Recoil management-poor shooting

Put 2 fingers of, your Left Hand on the Top of the Forend, LIGHTLY, alongside the Barrel to keep Muzzle "Flip", down, a bit.
Wear, the Past Recoil shield ! Good "move" putting, the Limbsaver Pad, ON !
Locate Butt Pad, OFF your Shoulder Bone,.. closer IN, towards, Neck ( the Meaty part of, Shoulder ) and hold, Pistol grip, Firmly

( Pulling inward, towards Shoulder ) But don't go crazy on holding, Firmly !
Concentrate on,.. Breathing, Cross Hair Position and Trigger squeeze.

Do you have a PADDED Cheek Riser on, the Comb of Stock ?
I have / use, a Ballistic Nylon one that, Straps on buttstock with, NO shell holders. Good Luck !
Two or three fingers worked for me on one that was flipping a little. Put fingers on edge of forearm not touching the barrel. Closed the group over half inch at one hundred ninety meters.
 
Do your best to have the rifle still pointing somewhere in the ballpark after your shot.

Yeah Follow through the shot.

..." My brother can shoot really good with fairly high recoil with your style but he's very particular about the trigger and often has it replaced or worked on. The hold down method, at least for me, helps to get around a crappy trigger. "

OP: Seriously look into Sako trigger adjustment. It's as simple as removing the stock and adjusting one hex head screw. ~2 lbs or a fuz over that. No creep or over travel. Same for Tikka.
 
I developed a bad flinch when I was a kid shooting big magnums. One day my dad said "if you are going to pull the trigger anyway.....why not make it count?" After that I never flinched again. It was all mind over matter for me. Now recoil doesn't bother me.....at least not yet!
 
Hi everyone, I need some help. I own among many other rifles of sako finnlight in 300 WSM. For the life of me I cannot sight it in anything better than a 3 inch group... Unfortunately, I have to admit this is due to my inability off managing the recoil and shooting it without a flinch. The gun is about 7 1/2 pound scoped and it beats me up bad. I also own a 9 pound 375H&H and I can shoot that one with no problem... This little WSM however just beats me. I'm planning to take this rifle for a mountain hunt this summer and I am wondering what should I do to properly sight it in? Would you have it threaded and use a muzzlebreak or a can? The problem is I detest muzzle breaks and a can make the gun rather unwieldy. Would you think sighting it in in a lead sled like device would be reasonable? I can shoot it for a couple rounds without the sled but then the wheels come off as it starts to beat me up, therefore I am unable to even sight it in right now.... Anyways, any suggestions are welcome and if you think it is best to thread it where would you have it done? I live in by the twin cities in MN.
I would think if, you like the Gun putting on a Muzzlebreak would be the way to go. People around you might not like it BUT, let them not stand right alongside you when shooting! I shoot a 300 WM and can do so all day with a Break-on the end. Wearing just a "T" shirt, and maybe pants🤣🤣
 

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Hi everyone, I need some help. I own among many other rifles of sako finnlight in 300 WSM. For the life of me I cannot sight it in anything better than a 3 inch group... Unfortunately, I have to admit this is due to my inability off managing the recoil and shooting it without a flinch. The gun is about 7 1/2 pound scoped and it beats me up bad. I also own a 9 pound 375H&H and I can shoot that one with no problem... This little WSM however just beats me. I'm planning to take this rifle for a mountain hunt this summer and I am wondering what should I do to properly sight it in? Would you have it threaded and use a muzzlebreak or a can? The problem is I detest muzzle breaks and a can make the gun rather unwieldy. Would you think sighting it in in a lead sled like device would be reasonable? I can shoot it for a couple rounds without the sled but then the wheels come off as it starts to beat me up, therefore I am unable to even sight it in right now.... Anyways, any suggestions are welcome and if you think it is best to thread it where would you have it done? I live in by the twin cities in MN.
I own several WSM Browning rifles and love the way they shoot. I start with an improved recoil pad, then add a little weight in the but of the stock area (1/2 lbs is usually enough) however, nothing works as well as a muzzle break and it is a relatively cheap upgrade. If your in the market for a new scope that is another way to add a few ounces. Another thing that adds to felt recoil is the weight of your bullet, although I love the 210 gr Nossler Accubond Long Range bullet in my 12lb target rifle I would definitely drop down to 160 to 170 grain for most hunts in my mountain rifle.
 
#1 Put a brake on it - terminators are great but there are lots of other good options out there.

I find practice is key for shooting big magnums well. Try and reduce your load, get comfortable with the rifle and then start increasing powder charges and build up to where you want to be.

All good using a sled to zero it but at the end of the day the shooter needs to be comfortable with the recoil and mange the torque well to be able to shoot accurately for clean kill shots on game at long range.

The range I shoot at is like a concrete bunker, muzzle blast from the brake is much worse than in the field. Get used to that and it's easy in the field.

Put a few hundred shots through the rifle and you will get used to it and learn to mange the recoil. Just start slow and build up. Shoot a couple of shots and before you know it 20 shots at the range wont seem so bad.

I'm guessing a lot of us shooting big magnums have good days and bad days where you don't get the groups we were hoping for, but ultimately practice and getting comfortable with your rifle is key to taking good long range shots on game.

Calibre doesn't always have the biggest impact on felt recoil either. My tikka T3 270 loaded hot with 140s had a real punch that was much worse than my Sako Finnlight 300wm or 30 Nosler which have recoil which is more like a heavy push. A limbsaver on the 270 made no difference for me.

Like most things perseverance and practice and you'll get it sorted.
 
Hi everyone, I need some help. I own among many other rifles of sako finnlight in 300 WSM. For the life of me I cannot sight it in anything better than a 3 inch group... Unfortunately, I have to admit this is due to my inability off managing the recoil and shooting it without a flinch. The gun is about 7 1/2 pound scoped and it beats me up bad. I also own a 9 pound 375H&H and I can shoot that one with no problem... This little WSM however just beats me. I'm planning to take this rifle for a mountain hunt this summer and I am wondering what should I do to properly sight it in? Would you have it threaded and use a muzzlebreak or a can? The problem is I detest muzzle breaks and a can make the gun rather unwieldy. Would you think sighting it in in a lead sled like device would be reasonable? I can shoot it for a couple rounds without the sled but then the wheels come off as it starts to beat me up, therefore I am unable to even sight it in right now.... Anyways, any suggestions are welcome and if you think it is best to thread it where would you have it done? I live in by the twin cities in MN.
I use American Precision Fat Bastard bakes and Limbsaver Recoil pads on all my high powered rifles. Eliminates the vast majority of the recoil and makes the rifles enjoyable to shoot. I just make sure & tell everyone around me that I have a brake on my rifle.....
 
I have an old H&R full rifled 12 Ga single shot that I tried scoping once, only to end up with my "magnum eyebrow".... lots of blood by the way, but no fun. Anyway, I got a piece of curly maple and carved a new forend with a large enough cavity to Accra glas roughly a pound of lead fine shot in place. It made a very noticable reduction in recoil, and the already accurate mule of a slug gun became more managable, so I kept it. In my gun safe, where it remains, right next to the 20 Ga Savage 220 that is an 1 1/2" 200 yard gun and the one I hunted with in our SRA before moving to Potter County.

If you really like that WSM, keep it, but you mentioned a 375 H&H that at 9 1/2 lbs doesn't beat you half to death. Since stock design has a great deal to do with how badly a rifle beats you up, my suggestion to tame the WSM is to compare the stocks, and see the difference between them. Then check with a reputable gunsmith and have him either suggest a better stock, or restock the rifle for you. You may be pleasantly surprised.
 
I like all of the suggestions on here every one is trying to be of help . I especially like the ones about the stock . I haven't seen you with the rifle shouldered but it sure does sound like a fit issue . As so many have said before me look at the stocks of the ones you have that you enjoy shooting then make a few measurements and do some comparing of the stocks. You may want to contact some stock manufactures and see what the have to offer or get your existing stock modified to fit you it's all part of the enjoyment of shooting learning what works for you and what you need to make fit your needs .
 
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