[Sniper03]

As far as a handgun. It was a Thompson Contender 30-30 Cal. Pistol 10" barrel loaded hot with 168 Grain Sierra Boat Tail HP Match Bullets for 200 yard silhouette competition. Shot it from the Creedmoor position laying down on my back with the weapon supported against my right leg! When the pistol went off it would recoil and be aiming straight up in the air 90 degrees from the direction it was when I pulled the trigger. It had some recoil or (Kick as some call it!) But extremely accurate. 4" groups at 200 yards. And very competitive!

03

[big_blue79]

I've only shot 2 pistols thus far, a the Hi-Point .40S&W and the Taurus 1911AR, IMO it's the .40S&W, it didn't hurt just a little hotter round than the .45ACP and that polymer grip on the Hi-Point is hard as hell to hold on to without a rubber slipon Hogue grip.

[HockaLouis]

This is the most enjoyable thread I've read in a long time. And I'm amazed at some of the stuff we've done. How dopey, and overall lucky, we seem to be.

[Satchmo]

I have seen a few comical and scary moments. My aunt hit her head with a Colt Anaconda .44 mag. It has good kick, but S&W's 500 has it beat. IMHO Small pistols with little mass can catch you off guard like the Beretta Bobcat. It is just a .22LR but is so small and light. The Airlight .357 S&W is no fun to shoot .357 rounds with, but .38 spl is a blast to shoot with it. Again a small very light frame but now with a high power load. Any .50 cal (cartridge) rifle has good kick. I have fired .50BMG and .50 Sharps. They were both not very comfortable as far as recoil. I think the Sharps caught me off guard like the .22 Bobcat. Too much black powder can make your shoulder sore too! Small light handguns tend to catch people unaware and results can be dangerous. With such a small mass the kickback is a lot more pronounced. I have a .22 tiny swing bbl Derringer, but am too scared to fire it. It is old and was found in the trash. I fired it in a vise with some twine on the trigger. I am not into powder burns, unless they prevent worse injuries or death. Those small pistols that are super light weight bug me the most. Maybe not the most kick, but just hard to get a grip on and control. They can really surprise you!

[winds-of-change]

I have shot a Sharps, too. I think that was the most painful long gun I've ever shot. Not that I've shot that many. But dang, it hurt.

[Satchmo]

I see Desert Eagle mentioned a lot. We used to shoot at these palm trees out at a wildcat mining site with them for hours. The newer model has a shock absorbing cylinder in it. We did not have that one. I always got nailed by some small frame pistol with no mass and a big load in it. The way the Desert Eagle looks you ARE bracing for some recoil. 454 Cassul is about the same as the 500 S&W.IMHO and again you anticipate serious recoil. My boss got into those Thompson Center Arms long range rifle chambered pistols. He had nice brakes and compensators on his. The Airweights with no mass to counter the recoil are nasty. Big frame equals more mass and surface area to hang onto. Trust me when the time comes that you are looking at a guy trying to kill you with a weapon, including his vehicle, on purpose you will be so jacked up on adrenaline the recoil will be akin to a starter's pistol or cap gun. I know it was that way for me. I was so scared everything was in such slow motion I could see the slide moving and the shell tumbling out the port taking forever to reach the ground. Pray you never get to experience this! I had a Browning Hi Power that evening. I admit it shot beautifully, but it was like a slo mo cap gun that night.

[Satchmo]

Yeah the Sharps really F'in hurts. That butt stock is none to comfortable without shooting it! Metal makes a poor recoil pad. The first BMGs I shot were locally hand made bolt action 2000 yard rifles. Not too bad with the brake and recoil pad. Still not good! I was not going to trade working 3-5 months on some guy's new gun shop for a rifle, but they were nice! I was honored he let me fire it and check it out, but I need cash flow.

[unclebear]

I just found this thread, the most painful gun I've shot was a 500 S&W mag with the short barrel. Almost broke my damn nose.