Softer-shooting than .308?

[Foxyboy43]

Due to an injury from a car accident, I would like to reduce recoil. I currently use a .308 with a muzzle brake. I'm looking for a softer-shooting caliber suitable for general hunting.

In the Netherlands, the legal minimum caliber for hunting anything bigger than roe deer is 6.5 mm.
I've read mixed reviews about the 6.5 Creedmoor.

Who can give me advice about low-recoil hunting caliber(s)?

First off - sorry to hear of your injury; awful when an accident makes you change your lifestyle. But all is not lost - as others have said you could stick with the .308, put an excellent Limbsaver pad on it and go down to lighter bullets. My .308 and a 125gns Sierra Prohunter will drop anything you are ever likely to encounter. Alternatively my 6.5x55SE driving a 120gns Sierra Prohunter or 130gns Sierra Gamechanger will do pretty much the same job with noticeably less recoil - you can even see the bullet strike…

 

[Mungo]

Due to an injury from a car accident, I would like to reduce recoil. I currently use a .308 with a muzzle brake. I'm looking for a softer-shooting caliber suitable for general hunting.

In the Netherlands, the legal minimum caliber for hunting anything bigger than roe deer is 6.5 mm.
I've read mixed reviews about the 6.5 Creedmoor.

Who can give me advice about low-recoil hunting caliber(s)?

Mixed reviews about 6.5 Creedmoor?

I’ve shot both .308 and Creedmoor extensively. I would use either very happily. There is very little difference.

 

[tackb]

I assume you are a lady shooter ?

Women are a different shape to men and the general stock shape is set up for men so try as many guns as you can to find the stock shape that suits your frame, then get the heaviest rifle you can manage for your purpose plus a nice recoil pad , then choose a creedmoor , it’s incredibly popular for a reason !

So weight , stock shape and creedmoor and you should be good to go ?

Ignore the people say just give up or take up golf , they are dinosaurs who think it’s funny to discourage people and gives them some perverse kick to insult people on the internet

 

[Emilio]

I cannot see what I have missed. But you seem to have a problem accepting some simple facts.

No I have problems with someone being a jerk to my wife because he cannot comprehend the question asked....

 

[bullet chucker]

It would seem that the 6.5x55 is the best choice for your needs, imho. Good luck and a speedy recovery.

BC.

 

[Sammie]

I‘m not being anything. You want to kill deer, but can‘t. Live with it.

Just to claify again: I shoot perfectly with a .308 and am able to kill deer with a single shot, but I was advised to choose the bullet with the least recoil for the job to prevent problems in the future.
If you cannot give relevant input, then please stop replying.

 

[Foxyboy43]

So no difference between 308 and whatever 6.5 in recoil?

Hmm.
From my ever faulty memory the 6.5x55 recoil energy is about 80% of that of the .308. Open to correction of course….

 

[tackb]

I‘m not being anything. You want to kill deer, but can‘t. Live with it.

You kind of are but I doubt you’re the sort to re read your attitude and apologise?

 

[Sammie]

By reducing bullet weight to 110g or 130g but being careful about construction the .308 becomes very soft shooting indeed. Is a moderator an option, can rifle weight be increased slightly as that also helps.

A moderator is forbidden in The Netherlands... I hope the rules will change!
We've already come down from 180 to 147gr.

 

[Emilio]

It would seem that the 6.5x55 is the best choice for your needs, imho. Good luck and a speedy recovery.

BC.

It seems that the availability of 6.5 creedmoor is better than 6.5x55 here on the continent and they seem pretty similar from the specs I find.
Is there a particular advantage the 6.5x55 has over the CM? Or is this a thin ice with high heels type of question?

 

[The Optimist]

I think you might like 6.5CM. I find it a very different recoil to a .308. Certainly more comfortable. And you could perhaps try a muzzle brake if you aren’t permitted a moderator, it will help but it will be quite loud. I think the trick is to try as many rifles as you can for fit and comfort, preferably with a scope fitted so can bring it into your shoulder with the correct eye relief. As has been mentioned above, you could have a different butt pad fitted to the stock. And wear a ‘shooters’ jacket’ or gilet with a padded shoulder. Definitely ’try before you buy’. You will find the right rifle and the right cartridge for you, and you don’t need to compromise. Good luck in your search and let us know how you get on.

 

[Foxyboy43]

It seems that the availability of 6.5 creedmoor is better than 6.5x55 here on the continent and they seem pretty similar from the specs I find.
Is there a particular advantage the 6.5x55 has over the CM? Or is this a thin ice with high heels type of question?

They shoot the same bullets at pretty much the same speeds but the CM is a shorter action and so uses slightly less powder which may not be of interest if you only use factory ammo.

 

[tackb]

Just to claify again: I shoot perfectly with a .308 and am able to kill deer with a single shot, but I was advised to choose the bullet with the least recoil for the job to prevent problems in the future.
If you cannot give relevant input, then please stop replying.

Can or do you reload ammo or are you restricted to factory ?

Is there a power limit for deer where you hunt ?

You may be able to load ammo to just make the power limit to reduce recoil ?

Actual recoil is a combination of bullet weight and velocity against the rifle weight , where as felt recoil is affected by stock shape and many other things

I have two creedmoors one is about half the weight of the other but felt recoil on them both feels the same ,one is in a very adjustable heavy comp MDT ACC stock the other is in a pse composites etac stock felt recoil is the same

 

[Malxwal]

308 is a bit snappy, but you could try lighter ammo like the Sako 123 gr. 6.5x55 is a nicer round to shoot.

 

[enfieldspares]

Years ago Remington used to produce "Low Recoil" loads in a number of calibres.

To my mind the easiest way to have a low recoiling .308 Winchester is to drill the butt stock of the OP's rifle from the rear and insert two ounces/sixty grams (or even more) of lead in the resulting hole.

At the same time think if a recoil pad might also be useful for what I have found is that a butt too short is a devil for making you think a cartridge is hard recoiling. So the stock may be too short? Also check if reloading that you are not sizing the shoulder down too much and creating unnecessary headspace.

I have shot a .470 Holland & Holland double that had less felt recoil than a 20 bore 3" Magnum. Indeed the worst ever recoil I had to suffer was an FAC rated Webley Patriot air rifle in .22". God! It was like being punched in the cheek by Mike Tyson. Nobody could manage more than five shots before asking "No more".

 

[Sammie]

I assume you are a lady shooter ?

Women are a different shape to men and the general stock shape is set up for men so try as many guns as you can to find the stock shape that suits your frame, then get the heaviest rifle you can manage for your purpose plus a nice recoil pad , then choose a creedmoor , it’s incredibly popular for a reason !

So weight , stock shape and creedmoor and you should be good to go ?

Ignore the people say just give up or take up golf , they are dinosaurs who think it’s funny to discourage people and gives them some perverse kick to insult people on the internet

Yes, I am a lady shooter.
Thank you for your "ignore" warning, I appreciate that. I am a very positive person, I can't stand people who see things in a negative perspective. That same positivity has led me to start shooting again a while after the accident. I cannot hold the rifle up by hand, but I can still shoot very well while sitting, lying down or on shootings sticks. So I still have many possibilities, that gives me great joy!

I shoot a Blaser R8, that rifle suits me very well. Thank you for the advice for Creedmoor.

 

[Emilio]

Can or do you reload ammo or are you restricted to factory ?

Is there a power limit for deer where you hunt ?

You may be able to load ammo to just make the power limit to reduce recoil ?

Actual recoil is a combination of bullet weight and velocity against the rifle weight , where as felt recoil is affected by stock shape and many other things

I have two creedmoors one is about half the weight of the other but felt recoil on them both feels the same ,one is in a very adjustable heavy comp MDT ACC stock the other is in a pse composites etac stock felt recoil is the same

At the moment only factory loads, will probably change in a couple of years. So we would like an option for now, but for future use:
MInimum caliber 6.5mm, minimum energy 2200J at 100m.
And it is about actual recoil, it's not a shoulder problem. Althought, thinking about it, slower transfer will also be better, hmmm.....

 

[Emilio]

308 is a bit snappy, but you could try lighter ammo like the Sako 123 gr. 6.5x55 is a nicer round to shoot.

Hard to stabilise out of a standard R8 barrel I think?

 

[Emilio]

They shoot the same bullets at pretty much the same speeds but the CM is a shorter action and so uses slightly less powder which may not be of interest if you only use factory ammo.

Thanx! For now no reloading, so just go for the most practicall option?

 

[enfieldspares]

Actual recoil is a combination of bullet weight and velocity against the rifle weight , where as felt recoil is affected by stock shape and many other things

THIS +1