I find it recoil very manageable for me. Of course I did put on a Sims slip-on recoil pad prior to ever shooting mine. I definitely agree that shooting 3" slugsthrough something like an 870 express with the shorty slug barrel, will give you a kick quite a bit stronger than the .300 win mag.

I have a Browning A-bolt in 300 win mag, and the recoil is less than some 30-06s I've shot. It all depends on the gun's design and the way it fits you.

I spend a lot of time on the range and I find the people that are usually talking about all the recoil of a 300 win are not people that own one . If you have it in your mind it's going to kick your probable better off getting a smaller caliber .

My cousin picked one up last year and I can see him cringe after about 10 shots at the bench, and he's a BIG guy that's supposedly grown up shooting large calibers and shotguns. However, I tried it in the off-hand and I could shoot it all day with no problems. But if it's any worse then shooting my 7 Mag at the bench with hot loads, I don't want any part of them.

If you know someone who has the rifle in .300 WM you're considering, see if you can shoot a few rounds with theirs.
Otherwise, I don't think it's much different that shooting a 12 guage with 3" slugs.
Any once you have it sighted in, you'll not notice the recoil hunting, I'm 100% sure of that. Get a good rest, solid cheek anchor on the stock and good steady squeeze and you'll be happy with the results.

If you are a heart patient, take rat poison, have stintsold, weak and decrepid like me, install a muzzlebreak and have fun. Regards, Rick.

If you are a little recoil sensitivie, the secret to owning a .300 Win Mag is the Caldwell Lead Sled. Yes, it does have about 50% more recoil than a 30/06. You do all your load development and sighting in with the Lead Sled - practice with a softer recoiling gun. You will never feel the recoil of the .300 Win Mag when hunting.

Stay away from muzzle breaks. It will put you into Belltone land.

That's a good suggestion Roskoe. It helps you get the hard part out of the way with out too much trouble. I think it's still one of top picks for people who's jobs involve highly accurate rifle shooting at distance, too. It's a very good choice for larger game.

To compare, in rifles of the same weight, the 30-06 has 17.5 lb of recoil. The 300 Win Mag has 25.6 lbs. So maybe about a third more.

I have had both in the 700 Remington. The 300 sure as heck has more recoil.