Bear in mind we moderns have forgotten how the ancients employed crescent butt plates. They're intended to be placed on the top of one's bicep outboard of the shoulder joint. Requires the elbow to be at least somewhat elevated toward horizontal. Try it, it works. If a shooter puts this butt plate in the inboard pocket of the shoulder joint it'll hurt with romping stomping .45-70 loads.
Of course, those old cats didn't spend hours and hours shooting off of benches so there is that. What one fella I know does is he had made butt stocks with recoil pads on them for when he bench shoots a couple heavy kickers, saving the crescent butt plated stocks for offhand work and looking cool.
Of course, there's nothing saying that one has to shoot nothing but full snort .45-70 loads in his crescent plated rifle. Trust me when I say that shoulder friendly light loads will still smack steel at respectable distances and reliably punch round holes in paper too. Save the buffalo killer loads for, well, buffalo.
Understood, it's crescent butt plates and torn rotator cuffs that are the issue for me.
