Your Body Weight versus Felt Recoil

[Matt304]

So here is a scenario I have been thinking about and wanted to see what you all think.

I don't think that a small person should be any less capable of shooting a big bore, and here is why. Let's take a big rifle for example, or any rifle with some recoil for that matter, and think about recoil on a large person versus recoil on a small person.

If a person of smaller mass shoots a large rifle, they and their shoulder are moved farther back by the rifle. Thus, they dissipate more energy with their body and motion than they do with their shoulder.

Now a very large person is not going to move as much. So much more of that energy is going to be transferred mostly into their shoulder instead.

Granted that the larger person will have more fat and muscle as protection, I'm not so sure this is the bigger factor with a nice recoil pad.

I noticed this while shooting a rifle with a friend much larger than me, both of us standing, and how he became uncomfortable more quickly and wanted to quit. But, maybe it was just his level of comfort, I'm not sure.

 

[eldon519]

The idea holds some water, but the mass of the shooter is far less important than how that shooter positions himself (for example if you lean into it, stand neutral, or slouch backwards). It revolves around the principle of impulse which is basically that force times duration of application equals the change in momentum. If you stand perfectly still and don't budge, the rifle's recoiling momentum will be halted much faster than if you move back with it. Shorter duration means a larger force is being applied to both you and the rifle. Moving with the rifle extends the duration of the impulse lessening the force involved.

It's basically the same idea as an egg toss competition. Try and catch it like a baseball, and it'll break. Cushion it as you catch it, and you might win.

The mass matters in a neutral position, but if you're using proper shooting technique, it's less important.

 

[MachIVshooter]

I don't think that a small person should be any less capable of shooting a big bore, and here is why. Let's take a big rifle for example, or any rifle with some recoil for that matter, and think about recoil on a large person versus recoil on a small person.

If a person of smaller mass shoots a large rifle, they and their shoulder are moved farther back by the rifle. Thus, they dissipate more energy with their body and motion than they do with their shoulder.

That's true to a point, but there's another considersation and it's the reason I won't let females shoot my .375 Ultra.

Just as you outlined, a smaller shooter's body will move more due to simple physics. This is even more true of females, who pound-for-pound have less upper body mass. When you take a gun like my .375 Ultra, their body mass is too low to slow the rifle down sufficiently to prevent them from getting a scope to the eyebrow. I'm 5'11", 180 pounds with 10.7% body fat, and that scope gets damn close to my eye. Technique counts for a great deal, but you just can't overcome the laws of physics.

 

[dstorm1911]

hmmm ya'll better not let my 21 YOA 75 lb 4'11" ex step daughter hear this she's been shooting big bore long guns for the last 3 years never has had any problems with recoil my 14 year old 105 lb 5'3" neice's favorite rifle is a .300 Win mag she also has no problem burnin up a hundred rnds per session from field positions with her light lil Savage and absolutally loves her T-53 Mosin Nagant I usually have to stop her around a hundred rnds with it too....... she's been shootin the MN since she was 11 years old before that her favorite was a Chicom SKS

 

[MachIVshooter]

hmmm ya'll better not let my 21 YOA 75 lb 4'11" ex step daughter hear this she's been shooting big bore long guns for the last 3 years never has had any problems with recoil my 14 year old 105 lb 5'3" neice's favorite rifle is a .300 Win mag she also has no problem burnin up a hundred rnds per session from field positions with her light lil Savage and absolutally loves her T-53 Mosin Nagant I usually have to stop her around a hundred rnds with it too....... she's been shootin the MN since she was 11 years old before that her favorite was a Chicom SKS

Dude, I'm not saying females can't tolerate recoil. My little sister loves my Marlin 1895 .45-70 with my loads (405 grainer at 2015 FPS). What I am saying is that your ex stepdaughter wold be getting stitches over her eye after shooting some of the big nasties with scopes on them. My .375 is 8.1 pounds with scope, and eye relief is barely 3 inches. Trust me, if any average sized female (110-140 pounds) tried to actually use the scope, they'd get bit. So have male shooters that were in the 130-150 pound range with slight upper body build. 82 ft/lbs at 23 MPH is substantial. It's the most I'll go with such short eye relief.

 

[CH47gunner]

Attitude

Attitude is everything.

Altho some good training is helpful also. I'm not a large guy, I've grown up around firearms and have never been intimidated by them. I'll try anything.
Two of my favorite shooters are a Parker Hale, in .300 Win.Mag. & a Marlin 444, these are both boomers. My field handgun is a S&W 629, in .44 Mag. A lot of my friends will shoot these particular guns once or twice but wouldn't shoot them recreationally. I do all the time because I respect them & know exactly what they're goin to do when they go off.

Bruce

 

[YodaVader]

When I was 200lbs it seemed more comfortable to shoot my .308 off the bench as compared to when I lost weight and was down to 175lb. So in my case the "laws of physics" worked to my advantage when I was a heavier shooter.

 

[Gustav]

Recoil has never bothered me but I am a fairly large guy and cut my teeth as a pre teen on an old Winchester 94 of my dads.

I have taught or been with shooters from over 6' 6" at well over 300 pounds to under 4' 10" at under 90 pounds soaking wet shoot anything from a .223 to a .338 Winchester Magnum not to mention 12 gauge shotguns and .357s .45s .44 Magnums etc.

Some of the big guys were actually afraid to shoot before they even squeezed the trigger while the young ladies or teenagers had no problem with preconceived notions regarding recoil and kick, all but a few actually did not mind the heavier kicking firearms and stayed with them until either time or ammunition ran out.

Proper mindset and technique and training go a long way to tame the recoil more so than mere body weight alone.

Proper fit of the stock and the firearms balance and the shooters technique matter more IMO than caliber as I have fired a Pre 64 Winchester 70 .270 that was poorly stocked for me at least recoil felt far worse than my pet Mauser in .300 Win Mag or any other rifle I fired before or since that one.

As a side note my daughter started shooting at 8 years old, The firearm she insisted on trying first was an SKS followed by a .22 Marlin 60 which soon bored her as it soon became routine for her to aim and squeeze the trigger and hit anything dead square out to 75 yards every time.
She went on to try a 1911A1 Colt .45 followed by my M1 Tanker Garand which she had more problem holding steady after a while than shooting.

I always get a kick out of those who say a .375 H&H or .300 Magnum kicks too much then they go out and shoot a 12 gauge pump shotgun.

If the smaller ladies and teenagers can learn to manage recoil with proper mindset training and technique any one can it just may take a little longer thats all.

Recoil pads muzzle brakes magna porting and proper stock fit all can reduce felt recoil but if one develops a flinch or does not do well with muzzle blast and recoil its better to hit with any .270 or .243 than miss with any .300 magnum, use what works best for you and you are comfortable with.

YMMV

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

What about their shoulder/neck 10 years down the road?

 

[45crittergitter]

I'm less than 135# soaking wet, and my 1-moa 9# .416 has never bumped me with the scope, although it kicks very hard. Body mass is only one of many parts of the equation, and I'd suggest it's not a major piece. Attitude, face shape, neck length, body position, etc., are far more influential.

 

[TimboKhan]

I am 400 pounds, and if it weren't for a bum shoulder I broke in high school, I could shoot just about anything without recoil bothering me. Even with the bum shoulder, I can fire some pretty wicked stuff without much pain. Just to establish a baseline, I can typically shoot about 100 rounds of 12 gauge before my shoulder starts to hurt. With all that being said, being a fatty isn't what makes me less recoil sensitive. It is good positioning and a decent stance that do it more than my weight.