Big Rifles

[MtnMike2]

I was at the range yesterday shooting my new muzzle loader next to these 2 guys who were making some major noise. Found out that they were shooting a .416 Rigby scoped rifle w/ muzzle break (loud!) and a .470 Rigby double barrel rifle (also loud). This guy was kind enough to let me shoot the .470. It is the largest rifle with the biggest recoil that I've ever shot. I shot a .50 BMG at the range once but it has shock absorption built in so you don't really have any recoil to speak of. The .470 Rigby was a big thrill for me. How about you all? What's the biggest rifle or most recoil you've shot?

Mike

[buckhunter]

340 Weatherby and a 458 Win Mag. Both kicked the snot out me. I'm really not a fan of anything over 300 Win Mag. I just do not enjoy getting hit in the shoulder that much.

[Adam Helmer]

My dentist was a big gun collector and bought a .458 WM in 1985. He wanted to shoot it so I took him as a guest to my gun club. He fired it standing, which was impressive. I fired it and was glad I put my handkerchief between my teeth beforehand!

P.S. buckhunter-I sent you a PM today.

Adam

[buckhunter]

Adam,

It didn't arrive.

[Jack]

I see a lot of those big rifles at gun shows, in near mint condition. Quite a few of them come with about 2/3's of a box of cartridges- the first box, I'm guessing.

[muledeer]

I have a Barrett M99. That's the biggest rifle I've ever shot with the most recoil. The huge muzzle brake and weight of the rifle help but it still sets ya back;)
muledeer

[700LH]

Shot a 460 Weatherby at a hands on gun show about 30 years ago. They said it was about a 10 lb. gun with the scope, and had a nice rubber butt pad. I don't think I had ever seen a muzzle brake back then. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, and figured it would begin to cause pain after 4 or 5 standing shots.
Watched the fella I was with shoot it, and he looked about like I felt, but then we were both young, healthy, knew how to hold it, and had both been shooting guns since we was babies practically.
It was interesting to watch some of the guys shoot, they would not feel the same about that gun.
Some received a pretty good jolt, and had pain in their eyes as they walked past the line as we waited for our turn.

[Ol` Joe]

I fired a 416 Tailor built on a M98 a guy had at the range one day. He`d just built it as a retirement gift to himself, and was getting it ready for a African hunt he booked to go along with the rifle.
Beautiful rifle, I dumped 3 rds in about 1.5"-1.75", then gave it back worried I`d blow the next one if I tried any more, and likely any more shots with my rifle that day too. It shot very well but, definatly was too much off the bench for me.

[skeet]

Fired a 600 Nitro Express ..ONE time..Didn't need to set her off again..and the ammo was like 80 bucks each round. It was, of course, a Holland and Holland and weighed about 15 lbs if I remember right. Think the bullets weighed on the order of 2 ounces..something like 900 gr. Impressive and pretty useful if shooting Tyranosaurus Rex.

[PJgunner]

Fired a 600 Nitro Express ..ONE time..Didn't need to set her off again..and the ammo was like 80 bucks each round. It was, of course, a Holland and Holland and weighed about 15 lbs if I remember right. Think the bullets weighed on the order of 2 ounces..something like 900 gr. Impressive and pretty useful if shooting Tyranosaurus Rex.

$80 a round? That must have been quite a few years back. I shot the .600 N.E. a very long time ago and it was right about $50 a pop way back then. Doggone it that was 54 years ago. :eek: I have a few toys that fall into the big bore category, more or less, two Ruger #1H rifles, one a .404 Jeffery and the other a .416 Rigby. With the sorry excuse Ruger uses of a butt pad, they do get a mite uncomfortable from the bench in a real big hurry. Every time I pop one off from the Rigby, it's $6.75 flying down range. :eek ::( Not as pricey as the .600 N.E. which I've heard now runs something like $150 a pop.
I think I'd pass on the new .700 N.E. that H&H now makes. I hear that one is $250 a pop.:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:
Anyway, I don't shoot the big ones much anymore. serious arthritis in my right shoulder has caused a crimp in my enjoyment of the biggies. :(
Paul B.

[jon lynn]

A German fella let me shoot his .416 Rigby, in a Brno set up. One word.....KICK....

He offerd five shots, he was testing some hand loads. I gave him four back.

It was set up with a scout scope, so I didn't have to worry about a scope in the eye. But what made it actually hurt, is it was shooting from the prone.

[PJgunner]

A German fella let me shoot his .416 Rigby, in a Brno set up. One word.....KICK....

He offerd five shots, he was testing some hand loads. I gave him four back.

It was set up with a scout scope, so I didn't have to worry about a scope in the eye. But what made it actually hurt, is it was shooting from the prone.



Jon. A word of advice. When shooting the biggies, stand on you hind legs and shoot lik a man. They don't hurt as much that way. :D I can do maybe 5 from a standing bench rest with either the .416 or .404 and probably three from the sitting position since my shoulder went bad. A standing bench rest is set up so you get bench rest steadiness and the easier effect of recoil where the body as kind of go with the flow.
Prone might be more accurate but the fact that the body can't give can cause problems from rifles with stiff recoil.
Paul B.

[Rapier]

The Lead Sled is the best $120 I ever spent and makes my big bore guns fun to shoot. I have a problem right shoulder and I also have a disk problem at 3-4 in the neck. So I must be careful with the big bangers.

My 458 Lott is pretty stout. The 400gr recoil is actually worse than the 500gr. The 400 has a ripping recoil, at 2600 fps where as the 500 at 2300 fps is still more of a push.

I shoot the sled then stand and shoot just two rounds. A good grip on everything is real necessary, elsewise your glasses fly off and your hat must be retrieved.

But the worse thrashing I ever took was from a light weight 9.3x74R Drilling. That stock was all wrong and would stomp a mud hole in you, in short order. The sharp comb dug into my cheek like a heaveyweight boxer's punch. You received a kick and a punch at the same time. I shot it once, and never shot it again.
Best,
Ed

[gd357]

Worst thing I ever dropped the hammer on was a lightweight single-shot 10 gauge shotgun. Don't remember the make - didn't care to try and get one for myself. The guy was complaining because he couldn't get a scope to hold zero with slugs because of the recoil... Once was enough for that one.

gd

[gumpokc]

Like Rapier i fired a drilling at a gun club in germany once.
It was a 9.shoulderbreaker caliber :P

I didn't drop it, but that thing kicked worse than the main gun on my tank :)

[GoodOlBoy]

shot a 22 short once. . . . . .

GoodOlBoy

[Adam Helmer]

GOB,

NOW you are going into the really BIG STUFF; I hope it had a muzzlebrake! LOL.

Adam

[MtnMike2]

GOB,
: - ) I've never shot a .22 short. First rifle was a .22 LR pump when I was 12 or so yrs old. Before that, a Daisy BB gun (lever action with a ricochet sound!). Still love .22 LRs for small game and plinking.

Mike

[Minihuntur]

Ok, so not too big but it still hurt. When I was 14 I got to fire 2 shots from a buddy's 30-06, it weighed about 6.75lbs and it was a lefty gun (very uncomfortable for a righty} it was -30 degrees and I had no hat or gloves. Frostbitten from head to toe, I rested the gun on a bench and fired at the 100yd target. I hit pretty close to the bullseye, but that HURT!!! Needless to say I was was a little bruised.
Minihuntur:)

[Larryjk]

My son and I thought a 9.3 x 64mm would be a good project since he already had a .375 H&H. His .375 weighs 10 1/4 lbs with scope and we planned the 9.3 at 9 1/4 lbs. It came out 9lbs,2 oz. it is not bad off the bench, although it is an " attention getter". It is okay for 5 shot groups and then you let the barrel cool. The worst "kicker" we have is a Rem 700 BDL in .338 Ultra Mag. It hurts off the bench if you don't hold it firmly.

[MtnMike2]

Good story Minihuntur. An '06 is a big gun for most 14 yr olds, esp in extremely cold weather.

Larryjk - The 338 RUM seems to kick more than the 375 H&H? That's a question I posed a while back, but I think I just asked about .338 WM. Also, how do you like the 375 H&H ? I'm thinking if I ever get to go to Africa, I would want one.

Thanks,
Mike

[Larryjk]

MtnMike2, The big difference between the .338 UM and the .375 H&H here is in the weight. The .375 is a CZ 550 that weighs about 10 1/4 lbs. with scope, sling, and a full magazine. The .338 UM is about 9 1/2 lbs. The .338 is much sharper. The .375 is really a pussy cat at that weight and fun to shoot. It is set up with a Leupold 1.5x5 VXIII in Talley QD mounts so you can take it off if you are going to be in close quarters. On 1.5 you can see the last half of the barrel; plenty field of view. Good rig, fun to shoot.