Reloading Challenge

[dgeesaman]

Protektor makes a shoulder sandbag and I think you could make one yourself by repurposing a shoulder holster or part of a old sweatshirt, I use small sandbags tied around the rifle

Yeah a guy at my club brought something painful looking and wanted to shoot about a dozen rounds with it. I suggested he grab one of our buckshot bags filled with sand and put that between his shoulder and the gun. Made the length of pull awkward but he said it helped.

I’m trying to think of a way to bolt raw weight onto the gun for load development only but it would probably end up loose and ruining the exercise.

David

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

Magnums will make you aware of your shooting technique problems real quick. My neighbor is 6'3" 260, he thought prone would be "easier" than the bench for his 300 wm. Just before his first prone shot, I told him it's going to hurt, afterwards I'll tell you why. Pain reinforced the lesson.

 

[K22]

When I shot heavy recoiling firearms which I don't anymore, I used a shoulder harness with a robust pad plus a heavy vest. This did a fair job mitigating the pain.

I never shot free recoil; I held the forearm to simulate the way I would use the rifle in a hunting situation. This gave me an accurate field sight in. and helped substantially to reduce "felt recoil".

I was never a fan of light weight rifles in calibers over 243 class. For me and I'm not a big guy, a standard Rem 700 with a 3 x 9 scope was not difficult to carrying even in the rough terrain of the north central PA "big woods."

I didn't slave only load development, once I obtain something that met my hunting needs, I adopted it. In other words, I streamlined the load development process.

My heavy recoiling rifles were for hunting only, not target shooting.

 

[Ken]

My hunting partner likes his lead sled for the big boomers. Give one a try and let us know.

 

[hoosiermike]

When I used to shoot big bore double rifles the thing that worked the best was a setup that you shot with from the standing position. The recoil was still significant but you roll with the punch so to speak. Some of those big double rifles are murderous from the bench and may wreck your shoulder.

 

[swimster]

Muzzel break, synthetic stalk, good recoil pad and a good pair of muffs. If they can't handle it from there they need to get a softer shooting caliber. I load for a couple guys that have 30/ 338 Wby and 300 RUM. I load they shoot. Needless to say they don't practice much.

 

[archerforkids]

Muzzel break, synthetic stalk, good recoil pad and a good pair of muffs. If they can't handle it from there they need to get a softer shooting caliber. I load for a couple guys that have 30/ 338 Wby and 300 RUM. I load they shoot. Needless to say they don't practice much.

And that is probably the best council here. As i said earlier I generally let them pull the trigger. That is not always the case, but i sure try.

 

[Dave M.]

So... my son and his acquaintances have decided I am the "reloading guru" on these high dollar rifles they keep buying. My son keeps pushing for this to be a good retirement sideline. I checked on insurance and from what I am seeing so far, prices are heart attack class, but that's another story. That, and if I start charging for this, I suspect the fun will go away.
My question for you fine folks, how do you keep these dang 5 pound rifle that are 28 Nosler and larger from beating you up? Most of the rifles I have done so far, I have the owner come and and do the shooting while I do the charges, bullet seating and such. Needless to say, I generally coach them on what powders will work based on research I do before we get into this exercise.
It's kind of funny, I can almost always get them sub MOA with low SDs pretty quick. We take it out to 300 yards and see what happens. These guys are so excited with the results we seldom get into playing with the bullet seating. I'm not sure if it is actually satisfaction with what they are seeing, are after 15 to 25 rounds they are tired of getting the chit kicked out of them. I warn them about the barrel speeding up after more rounds down the pipe, but they are never overly concerned. Of course you have to ask yourself, just how much will these rifles get shot.
The hundred dollar question, is there a way/device to tame the recoil on these rifles? I enjoy doing this but I have had shoulder surgery. My shoulder tells me I am a damn fool after these excursions.
Any help is appreciated.

RAD 2A >>>>> This will change your view of higher recoil rifles.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

I wish i knew how many stocks a lead sled has broken

 

[Kracken McGraw]

When I used to shoot big bore double rifles the thing that worked the best was a setup that you shot with from the standing position. The recoil was still significant but you roll with the punch so to speak. Some of those big double rifles are murderous from the bench and may wreck your shoulder.

I bet when you get down to the nut-cuttin and really have to use one of those, you wished it was bigger.

 

[Homerange]

One chap that shoots here always has his Limbsaver with him.

Shooting Vest with Protective Shoulder Pad

The LimbSaver Shooting Vest is the ultimate solution for shooters who are looking for a way to reduce the intense kickback from their firearm. Whether you're an experienced shooter or just starting out, this vest is designed to provide maximum comfort and protection. With its protective shoulder...

limbsaver.com

Yet at the bench anything that isn't tamed with 4 thicknesses of heavy toweling, good bags* and a fore end hold you're doing it wrong.
2 of the above are commonly overlooked as influencing groups and recoil with hunter weight rifles, these being bagging and a fore end hold.
Good bagging in particular allows for the shooter to be properly relaxed and not tensed at discharge from holding the rifle too tight where instead if bags/rests are correctly implemented we can fall onto the rifle pinning it in place to take the shot relaxed and thereby feel less recoil.
Using a fore end hold should require zero explanation however should you need discover the obvious take a 12g with field loads outside and while standing and shouldering it with one arm discharge it.

It's imperative discharge recoil must never hurt the shooter, never if we intend to develop good marksmanship skill.

 

[Richard Jones]

2 sand bags behind the butt and a bit of a finger stretch......

 

[Kracken McGraw]

One chap that shoots here always has his Limbsaver with him.

Shooting Vest with Protective Shoulder Pad

The LimbSaver Shooting Vest is the ultimate solution for shooters who are looking for a way to reduce the intense kickback from their firearm. Whether you're an experienced shooter or just starting out, this vest is designed to provide maximum comfort and protection. With its protective shoulder...

limbsaver.com

Yet at the bench anything that isn't tamed with 4 thicknesses of heavy toweling, good bags* and a fore end hold you're doing it wrong.
2 of the above are commonly overlooked as influencing groups and recoil with hunter weight rifles, these being bagging and a fore end hold.
Good bagging in particular allows for the shooter to be properly relaxed and not tensed at discharge from holding the rifle too tight where instead if bags/rests are correctly implemented we can fall onto the rifle pinning it in place to take the shot relaxed and thereby feel less recoil.
Using a fore end hold should require zero explanation however should you need discover the obvious take a 12g with field loads outside and while standing and shouldering it with one arm discharge it.

It's imperative discharge recoil must never hurt the shooter, never if we intend to develop good marksmanship skill.

http://www.dog-gone-good.com/
These bench bags with some of that open cell rubber shelf liner placed between the stock and bag, will help with recoil a lot just as you stated. ^^^

 

[archerforkids]

One chap that shoots here always has his Limbsaver with him.

Shooting Vest with Protective Shoulder Pad

The LimbSaver Shooting Vest is the ultimate solution for shooters who are looking for a way to reduce the intense kickback from their firearm. Whether you're an experienced shooter or just starting out, this vest is designed to provide maximum comfort and protection. With its protective shoulder...

limbsaver.com

Yet at the bench anything that isn't tamed with 4 thicknesses of heavy toweling, good bags* and a fore end hold you're doing it wrong.
2 of the above are commonly overlooked as influencing groups and recoil with hunter weight rifles, these being bagging and a fore end hold.
Good bagging in particular allows for the shooter to be properly relaxed and not tensed at discharge from holding the rifle too tight where instead if bags/rests are correctly implemented we can fall onto the rifle pinning it in place to take the shot relaxed and thereby feel less recoil.
Using a fore end hold should require zero explanation however should you need discover the obvious take a 12g with field loads outside and while standing and shouldering it with one arm discharge it.

It's imperative discharge recoil must never hurt the shooter, never if we intend to develop good marksmanship skill.

that is an inexpensive option. Thanks for the info friend.

 

[Kracken McGraw]

that is an inexpensive option. Thanks for the info friend.

I bet it’s a good product coming from Limbsaver!

 

[WVRJ]

I use the Limbsaver pad and it's a big help.It's not so thick that you have to stretch to reach the trigger.IMHO,it's the best thing for hard kicking guns.Once in a while I'll use my Dangerous Game rest.It's similar to a lead sled but it has shock absorbers instead of weight.

 

[MUP]

I second the PAST recoil pads. I still shoot my Remington Sendero in 300 WinMag without a brake, but during testing and practice I'll have a recoil pad on my shoulder.

 

[Just Say Moe]

I second the PAST recoil pads. I still shoot my Remington Sendero in 300 WinMag without a brake, but during testing and practice I'll have a recoil pad on my shoulder.

I also have a PAST pad. The first time I used it, my brother asked if I was a "weenie." From then on, it has been known as the weenie pad and use it with pride haha.

 

[RegionRat]

My question for you fine folks, how do you keep these dang 5 pound rifle that are 28 Nosler and larger from beating you up?

A full day of heavy recoil is never fun, even if you are spending some else's money and getting paid...

When I did this for a living it was for the DoD, so I had their top cover plus cover from my corporate license, insurance, and lawyers. To jump into this yourself, you would need an FFL as a minimum plus all the state and local issues and insurance. Do your homework before you go too far.

I wore a highpower competition coat when shooting/testing. This was typically an XTC service rifle coat which is called a Hardback from Creedmoor Sports. I used Creedmoor because they were nearby Camp Pendleton in those days. There are a few other brands, but I found the Creedmoor Hardback worked the best for a long run of heavy caliber testing. These coats are made to your dimensions by order.

Lead Sleds are very risky and don't do well with many light sporting stocks. They can even cause failures that normally wouldn't happen when body supported. I had to specially design and build rigs to instrument the recoil and forces on the optics and weapons we were designing, and noticed that when it came to carry weapons I still had to body support the guns in order to get the right answers. Placing light carry weapons in sleds or simulation rigs was risky because they don't allow for enough damp displacement which spikes the forces. I don't recommend them, but if you use one save enough time and resources to finish testing off the sled.

Sooner or later, stalking safari guns need to be shot with your hands and shoulder, or exactly how they are expected to be shot under real conditions. Most dangerous game rigs are not intended for distance work. They eventually need to be fit to the hunter because things can happen fast. YMMV

 

[Doug Casner]

Ive got a 3oo weatherby mag. Got it magnaported. Where the cut four slits in the barrel. Helped on recoil. Shot a deer. I aint heard nothin since. Doug