“recoil”

Nobody likes being hit hard in the shoulder every time they squeeze the trigger on his or her favorite shotgun or rifle. But recoil is a reality of the nature of firearms: The more power, the greater the bite.

You acquired that magnum rifle for a reason, but the kick it delivered overwhelmed your desire to take it on that elk hunt. Now it just sits in the safe. Throw any one of these six counterpunches to reduce recoil, and put that prized possession back into action.

While felt recoil levels are somewhat subjective, across a wide spectrum, there are several cartridges that have garnered a reputation for being "sweet shooting." Here’s a look at our top 10 choices.

Your hunting rifle doesn’t need to produce painful recoil to get the job done. Here are six centerfire hunting cartridges that are easy on the shoulder yet effective on big game.

Dieter Krieghoff, Krieghoff International's founder takes a quick look at the SEMPRIO In-Line Repeater. The Semprio’s in-line repeating utilizes the ergonomics and kinetic forces recoil produces to optimize the hunting experience.

For 2023, Taurus introduces its Raging Hunter .460 S&W Magnum, featuring a 10.5-inch barrel with a proprietary compensator that drastically tames recoil, and a bottom rail for attaching stabilizing devices like bipods or shooting sticks.

Selecting a cartridge that will not kick you like a mule is an important, if sometimes overlooked, part of selecting the ideal deer cartridge.

HSM Ammunition has engineered a low-recoiling variant of 6.5 Creedmoor ammo, with full, 140-grain hunting bullets.

Many turkey hunters are choosing to load heavy-hitting 3 1/2-inch shells into their guns. But does the extra firepower really make a difference?