I'm not knocking the big boys, but...

3044 Views 23 Replies 20 Participants Last post by RJY66, Apr 25, 2011

Tatersoup

Discussion Starter · Apr 21, 2011

I must say, I love my 30/30. It's even fun at the range.

My friend owns a very nice Remington 7600 Pump 30-06. We were both at the range a few weeks ago, getting things sighted in. (His scope is ultra-cheap and keeps drifting on him.)

Anyway, after about 5 rounds, he was done for the day due to his shoulder being beat to death. He flinches like crazy because the rifle simply beats him down.

Now, I understand the purpose for a 30-06 or even a magnum rifle cartridge, believe me. But, where we live, Florida, I can't think of much of anything it does that my good old 30/30 won't do.

So, I'm just celebrating how much fun my 30/30 is to shoot. I think that the lighter recoil also makes me a better shot because I'm not tightening up and flinching when I pull the trigger.

336 forever! ;D

1 - 20 of 24 Posts

Mikeflies

· #2 · Apr 21, 2011

That is why I bought myself a 30-30 a couple of months ago. My good buddy just bought a 30-378 for his upcoming Ram hunt in AK. I watched him shoot it when I was home in March & that just looks like it hurts. He asked if I wanted to shoot it, but I declined due to fact of wanted to be able to lift my left arm while home.

Flat Top

· #3 · Apr 21, 2011

If you or your friend reloads, you could reduce those 06 loads a bit and make that rifle a joy to shoot (or impress him of the fact that he really "needs" a Marlin lever gun!). I have my big bore 444's and love to shoot them, but with full house loads they are a bit extreme for a long day at the range. My 35 XLR is a cream puff, and like your 30-30 it is very enjoyable to spend a day with. I just got ahold of an old Texan and that will be my lead gun. I will have a stiff hunting load for it, but, I am going to work up some plinkers for it as well....just to have fun!!! ;D

RJY66

· #4 · Apr 21, 2011

Have your friend pick up a decent slip on recoil pad for his range sessions. At my local walmart you can get a Winchester branded pad made by Limbsaver for about 20 bucks.

mt101

· #5 · Apr 21, 2011

I have an early 80's 7600, and it has no recoil pad. That hard plastic will beat on you. I second the slip on pad. that or a rolled up fleece jacket between you and the gun. S.

Halwg

· #6 · Apr 21, 2011

I have shot a Remington pump in 30-06 since 1976, and contrary to what folks tell you, they are not a hard recoiling gun. They don't kick anywhere near like a 444, or 450, and are not much different than shooting a 35 Remington from a light carbine. I don't understand folks wanting to ruin the looks of those guns by installing a recoil pad, or those ghastly, ugly slip-ons. ???

LT

· #7 · Apr 21, 2011

Felt recoil depends on the individual along with caliber&bangstick combo... I'm 5ft 10in low 140's, so I'm going to feel recoil alot more than say gunrunner or M700(1st two big guys I could think of). I can shoot my 94AE in 30-30, Savage M99 in .300Sav, Savage 110C in .243 with no problems at all... recoil doesn't bother me. However, my 336CS in .35 Rem with a 1in pachmeyer pad still kicks noticeably harder than the others.... 20rds and I'm done. It doesn't sting when it kicks, it always comes upward and rotates on my shoulder which gets annoying after a while :

stubbygun

· #8 · Apr 22, 2011

my '06 760 carbine boots you pretty good but it ain't that bad. certainly not enough to warrant a pad. my whelen 7600 carbine is a different story. both are worse than either a 30/30 or 35 though. the 30/30 is sweet for plinking. and my absolute favorite is my 7600 35 rem carbine. its called "Meatmaster" around my house cause it brings home the venison. and it shoots sweet with little recoil or jump. my really big guns like the 350 mag model 600 or the 450 win 94 only get a few at a time. i have 20 boxes or so of 450 and about 15 of the 350 and i think those will last several lifetimes. when i want to really plink i break out my pre-war win 94 30 wcf and jack the rounds off like crazy. love that vertical ejection.

336-4-LIFE

· #9 · Apr 22, 2011

Tatersoup said:
Now, I understand the purpose for a 30-06 or even a magnum rifle cartridge, believe me. But, where we live, Florida, I can't think of much of anything it does that my good old 30/30 won't do.

I live in Florida too and I agree with you 100%

Brian in FL

· #10 · Apr 22, 2011

Halwg said:
I have shot a Remington pump in 30-06 since 1976, and contrary to what folks tell you, they are not a hard recoiling gun. They don't kick anywhere near like a 444, or 450, and are not much different than shooting a 35 Remington from a light carbine. I don't understand folks wanting to ruin the looks of those guns by installing a recoil pad, or those ghastly, ugly slip-ons. ???

For range sessions, a slip on pad is a neat idea. It minimizes felt recoil, and it allows longer range sessions without any pain. I have a Winchester pre-64 with a steel buttplate that I shoot with a slip on pad off a rest. And, my old Remington 700 in .30-06 with a light weight synthetic stock without a recoil pad that beats me up with its recoil becomes much more comfortable to shoot with the slip on pad off the bench rest. That's especially true when I'm shooting in the Summer with only a tee shirt between me and the stock. When shooting it offhand, like when I'm hunting, I don't need the pad. The slip on recoil pad is not a permanent fixture on the rifle.

Tatersoup

Discussion Starter · #11 · Apr 22, 2011

Hawlg,

I agree it's not that bad. I've grown up hunting with a 12 gauge so I've learned to deal with recoil. My buddy is not so lucky.

By comparison, though, the 30/30 is one light kicking sonofagun. And that was what I was celebrating.

hub

· #12 · Apr 22, 2011

another solution in reducing felt recoil is get ya one of those strap on shoulder recoil pads by Past or any other brand. I use one on the bench as i shoot once a week. I never get the sore shoulder thing anymore since I bought that sissy pad. It works for me with the 3o:30 up to the 300 mag. 8) 8) 8) 8)

dpe.ahoy

· #13 · Apr 22, 2011

I like to have fun when I shoot, and usually shoot for several hours, several different rifles and pistols. Some of my hard hitters wear nice recoil pads and some just have the factory pads. I have several of the Limbsaver/Winchester slip-ons that I switch around when playing. When hunting, the rifle wears what it came with. I have a couple of Rossi M-92 454 Casull's that sure get your attention when you touch em off, more than my Guide Gun with mild loads.

DP

fhmusa

· #14 · Apr 22, 2011

Brian in FL nailed it. I agree 100%. I sometimes use a slip on when having a lengthy range session with my Win. Model 70 Featherweight 30-06. Sweet shootin rifle by the way.

papajohn

· #15 · Apr 22, 2011

I've used the slip-on pads, and the strap-on chest protectors, but these days I don't seem to need them. I'm not sure why, either. When I first got my 30-30 (with that godawful plastic buttplate) it hurt to shoot, even though I was used to shooting a heavy-loaded 35 Remington. It made no sense, but it still hurt. A year later I took the recoil pad off and somehow it didn't bother me anymore. Then I started shooting a 375, and even with 335-grain bullets it wasn't that bad. Either I'm getting tougher (not likely), I'm holding the rifle differently, or I'm just brain damaged. Opinions vary. But no one is buying the "getting tougher" notion. :

papabear

· #16 · Apr 22, 2011

PJ, you don't seem brain dead, but it is a possibility! More likely, you have become acclimated to the recoil. I am just the other way. I have owned and shot a small pickup load of Magnums ranging from lightweight .264s to .375 H&H. (Owned .458s, but never shot one.) The .338 used to be one of my favorites, except for the one I had put together at just a tad over 7# scoped. It was ok with 200 speers and 210 Noslers, but it was brutal with old Elmer's full boat load of 4831 under a 250 grain bullet. A fairly heavy .338/378 built by a friend for Africa on a 1917 Enfield action actually was pretty nice. Maybe so the worst recoil I ever experienced was on a .45-70 Winchester high wall (I think they called it a legacy) that had a deeply curved but plate and was fairly light with the Lyman lollipop sight. With a .45/70 load worthy of the strong action, the thing just hurt. Compare it to an older Ithica riot gun (6#, no pad) with a heavy slug or buck. It was accurate and I hated to dump it for that reason, but I did. As the years have rolled by, I find that I no longer enjoy hard recoiling rifles. Perhaps I do not shoot enough anymore, but the moderate recoil generated by such as the .30-30, .243, .308W, and etc. as well as the center fire .22s are just more fun. I do have two custom stocked 06s that deck out at a little over 7# that do not treat me badly. The Springfield has a recoil pad and the stock is a little Weatherbyesque, not my favorite stock shape-but they do work. The other is a commercial Mauser, classic shaped stock with a checkered steel but plate that is a little short in light clothing, It is zeroed with Hornaday's light magnum 180s ( just about duplicates factory loadings for the .300 H&H at an advertised 2880 fps.) Should hurt, but it does not. I bought it used and do not know who stocked it. The makers benchmark is a H within a diamond just behind the Silver capped pistol grip. I have not become tougher. I think I have turned into a candy. Have fun, Jack

See less See more

woodrat

· #17 · Apr 22, 2011

I'm pretty sure that at least part of my accuracy issues with the Whelen is my reaction to the recoil. The pad on the Hogue stock seems like it's not even there at all. But when I played around with shooting offhand and standing, it didn't seem to kick me so much as it does shooting off of bags. Don't quite understand that. I think it would be better overall if it were in a little heavier stock than the Hogue.

The 35 Rem is pretty tolerable with the corelokt or federal ammo, but a long string of shooting the hornadys is noticeable. I do have one of those slip on pads that I got to see if my scope eye relief would work better if I got the one piece rail and moved the scope forward, and I think it does, but I haven't really shot that many times with it on. It tends to move around some, and I don't like that.

the gun I'm building now is a 6.5 Swede, which should be pretty nice from the recoil perspective.

Tele-Caster

· #18 · Apr 22, 2011

Light recoil is but one of the reasons why I enjoy shooting my 336 in .30-30. I reckon it is a sign of old age, because the older I get, the less I care to get beat up by recoil. Ergo, I shoot cast bullets over Trail Boss in my .44 Mag Bisley, I shoot 7/8 oz loads in my IZH-43 double gun, and my 336 has a LimbSaver on it.

The .30-30 is also pretty economical to shoot, by centerfire rifle standards, anyhow. It can deliver fine accuracy, too. Like the OP, I wouldn't knock the "big boys," either. I've owned a few over the years, might well do so again. For now, I am content to shoot my old 336 in .30-30. It does everything I want a centerfire rifle to do.

T-C

Brian in FL

· #19 · Apr 22, 2011

woodrat said:
I'm pretty sure that at least part of my accuracy issues with the Whelen is my reaction to the recoil. The pad on the Hogue stock seems like it's not even there at all. But when I played around with shooting offhand and standing, it didn't seem to kick me so much as it does shooting off of bags. Don't quite understand that. I think it would be better overall if it were in a little heavier stock than the Hogue.

The 35 Rem is pretty tolerable with the corelokt or federal ammo, but a long string of shooting the hornadys is noticeable. I do have one of those slip on pads that I got to see if my scope eye relief would work better if I got the one piece rail and moved the scope forward, and I think it does, but I haven't really shot that many times with it on. It tends to move around some, and I don't like that.

the gun I'm building now is a 6.5 Swede, which should be pretty nice from the recoil perspective.

The difference in felt recoil between shooting offhand and off the bench rest has to do with your body positioning. Shooting offhand, your body gives with the recoil making it seem lighter. When you shoot off a bench rest your body can't yield any to the recoil, so it feels heavier.

I've shot several 6.5 Swedes, and the recoil is actually quite mild, even with the light weight carbines. I have a custom one built on a model 38 barreled action, and it is a real sweetheart. They are a real pleasure to shoot and very accurate too. I'm sure you'll love yours.

DWB

· #20 · Apr 22, 2011

I am not ashamed to say that I bought a slip-on recoil pad (Limbsaver) for my 1895CB - - just so I can finish testing some loads from the bench. My first session at the range included a total of 20 rounds (five lots of four rounds each) from the bench. The bullets were 300 gr H'dy JHP chrono'ing from 1,825 to 1,966 fps for the initial tests.

It was about 50*F that day, and I was wearing nothing but a t-shirt... With that scrawny butt stock, and plastic butt plate, my shoulder looked like a bouquet of red, purple, blue, and yellow flowers for the better part of a week. That's when I started looking around for the slip on.

There is a lot to be said for shooting my .35 with my 200 gr loads running around 2,180 fps. That 336C with the thin little rubber pad is an absolute joy to shoot compared to the whalloping that cowboy will give me.

Once the load testing is completed, the bench is put away, and I start practicing from self-supported positions, I am sure I will (eventually) become acclimated to the recoil from that .45-70 in the cowboy. In the meantime, if you see me with the slip-on, just call me wussy (but please smile when you say it, so there are no mis-understandings).

;D

See less See more

1 - 20 of 24 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.