Trouble shooting my 30-06. 308 less kick?

[Al Bundy]

Sadly my shoulders are not what they should be due to joint disease.  I had surgery on the one and the other is not well either. I was trying to shoot my savage 30-06 last week and was shooting like garbage. Bad groupings, missing the target at 100 yards. I am pretty sure its due to the recoil and me knowing its gonna hurt like hell. I even shot reduced recoil and still had issue. I also put 2 180 grains through it and had issue lifting my arm fully for 3-4 days. So... I am looking at new rifles, thinking a 308 (maybe a 7m 08). For those who have shot both, the recoil is noticeably less than 30-06?????? I have shot a 308 only a few times when my shoulder was a little worse and it was hard to tell.

I do have a reloader and have wavered back and fourth about trying my hand at home reloads. Never set it up but I have all I need. I just don't shoot enough to warrant it really and am not sure I could cut down recoil any more than the reduced recoil loads from Hornady. 

Comments are welcome..

 

[ny hunter]

I like the 308 I own 2 of them and I think recoil is a lot less then an 06..but it does kick.I would really look at the 7mm08 and not look back.I think a 308 would bother your shoulder in a few years we are not getting any younger....Good luck bro......

[grampy]

Sorry to hear about the bad shoulders. I have some shoulder issues as well, so I do know where you are coming from. I  shoot a 7mm/08 and recoil is substantially less than the 30-06.  And there is no arguing with the dead right there, results, I've had with two bucks, using the 7mm/08!

[Uptown Redneck]

Brought one of these for my daughter when she started shooting, used it myself when shooting in the summer with just a tee shirt on to see how it worked, Shot 30-06, 7mm reg Mag and shotgun with 3" 1 oz slugs, the reduction in felt recoil was amazing

 

 

[ATbuckhunter]

32 minutes ago, grampy said:

Sorry to hear about the bad shoulders. I have some shoulder issues as well, so I do know where you are coming from. I  shoot a 7mm/08 and recoil is substantially less than the 30-06.  And there is no arguing with the dead right there, results, I've had with two bucks, using the 7mm/08!

This right here. 30-06 has on average 21 ft pounds of recoil while 7mm-08 has about 11 ft pounds of energy.

[Gencountyzeek]

I would definitely go with the 7-08, I'm looking into building one up myself. Great ballistics and far less recoil than the 06.

[airedale]

There are several factors that will determine the felt recoil, the weight of your gun, the weight of your bullets and what the butt plate is made from. If you are missing the target because of pain to your bad shoulder you should go to the mildest recoiling gun you can because if you can not hit anything with confidence you might just as well stay home. Now that being said a rifle still has to have enough power to put down a Deer reliably.

I would say your best bet for relatively painless shooting and keeping you active with Deer hunting is a 243 Winchester firing 100 gr Nosler partition or a copper Barnes bullet in a full size bolt action or better yet in an autoloader with a good quality recoil pad will put down Deer with authority and have the least amount of felt recoil.

Al

 

 

Edited November 23, 2016 by airedale

[tuckersdaddy]

There are lots of options for you. Try a 7.62 by 39... There are bolts, single shots and NY legal semi avalible. ammo is easy to find and inexpensive. I do have a mini 30 and have dropped deer on the spot with well placed shots, and the recoil is light. another option is a pistol round. I also have a 44 mag carbine that is light on the shoulder but a hammer on the other end. The only draw back of these 2 is your range limited to 100yrds to be safe, the 44 begins to drop like a rock further out and the 7.62 starts loosing alot of energy. If your in the neighborhood and want to take them for a test shoot give me a hollar... the range is just a few miles down the road.

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[Will_C]

If you looking to cut back on recoil, the .308 isn't much less than a .30-06. I'd say your search starts at 7mm-0& and goes down to a. .243. That gives you those two, as well as .250 Savage, .257 Roberts, .260, 6.5 Creedmore, and a few others. All of those will use 100 grain bullets, which is where you want to be. The 7mm-08 can go as low as 120. All these choices will kick much less than your '06.

Will

[stubby68]

Had rotator cuff surgery on shoulder a few years ago. That shoulder is shot now. No pun intended. I have a 30 06 kills me. My 308 does not bother at all. though sounds like yours is a bit worse if it istill throwing you off that much. If mine get to that point I will be shoot a 25 06. Might want to try that. 

[Lawdwaz]

243 all day. 

No whitetail walks the earth that'll shake it.

[Connor Bennett]

Ever think of a 270 lot less than a 30-06 I own a ruger American and love it 

[rob-c]

also don't forget about a high quality recoil pad, I have had very good luck with the simms recoil pads

[tommyc50]

i remember a few years ago they came out with ammo called managed recoil for got who put it out might be worth looking into its avilable in 30-06 and 308

[Gencountyzeek]

Remington made that ammo

[stubby68]

36 minutes ago, Lawdwaz said:

243 all day. 

No whitetail walks the earth that'll shake it.

Love the 243. I had a Remington 700 took a lot a deer and a bear with it. Sold it because the internal mag was a pita always had problems with it.

[ants]

.308 still has some good recoil. The 7mm-08 is awesome!! Considerably less recoil than .308 and still Kick ass on deer. Hit them where they should be hit and they go nowhere… Good luck..

[the blur]

.243 for deer.

7mm-08 for Elk.

I gave my .30-06 to my son.   I gave him the shotgun as well.

I can sit at the range all day with a semi auto .243.  

My bolt action .243 has a little more kick, but the semi auto .243 is the way to go.   No deer will run away from a .243  85 gr. 

[Tughill Tamer]

I don't think my 308 kicks that much less than my 30-06 what about a 25-06?

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[Al Bundy]

Good stuff guys. I am going to look into a recoil pad. Agree that if I can't hit a target at 100 yards I should stay home.. or find a new gun. Staying home is not an option.  Maybe the pad and if not I'm going with a new higher end made in America rifle. Enough of our cash and jobs go elsewhere. 

My rotator cuff surgery turned out to be unnecessary. Luckily it's not my shooting or drawing shoulder though I think I'm done with a bow. 

[Core]

Some things not mentioned yet (some good ideas above of course).
 

• You could buy an AR15 and hunt deer with that. There are .223 built specifically for medium size game such as deer and many do kill deer with this platform. Recoil is a joke and kids can shoot them.
• You could buy an AR10 chambered in 308 and it will still recoil much less than a bolt gun. This is a much pricier option of course.
• Add weight to your hunting rifle. 

[CharlieNY]

Dan- I shoot a 7mm-08 and it is a pleasant rifle to shoot with very little recoil. I shoot Federal Fusion 140 gr. rounds out of it. I have shot several deer with this rifle and everyone I have shot (shoulder shots) have dropped dead on the spot. I think it is the perfect whitetail caliber.

[Daveboone]

Recoil from an o6 to .308 can vary quite a bit, as long as you take into account several things: first, don't go to a lighter rifle: the wt helps with the recoil. Heavier bullets increase recoil....a 150 grain .308 is pretty mild. Even with my .308, I wear a shoulder pad when practicing, and be sure to hold the gun tight to the shoulder to reduce jump.

[chrisw]

I didn't see anyone mention combining a lighter recoiling round with a muzzle brake. You can add a brake to any rifle and it also significantly reduces recoil but dramatically increases the rifle's report. You could use a 25-06 with a brake with no issues I'd believe, I've got one and the recoil is minimal, even in a light short rifle.

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[Buckmaster7600]

There are tons of options that recoil way less than the 06. 7mm-08 is the easiest choice but there are many others. If it was me I would go with a 223 or a 6.5creedmore. A 30-30 is another great choice as well as 44mag. My 9year old daughter shoots my 44's and 45colts, they literally don't kick.


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