoiling rifles, the less you will notice it and it will not be such a bother. At least that is what happened for me with my Lott and when shooting other bigger bore rifles. Up to a point that is, (+90lbs ) my rotator cup fusses.

Hog Killer

i installed a High Tech Gunworks muzzle brake on my .300WM to help tame the recoil and I would guess that the "feel" test would have it feeling like a .243 recoil. A great point about these muzzle breaks is that the sound increase is around 2-3 decibels!! He makes a great suppressor and some of that experience has helped out here.

Speaking strictly for the sake of recoil reduction, which one would give you more effect: adding 1 or 2 lbs to the rifle as dead weight (lead in the stock for example) or putting in a mercury reducer?

I can calculate the effect of adding weight, but the mercury ones are more 'active'. Do they offer more reduction for their weight - or for an even heavier amount of plain lead? Is it a meaningful difference - are they worth the price? I can add lead to the stock for free.

We rarely feel any degree of recoil when shooting at an animal. It's mainly felt when shooting off a bench at the range. Quite often a Pachmyer Decelerator pad will reduce the felt recoil enough to solve the problem. I also use a Past Recoil Shield at the bench. That eats up most of it. I'm also careful about buying light flyweight rifles that will kick the holy bejeebers out of you. That or switch to a smaller caliber rifle. We're tremendously overgunned anyway. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

Build a god-awful heavy rifle. My 300WSM weighs 18.2 pounds with scope and ammo; hardly kicks at all with such weight, a muzzle brake and two recil reducers in the butt. If I could see, I might be able to shoot some good groups with it.

Recoil must be balanced in terms of the individual's tolerance and the weight of the rifle. Rifles for mountain hunters and 'walk and stalk' hunters can't be too heavy - so scale the power down. Dangerous Game rifles must be heavier, as they are so powerful. Strike the balance as to purpose and application.

On a secondary level, recoil can be curtailed marginally, as mentioned in the foregoing posts, like stock design, recoil pads, etc.

I do not like recoil reducers in the butt of my rifle and definitely not a muzzle brake - too ugly for me and noisy - fit them on 'canons' yes. I do not like anything that can disturb the balance of my rifle - one has even to be careful that a scope does not disturb the balance and feel of a rifle that should swing and point quickly.

Over-powerful cartridges does more harm than good to a shooter. Match the cartridge to the man and then worry about fine-tuning.

Chris