Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles What rifle soaks up the most 300 WM recoil?

A Tikka T3 factory recoil pad is trash and should be removed!

I thought I'd answered this thread but I guess I didn't. I don't have a .300 Win Mag, I have the Weatherby. The Mark V stock soaks up recoil pretty well but part of that is its weight. It's heavy. AND it has a brake.

The threshold of pain, I measure at ~ 20 psi.


1) The most important thing in reducing pain is increasing area of the butt.
A 200 pound woman walking on you bare foot is much more comfortable than a 100 pound woman in high heels.
The high pressure per square inch caused by high heels caused Boeing to redesign their galley floors.

2) The second most important thing is recoil pad compliance.
If it is as soft as a woman's falsie, it will just compress to easily.
If it is hard as your truck tires, it will not compress.

3) The third most important thing is recoil pad thickness.
If it is too thin, there is not enough distance for deceleration.


In conclusion, we want to spread the recoil impulse over time and area to stay under 20 psi at the shoulder.
The best recoil pads I have found is the 1" thick Limbsaver grind to fit, but left unground for more area.

The Browning with the BOSS system should be about the gentlest on the shoulder, just be sure to use PPE.

The BOSS is also perhaps the loudest brake I've ever been around.

I have a Ruger M77 MkII in 300WM, With the boat paddle stock I could shoot it well, but not for long. Put a Mcmillian on it and it is a huge difference. I think the combo of the fit of it, as well as having a much wider recoil pad makes all the difference in it.

As pointed out, recoil is such an individual thing. Fit, weight, etc. make a difference but so does the individual pulling the trigger.

As someone already suggested, I would also recommend trying a 7mm Rem Mag in a rifle with a little more weight and good stock fit with a good recoil pad, such as a 1" Decelerator. I have had 300 Win mags before, and found them unpleasant. To me, the 7mm Rem Mag is comfortable with a 160gr bullet at 3100fps or a 175gr at 2950fps. Really, the 300s don't have much on the 7 Rem mag. A factory 300 with a 180gr bullet is usually quoted around 2960fps. The 7mm with a 175 is right there with it, but with a higher BC and SD value. When combined with a premium design, like a Nosler Accubond or Partition,t he 7mm Rem Mag will handle anything in North America very well. Short of the great bears, a 7mm-08, a 270 Win or a 308 Win will also work well for you and be much more pleasant to shoot than a 300. I have killed game with a 300 as well as with lesser cartridges, and in my experience, fail to see any difference.