My Ideas On Recoil Management (right hand shooters)
Big bore rifles, putting out tons of energy, impart a lot of energy to the shooter, and you want to manage that energy to lessen what is called "felt recoil", which in my mind can be different for different shooters. I want the recoil to come back as straight as possible to minimize muzzle rise, and I want that recoil to be distributed evenly as possible across a large recoil absorber to minimize lbs/in2 on my shoulder, and I want the recoil directed slightly to the right to pull the rifle away from my cheek just a smidge to prevent cheek skid marks that might detract from my natural good looks. You don't want your face to look like the inside of Bwana Jim's drawers after only two weeks of heavy hunting in the bush.:icon_redface:
The closer the centerline of the recoil pad to the centerline of the barrel, the less the muzzle rise during recoil (less moment). Cutting the stock with a slight butt offset (a few degrees to the right) not only puts your sighting eye closer to the centerline of the barrel, it will save that cheek by directing recoil away from your face. In addition, you want the angle of that cheek rest to be such that in recoil, every part of that rest is going away from your face (no cups). You want at least 3 to 4 fingers between your right thumb and your nose when the rifle is at your shoulder to prevent an unsightly bloody nose when your right thumb knocks the crap out of your nose in full recoil, so LOP may be slightly more than normal as it is in my case (1" extra).:icon_study:
I start by cutting the butt of the stock square with the bore. Without the recoil pad, Old Rosey will stand straight up if placed butt down on the floor. For some reason I don't fully comprehend, cant can lessen felt recoil. Everyone has a natural "V" when the hunch their outer shoulder forward to cup a rifle butt. I like my butt to fit that valley exactly, regardless of the angle, and regardless of who says what. So my own shoulder determines the cant of the rifle. So I make my stocks such that they fit me perfectly, while directing recoil away from my face, and acting straight back against my shoulder which is my best avenue for not having to search for my rifle in the bush. Last, but not least, I use a recoil compensator (Pachmayr 550) that does not give that bucking sucker a run at my shoulder.:headbang:
The grip for me is a strange factor. I like pistol grips that do not look as they have been flattened for aesthetic reasons, and cut the stock such that I have both a pistol grip that places my finger tip on the trigger while maintaining that closeness of butt centerline and bore centerline. I get my nice looks and still adhere to the plan.:eusa_dance:
There is one other huge factor, and that is rifle weight. Ideally, you want a lot of rifle weight to lessen felt recoil. The heavier the rifle, the more force it requires to get it moving. I wanted form over weight, so my rifle will be around 9+ lbs fully loaded. I don't mind the extra punch.:evil6:
Poor recoil management can make a rifle unbearable. To give you some idea, I once owned a Rem 700 in 300 Rem Mag. That rifle would put me on my knees when I fired it. I hated that rifle, and once tried to give it away at the range and had no takers as they had all seen me rolling on the ground crying like a little girl every time I pulled the trigger. That rifle put me on track to figure out how to reduce MY felt recoil. I read a lot of books, including Jim Howe's and some stuff by Alvin Linden. Using that info, I made a new stock for that Remington, and the difference was night and day, although at that time I was using the old "X" recoil pads, which isn't a good idea on a heavy recoiling rifle (collapses too soon). I carried that rifle until some SOB stole it out of my truck.:eusa_wall:
OK, those are all my ideas of how to tame a big bad bodacious bucker. You can put mercury absorbers in the butt, cut muzzle breaks, and other neat stuff, but all have down sides to me. Fire a 460 Weatherby and try to carry on a conversation afterwards. Over 8,000 lb-lbs of energy and a huge amount of that muzzle blast is coming back at you. You won't be wearing hearing protection in the bush. If you and your guide are close together when the charge comes, your ears are going to take a beating, as he (and you hopefully) quits shooting when the monster is dead on the ground, then he puts in another shot.:eek:
Everyone has their own ideas about recoil taming. Old Rosey is fun to shoot, and muzzle rise is only about 3". I do get a nasty rap on the knuckle from the trigger guard, but I will put a small pad there to take care of that problem. I fire Old Rosey wearing nothing but a tee shirt, and I get no bruising, no pain, and no discomfort other than that knuckle thingee I mentioned. My ideas work for me, and not one of those ideas is original. Good stock makers who liked to write books paved the way for all of us.
Sweet dreams, Alvin.
jt