[This message has been edited by beemanbeme (edited 04-12-2002).]

There is a calculator on www.realguns.com that you can use to estimate what free recoil would be from different combinations of velocity, bullet weight and gun weight.

Felt recoil depends on the position you shoot from, how you hold the firearm, construction of the firearm (recoil pad, height and shape of the comb, etc).

I shoot an '06 a lot and it is fine. I also have a 375 H&H which is fine and seems to me to kick about like shooting 12 ga slugs from a pump shotgun. My wildcat 338 shoots 225 x bullets at 3150 fps, but I don't really enjoy shooting it that much. The 338 has about the same ft lbs of recoil as the 375 and 12 gauge, but it seems like all of the recoil happens in a shorter period of time. The 375 and 12 ga. recoil seems more like a big shove.

Hope this helps. Good Luck!

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I know the next rifle will be perfect.......

Weight of the gun in lb (WtGun)
Weight of the bullet in grains (WtBullet)
Velocity of the bullet in feet per second (VBullet)
Weight of the powder charge in grains (WtPowder)
Velocity of the powder in feet per second (VPowder) (assume to be 4000 fps)

Vgun=[(WtBullet*VBullet)+(WtPowder*VPowder)]/[7000*WtGun]

Units in ft/sec

Then, use the velocity and weight of the gun to find the kinetic energy of the gun. Divide this by the gravitational constant to get recoil in ft lbs.
Gravitational Constant g=32.17

Recoil=[WtGun*VGun^2]/[2*g]
Units in ft lbf

This information came from articles in the American Rifleman written by William C. Davis, Jr. and published in February 1977 & July 1980.

You can plug these numbers into a spreadsheet and find recoil for all types of rounds or graph felt recoil and rifle weight. The velocity of the gun assumes that the powder and the bullet all exit the gun straight out the barrel. If you have a muzzle break some of the powder will exit to the sides of the gun and won�t contribute to pushing the gun back into your shoulder, reducing recoil. Running these numbers I have found that for guns of equal weight the powder charge is very significant to recoil. For example, in an 11-pound gun shooting 180 grain bullets, a .300 Win. Mag. Will deliver about 22 ft lbs of recoil, and a .30-378 will generate about 33 ft lbs of recoil. (These two rifles and the loads used both belong to a friend of mine.) Also, Col. Whelen, in one of his books, suggests that for bench shooting 15 ft lbs is a good rule of thumb for comfortable shooting off a bench if you want to shoot more than a few rounds. If you are shooting a moving target (clay pigeons, game) you can tolerate more recoil because you are concentrating on the target and not on the rifle. If you are worried about recoil, get a gun regular gun (not a �mountain rifle�)chambered for a cartridge that doesn�t use much powder (up to a .308 size case) and then also shoot lighter bullets. Of course you pay for reduced recoil with reduced bullet velocity.

As far as felt recoil, I can�t say much. Most people will tell you a recoil pad and properly designed stock that fits you will help a lot. I think that is good advice.

quote:

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Originally posted by razorback:
Thanks for the replys guys, sorry about my spelling in the post last night, I had a few drinks in me before I hit the hay. anyways, there is a recoil chart at www.chuckhawks.com, but I like hearing real experiences from you guys because i am only interested in buying a ruger #1. I love those damn things. So you guys are saying the felt recoil from a 338win is more than a 375. This will be an elk rifle and I want enough gun for one shot kills, I will always have a backup in my wife's hand but I am like fascinated with big bullets. my main shooting now is from a big 7 and a 257weatherby. do you think I will be able to adjust to a 375.

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Razorback ,
did you ever notice the difference between shooting at a range and shooting a deer out in the woods , concentrating on that LIVING animal instead of a target . I bet you don�t even feel the recoil , as you try to watch the deer�s reaction and pick the best moment for an accurate shot . Makes a huge difference ! I am usually fed up with shooting after half a dozen of big caliber shots and tend to be frightened at the range , but I totally ignore the recoil when I hunt .

I use this cartridge as my general purpose game rifle, (North America), and it handles the job nicely.

I agree with those who dislike the recoil from a bench, it is tiresome after a while. Nevertheless, the ability to shoot the .375 at the range is necessary in order to work loads or choose your factory ammunition.

Always take a smaller rifle with you to the range to shoot between magnum sessions. Crank out five shots from the H&H and then rest a bit with a .22 or whatever.

Good ear protection will definitely help to prevent flinching. I also use a shoulder pad at the bench for extended sessions. I much prefer the Rand Elite pads as opposed to the products from Past. The RE pads cover much more area and protect the collar bone for prone shooting.

One of the many reasons the .375 H&H has been so successful for so many years is its effectiveness upon game and its ease of shooting for a great variety of people.

But....it would really be best if you could try one first. I'll bet you like it.

Regards,

~Holmes

Thanks in advance...

Recoil pain is like any other. A fist fighter gets conditioned to it from ring time but some people are more sensitive than others. Floyd Paterson while a great athlete could not take a punch yet Rocky Marciano was unbeatable with his cast iron jaw.

The 30/06's are really in the magnum class. They kick pretty good and in particular in the ligher rifles with heavier bullets. So if you can get used to that you can move up. But just shooting a heavy kicker twice a year is not enough. We all need ring time.

To me that formula for recoil energy is not the whole answer. Recoil velociy counts a lot also in my opinion. I feel that the .300 magnums are the worst in this recoil effect for what you get which is 30/06 perfomance at 20 yards more point blank range.

I find that my .375 H&H's are more fun too shoot than the full loaded .300's. But they are heavier rifles for sure and really too heavy to carry around if you want to be 100% practical. But we do this for fun and a .375 H&H has far more class than a .300 mangelem.

When you go to the range with any kicker take all the precautions that you can. Get used to the gun no matter what it is. I hold all of my hunting rifles on the forend off the bench and rest my left hand on the bag. This makes a huge difference in felt recoil and controls the big ones so well. You can search my commments in this forum and find that I don't report groups under 1 MOA. I get them once in a while but so what? I only care that the rifle is sighted in and it shoots a reasonable group. There is some "pluse" when aiming a rifle as I do but it's very good practice. It's far more like field shooting!

Those Ruger #1 26" bbls come with scope rings that are too low. The felt recoil from my #1S in .300 Win Mag is far more than my M-70 in .300 Mag. I sent the rings back to get the next higher ones. The stock comb effective height in the 1S is higher than the 1A. That's the reason.

Get a 22" bbl in the 30/06. It will be far more handy than the heavier rifle. If you feel the need for a more effective caliber then go up in bullet diameter.

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overkill? how much more dead, is dead, than dead?

Good luck and good shooting

I sent my mounts back to Ruger for my .300 Win mag in the #1S and exchanged them for higher ones. I just got a old M-70 in .300 H&H and I went to the range for a ".300 Magnum day" The M-70 kicked me far less than the #1 and they had similar loads. A very experianced shooter was there talking to me as I shot from the bench. He said "your cheek turns red when you fire that (#1) rifle".

Later I compared the combs of the #1S to my #1A and found that while they both came with the same low scope mounts that the comb of the .300 Win Mag was far thicker and thus it was hitting me very hard. I just got the new mounts from Ruger back and I have not tried them yet.

Buy a slip on recoil pad and carry it to the range with your shooting gear.