Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Recoil question for new bolt gun owner

I don't plan on taking ridiculous long shots with this rifle. I wanted one gun to fill two roles. Long range precision rifle shooting down the line, but also a caliber that could take large game limited by the range that I'm confident in making an ethical shot on an animal.

I'm purchasing my rifle seven months ahead of my hunt so that I *can* get the trigger time in to be confident in my self and the rifle as well as know what my limits are so that when it's time to take the shot on an elk, I know I can do it and do it ethically.

Thank you so much for your suggestion on the PAST recoil pad! The other tips as well

I already planned on a bipod as well as a heavier scope mounting setup. I'll be using a Nightforce SHV 4-14 that weighs 30oz because I already have it on my AR10 for work. I've also considered getting a heavier stock if my initial setup doesn't cut through the recoil enough for me to be able to reliably shoot it for a few shots at a time.

Can anyone give me a good target weight for fairly tolerable recoil on the 300? I'm shooting for anything over 10lbs but staying under 12.

Merlin - I don't see your choice of a 300 PRC as a "mistake" and wouldn't think that way. The 300 PRC is an impressive cartridge and makes sense as an elk rifle. If you spend time with it, you will be fine. I think most of us are simply saying you don't need a magnum to kill an elk. If you can shoot it well from field positions, you open up more options, especially at longer ranges.

You mentioned rifle weight. You can make it as heavy as you want but you're still going to get significant recoil, he-men aside. If this is your first elk hunt, you'll learn after day 1 that you wish everything weighed less - boots, clothes, packs, rifles, everything. This is the gist of my comments at least - there exists a tradeoff between cartridge, recoil, and rifle weight. Everyone wants a fly weight laser. No one wants to shoot said flyweight laser very often. You need to spend enough time shooting your rifle to be proficient with it at expected ranges and from field positions. Flyweights often fail in both categories - they recoil like hell and are not overly stable from field positions. To me, the sweet spot is 7-8 lbs rifle weight in a 270, 280, 30-06, 6.5 PRC, etc shooting a good bullet. Mono bullets allow less bullet weight but also retain alot of weight - kind of a win-win - less recoil + bullet integrity.

I'd also opine that most elk are shot at less than 200 yards. All it takes is a bullet capable of punching a quarter size hole through both lungs - from any reasonable angle. Two holes are way better than 1. Elk aren't bullet proof but do have sufficient mass to stop lesser bullets from performing ideally. A 1 lung shot elk will likely turn into a rodeo.

Sounds like it's too late to change your rifle - so don't. Shoot a 165 gr mono with a faster powder for the PRC. A faster powder will mean slightly less top end velocity but also significantly less powder - both equal less recoil. A 168 TTSX or 165 Nosler etip or Horn CX would be an excellent choice. Your shoulder will like it, elk will not.

Thanks! Very helpful information and a good way to think about things all in all when it comes choices for hunting that go even beyond the rifle

300 PRC was designed for 200+ gr bullets
Grab a box of Hornady 212gr ELD-X and see how it shoots that.
Hornady 212gr ELD-X

You might want to consider trying the 190gr CX load, the lightest I saw listed. That should make a difference.

I think I’d have more trouble with the added noise from a brake than recoil. Everyone is different.

Merlin,
merlin,

Two comments, one on one of your posts:

"I went with a magnum caliber simply because I hoped the more powerful round would give me a fudge factor if my shot placement wasn’t 100% perfect." This is one of the oldest myths in big game hunting. I once shot an average branch-antlered bull elk at 300 yards with a "premium" 200-grain bullet from a .300 Weatherby Magnum and hit it in the heart. But the bull didn't die, or even fall over. Instead it started walking away, though slowly. Another shot at close to 400 yards dropped it--and during field-dressing I found the first shot had hit it in the lower half of the heart, resulting in a 1" hole. But the important portion of the heart is the top half, in the pumps and major blood vessels. The bullet only landed 2-3" lower....

What matters in an elk rifle is a bullet that penetrates and expands sufficiently when put in the vitals. The caliber, bullet weight and and whether the cartridge is a "magnum" are irrelevant. My wife and I have taken quite a few elk (and moose, and similar-sized African plains-game animals) over the years, and I've also seen plenty of similar animals taken with a wide range of cartridges, partly due to guiding for several years. If your .300 WSM results in any sort of doubt about being able to put the bullet in the right place, in my opinion it would be smarter to buy another rifle in a "standard" round such as the .270 or .308 Winchester--or a whole bunch of other cartridges in the same class. They kill elk very well with "premium" bullets, and not just monolithics.

Thank you! I really appreciate the real world examples with your insight, it makes it easier to start building my big picture understanding of what I'm trying to accomplish and how all the factors play into the equation. If there is *any* question as to my ability to handle the rifle, I won't take it. It wouldn't be fair to the animal and I won't do that. Once the gun gets here I'll work through all the good advice given so far and anymore to come and see how things go and base my plan going forward around that. While I most definitely jumped the gun, I try to be purpose driven when I do things. Just in this case I did it without enough research.

Well you are definitely right about one thing:

Merlin, you are going backwards man. You need a lighter rifle, vs a heavier one. Get yourself a good 7mm08 that weighs around 7 pounds all up. After your first day on that elk hunt, you'll be thanking me. The nice thing about the little 7mm-08 is you can practice with it all summer long and be very ready for your elk hunt in the fall.

A 4570 will recoil as much as a 300 Magnum. The difference is the recoil speed is Quicker with the 300. People complain about rifle recoil and then shoot 3" shotgun shells at ducks that recoil more than the rifle they say has too much. You normally shoot the rifle once at animals.
I deer hunt often with a 300 Weatherby. I have never noticed the recoil hunting or had scope eye from it.

Mule Deer;
Good morning to you sir, I hope that you and Eileen are well and that you're getting decent spring weather down in your part of Montana's Banana Belt.

It's still freezing by a couple degrees overnight here so we're still not putting the bedding plants into the garden, but the Balsam Root is finally coming so spring must be here... it just has to be.

Thanks for the illustrations from your hunting experience, it's interesting to see what some animals will absorb while barely flinching will flatten others.

A good friend told me of hitting a walking Okanagan bull elk 3 times with 250gr Partitions from his .338 at maybe 70yds. He related that it barely flinched, kept the same pace and of course as he was going into his pockets for a reload after the rifle was empty, it just wobbled a bit and tipped over. Oh, he said all 3 hit either heart or lungs too.

Another late friend of mine hit a Cariboo bull moose 5 times with his .270 using 150gr bullets and it just stood and looked at him. Once more as he was refilling for the second barrage it just tipped over.

My late father who killed Saskatchewan moose with a .250, .303 and .308 would always chuckle when he told me, "Moose aren't that hard to kill Dwayne, but sometimes they take awhile to understand they're actually dead."

You've covered stock shape and how our shape is affected by different stock shape and thus we perceive recoil differently in a few articles. I'm not sure which of your Gack books it's in, but I've dragged it out and read it to at least a handful of new shooters who ask me a similar question that the OP has posed.

Since I'm 5'5" and have Neanderthal length arms along with no neck to speak of, I'll experience recoil on an "average" rifle differently than most "average" shaped men would - which again is what you've written.

If anyone could find any components anywhere anymore, the OP could likely load his .300 PRC down to .308 recoil levels as well I'd guess?

Way back in the day I fooled with one of our .308 Norma rifles and H4895 and was able to make it into a very mild .30-06.

All the best to you both this spring. Let's hope its actually here.

Dwayne

Recoil can be painful but it cant really hurt you. You can get on Youtube and find videos of little five foot nothing girls shooting elephant rifles with no ill effects and seemingly enjoying it. So, mostly recoil is in your head. Practice and stay off the bench. I’ve also found that recoil I once considered objectionable is no big deal after getting used to it. Pain is okay. But don’t practice the point that the shoulder becomes noticeably tender. That will induce a flinch.

All that or don’t shoot anything bigger than a 30-06. It really isn’t needed anyway. lol

Now that the examples of moose/elk getting hit with magnum cartridges and not reacting, I'll share mine.

I was still hunting in a thickish section of a mountain bench in WY about 5-6-7 years ago. I had my Kimber 308 shooting 180 gr Sierra Prohunters under a healthy charge of Varget. Velocity was 2600 give or take a few fps. I spied a spike walking my direction about 9:00. He had no idea I was around. He was not alarmed nor looked like he had been spooked or disturbed in any way. He was simply being a spike bull and doing his thing. Given that WY allows a gen tag holder to shoot a spike, I decided this was a really good opportunity to see what a spike bull would taste like. More than a bit of the decision was influenced by the fact that the truck was 1.25 miles away across relatively flat terrain, and a logging road for about half that distance. I honeyed up to a tree and waited for him to present a freezer-inducing shot which he happily obliged at about 40 yards. I'm no marksman but even I can hit a broadside elk at 40 yards from a supported rest - even with a 308. I lobbed the first bullet into the elk. He never flinched, just stood there doing his best clueless spike bull elk look. Shot 2 occurred within seconds with the same aiming point, especially given that he hadn't moved. I saw blood at the point of aim but he took 2 steps and stopped again. Shot 3 was conducted with the same aiming point and rest. He apparently realized something was amiss at that point. Before I could administer shot 4 he tipped over. He was dead when I arrived. He covered maybe 10 feet between shot 1 and 3.

I always hesitate to tell that story because people jump to conclusions about your marksmanship, cartridge selection, bullet failure, Obama care - pick your opinion. Bottom line: sometimes big animals take a bit to realize something is amiss and fully cooperate.

The mesa will come with a brake on it. Shoot it as is and keep hearing protection around your neck when hunting. Don't make it any harder than it needs to be.

Shoot a lot, get used to the rifle.

Shoot a lot from field positions. I really like the Trigger Stix from a seated position. I’m not much from offhand.

Have a good time.




P

Holy crap! That was a great story and especially the last part!

I think I might be old enough now that I could get by elk hunting with a 25-06 on up. I just like to use everything so, I use it. But our great bullets these days really make cartridge selection a non relevant part of hunting these days.

Merlin, I have to admit when I first stated working with that Model 70 in .300 Win. mag I wasn't all that sure it would work out. First few sessions at the range were strictly from the bench shooting at different distances out to 500 meters on the club's silhouette range. I'd always do some of the shooting from field positions as we,,. Just before the hunt, I'd been putting in two to three days a week, first a few from the bench then field positions. When the moment of truth came, it was about 8 in the morning, perfectly calm wind which is rare in AZ, a herd of elk walking across this wide open park moving slowly from left to to right. I'd snuck up about as close as I could get and was sitting behind the last little bush between me and the elk. I'd lasered them at 530 yard, took as solid a sitting position and I could and took the shot at the last cow in the herd. Down she went, kicked a bit and it was all over but the hard work. You have no idea how much it hurt that I only had a cow tag when I saw the herd bull, a huge 6x7. The bull of a lifetime and I had to let him walk. I only hope he survived that year's season.
PJ

I had a Mesa in 300 Win Mag. With the brake, felt recoil was no worse than a 270. Calvin is right, don’t over-think it.