Good caliber for learning how to deal with recoil?

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A .357 would work well because you could work your way up, starting with .38 special. If you want a semi auto, I'd get a 9mm.
There isn't any reason you HAVE to shoot something with a lot of recoil. The longer I shoot, the less need I have to shoot the big boomers. The moderate calibers will get the job done for self defense, and for target shooting, who needs recoil?
 
I'm going to vote for a .500 S&W magnum in a Ruger Alaskan snubby. That way, everything else will be tame in comparison. :D
 
Don't they have revolvers that have the option of 9/38/357, thought I saw one somewhere.
Click to expand...

I believe Ruger makes a Blackhawk 357 with an extra 9mm cylinder. I wouldn't buy one. The 9mm is has a slightly smaller diameter than the 357 so you would loose a little velocity and accuracy and gain nothing other than the ability to shoot 9mm which is between the 38 and 357 in power.

Since you're shooting a revolver, I would suggest a S&W J frame 357. You could start with the 38 round and work up to 357. It would also make an excellent carry gun. I admit to being unreasonably biased when it comes to revolvers. There are S&Ws and then there are the rest. Nothing wrong with the rest, just my bias.

Having said that, If it were my second hand gun, I would buy a Glock M19. The 9mm does not recoil that much and IMO, the M19 is the ultimate carry piece. It's large enough to absorb the recoil and small enough conceal. I am almost as biased toward Glocks as I am toward S&W.

I also like Czs and if money is an issue, the CZ82 is the best deal on the market today. The finish may be rough, but the ergonomics and mechanics are excellent. The only downside is that you may have to buy the 9x18 ammo it shoots on line because most places don't carry it. That never bothered me because I buy in bulk. It saves time and money. The energy of the 9x18 is similar to the 38 Special. The CZ82 is slightly smaller than the G19 so it will be easier to carry. It is also double action and has thumb safeties like the 1911 so it can be carried cocked and locked or carried with one in the chamber and the hammer down.

I have shot all kinds of ammo in the guns I mentioned and none of them have ever let me down. I would feel comfortable carrying any of the hand guns I mentioned for self defense, and have at one time or another.
 
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The whole issue of learning to avoid responding to recoil is to learn to ignore it and just let it happen while not acknowledging it. I know it sounds corny but learning to ignore the recoil is a very Zen like sort of conditioning. You need to learn to focus on the sights and trigger and zone out when it comes to the recoil that's about to occur. As so many good teachers write about this aspect the BANG! and recoil should come as a surprise when they happen.

Flinch comes from two things. First is the subconcious action of trying to fight the recoil and second is because you know it's going to go BANG! with a big noise and kick... well.. big compared to the .22 you're used to shooting.

Two things can aid in learning to shoot "through" the BANG and kick. First is to condition yourself using your .22 to where you don't respond to anything other than the sights and trigger. The second is to learn to pull THROUGH the point where the hammer falls and pull the trigger to the rear travel stop point. Then hold it there for just an instant but long enough to know you found the rear stop. Only then ease off the trigger pressure to allow the trigger to float forward with the same speed that you pulled it. By focusing on doing a full trigger pull each time you can avoid only pulling the trigger to the point of the hammer drop and all the smoke and noise. It also keeps you from suddenly shifting your attention to the big BANG! by keeping your focus on the trigger and the sights and target.

As for which caliber to pick? I'd say 9mm just for the easy on the wallet pricing. But truth to tell if you were to go with .44Magnum and learn to shoot it while maintaining this sense of detachment with the recoil then shooting almost anything else would be like picking up your .22 again.... :D

Don't get rid of that .22 either. After a few weeks or so away from center fire shooting it's amazing how easily a touch of flinching comes back at first until you get into the right mind set and push the recoil off to the side in your mind. Some back and forth refreshing withe .22 and your center fire gun can quickly tune up your Zen mindset for re-establishing your sense of detachment from the recoil when it occurs.
 
Thanks!

I will still primarily shoot the .22 (cost). I would like to start growing my gun collection a little and add some variety. Recoil has always had me a little uneasy when shooting CF and I would like to get past that.

Unfortunately the single action on my .22 is broken so I have to cock the hammer each time and it leaves nil trigger travel. I have no idea how much it would cost to fix, or even if it would be worth doing vs. buying something else more common/better.
 
I would say caliber isn't the 'must have'
recoil is a mix of bullet weight, loading, gun grip, design, weight.....
LOTS of varibles, a Zinc Hi-Point, will be softer because of the action and weigh than many other similar guns.

Finally, it's all in the training, I was watching History Channels 'sharpshooters' and I was impressed, I said to my wife, wow, I could never do that, he just rapid fired a S&W .500mag at 3 targets and grouped every one, and did it in less than half a second. Training and Practice. That is the ONLY key, if you don't know how, then you are stuck finding out what you can handle and doing it the hard way.
 
Listen to Macadore.

Bang! - muzzle flips up, comes down to where it was more or less.

If you pay attention, you can see the slide and the flame going.

If you really pay attention you can pretty much land the shots an inch away from each other without aiming too much ... just waiting for the muzzle to come down and pressing the trigger again.

THAT is fun to learn.
 
.357/38's are usually heavier than .45's
The machiening leaves more metal in the barrel qand cylinder. Dimensionsly the .45 is the same size. My .357 Vaquero is a heavy little sucker! It soaks recoil up REALLY well tho!

ZVP
 
For revolvers, I agree with getting a .357 and starting off with .38s. .38 is a pleasure to shoot due to the mild recoil, while the .357 is fun if you want the "hand cannon" effect. For an auto, .45 is a solid choice but the recoil might be a little high if you're trying to to ease your way up from .22LR. I know when I switch from my .22 conversion back to the .45 slide, it's a whole different ballgame.
 
357/38's are usually heavier than .45's
The machiening leaves more metal in the barrel qand cylinder. Dimensionsly the .45 is the same size. My .357 Vaquero is a heavy little sucker! It soaks recoil up REALLY well tho!
ZVP
Click to expand...

Interesting logic but..... Considering two of the most common platforms around, the S&W 686 and 625:

Model 686
.38Spc / .357
With 4" barrel, weight = 39.7 oz

Model 625
.45 ACP or .45 Colt
With 4" barrel, weight = 40.3 oz
 
Ruger makes a convertible 38/357/9mm single action that will give you 3 calibers to play with (2 cylinders 1 for 38/357 and 1 for 9mm) they also make a 45acp/45 long colt and a 22/22mag I have all three and all are fun guns. But the 22 is the gun to learn the basics on then move up to the bigger guns.
 
Once you figure out that recoil is what happen after the shot, the trigger breaks and the hammer drop practice can be done with any caliber, a .22 LR being the least expensive. All you need to do to manage recoil is to hang onto the pistol after it goes off, avoid anticipating the recoil prior to the trigger break and bring the sights back onto the target after the shot. The "recoil anticipation" and the tendency it causes to pull the gun down, grip tighter, flinch and all those other things that send shots off target is the most difficult to get over and is mostly psychological.

The fundamentals of marksmanship are the same for any caliber weapon. You need the same sight alignment and trigger control if you are shooting a .22 or a 500. Concentrating on the fundamentals will help in ignoring any resulting recoil. My recoil tolerance pretty much ends with the .44 mag. The .500 S&W is just plain unpleasant to shoot, or at least the loads that I got to shoot was.
 
Steve is right, although I'd add that shooting the "real" calibers will be more valuable than just practicing on .22LR. I think .22 is a great way to get cheap trigger time, but even though the fundamentals are the same, it doesn't completely transfer to full caliber shooting.

I know when I was shooting only .45, I was shooting it a lot better than when I started shooting mostly .22 with a few mags of .45 thrown in on a range visit. The more you shoot through the heavy recoil, the more you get used to it. Most people just can't afford to shoot centerfire all the time, so .22 is the next best thing.
 
I know it's not a real popular caliber, but I am really digging my new .327 revolver. For learning or teaching it is an extremely valuable and versatile tool.
I bought this to teach my wife and nephew on and will eventually be my wifes gun. Being able to shoot .32 s&w, .32 s&w long, .32 h&r mag, and .32 federal mag allows you to start off with very little recoil and work your way up. You can shoot rounds any where from around 100 ft/lbs up to 500 ft/lbs and that is without reloading.

Anyway, I really like it and thought you might want to check it out.

Best of luck.
Shawn
 

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Quote:
357/38's are usually heavier than .45's
The machiening leaves more metal in the barrel qand cylinder. Dimensionsly the .45 is the same size. My .357 Vaquero is a heavy little sucker! It soaks recoil up REALLY well tho!
ZVP
Click to expand...
Interesting logic but..... Considering two of the most common platforms around, the S&W 686 and 625:

Model 686
.38Spc / .357
With 4" barrel, weight = 39.7 oz

Model 625
.45 ACP or .45 Colt
With 4" barrel, weight = 40.3 oz
Click to expand...

mes - he's right, you're comparing an L-frame revolver to an N-frame. If you compare a 627 to a 625 of the same barrel length AND profile, or a .45 Vaquero to a .357 Vaquero (on the same generation frame, and barrel length) then you see what he's talking about.

According to the S&W website:

629, 4" = 41.5 oz. .44 MAG
627 PRO, 4" = 41.2 oz. .357 (8 shot)
625 JM, 4" = 40.3 oz. .45 ACP

The weight difference isn't a lot, but that 627 would weigh more than the 629 if it was a 6 round cylinder. Just stands to reason - if the cylinder is the same diameter, and the barrel is the same length and diameter, then milling a smaller bore through it leaves more steel and thus, more weight. A .22 K-frame weighs more than a .38 or .357 K-frame with the same length barrel, and for the same reason. The difference there is more, because the diameter difference is greater.

Model 17 (.22) 6" = 40.0 oz.
Model 14 (.38) 6" = 35.0 oz.
 
I've owned .357's, .44 mags, and a .45 LC, but I now have little interest in handguns more powerful than .38 special +P. That could always change in the future, but to me, recoil isn't some sort of carnival thrill ride. It's a distraction that takes away from the accuracy of occasional shooters like myself. If you're going to shoot a couple times a week or go hunting, then those larger calibers are great.

And weight is a consideration, too. Power's only half the equation. I wouldn't buy one of those 15 oz. alloy .38's or 9 oz. .380's if you want to ease into recoil.
 
Remember that, usually, the heavier the gun the less recoil. If you are target shooting and not reloading the 9mm is the way to go. You can go both revolver and semiauto in 9mm. I somewhat agree with the .357 guys in that there are some big heavy revolvers in this caliber. I do not know if modern revolvers are more accurate than semiautos. However, you can get some long barreled revolvers.
 
against all experienced guy's recommendations, when I bought my first handgun, I jumped straight into .40S&W. personally, having never shot a handgun before that, I really didn't have any problem with the recoil. then later on, after being able to shoot a few other calibers, to be honest, I don't really notice much of a difference between 9,40,45..?? maybe I'm just weird, i dont know.

now .357 was another animal all together. I almost dropped the gun the first time I tried that one out, lol.
 
Comfy now?

Practice with what you'll be carrying, and get used to it. This first step may save your life. Dao.
 
Well my 2 cents worth is forget about the 9 , go directly to a .45 ACP , learn it , shoot alot ,once you can handle the .45 , everything else will seem like a .22 (except maybe .454) , but it wont be too bad , it you go for low calibers it will seem like you never will get used to the recoil because everytime you move up it will creep back , start at the top and move down , rent a 45 or 44 at the range , then rent a 9 and tell us the difference in recoil (if you even notice any)
 
A 9mm is a great choice. You can get some pretty light loads at Wally World like WWB or Federal 115gr. fmj rounds which are pretty mild in anything short of a PF9. And you can work up to some pretty stout +P or +P+ loads that hit like 125gr. .357 rounds if you want. If you want to go to a revolver the .38/
.357 is the way to go. Again anything from as mild as it gets 148gr. SWC to hot as you can stand it .357 loads. Either will serve your purpose well.
 
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