Big bores with modest recoil?

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I guess like all types of gun recoil, it's a matter of perception. Or maybe it's the platform you're using to shoot 45 ACPs. What kind of gun do you have?
I'm asking because I personally find my 45 ACP (a full-sized 1911) a real pleasure to shoot. It kicks a lot less than my Model 69 Smith revolver even when I'm shooting my own, mild, 44 Magnum handloads - which are about like hot, 44 Special loads.

I am shooting a Springfield XDM, a heavy, full sized pistol hence the modest recoil. I like it a lot and was idly wondering what else is out there.
 
I'd categorize the XDM as a, lightweight, full size pistol.

OK, I guess. It is heavy enough that walking around with it on my belt is noticeable. All that said, I don't find the recoil objectionable.
 
I have a lot of fun shooting 45 ACP at the range. There is something about slinging a big hunk of lead downrange with a bit of flash and boom that go with it. OTOH, high recoil means I wouldn't shoot much of it.
All that said, I don't find the recoil objectionable.
No man, in your original post (quoted above) it kind of sounded like you do find the recoil of your 45 ACP "objectionable." Because I find the recoil of my full-sized 1911, 45 ACP very mild (actually quite pleasant) I became confused.o_O:)
 
Everyone that shoots my Desert Eagle L5 50ae grimises, grunts, squints and sweats... then they pull the trigger and with great surprise exclaim... That wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be!

The gas system on the DE really takes the bite out of the big 50ae cartridge. It doesn't really reduce the recoil, it just spreads the recoil over a much longer period of time making it feel much more mellow... But you still know you just hurreled a huge wad of lead down range.

Pretty much all my friends agree the DE is much more mellow than my big heavy Dan Wesson 744 revolver in .44 mag. There is definitely no downloading ammo for a DE though... It is either full power loads or malfunctions... unlike a revolver.

A DE is probably not what you are looking for but the 50ae does a hell of a job on mutant zombie cinder blocks!
 
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As others have said, reloading is the key to soft loading. 44 Special or 45 Colt loads can be pretty soft when hand loaded.

Factory loads, 44 Special are probably a bit softer shooting than 45 Colt loads.

Personally, I prefer to shoot the appropriate cases in a gun that it is chambered for. 44 Magnum cases in a 44 Magnum gun, 357 Magnum cases in a 357 Magnum gun. The beauty of reloading, I can down load the ammunition to duplicate the lower power ammunition but in the full length case.

This is by no means a necessity, it is just one of my idiosyncrasies.
 
Go out a buy a single shot 500 and watch some inexperienced fool shoot one. And that .44 mag will seem tame. Even with Ruger only loads. It was a sight to behold. Blood everywhere. Felt bad for him. Probably want be shooting again for a long time.
 
For my Marlin 1894 & Ruger SA in 44 Mag - 8.5 grains of Win 231 behind a 200 grain lead bullet in a 44 Mag case is an accurate & effective home defense load & fun to shoot. The recoil is very tolerable in the handgun & barely noticeable in the rifle.
 
I agree that the .44 Special and .45 Colt are great for big holes and mild recoil.

I am made fun of for it constantly, but I get a great deal of satisfaction from loading the .500 S&W with 440 grain cast bullets and minimum charges of Trail Boss. The load does actually have a bit of authority, but in such a big revolver the recoil is quite light. In truth it is a completely silly endeavor, but the giggle factor is so high that I just can't help myself.
 
2A114B9F-B06C-47B4-AC11-58196BF984A6.jpeg 9B18121B-2169-471F-A05B-84D15F8C0942.jpeg You already have a 45 ACP self loader. Get yourself a S&W ACP revolver and double your fun! I have a few from 1917 to more modern and in between.

Kevin
 

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S&W also chambers the ACP around in revolvers with full underlugged barrel. The extra weight dampens what little recoil is possessed by the ACP but throws the balance of the revolver off, for me.

Or, they also market revolvers chambered for the 45 long Colt and 44 Special.

If you prefer single action revolvers, Uberti markets revolvers chambered or the 45 ACP, 45 long Colt or the 44 Special.

Kevin
 
I find .38 WCF aka .38-40 (actually a .40 Cal) and .44 WCF aka .44-40 to be pretty mild in mainstream modern commercial loadings. They have also picked up a lot of popularity lately due to the popularity of CAS. They are not as mild as .44 Special but nothing close to a Magnum.

They can be a bit challenging to load if you are used to thick straight wall cases.

To me they are the perfect medium. Heavy enough for a "Thump" but light enough to not be punishing (the .38 is considerably more pleasant to shoot than the .44 in a light handgun).
 
While ammo(bullet weight and powder charge) have a lot to do with actual and perceived recoil, so does the platform it is shot from. While .38 special is a powder puff load from a 6" 686, from a sub 2" 637 it can be brutal. Folks snibble about the heft and weight of X-Framers, but it is that platform that makes them pleasant and accurate to shoot. While some grips are dang pretty, they can be pretty dang brutal to use with anything more than light loads. The person holding those grips is a big variable too.
 
It's not a big bore but I find the Desert Eagle in .357 Magnum to be very low recoil. Not real sure of a practical reason for one. Dwarf Bears maybe?
 
This is one of my favorites. It's a S&W Model 625. The N frame and full underlug barrel give it plenty of weight. Inexpensive 45acp ammo is very mild in it, plus easy to find and... to be repetitious, inexpensive. It makes a nice big boom and nice big holes in things, but it is easy on the hand.

It's designed with moon clips in mind, but I don't even use them. I just open the cylinder and tap the butt lightly on the shooting table. Most of the brass just falls out. Sometimes one or two will only mostly fall out, so I just easily pull them out with my fingers. If it was one of my SD handguns I would use moon clips, but it isn't, so I don't.

My Blackhawk 45acp/45colt "convertible" is similarly easy to shoot. I very often take one of the two revolvers with me, a bunch of 45acp range ammo, and a 1911 or M&P or some other 45acp service pistol. A good time is had by all. :)

 
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What is NBD?

I think that is supposed to be "NBD in a large pistol".

NBD = No Big Deal

If so I agree. Not to get off into a pistol discussion but I can't tell any difference in times with 9mm and .40 S&W out of a M&P M2.0 Compact. 5 shots into the 7+ Ring take just over 1.0 seconds at 5 yards. I suspect it's a real pussycat out of a S&W 610.
 
I find my G21 to be soft shooting with factory fmj. probably the wide backstrap.
 
I think the softest shooting .45 I've ever had was a Glock 21 gen4, it may not be as heavy as a 1911, but the thing was just so easy to shoot. I think that because it's got a good recoil spring and it's kinda wide it just easily spreads recoil out. I agree with others about the .44 Special and 45 Colt in revolvers, they do well if you want big holes and modest recoil. You could even buy a 500 S&W, use 500 Special brass and if you handload, you can run big bullets at low velocities if you want the biggest bullet, usually the 500's are so heavy that recoil with a light 500 special should be very little, although brass is pricey.
 
45 Colt for me I've got almost 40 years reloading this cartridge.
Recently I've been playing with a CA Bulldog....255 SWC and a lite load of Unique.
Not abusive at all.
 
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