I have read lots of tables that give various ft/lbs for the recoil of various sporting rifles, but they dont give an 'ouch' factor. At what level is recoil ok , when does it effect shooting and when does in really hurt. My 308 is classed as mild. if you fire it a couple of times then I agree. If your on the range and fire a 100 then it hurts and I cant hit anything. Taking just a normal days hunting when does recoil become a problem. At what ft/lb level.

I am not sure how to gauge the "ouch" factor. However, I am pretty recoil shy. By that I mean that much recoil makes me less accurate. I am 6" and 185 lbs, and even my 270 will get to me at the shooting range, espeically when shooting Hornady 140 grain light magnum ammunition. What did I do about it? On my 270, I put a slip on recoil arrestor that is awesome for reduction of recoil ( a limb saver recoil pad). I got the slip on because it also fits my 7mm mag and my T/C Omega muzzleloader.

I also own a 338 win mag that really doesn' t seem to kick much, although I haven't shot it for long stretches at the range. I think it is because the gun is almost 10 lbs. A heavier gun definately helps with recoil.

I would recommend trying a limb saver pad. It will make a big difference. http://www.cliffsgunsmithing.com/Cat...imb_Saver.htm# Remember that the slip on will add length to your gun unlike relpacing the existing pad with a custom fit pad. And no, I don't own stock in the company.

Recoil is as much the shockwave of sound from the muzzle blast as it is the force pushing the gun into your shoulder. You can reduce felt recoil by 1. muzzle break, 2. Gel recoil pad, 3. ear plugs.

That’s a pretty hard question to answer. All depends on the individual. For my self shooting 7mm Rem. mag is not a problem up to a point. I could shoot 20 , 30 round without having any problem but after that and depending on the load it’s starts bothering me. That’s when I stop. No sense in shooting if you’re going to be all over the paper because of the so called ouch factor.
My brother has a 338 Win Mag. and I hate shooting that rifle at the range, especially when it was time to sight it in. Shooting at a deer is not a problem but shooting at paper is something else.
Definitely having a heavier gun will help but it all depend on the individual as I mentioned..

Thats true. You don't really notice recoil when the adrenaline is pumping.

I could be shooting a 243 or 50-BMG at a 6x6 bull elk, and could not tell you how the recoil felt at the moment of truth? I never have felt the recoil while hunting. I sure have felt it off of the bench.[&:]
That being said I sure wish I could learn to shoot big magnums better off of the bench? There must be some tricks to shooting the big magnums off of the bench?[] The best I can do with a 300-win mag is about 20-rounds before I start to flench.

Bambi,
I can shoot all day at the bench and it doesn't bother me cause I use the head cover off my driver as a recoil pad between my rifle and my shoulder.
Shooting at the range is not a test of how much punishment the shooter can take.
I would say for me the difference would be at the 25-06 to .280 jump.
25-06 I can shoot without even thinking about the recoil, when I go to the .280 I start to notice it, mainly because I pay close attention to keeping the scope away from my eye as I got busted there pretty good with a 7mag and don't ever want to have that happen again.
Took me a long time to get over the resulting flinch!

Shooting in the field I normally hunt with my .300 win mag and I never notice the recoil in the field.

You can lessen your recoil by using lighter bullets at slower velocity and choosing a powder that requires less grains of powder to reach your desired velocity in your loads, also using a heavier rifle and a good recoil pad help a lot.

hey bambi

i also own a 308. it scares the liven *#*$ out of me even when i'm taken a shot at a deer or on the bench. i shot my buddy 300 win mag and it didn't even bother me due to the way they kick.

I know my 308 kicks up and back where the 300 kicked straight back

Alot of recoil is due to stock fit also,if you have 308 kicken ya realy hard look at the stock desing.I have a Savage .270 that kicks the heck out of me,but a freinds daughter all ways uses it for deer and she loves it,takes over my Ruger #1 25-06.
I shoot some pretty stout guns 300 RUM,300 WSM,.338 WM and a .416 Rem. these are guns on the upper class of recoil and they don't hurt me as bad as that .270

They say a persons comfort range is around 15-18 ft/ bs of recoil,that is about the upper end of a 180gr. 30-06 or 150 gr. 270.
A 300 WSM is about 23 ft/lbs
A .338 Win Mag is right around 30-35 ft/lbs and .300 RUM is at 42 ft/lbs of recoil OUCH!!
Chuck Hawks used to have recoil tabel you could look at but now you have to be a member of the web page.

Being at the range vs in the field hunting are worlds apart, as wolf said I have never recalled the recoil when shooting at game. I can say I have felt it off a bench though. The tolerance to recoil is dependant on the person, I would simply go by when you start to feel it...pack up. Absolutely nothing good will come out of spraying paper or becoming aware of recoil. I have shoulder problems and as soon as I feel the tingle I am done for that day - somedays it can be 20 rounds others it can be 50. When I had a 300wby. I'd implement the services of an insulated glove which allowed me to shoot comfortably. I just rapped it with duct tape and removed it following my range sessions, of course in the field it was never a problem or required as you won't be plinking off 20 rounds at a time...I HOPE!