The Nastiest handgun recoil handgun?

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TXAZ

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I have a Desert Eagle .44 Mag. Some don’t like it but to most that have shot it, the recoil is manageable (assuming a good grip on the weapon). :D:D:D

Now I’m trying to imagine what would .44 Mag recoil be in a very lightweight gun.
Or more broadly what’s the nastiest recoil in any handgun?
 
Most pocket .380 acp are of a blowback design and not a lot of fun to shoot. I had a Polish P-64 in 9 Makarov that was unpleasant to shoot. Then there was that S&W model 337 that weighed 11oz....try that one with some .38spl +P ammo.

Of course, the risk of shooting this type of pistol is the flinching that sets in. It takes a lot of training on a softer shooting pistol to overcome this flinch once you have it.

Here is the deal though. Lots of "he-men" will tell you that they are not recoil sensitive. That very well may be true, I wouldn't know though because I am. After putting a handful of rounds through any of these pistols that kick the stall, I'm ruined.
 
I have two original Ruger Vaqueros in 44 mag. Both literally draw blood when shot. Those cowboy grips are horrible, no matter how good your grip is, they rotate in your hand and the sharp edge of the hammer takes a chunk out of the first knuckle of your thumb.

If someone thinks any 380 has stout recoil, you are conversing with a certified wimp. :D
 
My encore in .308 win is a beast. I thought is was awful, until I shot my brother's encore in 270 win......then mine seemed tame
 
My personal experience was shooting my Blackhawk 45 with the original grip frame and Buffalo Bore's +P 260 gain loads. It would rotate something nasty and hard on the wrist. My dad has a 44 mag Blackhawk and been shooting it for years, he wouldn't those 45 loads either after one cylinder full. And he has no problem shooting any loads through his 44mag, but has the longer grip. But them I added the longer Super Hunter grip frame and that tamed it down to a normal level. Now it's no problem shooting any loads, basally a huge part of the felt recoil is the shape of the grip and how a guy holds it. I have a number of small blow back hand guns and other than a "sharp" recoil I don;t mind them. But I would not use +P loads again in a small grip frame Ruger.
 
Or more broadly what’s the nastiest recoil in any handgun?
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"Nastiest" and heaviest aren't automatically the same thing. While I haven't shot the .50 (I hear its a whole 'nother level) if you can manage the oversize grip of the Desert Eagle (and the effort needed to hold it up :rolleyes:) the .357 and .44 Mags are pussycats for recoil.

General rule, the lighter the gun, the more it kicks. Grip size, shape, construction, and fit in your hand are major factors. Then add in the power of the load fired.

Your style / manner of grip, and your overall skill and experience level play a part as well.

If you're shooting an SA revolver and the hammer bites your thumb, YOU are doing something wrong.

Nastiest, as in most painful, pistol I've shot was actually a 9mm Mauser Broomhandle Bolo. Bigger and heavier than nearly all other 9mm pistols, but the size, and shape of the grip, and particularly the metal slot down the back made it actually painful to shoot.

S&W M29 6.5" with standard factory target grips = painful to shoot with full house loads. Put on Pachmayr's and not so bad.

S&W M29 3" round butt with pachmayr grips =painful to shoot with full house loads, plus the gun lays over on its side from torque.

T/C Contender is .45-70 = stout but not painful, FOR ME. Friend of mine tried it, after watching me shoot it, and smacked himself in the nose!

Bled a bit too! :D

.357 in a light weight snub nose? NO THANK YOU!!
 
Ruger super blackhawk in .44 mag with a crappy grip.

Not only would the recoil hurt in the palm of the grip hand, but the 2 halves of the grip would rotate and pinch your palm, giving you blood blisters.

I finally got a nice 1 piece grip for it. So now I just have to deal with the sore hand.
 
The harshest recoiling handgun I currently own is a Taurus Judge Magnum.

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It's a far cry from having the harshest recoil in the world, but a 3" Shell packs one heck of a punch to the palm, especially with the wood grips I fitted it with. If I fire a few cylinders full in rapid succession then my hands have a tendency to get all shaky afterwards.

Ingramite said:
Most pocket .380 acp are of a blowback design and not a lot of fun to shoot. I had a Polish P-64 in 9 Makarov that was unpleasant to shoot. Then there was that S&W model 337 that weighed 11oz....try that one with some .38spl +P ammo.
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Can confirm. I own a Walther PPK/S in .380 ACP and it honestly has more felt recoil than my SW40VE which weighs about the same. (Both weigh around 23oz unloaded.)
In addition, my Ruger LCP is actually has slightly less recoil than the PPK/S, despite the fact that it only weighs 10oz unloaded.

The Straight Blowback operated action of the Walther PP Series as well as it's many clones and derivatives rely on nothing more than the combined weight of the slide and the recoil spring to hold the action closed until the chamber pressure drops to safe levels, so it naturally transfers a lot of recoil force into the palm.
 

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A single shot Thompson Center Contender in 357 Herret (a 30-30 necked up to .357) was the most brutal recoiling handgun I've ever fired. I probably would have been OK if I had stopped at 7 or 8 rounds, but I shot about 15 rounds and felt like someone punched me repeatedly in the head.
 
Revolvers by their design have a higher bore axis and therefore they transfer more recoil torque than do semi-autos. Semi-auto's lower bore axis causes the recoil force to directed more back than up as the fulcrum's pivot point is lower.

Add to that the fact that the basic design of a revolver's grip is somewhat like an inverted cone making them difficult to grip tightly as the harder you squeeze, the higher up your hand wants to slide up the grip.

Together, they make for poor recoil control vs that of a semi-auto without a custom grip and lighter loads to reduce the torque.
 
That would be my Super 14 Contender in .50-70. With that big hole in the barrel it’s total weight is under 3 pounds; 475 cast at 1383 fps or 700 FMJs at 1030 fps get your total undivided attention! Shown below beside a .25-35 barrel and cartridge for scale.
 

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I have a Beretta 34 in 380; the recoil itself isn't bad, however, the slide bite WILL tear the web of your hand up no matter how you try to grip it. For massive recoil a 357 in a scandium j frame.
 
I've shot a .50 Desert Beagle, .44 Vaqueroo, and a buch of other stuff. But, the most painful is the Ruger LCP. Most fun is a 3 screw Ruger single six .22.
 
I havent shot one of these, but from the reports of those who have, they are right up there at or near the top for "not fun".....

"Downsizer- Model WSP" 45ACP

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I've mentioned this so many times I suspect regulars might get tired of hearing it but I just won't shoot the Ruger LCR with 158 grain .357 magnums rounds. Hurts my hand too much. I have shot a .30-30 Thompson Center single shot pistol and an S&W .460 magnum with and 8 something inch barrel and neither of those was as bad as that little LCR.

I can only imagine what that S&W .357 magnum Scandium model (might be the 340) would be like.
 
Without a doubt, the handgun that hurt my hand the most was (note the past-tense modifier) a Smith & Wesson J-frame, Model 360Sc (scandium) revolver, weighing 12 ounces and chambered in .357 Magnum. A cylinder full (five rounds) of .357 Magnum loads was all I ever wanted to touch off at one outing. Great gun for edc though...
 
A 329 (scandium frame 44 mag) is rather unpleasant, but not terrible. I forget the make but it was a single action in 45-70, it too was rather unpleasant. A 700gr 500 magnum is punishing, borderline painful. My Smith 360 (scandium frame 357 mag J frame) is absolutely painful with full house 357 in it, there is a reason they have a reputation for nerve damage.
 
I have shot lots of BIG guns. .44, a 45/70 revolver, etc. etc.

By far for me.....full house .357 through one of those damn Smith and Wesson hand grena.......errrr scandium J frames. They are like carpal tunnel syndrome if it came in a blue box.
 
I agree with dgludwig, I owned a Smith 340PD for a while. 11 oz, scandium 357 magnum. A cylinder per range trip was more than enough.
 
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