BY JOHN TAFFIN
The .30 caliber M1 Carbine offers low recoil but is still effective against small
game and in self-defense applications.
In Part I last month I explained change is inevitable and as we grow older, things we do not necessarily desire are forced upon us. Our hands and wrists change and determine just what we can handle when it comes to sixguns and semi-automatics. We don’t escape change when it comes to the long guns either.
Several years ago I awoke one morning ready for a day of shooting. I had gotten dressed and suddenly felt a pain that started to get worse and worse. That was 6 a.m. and by 10 a.m., I was in surgery, given less than a 20 percent chance to survive. The pain was found to be the artery to my heart had split. I do not know why I made it but I did and feel totally blessed.
Anytime something like this happens, it’s definitely a life-changing experience. For many years I had enjoyed shooting heavy loads. Afterward, I did not think it would be a good idea to continue. So, when such changes come, what can we do to keep shooting?
Add Weight
One of the most obvious ways to reduce felt recoil is to add weight to our firearms. Henry offers two .44 Magnum leverguns, one much heavier than the other. I have also had some leverguns, especially those chambered in .45-70 rebarreled with heavier octagon barrels. Until this past year from the time of my surgery I had not shot anything heavier than a .243 rifle but I wanted to shoot something heavier. Finally, I saw the solution.
Ruger began offering a stainless steel Target/Varmint rifle with a heavier-than-normal stock and also a heavy barrel. Total weight as it came was over 9 lbs. By the time I scoped it, added a bipod and made one other change which I will speak of shortly, the weight went up to over 11 lbs. and felt recoil was even less than the .243. The extra added bonus is the fact with Black Hills 168-gr. .308 Winchester loads it will group 3 shots in 1″ at 200 yards.
The Marlin .32 Magnum is exceptionally pleasant shooting and is backed up
by a pair of custom .32 Magnum Rugers by Andy Horvath.
Muzzle Brakes
One of the other changes I made to the Ruger was the addition of a muzzle brake. This probably helped more than anything else to lower felt recoil. I first ordered a Ruger muzzle brake, however, when it arrived I found the diameter was too small to fit the larger than normal diameter barrel so this one went on a Ruger Mini-30. This little semi-automatic carbine chambered in 7.62×39 is not what one would call a heavy recoiling rifle. However, the addition of the Ruger muzzle brake made it exceptionally pleasant shooting.
Recoil Pads
With my Springfield Armory M1A1, I told my gunsmiths at Buckhorn to find the thickest, softest recoil pad they could come up with. They had to shorten the stock somewhat and remove the metal butt plate to install a deluxe Decelerator pad and this, coupled with the muzzle brake, really makes shooting the M1A1 a pleasant situation. Most older rifles originally fitted with recoil pads probably need them replaced as rubber hardens over the years and becomes about as useful as a steel butt plate. A brand-new soft rubber pad will do wonders.
HSM offers low recoil loads in several calibers.
Loads
Just as with sixguns, we can extend our rifle shooting life by changing our loads. Companies like HSM of Montana offer a whole series of Low Recoiling Rifle ammunition loaded with Sierra Bullets to produce over 50 percent less felt recoil. For example their 150-gr. bulleted .30-06 and .308 loads are loaded at, or slightly below standard .30-30 loads with both loads clocking out under 2,400 fps and definitely providing less felt recoil.
One of the real thumpers I have is the little 18-1/2″ Remington Model 600 chambered in .308. The HSM load clocks out at 2,260 fps in the Model 600 and I do not feel concerned at all shooting this load off my shoulder. In the Encore Contender .308 with a 15″ barrel, length includes the muzzle brake, velocity is at 2,050 fps, or about where my .30-30 long-range silhouettes loads were 30-plus years ago. When shooting off sandbags the muzzle rises less than 1″ when the Encore is fired. For handloaders, many reloading manuals offer starting loads that are about in this same range.
The addition of a muzzle brake made this heavy .308 Ruger even easier shooting.
Calibers
Again as with handguns, there is much we can do by changing calibers to produce less felt recoil. Is a .300 Magnum really necessary for your hunting chores, or will a .30-06 or .308 do just fine? And if the recoil felt from these two are too much, there are low recoil loads. Instead of a .308 there are two other chamberings on the same cartridge case which I find exceptionally easy to handle and also able to handle anything that walks in my hunting areas.
These are the .243 Winchester and 7-08. If the standard factory loads are more than desired we can look to HSM again. Their .243 loaded with the 85-gr. Sierra clocks out at 2,100 fps and puts three shots in 1″ at 100 yards while the 7-08 load with a 140-gr. Sierra has the same muzzle velocity and also shoots just as accurately. I use both of these loads in a pair of Ruger Compact Model 77s and find them both exceptionally pleasant to shoot.
We have many other choices in easy shooting calibers such as the 6.5 Swede and .250 Savage. In leverguns, the .357 Magnum is just about the handiest little carbine to have and unlike the .41 and .44 Magnum, doesn’t do a job on the shoulder. There is also the exceptionally easy shooting M1 .30 Carbine, available on both the used market and several companies are now offering new versions. It is much easier to shoot, certainly works for small game and varmints and, as originally designed, self-defense.
Finally The .22
Finally, and just as with handguns, there are .22 rifles. Most of us started with a .22 rifle and if our time does not come too quickly and if we keep on shooting the chances are very good we will wind up the same way. Whether we shop the used gun market or prefer new there is virtually no end to the grand .22s being offered. In addition to the Marlin 39, there has been a long list of Ruger 10/22 iterations. Aside from the Marlin leverguns and Ruger semi-automatics, there are many bolt-action rifles, foreign and domestic, offered in .22 Long Rifle and .22 Rimfire Magnum. Both are exceptionally good cartridges for small game and varmints and I wouldn’t feel terribly under-gunned in a self-defense or survival situation with either.
Just as with handguns, it’s not that important what we shoot but simply the fact we just Keep Shootin’.