A 30-06 tears my shoulder up

I have good recoil pads on all my rifles including .243. Part of the reason is so that the gun won't slide when stand on the butt. However, I am fairly recoil sensitive, and good recoil pads take the sting out.

I have not found the 30-06 tough with a recoil pad, but when shooting over a bench the P.A.S.T. Recoil Shield helps a lot. I am not sure size is the issue as Elmer Keith was not very large. I find that recoil is partly a mental thing that goes with noise, etc.

I remember when I used to shoot some skeet some would say, "Recoil doesn't bother me." Then when one of their loads failed to fire they would almost jump off the station. I would tell them that for someone who was not bothered by recoil they sure did flinch.

Get a good recoil pad, and if you are still bothered go to a lesser kicking gun. It will make a difference in your hitting your game. The thought that you don't feel recoil when shooting game is malarky when it comes to flinching. You already have a mental picture of recoil, and will still flinch. Trigger squeeze can take care of that, but if you have to shoot fast the flinch will still be there.
Jerry
 
I'm an average sized guy. I have a 30-06. I think that I don't notice the recoil b/c I use heavy wood stocks, I have a recoil pad, I usually am using it when it's cold so I have a jacket on and I shoot only 165 grain bullets.

If your shoulder can't take it, though, there's no shame in admitting that you need a change: downgrade to a lighter bullet platform.

Cliff Notes:

1. use a heavier stock
2. add a recoil pad
3. use lighter bullets
4. wear a jacket

5. 25-06.
6. 260 Rem.
7. 270 Winchester
 
Add, a good muzzle brake.

That will greatly reduce the recoil and save your shoulder. Especially if you combine that with a recoil pad and add weigh to the rifles stock.
 
I have had my shooting shoulder completely replaced.

A couple of years ago I got back in to shooting. With advice from this site, I got a 25-06...not a problem.
 
An /06 is pretty tame. Perhaps you are not holding it right. Suck it up tight to your shoulder and it kicks less. Too many times I see people afraid of recoil don't suck it up tight, and this makes it worse because it gives the rifle a running start before it hits your shoulder.
 
I have a single shot 458 Lott that I have the same problem with...

As others have said adding weight will help, adding a recoil pad will also help. Adding a Muzzle-break or Magnaports will also help.

I find that adding weight at all will help recoil, adding weight to the end of the barrel also helps muzzle rise.

My gun smith says he can make any gun shootable. He owns a 50BMG that he shoots from his shoulder. It recoils about like a 12ga.
 
brakes

A brake will help, but the things are NOISY. Had a guy in one of my clubs who sold a very nice A-bolt 7mm Mag w/ a brake, a real tack driver, because it was terrible from a shooting house and in cover.
 
20 years ago, I picked up an old Remington Model 78 30-06 from a pawn shop... this was a plain vanilla 700 with a walnut-stained birch stock and no pad. Wonder of wonders, the stock fit me like it'd been made for me. I shot it quite a bit for a couple of years,zeroing, sorting out loads and such. I've always run full-snort, 150 grain loads through it.

Then one day my little 130 pound, 5'4" wife wanted to shoot so I cautioned her about the lack of a pad and turned her loose on it. IIRC she got through three full mags, mostly from the bench, before she had enough of it. She loved the way it shot though and it was clear she wanted it... I lose more good guns that way. So I bought the thickest Decelerator pad available at the time and cut the stock down to fit her precisely with that pad installed. She still has it and shoots it to this day.

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I still take it out occasionally for coyotes and deer. I have to really watch myself with it now though, or I'll get a scope in the eye or my thumb knuckle in my nose. Stock fit is really, really important in rifles with any recoil at all. You can also get reduced or 'managed' recoil factory loads these days, so that is another option. The 30-06 is such a fine and versatile old cartridge that I'd try a few measures before sending a good one down the road.
 
Recoil pads are a nice simple solution. To be honest, I use them on my .357mag win92s - the recoil itself is not much really, but the winchester curved steel butt plates (especially the full crescent rifle stock) have a tendency to really dig in hard at the top point of the curve. I like to have something there since that is the least fleshy part that the rifle sits against, so I have some lace-up leather pads to slip over the steel crescent end piece.

There is an advantage to a flat butt, and finding recoil pads for that is simple. There are also always the strap on shooting pads (PAST and others) if you don't want to alter the gun itself. The only thing I have found with those is the fit is not always perfect and they can shift on you. Still, buy one and you can use it with any gun.
 
As others have mentioned, how & where you hold, pads, stock fit, brakes, etc will all mitigate felt recoil to a degree.

As will choice of caliber and weapon. A light bolt action .30-06 will react with more force than say, a semi auto M1 Garand or 742 or Browning BAR in the same caliber for obvious reasons.

Also, shooting prone or from a bench v. off hand or sitting will transfer energy in a more painful fashion, again for obvious reasons.

And finally, age. When I was 18 v. now that I'm pushing 58, recoil was something I enjoyed. I can see now why my old man who was wise, reverted to shooting .22s more often in his later years.

I vote 6.5x55, .260 Rem, 7-08 or .25-06. Or handload your .30-06 down a notch or two.
 
Loss me when you ruled out the 243 Win. The 243 is one of the most underrated rounds out there. Excellent target round up to 1200 yards.

More then adequate for deer/antelope size game =/< 300 yards, (normal hunting range).

Having said that I don't use one (though I am taking my wife's 243 to the up coming Sniper Hide Challenge).

I use a 257 Rbts for deer/antelope and a 270 Win for elk.

I think position is the biggest problem regarding recoil with an '06. All but one of my '06s have steel butt plates (M1, 1903a3 and 1917 Enfields). I don't find them objectionable and I'm a real wimp when it comes to recoil.

Get off the bench and shoot prone or setting/kneeling with a sling and standing. If you can move with the recoil it doesn't hurt. Again work on your position.
 
308 ? Tis nice, I shoot a lot of 175grHPBTM rounds through one of mine. The 6.5 swede is nice as well. How well do you like your 06? Have you thought about reloading? For the price of a midrange rifle & scope, you can get a complete reloading setup with enough bullets and brass to last you several years. The meaning behind this question is simple. If you like your 06 and want to keep it, try reloading some light loads or cast bullets. Does an elk know the difference when it is hit with a 180gr spitzer moving 2800 ft per second or a 180 gr cast flat point moving at 1800 fps ? Your shoulder will know the diffrence when you shoot it. Reloading your own opens up an almost endless list of loads for your 06, as well as accuracy possibilities. Just a thought or question to think about. Been reloading for almost 30 years and love it. :D
 
many options

If you are thinking of buying a new rifles there are many options open to you.
First, it's obvious that if you can spend enough money to buy a new gun, you can afford less money.
So the options can run like thins
A. Install a recoil pad and have the Length of Pull made to fit you as well as can be done
B. Install a muzzle break (makes the gun louder, but can cut the recoil from a 30-06 down to the level of a 243)
C. Install a mercury recoil reducer. These generally cut the 'kick" down about 1/3
D All of the above

Now, if a new rifle is more appealing you can look at smaller less powerful calibers such as a 25-06, a 257 Roberts, A 243, a 260 Rem, a 7mm Mauser, and so on, but you can also look at getting an auto loader in the same caliber (30-06) or in something less powerful. The Browning BARs are very nice, and they kick less than a bolt gun caliber for caliber. A BAR in the "Short Track" style in a 7-08 is mild and one in 243 is a real pussycat.

If you don’t mind the “military look” an AR-15 in 6.8 SPC or 6.5 Grendel is an outstanding choice. These rifles kick no more than the same guns in the 223 caliber as far as I can feel, and the ballistics are all you’d need for deer. The ballistics run in the same range as the 257 Roberts or 250 savage. If you go with an AR, do yourself the favor of having a match grade trigger installed.


So remember that you can use an auto loader and lessen the kick a lot without giving up ballistics. The Brownings are usually very accurate. The Benellis can be also. I have found the Brownings to be a bit more so. (I own a Benelli R-1 and i like it, but it was finicky to get accuracy from. I have loaded ammo for several friends that use BARs and they were easier to get to shoot well.)

There are several military style autos available in 308 too, and they have their merits, but some are very heavy. The FN FNAR is VERY nice and not heavy. If you don’t mind some weight, a top-grade FN FAL from DSA is very good too.

Ok,,,,,,,,enough of my flapping……..
 
30-06 tares my should up

30-06 tares my should up...
I'm 73 years young and love shooting.
I have shot a 458 off the bench, in the past.
Now that age has "slimmed my muscle down", the recoil hurts.
Which is better the LimbSaver or Pachmyer Del....?
 
Do you have any sort of health problem, perhaps a problem with arthritis or bursitis, any twinges that you just shrug off?
 
One more for the 25-06,Just a pleasure to shoot.And you can keep your brass & down size to the 25.My wife is 5' 1'' & has shoulder problems but has no problems with the 25-06 its easy to handle. good luck
 
I think it may be the way you are holding the Rifle, My Son and I both shoot 30 06s 8MM Mausers, .308s, and 7.62x54s with steel but plates, and often shoot 50 to 100 rounds at a time, and dont have a problem with it at all. But we hold the Rifle close to the Shoulder, and often shoot from Standing, Knealing, or Sitting positions. My Son has been hunting with a Savage 110 30 06 since he was 12 and it has a plastic butt plate. I just tought him at a young age how to shoulder the rifle, and he has had no trouble.
 
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