Prime example of not feeling recoil while hunting.
When my younger daughter was 11, she drew an AZ bull elk tag. Well, she had a 6.5SLR I built for her, and I had a .25-06AI. I told her we needed the extra oomph of the .25-06AI for elk...knowing full well I had an identical rifle in .300RUM (except the RUM had a brake on it) she would actually be shooting. She practiced a bunch with the .25-06AI and was very comfortable with it.
Come hunting season, I carried that .300RUM around for her. When we finally got her on a bull, she smoked him at 160 yards in his bed. I had my leg behind her for the shot thinking she might go over backwards. Not a bit. I asked her how it was, she said "It was loud". Does this face lie?
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Total agreement on the .270. I'm almost numb to recoil after shooting tens of thousands of rounds for 60 years but I feel a .270 (lasers that they are) as much as I feel .45-70's.I really only notice recoil when I switch from rifle to rifle at the range. As in the previous rifle kicked more or less than the one I'm shooting now. A good stock helps knock the edge off as well as a break. I don't notice recoil in the field at all.
Now I will say that some cartridges just seem to kick harder than they should. I shot a 30-378wby 9 times. 8 to get the scope sighted in and once at a 90lb central Texas whitetail doe that was almost cut in half. I think the bullets were 180gr barnes but I don't remember. I do remember the recoil being violent and the wood stock didn't do much to help and it didn't have a break. Sold it and 11 loaded rounds to a 130lb 70+yo cotton farmer who was half my size but twice the man I was at 19 lol.
Another honorable mention is 270win. I've shot 8-10 rifles chambered in 270win and every single one of them seemed to kick way more than they should have. Granted most of them were "lightweight" factory rifles with no muzzle device.
Everything I shoot now has a break on it except my 25-06 coyote rifle. If it was threaded it would have a break on it also.
A muzzle device (MBs, suppressors, etc.) is a game changer.My two cents: if the recoil of a rifle causes a person to develop a flinch, it is too much.