The Hardest Kicker

[getitdone1]

What's the hardest kicking gun you've ever shot?

Personally, the Browning A-Bolt 375 H&H magnum but my Browning 1886 carbine with 400 gr bullets and loaded hot can hurt the most due to no recoil pad.

I know there's lots of guns that kick more than these. Some that come to mind are:

460 and 378 Weatherby
The big Nitro cartridges used in Africa. 470, 500 etc.
416 Rigby

Many others.

Expect some of you have a gun that shoots the old "buffalo cartridges." Thinking of 45-120, etc. though I know it and some of these big black powder cartridges came on the scene when most of the buffalo were gone and commercial shooting of them a thing of the past.

Malamute, if you read this, seems I read you hurt your shoulder shooting the Browning 1886 carbine with hot loads. Is that true? I know recoil is more than enough with hot 400 gr loads.

Don

[Pete44ru]

No bout adoutit - a 3" 12ga magnum load out of a 5 lb H&R Pardner II slug Gun.

.

[Thunder50]

I would have to say my NEF 500 S&W with a healthy dose of Lil Gun, or my Ruger #1 in 50-70 loaded up(also Lil Gun) to #1 specs(kind of like the 45-70 with its three levels of loads--trapdoor/1895 marlin/ #1 Ruger). Guns are too light for that amount of HP available.

[Old Savage]

Thompson New Englander - tear drop shaped steel butt plate. 100 gr black powder. 400 gr conical and ..... the ramrod. It all went over the sky screens at 795 fps - recoil calculated to 96 ft lbs. 458 is about 68 ft lbs and a 460 Weatherby is about 128 ft lbs. That was an attention getter.

[Lastmohecken]

I used to hunt with a Remington 700 Classic in .375 HH that was a pretty hard kicker, but the gun had a good pad, and it was more of a big push. I had a Ruger 35 Whelan that I think was maybe a harder kicking gun, or at least it seemed to hurt more.

In general 45/70's kick pretty hard, and my Browning B78 kicks pretty hard, but it has a steel buttplate, same for my old Model 71, 348. My 450 Alaskan, model 71 must kick pretty hard, but I don't really notice that much, because it has an outstanding recoil pad. There is nothing like a good recoil pad to tame a rifle.

It's funny though, my Browning 86 Carbine, with the steel buttplate, is about the most confortable 45/70 that I have ever shot.

And here is something else that I don't think is my imagination, a pre-64 Model 94 30/30 and I own three of them, do not seem to kick hardly at all, but my post 64's and I own and have owned several, always seem to have a harder preceived recoil.

There is more to felt recoil, then just the weight of the rifle, vs the power level of the round fired. I have had plenty of heavy guns that kicked pretty hard, and some light guns for caliber that were pretty mild kickers.

[86er]

I shot a 338-06 Weatherby with synthetic stock. One shot - gave it back, never again. I have yet to shoot a 338 Win Mag that I thought was comfortable. I don't believe this is the cartridges fault(s). The right rifle can be pleasant in just about anything if the stock is designed right and fits you and the weight is complimentary to the recoil engery. I shoot a 7mm Mag that pushes straight back and doesn't jump at the muzzle at all. I can see through the scope throughout recoil for the most part. It is one of my lightest kicking rifles as far as felt recoil. My 450 NE is 11 pounds and the stock is fitted to me. It feels like a 20 gauge shotgun. I fit my 375 H&H to me and it is actually pleasant to shoot. The 300 Win Mag that I had kicked more that my 375. I got a 50 Alaskan as a gift. It was a Marlin. The stock was too short and had too much drop for me. It jumped up bad and slipped from my shoulder, while hitting me in the cheek. One time it jumped up and the hammer punched a hole in my forehead. I gave it back after a box of ammo.

[Pisgah]

Many years ago, when my ex-wife had not yet been promoted to Ex-status, she and a friend went to an auction one Friday night. She came home all excited, saying that she had bought a shotgun for $10! I don't remember the exact model, but as I recall it was a Stevens 12 ga. single-shot with a plastic stock and a barrel that had been cut to 18". It probably weighed all of 4 1/2 pounds, with a narrow butt and horrible stock geometry. Dear Lord, I'm cringing right now as I recall shooting that thing!!

In the ensuing years, I've shot all sorts of stuff, short of a .50 BMG, and NOTHING has EVER hurt me as bad as that thing!

[Sixgun]

I've shot both the .378 & 460 Weatherbys, and the nod goes to the .378 as being a harder kick. I've shot full power 405's, 45-90's, ect, But nothing beat me to death like CAS's (one of our own) slicked up and whittled down 5 pound 1895 Marlin shooting 400 gr. jacketed @ 1900 fps. Two shots out of that made me flinch for the next 6 months. -----------Sixgun

[Chris83716]

.388 win mag in a Ruger bolt action with a synthetic stock. Nice to carry all day, but no fun to shoot. Good thing the factory ammo is so expensive.

Chris

[tman]

I used to hunt with a Remington 700 Classic in .375 HH that was a pretty hard kicker, but the gun had a good pad, and it was more of a big push. I had a Ruger 35 Whelan that I think was maybe a harder kicking gun, or at least it seemed to hurt more.

In general 45/70's kick pretty hard, and my Browning B78 kicks pretty hard, but it has a steel buttplate, same for my old Model 71, 348. My 450 Alaskan, model 71 must kick pretty hard, but I don't really notice that much, because it has an outstanding recoil pad. There is nothing like a good recoil pad to tame a rifle.

It's funny though, my Browning 86 Carbine, with the steel buttplate, is about the most confortable 45/70 that I have ever shot.

And here is something else that I don't think is my imagination, a pre-64 Model 94 30/30 and I own three of them, do not seem to kick hardly at all, but my post 64's and I own and have owned several, always seem to have a harder preceived recoil.

There is more to felt recoil, then just the weight of the rifle, vs the power level of the round fired. I have had plenty of heavy guns that kicked pretty hard, and some light guns for caliber that were pretty mild kickers.

my bb94 444 kicks more than my 86 carbine. 94 has a recoil pad, the 86 has the steel saddlering carbine buttstock. go figure?

[2X22]

I've only shot 2 really 'big' guns, the 375 H&H (have owned 4) and the .458 (only 1!).

The .375 I could shoot 300's at 2550fps all day off a bench rest and shoot a 1 1/2" group on my 4th box. Loved and still love the caliber.

So I figured I'd get a .458 just to play with and reduce rocks to rubble. Imagine my surprise when I found out I couldn't handle even 1 full house round out of a Model 70 I shot that sucker a lot trying to get a handle on it, trying to find something I could handle and not finding it until I dropped the loads into the upper 45-70 area.

So I traded it straight across for an original '86 in 45-90 made in 1891

2x22

[AJMD429]

Two guns I only wanted to fire ONCE (both owned by the same friend - a recoil masochist?)

• Long gun - 10 gauge magnum (firing a slug) breakopen gun with barrel cut to 18-1/4" and with stock shortened enough so lead weight it came with was not in place (still legal length, and still a shoulder-gun).
  
  Hand gun - .454 Casull Encore 10" with "stout" loads.

Of my OWN guns, the ones I like to shoot least are:

• Long gun - Ithaca M-66 slug-gun with slugs.
  
  Hand gun - Ruger SP-101, 2" barreled .357 Magnum.

Most over-rated guns others seem to fear that I've shot:

• Ruger .44 Magnum Super-Blackhawk (though I do get 'knuckle rap' from that square trigger-guard)
  Rossi .454 Casull 20" levergun (mine came with a recoil pad - shoots like a 20ga slug gun)
  Marlin .45-70 Guide Gun 18" (but I've never shot Garret's loads - yet)
  Ruger No.1 7mm Rem Mag (it's not the recoil, but the noise, that gets me)

[Terry Murbach]

A WINCHESTER '95 ORIGINAL WITH THE SHARPLY CURVED NARROW STEEL BUTTPLATE , 405WIN CALIBER, WITH 300gr FULL PATCH AMMUNITION. I WAS 18, TOUGHER THAN CASE HARDENED ROCKS , AND THREE ROUNDS FROM THAT TORTURE MACHINE DAMMED NEAR BROUGHT ME TO TEARS; IT WAS NOTHING LESS THAN VICIOUS !!! I BIT MY TONGUE AS I HANDED IT BACK TO IT'S OWNER JIM STITT TRYING TO LOOK REALLY REALLY EXTRA TOUGH......YEAH RIGHT..

[Rusty]

When I was going through rookie school they didn't have enough shotguns to go around so we were having to share. There was a game warden who had been working already, on a waiver. He had his state issued M37 with rifled sights. Come time to shoot slugs, just for familiarization I borrowed his gun. It was quite memorable.

[Marlin32]

12ga NEF Turkey gun, with 24" barrels, probably weighs 5#'s or less.
Shot 3.5" 2 3/8oz of lead. Still have nine left out of the 10 round box.
darn near broke my finger. Killed the turkey, and at the time, I though myself, wasn't sure what happened immediately, at first I thought gun blew up.

I think 86'er is right on the money, not necessarily the cartridge but the rifle. A poorly fitting light weight '06 might beat the hell out of you compared to a well fitted heavy 300 Win Mag.

[shooter]

The 2 most punishing guns I have ever had the displeasure of firing were both of the .300 magnum variety. One was my .300 Win. Mag Ruger M77 with max loads. I could only shoot 3 or 4 shots per session from the bench. I didn't have much of a problem shooting it in the field, but I sold it because I don't like carrying a gun I don't practice with. After I sold that one, I ignorantly bought a Savage .300 WSM. I was assured it didn't kick as much as its longer action brother, even though ballistics were virtually identical. That gun seemed to weigh about half of what my Ruger weighed, and it proceeded to kick my butt all over the bench. I sold it shortly after my first range session with it.

I don't have a problem shooting 7mm Mag, or 45-70, but I don't think I will ever own a .300 Win Mag again. I think the noise from the gun had a lot to do with it, also. I'm not much on big, loud magnum cartridges at the range. When shooting in the field it doesn't bother me as much because I'm not thinking about it. It may be a mental thing, but I was never able to get past it.

[Modoc ED]

An old duffer showed up at the range one day and set up on the next range over. All of a sudden there was a KA-BOOM followed by two more relative quick KA-BOOMs. Curiosity got the better of me and another guy that was shooting near me and we wandered over to see what the old duffer was shooting. .505 Gibbs We asked what he was going to go hunting for with it and he said he was just testing it out as he'd just got it from CZ. He offered us each one shot and we took it. I'm glad he offered only one shot as I don't think I'd of taken a second shot.

Oh, the shots he took were standing off-hand. When he offered us a shot, he said to take it standing off-hand as he thought it was too stout to shoot off the bench. I BELIEVE HIM.

EDIT: Changed .502 Gibbs to .505 Gibbs -- Senior Moment

[jnyork]

Fellers, I have shot plenty of guns that "kick" some. I can shoot an 80 shot M1 Garand match with no side effects. I have shot a .375 H & H, .300 Win Mag, etc, still here.

However, my BIL once gave me a little break action 20 guage single shot, maybe an Iver Johnson or some such, still have it in the back of the safe back home. I only fired it 3 or 4 times, it just beat the heck out of me, it hurt my cheekbone so bad it brought tears to my eyes. Was pretty easy to see why he gave it to me `

Goes to show that the fit of the stock has a lot to do with the perceived recoil, if a gun fits you like it should you can absorb a lot of actual recoil without much problem.

[6pt-sika]

I've got a couple of the older Marlin 1895's in 45-70 these are the 1972 to 1979 rifles . They had curved hard rubber/plastic buttplates and with my 425 grain cast handloads they are something you need to hols ont ot when you set it off !

I've got a Interarns Mark X Whitworth in 375 H&H MAG that isn't bad at all ! Had the same thing in a 416 REM MAG that would jar you a bit with 400 grain handloads .

My Ruger #1H in 416 REM MAG isn't so bad with the 400 grain loads and neither is our Ruger #1H in 458 WIN MAG however you know it when you pull the trigger !

My buddies CZ550 in 505 Gibbs is "going to move you" however it a LARGE shove not an abrupt kick !

I have a 338 WIN MAG in a Ruger #1B that gets noticable after a dozen or so shots .

My Savage 210F 12 gauge bolt action rifled slug gun can be a bit pushy . A TC Encore Pro Hunter I had with a 12 gaguge rifled slug barrel would thump you a pretty hard lick since it was LIGHT !

But without a doubt the hardest kicking gun's I ever owned were a pair of Remington Model 7 Stainless Synthetic rifles in 308 WIN . I had a pair of these over about 7 years and with a 165 grain bullet they would flat rattle my teeth . My little 260 in the same configuration isn't anything to shoot and I had Model 7's in 7mm RSAUM and 300 RSAUM and both of those were LESS in the recoil department then either of the 308's I had !

I am well aware of the fit of the gun and the weight of the gun and all the other things people use to formulate recoil etc . And even when speculating on these variables it still seems a little absurd that a pair of 308 would have a more noticable thump then the afore mentioned BIG BRUISERS . But to me in percieved recoil atleast they did !

[madman4570]

505 Gibbs
Guy I used to buy my Cannondale Bikes from had some Hot Loads he loaded for elephant hunting.
That gun really Kicked.If I remember right his loads were somthing like a 600gr at 2650fps

Kicked more than twice my 340 Weatherby.Also a lot more than a .460 Weatherby too which I have shot.(not too bad)

The gun that always gets my friends though is my .300 Winchester Mag with hot compressed handloads.
They don't take it seriously and the scope get's a lot of em!

[Don McDowell]

I've got my grandads old Iver Johnson Champion 12 ga. That thing isn't pleasant to shoot at all.
Been involved with a couple of 270's and a 300 wby with the fancy monte carlo stocks that were just pure misery to shoot. Conversely a Rem 700 in 300 wby and another one in 338 ultramag were relatively pleasant.
My 405 certainly made me a fan of limbsaver recoil pads.
A prewar 94 Winchester carbine with the carbine butt and Ideal tang sight would take chunks out of your thumb and leave your shoulder purple after a few rounds.
I shoot alot of the big bpcr cartridges and don't find any of them particularly hard kicking until you start pushing bullets over 550 grs, then they get a bit unfriendly.

[Ray Newman]

An 8 bore double rifle.

[Malamute]

One of the most uncomfortable guns to shoot that I've experienced was a Winchester model 70 in 300 Win mag. It had a sharp recoil, and was distinctly uncomfortable from the bench. Next was the Browning 86 rifle with a crescent butt with 500 gr loads @ 1750 fps. I had the crescent cut off, and a flat pad put on it. Some guys seem to be able to shoot crescent butts OK, I'm not one of them.

[madman4570]

Wrong ways to shoot a Gun!

http://tapespace.com/view/How_Not_To_Shoot_A_Gun

[L_Kilkenny]

No bout adoutit - a 3" 12ga magnum load out of a 5 lb H&R Pardner II slug Gun.

.

I'll second that one but mine was out of an aluminum receiver Winchester 1300. I'm also going to throw in a vote for a 20ga SxS that a buddy used to hunt with in our younger days. He had me shoot it one day and we thought it would be fun to touch off both barrels at the same time. Betting he thought it was fun when I did it but I didn't think it was so much fun!

Those are the only 2 guns I've ever shot that made me take a step backwards.

LK

[C. Cash]

Fast and painful: my 356 Win. hunched over a bench.

Slow and dramatic: A short/light Mossberg Ulti-Mag 3.5" 12 Gauge with max 3.5" load. Insane recoil.

LKilkenny's post reminded me also. I had a magic summer with my Uncles Remington 1900 16 Gauge. Dbl. We were down near Canyon City, AZ and I shot at a black bird and pulled both triggers. It looked and felt like Missisppi touching off his scattergun in El Dorado. I didn't fall over but I came near to it.

[Old Time Hunter]

My Marlin Guide Gun chambered for .450 Marlin ain't no slouch...all 6# of it off a bench will let you know it is there and I have a 300WM that feels passive compared to that Marlin. But, a M95 Steyr Carbine shooting 205 grain 1938 Nazi ammo (after 72 years packed away) kicked my butt! That 6.5# rifle tried to displace my shoulder something fierce. Set up the chrono, that well aged ammo spit out of the barrel (chrono set 15' from muzzle) at 3210 fps. We had to take turns 'cause it hurt so, so much. We went through 25+ rounds and averaged that 3210fps. Then we pulled out the book and found out that the original ammo shouldn't be over 2500 fps...guess it gets more powerful after awhile. We pulled a couple of cartridges apart, the powder actually had some kind of gel forming...my expert said that the nitro was seperating. Ballistics says that @3200 fps that 205gr bullet is generating OVER 4600lbs of energy at the muzzle. I think those Nazi's were trying to kill the Austrian police force!

[Otto]

Um... I... er... gave my 94 .30-30 to my brother 'cuz I couldn't take the recoil. I mostly shoot .223 and pistol cartridges, specifically .357 and .45 Colt. I also have a .243, which I think kicks alot, especially after about the third or 4th shot.

I am looking to get another .30-30 this summer. Gonna try to man up this time.

[Lawyer Daggit]

.375 H&H. I have a light weight Rem Mod 7 .350 Rem mag that with hot 250 grain loads raises the eyebrows and brings tears to the eyes if you don't work up to it grain by grain....

[model55]

Have never shot any big magnums but have shot a mosin nagant model 44,a lee enfield jungle carbine and last I recall getting powder happy with my black powder in .54 caliber shooting 435 grain TC maxi-hunter bullets!Only did that trick the one time.

[TedH]

If you look at the numbers, my 470NE is by far the biggest kicker I've got but it's not uncomfortable shooting from an upright position. My old Mod 70 375 H&H isn't too bad either just because it's such a large, heavy gun. I think the worst one I've shot was a Mossberg 835 with a 3.5" magnum load. That darn thing jarred some fillings loose and knocked the glasses off my face. One shot was enough.

[Barcelona Rick]

As a kid my Newport 12 ga SXS....touched off both barrels at one time....won't ever forget that....a very lightweight .338 Win Mag and a Freedom Arms .454 Casul were pretty tough but I bought some handloads for a .45 ACP S&W 1917...used 1/2 moon clips......the old boy was a drinker (did not know this at the time) and he way way overloaded them.....shot that sucker 6 times and my thumb and web of my hand were bleeding....the whole revolver was smoking and like to never got the cases out of the cylinder....

jumbeaux

[pumpgun]

my winchester timber carbine in 450 marlin is stout. it only weighs about 6 pounds. it comes straight back hard as heck. good thing it has a good pad. my remington model 600 in 350 jumps up and smacks my cheek good. it is not a lot of fun to shoot but i love it anyway.

[Ysabel Kid]

Nothing exotic - just my 1886 carbine with stout loads...

[dave in maine]

back in the early 50's my grandpa gave me a pair of ww1 flare pistols,and i discovered that the 12 ga.shotgun shells that dad had in the cellar fit,one shot and one sprained wrist later i put them up.no matter where i put that wrist the hurt didn't go away.if only i'd hammered some common sense into myself at the same time,but you can't fix stupid as ron white says.

[WinM71]

I shot a .460 Weatherby years ago. Expected it to kick much worse than it did, it seemed like more of a huge shove than the sharp kick I was expecting. Best part was that I was shooting down a slight grade into a big pond about 150 yards away, and the bullet got down there with what seemed like the speed of an '06. That was a lot of fun.

[piller]

I haven't shot nearly as many big guns as some on here. The worst kicker I have shot was my Guide Gun off the bench with heavy handloads while it still had the original factory recoil pad. A limbsaver screw on recoil pad pretty well tamed the beast. I got funny and added another slip on pad for bench shooting and now it is a lot of fun to shoot. Kind of funny when the muzzle blast sets off car alarms from the cars parked behind me.

[Wes]

I shot a 340 Wby Mag once that was pretty nasty. I'm with Malamute on the 86 w/crescent butt plate. I have numbed my arm several times when it it a nerve in my shoulder. I liked the rifle but I don't shoot it much any more.
Ray N., you guys who shoot 8 bores have balls of steel in my book.

[CEMENTHEAD]

Stupid move on my part....a 7 lb, custom, synthetic stocked, 378 Weatherby Magnum(no brake). Shooting 300 grain Partitions @ 2800+ fps. Absolutely vicious!!!! One shot and I handed it back. I want at least 10 lbs of gun weight for one of them, IF, I do it again.

Thanks, Tom

[claybob86]

When I was a kid of about 9 or 10, I kept begging my granddad to let me shoot his 12 gauge. He finally relented and let me try it. Laid me down right quick! He thought it was funnier than I did at the time... Since then, I've shot all sorts of things up to .50 BMG. As long as I'm standing up to shoot, recoil doesn't bother me too much. But sitting at a bench, that's a little different...

[Bullard4075]

I find it curious that the 300 Winchester Mag is mentioned so often. I say curious because my 300 (Savage 110)
seems to hurt me far worse than my (same weight) 338 win mag Ruger #1 , so much so that I have been
looking (without success) for a scope with more eye relief. Four (4) inches seems to be the max I can find without
the jump to a Scout scope. I've had the 338 for 30 years but am questioning keeping the 300.
In Alaska years ago my bear gun was a 20 inch 458 mag on a 98 platform. Crossbolts were required in the stock to
prevent splitting . Don't remember it killing me.

Any suggestions?

[Alan Wood]

Hm
Lets see. My uncle limit with 44 magnum Winchester 94 ae ranger (cheap trapper) was about 1 box ie 50 rounds. Didn't finish 2 20 round boxes of 308 through my Savage 99 e in 308 before thinkin enough is enough. How any of you shoot heavier is beyond me.

[Aussie Chris]

Fired a couple of 'big guns', 458 Win mag, 50 BMG, 375 H&H, 416 rigby.

I gotta say that my newest acquisition, my marlin 444 has probably the most recoil for me off the bench (full power loads). I may have a few loose fillings now

A mate of mine just bought a 375 H&H savage and that thing is brutal off the bench with factory loads, it is a light gun though. I have fired a Sako in 375 H&H and it was nothing compared to my mates Savage.

Chris

[BobM]

Long gun: My Guide Gun with some handloads.

Handgun: S&W 500 with the 500 magnum ammo, two rounds was enough for me.

[Pathfinder09]

That is easy. My Marlin Guide Gun in .45-70 Govt. with 430 gr Buffalo Bore Ammunition. NO Limbsaver!

Kicked the livin stuff out of me. NOT FUN at all.

A limbsaver butt pad made all the difference in the world.

[Warhawk]

.388 win mag in a Ruger bolt action with a synthetic stock. Nice to carry all day, but no fun to shoot. Good thing the factory ammo is so expensive.
Chris

I had one of these, the older stainless gun with the skeletonized plastic stock. It was brutal, the 338 I have now is a remington stainless/synthetic that is actually lighter but MUCH more pleasant to shoot, I think it's all in the stock design. I have had very good luck with scopes but broke 2 of them on that Ruger 338.

The Ruger #1 in 45-70 is one that I thought kicked like a mule. I had loaded a bunch of ammo for it that was too long to cycle through my Marlin, I couldn't wait to get it shot up so I could sell that #1.

My son has a Weatherby Super Featherweight, or some such thing. It's a MK V with a pencil thin barrel in 30-06, and of course has that goofy Weatherby stock. I think it weighs 5 1/4 pounds without a scope. It's a killer off the bench. But he says it doesn't kick at all when there is hair in the scope

But the single worst one I remember was a fancy Weatherby MK V in .340 Wby. A wealthy customer of the gun shop I worked at bought 4 Weatherbys for an African Safari, 2 300s, a 340 and a 460. He invited a couple of us out to get the scopes zeroed. The 300's were pretty stout, and the 460 would really roll you back, but that 340 was just plain evil.

[1886]

.378 Weatherby Mark V. 300gr solids chugging at 2950 f.p.s. Brutal, 1886.

[rimrock]

My T-4 before I put a Limbsaver pad on it let you when it went off, but I had a Ruger model 77 in 30-06 about 30 yrs ago that just punished me. I sold it for $150 without a second thought about 15 yrs ago. Lost money on the deal, but it needed to go.

[BenT]

BLR in 300WSM. It is just too light of a gun for that cartridge. There was nothing enjoyable about shooting it.

[Bigahh]

Biggest rifle I ever shot was a Remington 700 Classic in 8mm Remington Magnum. It wasn't bad at all. Far worse were 3" 12 Gauge slugs. If I am ever forced to use a shotgun again it will be 2 3/4 inchers.