anchors
US Veteran
Which bullet weight will have more recoil,light or heavy?
357 bullet weight
- Thread starter anchors
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
ronnie gore
Member
recoil
the heavy bullet will recoil more. equal and opposite reaction
the heavy bullet will recoil more. equal and opposite reaction
flop-shank
US Veteran
Recoil is a funny thing. Sometimes lighter bullets feel snappier and are less pleasant to shoot, even though they probably actually recoil less (I'm no expert, just a shooter). Full house 125 gr. .357s are one of the best examples of a snappy cartridge. They kick, they flash and they bang like few cartridges do. I don't think that the heavier loads are as bad, but haven't shot them in years.
Dan Cash
Member
I can not give a numerical value to the recoil difference between light and heavy bullets but the difference can be explained.
If a light and heavy bullet driven to equal velocities from the same platform, The heavy bullet will have more recoi based upon Newton's laws of motion. However, in small arms, light bullets are usually driven to much higher velocities than are heavy projectiles. The light projectile is accelerated to terminal velocity at a higher rate and as a result, seems to recoil more than a heavy bullet. The heavy projectile accelerates to terminal velocity more slowly and the recoil is spread out over a longer period, therefore it seems to have less recoil.
The above tends to hold true until you get to shooting very heavy for caliber projectiles at maximum velocity for the caliber, eg. 300+ grain bullets in .44 Magnum. These buggers just plain kick.
If a light and heavy bullet driven to equal velocities from the same platform, The heavy bullet will have more recoi based upon Newton's laws of motion. However, in small arms, light bullets are usually driven to much higher velocities than are heavy projectiles. The light projectile is accelerated to terminal velocity at a higher rate and as a result, seems to recoil more than a heavy bullet. The heavy projectile accelerates to terminal velocity more slowly and the recoil is spread out over a longer period, therefore it seems to have less recoil.
The above tends to hold true until you get to shooting very heavy for caliber projectiles at maximum velocity for the caliber, eg. 300+ grain bullets in .44 Magnum. These buggers just plain kick.
thedogfather
Member
I shot some 110 grain CorBon from my model 649 and the recoil was manageable. I recently purchased a couple of boxes of Winchester (white box) 110 grain SJHP but haven't shot any yet.
There are two answers to this.
1. At the same velocity the heavier bullet will produce more recoil impulse.
2. At the same momentum (speed times weight) the LIGHTER bullet will produce more recoil because it has to go so much faster.
That's why action pistol shooters in IDPA and USPSA Production tend to use heavier bullets: we have to reach a minimum momentum level, and a slow heavy bullet kicks less than a very fast light one.
Here's a handy recoil calculator:
Recoil Calculator
The sensation of recoil you feel is highly subjective.
flop-shank
US Veteran
Remington and I think Winchester and Federal must have figured that there was no up from the 125 gr. stuff. My thinking is that they saw that and figured why not make a managed recoil load that's close in performance, but more manageable, by dropping bullet weight and velocity. That's what they did and that's what they got. They're good loads and, IIRC slighly shallow penetrators(not a problem with me, there's a need for such loads). Corbon took a different road, IIRC, and went red hot (cool, one more great choice and another niche filled).
Last edited:
ArchAngelCD
Moderator, SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
I don't like light bullets especially that light in a .357 Magnum. A .357 Magnum can push heavier bullet quite fast, that's a good point and a reason to use it. The 125gr bullet is the "classic man stopper" but I still like the energy dump from a 145gr to 158gr bullet better. I shoot a 145gr Winchester Silvertip .357 Magnum round from my S&W M640-1.
Similar threads
