Recoil and young or small shooters. - Page 2

DiabeticKripple · #31 12-03-2023, 10:56 PM

Only reason I ran a brake on my rifle this year was I had prairie hunts and nothing happens fast, lots of time to put ear plugs in before making the stalk.

For a bush hunt I wouldn’t run a brake

Groundhogger · #32 12-04-2023, 08:40 AM

We all had ears on at the time, but I remember my buddy sighting in his 308 that was equipped with a brake, I was laying beside him spotting. Blew MY ball cap off. lol I had a brake on a .223 for a few outings, until one day (casing my rifle on the tailgate of my truck) I spotted a groundhog about 50 yards away. I was beside the barn and in my haste, deployed the bipod, got my belly in the dirt, inserted a around, and sent it.

No hearing protection/beside a barn...forgot to put it in. Ears rang for 3 days, brake came off. Sold the gun too. lol No, .223 is not punishing recoil but I wanted to try one and watch the hits. Not-worth-it. Couple of weeks later, spent about 20 minutes between 2 guys with SVT-40s at the range...hell bent on burning through a case of ammo just to see the mud fly. Not sure my ears made a full comeback, and I had foam plugs under electronic muffs. Haven't bought/used a brake since, but recognize they have their place.

Recoil-I think it has allot to do with the kids themselves (interest level) and what their firearms experience is leading up to that. My kids had been shooting slinghots/airguns/22s from the time they could hold them, so proper technique + confidence made transitioning to shotguns (in our case) easy. My daughter was shooting 2 rounds of trap back-to-back @ 10 years of age and by 12, was bowling over soaked/frozen chunks of wood with 12ga slugs. Gleefully I might add. "see that Dad!!! Bet that'll leave a bruise... Have any more shells?" God love her. lol

Pathfinder76 · #33 12-07-2023, 06:40 PM

Ha!!

https://youtu.be/UDpC1GB-FRo?si=54znyf2PyN0hBnKS

Battle Rat · #34 12-07-2023, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pathfinder76

Ha!!

https://youtu.be/UDpC1GB-FRo?si=54znyf2PyN0hBnKS

That young fellow did some very good shooting and survived the effects of recoil that I'm sure was considerably more than that of a 6.5 CM.
Must grow them tougher in Africa.

Daveparkland52 · #35 12-07-2023, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groundhogger

We all had ears on at the time, but I remember my buddy sighting in his 308 that was equipped with a brake, I was laying beside him spotting. Blew MY ball cap off. lol I had a brake on a .223 for a few outings, until one day (casing my rifle on the tailgate of my truck) I spotted a groundhog about 50 yards away. I was beside the barn and in my haste, deployed the bipod, got my belly in the dirt, inserted a around, and sent it.

No hearing protection/beside a barn...forgot to put it in. Ears rang for 3 days, brake came off. Sold the gun too. lol No, .223 is not punishing recoil but I wanted to try one and watch the hits. Not-worth-it. Couple of weeks later, spent about 20 minutes between 2 guys with SVT-40s at the range...hell bent on burning through a case of ammo just to see the mud fly. Not sure my ears made a full comeback, and I had foam plugs under electronic muffs. Haven't bought/used a brake since, but recognize they have their place.

Recoil-I think it has allot to do with the kids themselves (interest level) and what their firearms experience is leading up to that. My kids had been shooting slinghots/airguns/22s from the time they could hold them, so proper technique + confidence made transitioning to shotguns (in our case) easy. My daughter was shooting 2 rounds of trap back-to-back @ 10 years of age and by 12, was bowling over soaked/frozen chunks of wood with 12ga slugs. Gleefully I might add. "see that Dad!!! Bet that'll leave a bruise... Have any more shells?" God love her. lol

So my friend (who will go unnamed to protect the guilty) and I were hunting mule deer in an abandoned farm (with permission, I might add). We encountered some mulie does and we spread out, picking and agreeing to our separate targets. On the count of three we both shot. My friend howled immediately as he had leaned up against the machine shed (metal clad shed) for support. Same as in your case - he was hard of hearing for about 3 days - And I am the one who has to wear hearing aids!

Yes when you are in the hunting moment, it's hard to remember everything!

Take care
Dave

W921 · #36 12-08-2023, 08:45 PM

I just down load big guns and shoot them throughout year on varmints and steel plates and then load up heavy for big game . kids never notice recoil of a big gun when shooting at big game.
I download in off season just so I can shoot more without getting sore
Whole key is just to never get hurt. Example 20 rounds prone with full power 300 magnum is going to hurt. 5 won't. Load it down and you can shoot it a lot more. I like stuff to recoil enough that I have to hold rifle right coming out of recoil. Guns with no recoil can fool you into thinking you are a better shot Than what you really are. I also want something that's going to make the steel target make some noise and jump a bit.

Dogmatixx · #37 12-09-2023, 02:24 AM

It is what it is. A 300 lb buddy of mine shot at a deer with his 7mm remington mag and took 11 stitches over the eye. He now flinches 110 % of the time when he shoots a .22 rimfire. Complete head case. My nephew shoots 1 shot per year at a deer routinely takes his deer, always hits them in the breadbasket. Says he doesn’t hear the shot or feel recoil. He’s a buck and a half and shoots a hand me down 8 mm rem mag. I like what a poster said earlier “It’s cumulative”.

Pathfinder76 · #38 12-09-2023, 08:35 AM

Getting scoped is a different kettle of fish. That’s a scope or form/shooting issue.

MountainTi · #39 12-09-2023, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pathfinder76

Getting scoped is a different kettle of fish. That’s a scope or form/shooting issue.

Agreed

257STW · #40 12-09-2023, 11:21 AM

Hello,

At the risk of getting yelled at, I think there is a place for muzzle brakes. I have some - mostly on my larger kickers – 416 and up. That being said I shoot a 500 nitro double that is obviously unbraked. I am a firm believer in keeping range sessions reasonable -I would fire no more than 10 shots at a time out of the nitro in a day.

I've introduced several youth and new shooters to shooting. I believe the muzzle blast contributes as much to the felt recoil and the development of a flinch as the recoil itself. That's why I recommend double ear plugs at the bench. Technology for electronic hearing protection has advanced by miles and electronic hearing protection is no longer expensive. That's what I recommend for use in the field with young shooters/children (or anybody for that matter). I think there is a feeling of manliness in not using hearing protection – that certainly was the attitude of most of the guys in the military when I was in. However, a hearing aid is in no way replacement for your natural hearing.

Even my AirPods Pro in noise cancelling mode provide some effective one shot hearing protection in the field.

Believe it or not you probably shoot more accurately with the muzzle brake. You may not notice this at normal ranges, but I think anything over 500 -600 yards it could be noticeable.

Of course, reloading can go along way in reducing felt recoil, and I find a light weight bullets for caliber (eg Barnes offerings) make a comfortable youth load.
A calibre like the 7mm-08 can go along way.

I also fully agree with the comments made above about recoil in the hunting scenario. I think very few people feel recoil in the heat of the moment. My son wasn't a particularly large framed 12 year old when we were hunting hogs in Texas (I think everything that is illegal with firearms in Alberta or Canada is legal in Texas!) out of a speeding side by side with a 12 gauge and buckshot. He fired about 30 shells. I asked him after if the recoil bothered him and he said he never noticed it. I've then knew he was ready for a 12 gauge.

Cheers!

Dean2 · #41 12-09-2023, 01:05 PM

I agree with many on here. Noise is a much bigger problem than recoil. GOOD muffs and ear plugs makes a huge difference. When I started shooting center fire and shotgun I wasn't even 90 lbs, but I loved shooting. I shot everything I could get my hands on, recoil was a non-issue. My first rifle was a Cooey 39 when I was 11 or 12, first hunting rifle was a 300 mag when I was 14. I still didn't weigh much over 100 pounds and was maybe 5' tall. Shot the barrel out of it within 3 years. None of the shotguns or center fire guns I used had shortened stocks, but knowing what I know now, for 90% of folks it would be better and easier to learn to shoot well if they had been a better fit.

My brother was 2 years older, taller and much heavier built. He was not as fond of shooting but liked to come out on occasion. Anything over a 243, he wasn't much interested in shooting it. It is completely different for each kid, let them decide but don't arbitrarily decide they are too small to at least try.

elkhunter11 · #42 12-09-2023, 01:27 PM

The noise from a braked rifle is definitely more annoying than recoil for me, right up to the 300RUM and 338x8mmremmag. Larger than that, both are more than I will deal with.

Pathfinder76 · #43 12-09-2023, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elkhunter11

The noise from a braked rifle is definitely more annoying than recoil for me, right up to the 300RUM and 338x8mmremmag. Larger than that, both are more than I will deal with.

This is where I am.