Recoil question: J frame snub vs N frames

[Shrinkmd]

I am curious for some compare and contrast with the recoil of various loads (practice/target and more serious) coming out of, say a 2" J frame steel snubby (like the Model 60) vs a 629 or a 625 in 4" barrel?

I've read lots of posts saying J frames are very difficult and uncomfortable to shoot, especially in .357. Would people rather shoot full house 44 magnum in a big revolver, or full house .357 out of a steel J frame? Or how about the Airweights?

 

[Jim K]

I am not wild about a lot of recoil in any gun; it disturbs the aim too much and yes, it can hurt. In a serious situation, I don't want to have to pull the gun down from the stratosphere to get in a second shot, nor do I want to have to undergo therapy after a practice session.

While one may not notice recoil in a tight situation, one cannot practice enough if firing causes a physical hurt and worse, a real injury. (Why do football defensive players try to sack the quarterback? Because getting the whey knocked out of him wrecks his passing speed and accuracy.)

While I confess to never having fired a shot in anger, I have seen enough bullet wounds to feel that most any reasonably powered gun will do the job with anything like decent bullet placement. A man is a thin-skinned animal; it does not take .454 Casull or a .500 S&W to kill or disable him.

Others may disagree and argue whether they should carry a .50 BMG or a 20mm Oerlikon, but I have never felt helpless with a .38 Special or a 9mm.

Jim

 

[Clarence]

I've got several J-frames including a M-60 in .357, a 642 in .38 Special as well as several N-Frames including a M-28, M-24, M629

Full bore loads in a M-29 are far more difficult to handle than the M-60 in .357

The 642 is a piece of cake to shoot with +P .38's

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the most difficult to handle....................I'd rate them as follows:

M642 - 3
M-60 - 5
M-29 - 8

 

[Wolfeye]

I've shot a 6" model 629 and a model 640 on occasion. I don't think the magnitude of the felt recoil is much different between the two; both are controllable, but with both it's easy to develop a flinch if you're not careful. The 629's recoil "feels" bigger even though the .357's is possibly snappier. Maybe it's from seeing all that steel move around.

What is very different between the two is that the j-frame invites the hand to take a higher grip, which makes the recoil push backward more rather than flip hard. You hold a j-frame like you're shaking hands, but not so much with an n-frame. It all depends on the grips you have installed, obviously.

 

[Oro]

In a steel J frame, I'm not comfortable with more than .38 +p, and at that level I can shoot lots of it - it's not a problem.

I will shoot full-power (e.g., commercial level, not "hot") .44magnums out of my 3" 629 with pleasure, so I'm not a total wimp.

For the .357, in my mind, the "K" will do in a pinch, but for pleasure, I prefer a 4" L or any sized N frame.

 

[stiletto raggio]

Even a relatively lightweight .357 J frame is manageable with good grips. That said, the point of having a J frame is concealability and ease of carry, and large, comfortable grips do not lend themselves to easy carry on small guns. I would rather fire a heavy .44 or .454 than an ultralight .357. I had a 340ps (12 ounce .357) and firing it with .357s was like hitting your hand with an aluminum baseball bat. I fired 13 rounds (my dad shot two) and got rid of it. A Kahr P9 Covert replaced it. My next snubby will either be a .38 or a 9mm.

 

[1KPerDay]

Personally I'd rather shoot an N frame than heavy loads out of an airweight. I haven't found a load that's "fun" to shoot out of my Smith 37. wadcutters are doable but not pleasant. If I put monster grips on it it would likely help a lot but then it wouldn't be a pocket gun, would it.

 

[ArmedBear]

I have both, a 4" 629 Mountain Gun and a 642. I also tried out a 640 before buying the 642.

Shooting the 4" 629 with full-power 240 grain .44 Magnums (my handloads) does have stout recoil, but it's not painful.

Shooting factory defensive .357 in an Airlite is painful after more than a cylinder. Every shot is a SLAM! and while I was able to shoot very accurately with it for a short while, the throbbing web of my hand and the sore wrist joint took its toll quickly. It doesn't kick up and back as far as a .44, but it hits your hand more violently. Recoil velocity is extremely high.

The 642 isn't at all bad, though the light gun does have a snappy kick to it. A 642 with .38 Special +P loads isn't what I'd shoot for a long afternoon of plinking, but practicing with a box of WWB .38s doesn't make my wrist sore for 3 days like the box of .357s in the Airlite did.

I recently worked up a handload for the 642 using a light charge of "cowboy" powder (Trail Boss) and 125 grain lead bullets. That's actually fun to shoot -- it has about half the muzzle energy of the Cor-Bons that I normally keep in the gun.

My personal experience led me to buy the 642 over the 640. I figured I'd rather not pay almost double the price for a .357, if I would load it with +P ammo anyway (I have other .357s if I want to shoot .357). IMO the gun is hard enough to shoot, especially followups, with .357 that I'd prefer +P for defense in it.

 

[Floppy_D]

To Sesame Street it, J frames have a sharp snap, and N frames are more of a hard push/hard slap.

I feel a J frame more in my hand, I feel an N frame more in my wrist and arms.

I prefer 44mag in an N frame to 357 in a J frame, any day.

Hope this helps.

 

[1KPerDay]

I recently worked up a handload for the 642 using a light charge of "cowboy" powder (Trail Boss) and 125 grain lead bullets. That's actually fun to shoot -- it has about half the muzzle energy of the Cor-Bons that I normally keep in the gun.

I gotta start reloading.

 

[NG VI]

Not sure, I only have a pair of .357s, a 6" L frame and a 4" N frame. Gotta say I love shooting either .38 or .357 out of either one.

 

[flat top]

I have never shot a "J" frame Smith, but, I do own an "N" frame 2 1/2" snubbie in 44 mag. The load I shoot in that gun is a 250 grain Keith at 1000 fps. For all practical purposes, and for what the snubbie was designed for, that is more than enough load to get the job done. The recoil is controllable, and the load is very accurate within the ranges that a gun like this would be used for.

 

[ArmedBear]

Correction... Would have been a 340, not a 640. It was a Scandium gun. Sorry.

640, while not exactly a fun range toy, wouldn't hurt like the 340.

 

[BlindJustice]

My favorite revolver is a 625 5" Bbl w/full underlug 45 oz. empty
in .45 ACP / .45 Auto RIm.

2nd favorite is a same weight 617 6" Bbl. .22 LR & use it as a
warm up in SA/DA for the 625
Both the 625 & 617 have the full profile Hogue grips - very similar to
the stock S&W rubber profile just a bit larger overall.

Next up is a Model 60 3" Bbl. .357 Mag. - I seldom run .357 Mag. through it, preferring .38 Special +P & probably shoot over 85% Double Action. It's a
24 oz empty weight with stock grips. I've been thinking about getting some
Herretts Trooper grips for it - always wanted some

Least favorite revovler is a 686P 4" Bbl. with Hogue Compact finger grooves & checkered grips - Rosewood. It's 39 oz. empty weight - at least in .357 Mag. but I keep shooting it, mostly .38 Spcl +P. but given .38 Spcl +P I like the little 60 more.

THe 625 in .45 AR with 200 gr. SWEC loaded to 1,025 FPS or
.45 ACP +P has a good amount of recoil but recovery is quick and
manageable.

Randall

 

[niner4tango]

629 Mountain gun: Magnum recoil, well, hurts.

Taurus Model 650: Magnum recoil hurts, too. Maybe a little less.

They're both fun to shoot, though!