I have heard several people say that shooting a big kicker is about shooting it properly. I would like to learn how to do that.
Could somebody explain it, or tell me what books to read or something.
Thanks.

I'm not sure if this would be the best advice, but ....

You could try shooting one first with layers of cloths like a jacket first to get use to the blast and power, then go by t-shirt from there.

Also when you grip the forearm, grip it good and use some force to hold it back towards your solder.

Don't fight the recoil, try to roll with it.

make sure it has a good recoil pad.

shoot standing at first and work down to the bench.

shoot something that kicks more (if possible), then go back to the original rifle.

Don't forget to bend your forward knee (left knee if you are a right hand shooter) and lean in towards the target. Hold it with a firm grip and tight against your shoulder and concentrate on the sight picture so you can call your shot.

With my hard kickers, I hold into the rifle with

a sand bag on my shoulder. But on my 458 Lott,

that rifle seems like it was made for me. I

shoot it without anything.

I was given my first good advice on this by Jeffeosso; if you shoot right handed pull in to your body with the left hand on the forearm and down on the grip (as in toward the ground) with the right. That flexes the pectoral muscle and hardens it for recoil.

I forget that every once in a while and shoot much poorly without that technique.

FIRST...the rifle must fit you...with the clothing you expect to shot in.

Drop set for the sights you will shoot...open sights and scope are different...drop isn't interchangeable between the two and never has been.

Keep the gun muzzle heavy to keep the muzzle rise as low as possible...no easy answer here...I start with a heavy barrel to begin with, I like the rifle to hang muzzle down when held one handed at the magazine, or by using the scope as a balancing handle...NOT AS A CARRYING HANDLE.

Pull to fit YOU, not some vague idea posted on the internet...everyone has different arm lengths, different neck and shoulder points, hand size...YOU have to work that one out..SOMETIMES measuring from the crook of your arm to the middle of the trigger finger works out right...sometimes not...there are many books on stock making and also online information on fitting...check it out.

I like a cheek piece as it seems the rifle slides away easier or smoother, I grind and sand and fit the cheek piece, using talcum powder until the sight fall just right... a bad fitting cheekpiece or a sharp comb will put a knot on your cheek in a New York second...FIT is everything...

Pick your fav recoil pad...I like Limbsavers and have used Kickeze but they are really maybe too soft...Decellerators are OK also.

The pistol grip and forend need to fit also...this isn't a benchrester so the forend needs to sized so you can grab it tightly to keep the muzzle from getting away and the pistol grip needs to fit your hand so you can hold it tightly also and be shaped and angled to fit YOUR hand and wrist angle....again...not a "fits all" that doesn't really fit anything POS...I spend a lot of time fitting the pistol grip and forend on my hunting rifles...not so much with the benchrest or varminters...I hold them differently anyway.

Stand up...Snug the butt into the shoulder pocket firmly...snug the cheek onto the stock firmly...firm hold on the forend and pistol grip...NOT A DEATH GRIP...the object is to distribute the recoil energy over a large area...the shoulder, the cheek, the hands and arms and let the energy be absorbed/spread equally over the whole area over time. You can't hold the recoil of a large caliber/heavy bullet shooter with your hands alone and if you try your wrists will pay a heavy price...spread it around.

Lean forward slightly, forward leg bent slightly and weight more on the front leg...YOU HAVE TO WORK THIS OUT ALSO...for us short fat farts the weight is just barely forward and a slight bending at the waist...for the long skinny ones, more weight forward...let the recoil push you back, let the gun recoil up, try to keep your eyes on the target...and be reaching for and cocking the bolt as you pull the rifle back down on target.

There are several methods to cocking a bolt gun that were taught way back in the old days and you can find that information online and in books...You want to see a couple of ways in action, watch the movies "Sgt York" or "Beau Geste" with Gary Cooper

It's like trying to tell someone the difference between driving a golf ball and chipping or putting...or how the weight needs to moved from one foot to the other during the swing...there is a "commonly held belief" and there is how the "real swing" works. Billions of words have been sold trying to get a duffer to swing right...it won't happen until something clicks in the whole body...it works from then on but all I can do is describe how "I FEEL" when I hit a 300 yd drive right down the middle...not how YOU should feel doing the same thing. The same thing with bowling or shooting pool...some people want built in excuses...some people want to get better...some people would rather drink the beer after the game, rather than buy it.

Recoil is back and up...it takes practice to figure out just how much...and it is different between calibers and loads...YOU have to figure that one out also...by DOING IT...not by reading how online.

Start with the bullet weight you expect to use and a beginning lower velocity load...and start getting used to the recoil...then build up to full loads...picking out a lighter bullet and slower load won't do doodly to get you to understand and accustomize yourself to your shooter unless you are already whipped by all the BS scattered all over the net about.."it hurts"...If your already scared then you need to get a smaller caliber...Whacking a nasty critter with something you CAN shoot is imminently better than missing with something you can't shoot. Be reasonable in your expectations and don't let the macho BS lead you around by the nose.

The easiest way is to learn to shoot the hard hitters is to go to the local ranges and just watch, talking to the shooter is good but OBSERVATION is key...see how he/she stands, holds the rifle and what happens after pulling the trigger...contact some of the people on this forum that shoot heavy calibers a lot and set up a training time if they are willing to help and you are in the same area or search for videos that delve into this specific area.

I think learning to shoot a heavy recoiling rifle is nothing more than learning how to shoot ANY rifle correctly in the first place, then getting over all the smoke and BS about how much it hurts...that is a subjective opinion....some peole can handle larger amounts recoil...some can't...

The first time I shot a 44 mag way back when they first came out, I was sure I was going to have permanent injury to some part of my anatomy...just from listening to all those stories...WAY TO MUCH DIRTY HARRY HYPE...when I recovered from the shock of still being in one piece after the first shot, I felt like a damphool wussy. Yes the recoil was more than my 357's and 45 ACP's and much more than a 38 wadcutter, but I didn't think it was hardly enough to get all sweaty about...and over the years I found the same thing to happen whenever I shot something "LARGE AND POWERFUL"...the bark was much worse than the bite.

Shooting something that hits with 100 plus ft/lbs of recoil isn't all that much fun to shoot to begin with...discounting all those hairy legged, he persons that would rather shoot a 505 Gibbs than have sex... ... and I use all the recoil reducing accouterments available, I shoot a few rounds a month in several heavy rifles just to keep the perspective level...I'm still building my 12GAFH and I already know what to expect, so I'm not looking forward to load development with the usual level of excitement...but I won't shoot 1000 rounds a season with it so a few weeks of slightly elevated discomfort is small price to pay.

I used up a whole lot of words giving my rendition of "have a good fitting rifle and practice, practice, practice"...that's about all it entails... ...that and being able to get the rifle up and a round off instinctively if need be...I found snap shooting running rabbits with a 22 boltgun to be excellent practice.

Luck on your projects.

FOOBAR, how eloquent!

May we quote you

Of course...and feel free to add any adjustments, additions or corrections you deem pertinent...I'm sure I left out many obvious facts...

Trying to teach/describe something that is highly personal and subjective is like describing to someone how long a piece of rope is...everyone know's it's half the distance from one end to the middle...but where is the middle and how's holding the end??? Right???

The internet and forums ARE for questions and answers...even questionable ones of both sorts.

Everyone has their own thoughts and ideas, experiences, levels of expertise and ego's. Of course I "believe" I described how to shoot a big bore to a Tee, and to be sure, had a bunch laughing at it...simple as pie...I know lots of people that can eat a piece of pie "perfectly', put not so many that can make a perfectly good pie .

Pranging running jacks with a 22 translates to pranging a charging anything directly...and trying to describe something that becomes instinctive over time and after hours of practice isn't all that easy at best.

I can do a few things very well...shoot, play pool, bowl and golf. I can watch someone doing any one of those activities and tell them where they are messing up and how to correct the problem, but it is the person who must do the correcting...some want to and will, some want built in excuses and wont'...I can make a mediocre bowler into a 250 shooter in just a couple of hours on the lanes...I can take 10 strokes off a persons game in about the same time...but I CAN'T teach a person to finess a golf shot around a tree on to a green and stop or roll as needed, teach a person how to roll their wrist at just the right point and release the ball just right to cause a bowling ball to roll and hook just right to take out a 7-10 split or hit a cue ball at just the right point with just the right amount of stroke and hit the object ball at just the right place to sink the 9 ball on the rack or make a 3 ball combination on the 9 to take the money...I have a hard enough time doing those things myself...all that stuff takes practice and lots of it..


The same goes for shooting big bores...I can teach basics, the difference between jerking a trigger and pulling it very fast, how not to let breathing or heart beat interfer with sight picture, how much to lead or where to aim, but I CAN'T teach what it is really like to mount a hard hitting rifle or ANY rifle, for a shot and put the bullet where I want it to go without a conscious thought and not really seeing the sights...that takes lots of practice with many different calibers, rifles, pistols and shotguns and many different shooting situations...but you know this already, right?

Now it is your turn to do the honors...I'm/we're always ready to listen and learn...maybe I've been doing things wrong all these years.

And, yes...If I can use 10 words instead of 2, I'm always ready for that also...I'm a wordy person...I like my JD in a tall glass without ice...keep your cigars, thank you, I don't smoke and good conversation, as long as it doesn't get too macho or turn into pecker waving...life's to short for that, and I'm living on borrowed time as it is.

Luck on your projects.

Do NOT shhtick your tongue out when schhooting!!!
Mike

Make sure all screws are tight.[URL= ]screws need tightening-tighten her up[/URL]

LOL that would be a disaster.