Tips on reducing recoil anticipation/flinch when shooting hard-kicking rifles
- Thread starter ezmiraldo
- Start date
Because 'Merica
New member
Have a friend throw in a dud. (Cartridge with no powder and no primer)
Get him to load the mag or gun in any order without you knowing.
You will find out fast how bad the flinch is and u will start to make it a mental note to not flinch.
If you dont want to flinch you can have him load say 4-5 duds and have one live round in there. The live round will startle you but I bet you will put it where you want it if you are practicing proper control.
If the 06 is too much, i shoot the crap out of my Savage 10 .223 Rem. Not a care in the world for that recoil.
Trying to shoot long range with a popular round? .243 win will do better than 06 in my opinion.
Get him to load the mag or gun in any order without you knowing.
You will find out fast how bad the flinch is and u will start to make it a mental note to not flinch.
If you dont want to flinch you can have him load say 4-5 duds and have one live round in there. The live round will startle you but I bet you will put it where you want it if you are practicing proper control.
If the 06 is too much, i shoot the crap out of my Savage 10 .223 Rem. Not a care in the world for that recoil.
Trying to shoot long range with a popular round? .243 win will do better than 06 in my opinion.
Like others say, embrace it...knowing that with proper form it's not going to hurt you.
I will add, that no one has mentioned the eye relief of the optic- which becomes increasingly important with hard-kicking rifles.
If your scope doesn't allow for at least 3" of eye relief, you should consider replacing it. Having to get too up close and personal on an .06- knowing you're going to get "scope bit" could be part of your problem.
I will add, that no one has mentioned the eye relief of the optic- which becomes increasingly important with hard-kicking rifles.
If your scope doesn't allow for at least 3" of eye relief, you should consider replacing it. Having to get too up close and personal on an .06- knowing you're going to get "scope bit" could be part of your problem.
bbqncigars
New member
Bart B. is right on the money (as usual). That's how I eliminated a flinch back when I started shooting centerfire pistol. I made some 'dummy' rounds - no primer or powder, and mixed them in with the real ammo. It didn't take long to break myself of the flinch.
Brotherbadger
New member
Maybe buy some lower recoil rounds and get a l limbsaver pad? That helped me when I first started shooting 7mm RM.
Bring your .22LR to the range next time and shoot 1 set with the 30-06, then the next target set with .22LR. Repeat that cycle a few times. That's how I got rid of my flinch and learned to love the .22LR. Now, it doesn't matter what I shoot, I just don't pay attention to the recoil.
Unlicensed Dremel
Moderator
ezmiraldo, I think the 3 things you listed are great and exactly what I would have recommended. You're on the right track. I would just add practice practice practice, and shooting a lighter bullet weight and/or powder charge.
Colorado Redneck
New member
Have resigned myself to fighting the flinch till I die
Flinchitis does not cure itself. And in my experience, shooting more of what makes you flinch just ingrains the response even deeper. Unless one is target shooting for competition, there is no real purpose in banging away at the bench (except during load development--then use a lead sled.) For hunting, if the gun needs to be checked, a few shots before season should do that job. Then the actual hunt---however many shots that requires.
I shoot lighter calibers for prairie dog fun, and even a 22-250 can make my jumpy if I shoot a bunch of them in a row. 222 Remington, or 204 Ruger is easier to control the reflex. Dry firing a couple of times before cranking out a round on long shots makes me lots more accurate. Focus, concentration on form, squeeze the trigger till it breaks---should be a surprise.
Big game calibers---just shoot a few times a year. Then it doesn't sneak up on me and mess up a shot on game. If I am lucky and the stars are aligned properly
Flinchitis does not cure itself. And in my experience, shooting more of what makes you flinch just ingrains the response even deeper. Unless one is target shooting for competition, there is no real purpose in banging away at the bench (except during load development--then use a lead sled.) For hunting, if the gun needs to be checked, a few shots before season should do that job. Then the actual hunt---however many shots that requires.
I shoot lighter calibers for prairie dog fun, and even a 22-250 can make my jumpy if I shoot a bunch of them in a row. 222 Remington, or 204 Ruger is easier to control the reflex. Dry firing a couple of times before cranking out a round on long shots makes me lots more accurate. Focus, concentration on form, squeeze the trigger till it breaks---should be a surprise.
Big game calibers---just shoot a few times a year. Then it doesn't sneak up on me and mess up a shot on game. If I am lucky and the stars are aligned properly