Duramax05

.450 Marlin Guide Gun definitely wakes you up. But other than that I'm really not recoil shy.

ewags66

16 gauge LC Smith side by side. Pulled both triggers at the same time by accident. Needless to say bloody nose and sore shoulder...

EKM

Like most of these posts, it ain't black and white, it depends....
-- on the bench?
-- practicing field positions?
-- hunting?

I haven't found my upper limit yet and whether I pursue it depends on time, money, and direction; I would consider one step further up to like a 500A2, 500Jeffrey, or 505Gibbs, but will likely work on a super 308 or super 338 for long range work before going further up the scale, asI really feel I have all I need at the moment.

I'm still in great shape physically, so there is no need to start disowning my pastin order to feel good about my present (the old "I used to have magnumitis, but now I know better" crap)....
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Have the 50 BMG and as mentioned before, it is not the recoil but the shock wave that isthe potential distractor.... it pays to blow your nose before shooting as it can literally "slap" the"nose moisture"right out of you.

Have shot the 500 Nitro Express.... not bad at all, big straight sided case and 2100 fps with a heavy double rifle.... it is a puppy dog.

The .400+ safari bolt rifles: 458 Lott, 416 Rigby, et al, are definitely not gallery guns and you'll never burn the barrell out on them and I would not shoot them prone. Barring "muzzlebrakes & weight added to stock & leadsleds on the bench;" you definitely need to be on top of your "recoil management game" when using these rifles.Only a fool uses the "school of hard knocks" training school with these rifles. There is nothing casual about them. Go for a "quality" experience, but notfor "quantity." That said, if you have the mental control, thenyou can put your shots right on the mark.

The 375 H&H is warm and cuddly and a lot of fun to shoot, and even more fun to kill with.... a hand full, yes, but very managable.... one sweet thumper. In some countries, though, the 375 H&H is not legal for dangerous game, the requirement in some places being .400 or betterplus other energy requirements.

338WinMag, 300WinMag, 7mmRemMag.... while quite easy recoil-wise by comparison (unless you put yourself in the ultralight-no-muzzlebrake situation) --- they are great tools for the right jobs though.

salukipv1

My .340 has a pachmyar recoil pad, which is really nice, never used a limbsaver etc...pad, sure they're prob similar, my browning .300 just has their standard pad, which I think may be why it feels like it kicks more. If i hever replace a pad I'm going to get a pachmyar.

salukipv1

PS- though I think their maybe be somethign to do with kick, depending how how far down the cartridge steps.....ie....how oversized the cartridge is compared to the caliber. So a .300 RUM should kick more than a .338 or .375 RUM not sure how much truth this holds, but I know they say the .378 wby kicks more than the .416/.460wby because of this?

brushbustin

The worst i have to say would be when i was sitting up against a tree in my yard and pulled the trigger of my Mossberg 835 with 3 1/2 in turkey mag in it.My shoulder was right up against the tree.Needless to say,my whole shoulder was bruised.

JeffS

I agree it is worse than our .375 H&H. Though if you shoot it standing up it is not bad.

meat_eater

My 10 gauge with slugs is a thumper.

My worst iwas a 338 out of my ruger with sinthetic stocks.
For some reason it's one gun I don't like to shoot for fun. lol

Pawildman

Since I'm still looking for the load it loves, I have shot my Model 70 XTR in .338 Win. Mag a good bit lately off the bench. 5-shot groups. It can be a bit to handle with full-power loads, but you've gotta concentrate on the sight picture, breathing, and trigger squeeze. Yeah, it whaps me pretty good. I use the "free recoil" style.
The worst beating I ever took was with my buddy's .375 H&H in an Encore. Like was said before, that thing actually gave me a headache!! Of course the 'scope eye" I got after the first shot probably didn't help either....

retrieverman

I have owned two rifles chambered in 375 H&H, and I will absolutely never own one again. They were punishment. On the other hand, I have a Ruger M77 Ultralite 270 that kicks more than the 300 Win Mags that I have owned. My current favorite caliber is 9.3x62, and it is comparable to a 375 H&H in power but more like a 30-06 in recoil. It is all I want in the way of recoil.