I made myself one earlier this year and the recoil is perfectly acceptable. It doesn't kick any harder than my .270 but the stock was made to fit me and it does have a decelerator recoil pad on it.

It is a great cartridge. I chose the WSM over the longer cousins because I don't like a belted case. Just a personal preference I guess. I also chose the WSM over the Remington SAUM simply because it has a huge lead in sales, rifles chambered for the cartridge, and factory ammo being loaded for it. I believe that all of the major gun manufacturers chamber a rifle for the WSM line except for Remington. If one is going to fall by the wayside it is going to be the SAUM.