Magnum Flinch

A

AR-10

New member
I feel stupid having to explain this, but I need advice.

I bought a Taurus 4" stainless steel .41Magnum. I have put 110 rounds through it and I have yet to get the sights set on it. The reason for this is the horrendous flinch I developed after the first round I touched off. I've had it to the range four times, and it seems to be getting worse instead of better.

I have three .44Magnums, and I do not have this problem with them. I shoot my 8" Anaconda with better acuracy than any of my other handguns. I do occasionally start to flinch, but I can recognize it and get it under control.

I realize this is all mental, but I cannot control it. I can sit at home and dry-fire it quite handily in SA or DA.

When I went to the range today, I tried something different. I loaded a round in the cylinder, looked away, spun the cylinder, loaded a second round in, spun the cylinder, and closed it with three empty chambers. The first two times I did this I fired the gun SA until both rounds had been fired. I am embarrassed to say that I was pushing the gun about 6-10 inches below intended point of impact about half the time, shooting at 15 yards.

I tried it eight more times shootin double action, and it was better, but I was still pushing it more often than not.

The .41Mag Taurus does have more felt recoil than my .44s, and frankly hurts my middle finger directly behind the trigger guard sometimes. I don't think it is any more violent to shoot than my .357Mag snubbies. I am not afraid of recoil, but it seems I am afeared to pull the trigger on this one.:rolleyes:

Any suggestions? I have been shooting PMC 210gr (ran out) and Federal 210gr Hi-Shok (running out). Maybe a lighter ammo till I get in the groove?
 
Either that or some better grips, I think the flinch is coming from the fact it is hurting the middle finger. Recoil is managable, real pain isn't. Try the gloves, if they don't work get some $20 rubber grips, if they don't work I say trade it off.
 
It could be more of a...I am going to hurt my finger flinch. Definitely change the grips. Pachmayr Decelerators fill in behind the trigger guard and reduce recoil. If you do not like rubber, try some Hogue finger groove grips. Hogue's wood grips fill the area behind the trigger guard, and no more finger banging against the trigger guard, and the finger grooves will help you hold onto the beast. Sling Shot
 
The revolver comes with the soft grips that have fins on the sides and front. If I grip it tightly enough to compress the fins on the front I am using a death grip that enhances the flinch. If I grip it loosely, it bangs my finger. Either way, it is pounding my palm.

Grips and glove are both good suggestions. I'll start looking. Any suggestions on the best shooting glove? Would a wooden grip make the felt recoil worse, or would the gun roll up, dissipating the energy?
 
Argh, I have this problem when shooting any hand guns. It really sucks.

I dont even notice it until I think im about to fire the gun but it ends up being empty or whatever.

Any tips to avoid flinching would be helpful.
 
I think it's helpful to remember and ACCEPT THE FACT that the critter makes a loud noise and rares back and then forget about it.

Keep a firm but relaxed grip on the critter and concentrate ONLY on the FRONT SIGHT. Touch one off and when it comes back down focus ONLY on the FRONT SIGHT. Repeat as necessary.

I think your flinch will disappear if you ACCEPT that the critter makes a loud noise and rares back and focus ONLY on the FRONT SIGHT.

There is no magic, only understanding and acceptance. HTH
 
How about shooting light loads first, and gradually increasing the power? That works for me! With any gun. Of course, you must be a reloader. With .45 ACP and .357 Mag. calibers, I was able to jump from light loads directly to heavy, full-power loads. With the .44 Mag., I had to work up in steps. Good luck!
 
I had the same problem with the back of the trigger guard smashing my middle finger. Switched to a rubber Hogue Monogrip and the problem disappeared. Must have made some kind of adjustment because now I'm back to wood grips with no problem at all.
Ronin
 
This suggestion may be totally unacceptable, but if you cannot come to grips (pardon the pun) with the revolver, you might consider parting with it and obtaining something you feel more comfortable with. I had a major problem with a .40 cal auto loader when I first got it. I hung in there like a hair in a biscuit and finally have settled down (2000 to 2500 rounds later). I refused to give up although it had crossed my mind on a few occaisions.
 
Hate to ask a stupid questions but...

Why would you put up with all this grief to shoot a .41 when you do great with a .44? Rather than put another $50-100 into something that doesn't work, dump it and buy something that works. Cut your losses and don't ruin your form.
 
You also might want to upgrade to a Larger Pistol.

My brother just can't shoot my 4 inch M-29, but he CAN shoot a Super Blackhawk and a Ruger Redhawk in .44 Mag.

Might just need a bit more weight and barrel.
 
Back off to light loads and have someone else load the cylinder and hand it to you (carefully of course). They should vary it from 0-6 rounds so you never know what to expect- bang or no bang. Reduced power loads until the flinch is gone then work up gradually but with some continued "blind" cylinder loadings.
Good Luck
 
I understand that it's your finger that hurts, but...

While trying the above suggestions from others, try this, too:

Get better hearing protection. I know, I know....but it can work wonders while working out a flinch if you simplify and reduce the stuff you're reacting to as much as possible. Try double plugging for a while.

Steve
 
YOUR RESULTS MAY VARY

Your flinch is a direct body response to being hurt. Suggest (sadly) that changing grips and/or selling gun as only viable options (unless you get light-recoiling ammo -- but then why would you want a slow .410" bullet?).

All my Redhawks (and my GP100's, too) wear Pachmayr Decelerators.
No blood.
 
WESHOOT2,

I agree with both thoughts. Need different grips, don't want slower ammo. Slower ammo may help get it sighted in, but the factory grips are not right for me. No point in keeping the gun if I can't shoot full house loads without hurting myself.

I've only had the gun two weeks, so I'm not ready to give up yet. It's worth twenty or thirty bucks to see if new grips solve the problem, providing I can find some. A cursory look at Pachmayr and Hogue did not look promising.

If I can't get along with this gun, I'll sell it and abandon the caliber. Ammo is hard to come by and expensive. I can always get my big boom thrills with .44Magnum.

Thanks all for the input.
 
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