What makes some people afraid of recoil and why? 
Please do not post negative comments; I am not trying to degrade those people here. I've always viewed recoil as simply Newton's Third Law in action, a necessary component of shooting, nothing more. I ask because I recently took a friend (who has hunted since he was a kid) to the range with me. He wanted to try some of my handguns. I first had him try my .357 mag revolver (S&W 686+) with some light handloads (158 grain JHP with 7 grains of Unique). I showed him how to handle the weapon and what to expect. He's not a small guy, but not big. He's about the same size as me, but isn't in as good shape. Anyway, he shot once and said, "Holy S**t!" After shooting another four I had him try the last two in double action. He had a difficult time with the trigger weight. After those two additional shots he was done! I didn't push him to shoot more or make fun, I just said, "That's ok." He wasn't upset at all though and had a good time with it. He had brought an old .22 rifle and started firing that in another lane. He came over after a little while and said he wanted to see me shoot the .44 mag to get a comparison. I was hesitant to take it out, but did and loaded five full power rounds into the gun (old model single action revolver). He stood back a little while I proceeded to put five fairly quick COM shots (not showing off or anything, just standard self-defense speed) on the silhouette target that I already had up at the 25 foot line. I ejected the rounds, put the weapon down (pointed downrange) and turned around. He was white as a ghost.
I don't think it was the noise, since there was a guy between us shooting a really loud rifle that didn't bother him. It must have been the recoil. I felt a little bad about everything, but thought since he has been a deer hunter for many years he wouldn't be bothered. I think he had a good time anyway, though.
Please do not post negative comments; I am not trying to degrade those people here. I've always viewed recoil as simply Newton's Third Law in action, a necessary component of shooting, nothing more. I ask because I recently took a friend (who has hunted since he was a kid) to the range with me. He wanted to try some of my handguns. I first had him try my .357 mag revolver (S&W 686+) with some light handloads (158 grain JHP with 7 grains of Unique). I showed him how to handle the weapon and what to expect. He's not a small guy, but not big. He's about the same size as me, but isn't in as good shape. Anyway, he shot once and said, "Holy S**t!" After shooting another four I had him try the last two in double action. He had a difficult time with the trigger weight. After those two additional shots he was done! I didn't push him to shoot more or make fun, I just said, "That's ok." He wasn't upset at all though and had a good time with it. He had brought an old .22 rifle and started firing that in another lane. He came over after a little while and said he wanted to see me shoot the .44 mag to get a comparison. I was hesitant to take it out, but did and loaded five full power rounds into the gun (old model single action revolver). He stood back a little while I proceeded to put five fairly quick COM shots (not showing off or anything, just standard self-defense speed) on the silhouette target that I already had up at the 25 foot line. I ejected the rounds, put the weapon down (pointed downrange) and turned around. He was white as a ghost.
I don't think it was the noise, since there was a guy between us shooting a really loud rifle that didn't bother him. It must have been the recoil. I felt a little bad about everything, but thought since he has been a deer hunter for many years he wouldn't be bothered. I think he had a good time anyway, though.
