Managing Safari Rifle Recoil - Every trick in the book?

[rookhawk]

Interesting. I wonder if there ever was a physical way to measure it as well. I guess someone at some point did and then proved the formula.
Thanks,
Philip

I would imagine some nerd put an accelerometer on a gun once and proved the theory.

@Philip Glass since you were unaware of the formula, its worthy to point out the one magical part of the formula most people don’t know. All other variables being equal, the powder that does the work in the fewest grains will have the least recoil. For example, a 470 Nitro using IMR4350 might output 89lbs of recoil, but by simply switching to Reloader 15 the recoil would be 68lbs.

I myself am a huge recoil sissy and therefore am dealing with this now. I have a 470 that will regulate perfectly at 50 yards, as in the bullets are the width apart as the barrel wedge with IMR4831 using 107gr of powder. (Ouch, ouch) Or I can settle for about 1”-1.5” groups with IMR3031 using 77gr of powder instead. The former is about 80lbs of recoil, the latter is only 58lbs! (the latter regulates at 50lbs slower speed so the contrast is greater)

 

[BeeMaa]

I always liked the rig that Terminator Products rolled out to test different muzzle brakes vs recoil on a specific rifle. Not that I want a muzzle brake, just that it's interesting and a way to measure the felt recoil and put a number on it.

 

[Bonk]

The various formulas are helpful everything else being equal but stock design and fit are extremely important to mitigate recoil. Two 8lb 300Win mags can feel very different depending on how the rifle fits and the stock design.

 

[Jeff505]

“Limb saver“ magnum grind to fit recoil pads can really tame a gun, I added one to my 375 and 505. When my son was 12 I had him practice with cowboy action loads on a 45-70 in preparation for a bear hunt in Alberta, he had become quite competent. Before the hunt I sighted the gun in with a proper hunting round. He killed a bear with his first shot and neither felt the recoil or heard the report. I don’t know how a live animal makes this possible but it certainly does occur. Good luck with your hunt.

 

[C.W. Richter]

Have you simply considered just overfeeding the kid? The Mass which the body is acting upon is often the simplest solution. Loading up on the dollar menu at McD's should do the trick! It worked wonders with my kids.

 

[C.W. Richter]

Interesting. I wonder if there ever was a physical way to measure it as well. I guess someone at some point did and then proved the formula.
Thanks,
Philip

Kevin Robertson has plenty of example tables already computed in his books. Felt recoil actual recoil kick down power etc etc. Many people feel that a 375hh is this superpower to be feared but in actuality it is quite a pleasant shooting round and at the very minimum of DG capability. In a properly sized gun of the proper weight with the proper surface area buttstock and a proper recoil pad it is just a pleasure to shoot as a 30 06 with heavy for caliber bullets.

 

[Frank Cavallo]

“Limb saver“ magnum grind to fit recoil pads can really tame a gun, I added one to my 375 and 505. When my son was 12 I had him practice with cowboy action loads on a 45-70 in preparation for a bear hunt in Alberta, he had become quite competent. Before the hunt I sighted the gun in with a proper hunting round. He killed a bear with his first shot and neither felt the recoil or heard the report. I don’t know how a live animal makes this possible but it certainly does occur. Good luck with your hunt.

It's not the live animal.

Why don't you feel recoil on the field?

Simple. Because you're not shooting off a bench and your rifle and body are in the correct position to dissipate recoil.

No science, calculations or charts needed- just common sense.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I will disagree, the live animal does help. My BPS 12 gauge with brenneke black magic slugs will stomp you from any position. But you don’t notice it in the field on game.

 

[Nhoro]

Rookhawk, I have two boys, almost 14 and 12. They shot a 458 win mag when they were 10 and 12 without too much trouble and shoot my 30-06 pretty comfortably. But I observed that they didn't have the upper body strength to hold the rifle properly. They lean their upper body back to bring the rifle centre of balance backwards. That adds to felt recoil. So dont let them shoot offhand-use sticks to support the forend so that youngsters can be more balanced and roll back with recoil.

 

[Fixfire]

Overthinking recoil does more harm than good. I’ve seen many women and kids completely intimidated by a husband and/or father preaching/warning about being ready for the recoil. These same family members have no issues riding, skiing, playing football, etc. where being injured or jolted is much greater. I’m 140lbs and never even consider recoil when shooting (other than eye and ear protection). Shooting new guns offhand/standing absorbs much felt recoil - at least for me.

 

[buck wild]

It's not the live animal.

Why don't you feel recoil on the field?

Simple. Because you're not shooting off a bench and your rifle and body are in the correct position to dissipate recoil.

No science, calculations or charts needed- just common sense.

Respectfully I'd disagree. You're from Texas I see. You know 90% of deer are shot out of blinds with hunters shooting off basic "benches" from these blind windows here. Most of the "green" hunters we take don't feel the recoil either despite being similarly situated as the bench shooting from the range.

It's the excitement and adrenaline from shooting at live targets that mitigates the recoil in those situations

 

[1dirthawker]

@rookhawk,

plenty of advice given already so i am a bit reluctant to try to add anything. my suggestion is, don't have him shoot the 375 much. shoot a similar rifle, that does not recoil much for practice, of course the 375 needs to be sighted in. but after that, his marksmanship skills are the most important.

shooting a low recoil gun for familiarity and as noted plenty of dry firing for building skills. when the time comes to shoot the 375, you and the ph will be there as a backup (at a minimum) so a lot of trigger time on a large caliber (for him) is not truly needed. my 2 cents.

 

[xausa]

I can only relate what has worked for me. After I had developed my .505 SRE cartridge and fired it off the bench using an improvised "lead sled", I was faced with the task of accustoming myself to the recoil when fired from the shoulder. This was in the early 1970's and not a great deal was published about such problems, so I had to more or less improvise.

I used a quantity of relatively light cast bullets, loaded over a very light charge of IMR 3031 (today I would use AA5744). I would go for a walk in the woods and from time to time pick a harmless target, like a tree stump or the end of a fallen log, quickly mount the rifle to my shoulder the way I was accustomed to shoot a shotgun, aim and fire. I found that by concentrating on the target, my body was relaxed and not braced against the recoil. Over time, I gradually increased the powder charge until I found myself shooting full loads using the same technique.

In Africa, I never noticed recoil and what to me is more surprising, I never lost my balance. In one instance, I was standing on top of a termite mound, some four feet off the ground, when I shot an elephant, a rather difficult behind the ear brain shot. He immediately went down and I immediately followed up with a shot through the heart, as a precaution.

On the other occasion, I was standing on a slightly elevated ledge about six inches wide, when a buffalo bull went by me, somewhat downhill from where I was standing. I emptied my rifle, four shots in rapid succession, all four of which hit the buffalo in the shoulder, three forming a group so close together that they could have been covered with a playing card. In neither situation did I lose my balance, nor was I even aware of the recoil.

For the mathematically minded, I will provide a breakdown the recoil forces at work on my shoulder:

Recoil
Input Data
Charge Weight:	90.0 gr	Muzzle Velocity:	2150.0 ft/s
Firearm Weight:	8.8 lb	Bullet Weight:	570.0 gr
Output Data
Recoil Velocity:	26.9 ft/s	Recoil Energy:	98.5 ft•lbs
Recoil Impulse:	7.3 lb•s

 

[Troubleshooter]

Rookhawk, there has been much good and valid advice provided thus far. Someone mentioned the Limbsaver or similar device. One other option that I would suggest is the EvoShield shooting shirt, which consists of a gel-like pad which can be custom-molded to the shooter and the buttstock of the rifle. The pad is then inserted into a compression-style T-shirt.

Men's Protective Recoil Shoulder Guard Shooting Shirt

Whether you live for the shooting range and competitions, enjoy spending your days in an open field or simply have an injury to protect, the EvoShield Men's Protective Recoil Shoulder Guard Shooting Shirt will give you the pain-free comfort and endurance

www.evoshield.com

My experience during load development for a .450-400 NE was that I could shoot 20 rounds from a bench (sitting) without problem. (I did experience soreness on my shoulder if I fired 25 rounds, but only did that one time).
Just another tool for your toolbox. Good luck with training-up your son!

 

[rookhawk]

We went to the indoor range on Sunday. I shot a few rounds to get it on paper, then set him up on shooting sticks and let him take three shots. The three shots off sticks were about 1.5" with him frustrated he pulled one of the shots otherwise it would have been 1/2".

He says the recoil isn't bad as-is. We have a 1lb recoil reducer we were going to throw into the stock as that will reduce recoil by another 12%-15% and bring the scoped rifle from 9lbs to 10lbs which is reasonable for a safari 375HH.

He was content shooting only three times and with his precision, I was satisfied he can operate the weapon properly with good judgment and no flinch. The rifle's design is virtually the same as his 7x64 Brenneke rifle so I so no need to have him endure repetitive higher recoil for recreation. We then drove off to a farm to remove some tree stands and look after a ground blind for the rest of the day.

We never shortened or replaced the original pad, it appeared to be softer than the thinner options.

 

[VertigoBE]

We went to the indoor range on Sunday. I shot a few rounds to get it on paper, then set him up on shooting sticks and let him take three shots. The three shots off sticks were about 1.5" with him frustrated he pulled one of the shots otherwise it would have been 1/2".

He says the recoil isn't bad as-is. We have a 1lb recoil reducer we were going to throw into the stock as that will reduce recoil by another 12%-15% and bring the scoped rifle from 9lbs to 10lbs which is reasonable for a safari 375HH.

He was content shooting only three times and with his precision, I was satisfied he can operate the weapon properly with good judgment and no flinch. The rifle's design is virtually the same as his 7x64 Brenneke rifle so I so no need to have him endure repetitive higher recoil for recreation. We then drove off to a farm to remove some tree stands and look after a ground blind for the rest of the day.

We never shortened or replaced the original pad, it appeared to be softer than the thinner options.

View attachment 451646

Looks like he is having the time of his life!

 

[C.W. Richter]

Rookhawk, there has been much good and valid advice provided thus far. Someone mentioned the Limbsaver or similar device. One other option that I would suggest is the EvoShield shooting shirt, which consists of a gel-like pad which can be custom-molded to the shooter and the buttstock of the rifle. The pad is then inserted into a compression-style T-shirt.

Men's Protective Recoil Shoulder Guard Shooting Shirt

Whether you live for the shooting range and competitions, enjoy spending your days in an open field or simply have an injury to protect, the EvoShield Men's Protective Recoil Shoulder Guard Shooting Shirt will give you the pain-free comfort and endurance

www.evoshield.com

My experience during load development for a .450-400 NE was that I could shoot 20 rounds from a bench (sitting) without problem. (I did experience soreness on my shoulder if I fired 25 rounds, but only did that one time).
Just another tool for your toolbox. Good luck with training-up your son!

'Reminded here to chime in and say that many shooting shirts are made (I have one from Woolrich-a nice long sleeve green cotton shirt with padded, zippered (for insertion of additional padding if desired) pockets on both the L. and R. side to accomodate all shooters. Leather reinforced collar, quality buttons, etc. like many safari co. shirts. I think it was $75 at their factory store.