I am speaking only for myself here. YES for me the recoil is to much. This is true even of a 300 Win mag. I have had many Magnum rifles including a 416 Rem Mag. When I needed to, I could shoot them well. However shooting at a game animal and a few shots to keep it zeroed in well is one thing. I can handle that if need be. I would not however enjoy shooting them and would not shoot them just as a shooting hobby as I once did. Someone said its in your head, Well for me its in my shoulder, those Damn things HURT and its not my head that they hurt. I have also in my older years finally grasp the truth and that is to me that there is really no use in most cases for the extra boom, noise and pain. A rifle in the 25-06, 270, 280 and 30-06 with the good bullets and powder we have now is all the gun needed for any North American game. For deer and pronghorns and even Elk, there are even smaller rifles that will do the job as well. Rifles like the 257 Roberts, 260 Rem. 7MM-08. 6.5 x55 and 757 Mauser and for sure the 308, 358 and 8MM mausers have will continue to take all North American game. If I were to hunt the big bears again I would pick up another 416 Rem or 375 H&H and feel secure hunting with them but I would shoot them only when I had to. When hunting other big game in Grizzly country My first choice of a gun for protection would be the Remington pump loaded with five 220 grain Nosler Partitions in 30-06. At self defense ranges If that won't stop a critter then nothing else would either. The first Big game guide I ever hunted with used that combo and he could put five shots on the X mark in a little over five seconds. My second choice would be a good pump slug shotgun. Well I got off the subject, Sorry about that. Vapodog hit the nail on the head. For me if I really need that kind of power I would use it but if I can't enjoy the pain, Forget it.