Mitigating Recoil: How to Hold a Shotgun and Tame the “Kick”

[Talyn]

The shotgun often gets a bad rep due to the recoil it delivers. To tame the “kick” associated with shotguns, we will discuss how to hold a shotgun properly.

Mitigating Recoil: How to Hold a Shotgun and Tame the “Kick”

I am, without question, a fan of the shotgun. Few weapons in our collection offer the versatility and raw fight-stopping

athlonoutdoors.com

 

[Bassbob]

Another major factor in recoil mitigation the article doesn't touch on is stance. Squaring up on the target in a "Fighting stance" how you were taught to shoot a handgun ( if you were taught correctly) is the same way to shoot a shotgun.

 

[bc22wm]

Another major factor in recoil mitigation the article doesn't touch on is stance. Squaring up on the target in a "Fighting stance" how you were taught to shoot a handgun ( if you were taught correctly) is the same way to shoot a shotgun.

I don't know how many times on a qualification range I have taken new officers aside and explained how to hold and run a pump gun. Range officer/ trainers would go over safety, the mechanics of a shotgun and then off to shoot we would go leaving new shooter to get kicked all over the place.
Square up, lean into it, (one of the reasons I am a fan of Weaver stance because it is more or less the same for handgun as long gun) and remember a gun is not Waterford Crystel, rack that slide like you meant it. You're not going to break it and if you do it needed fixing anyway.

 

[Bassbob]

I don't know how many times on a qualification range I have taken new officers aside and explained how to hold and run a pump gun. Range officer/ trainers would go over safety, the mechanics of a shotgun and then off to shoot we would go leaving new shooter to get kicked all over the place.
Square up, lean into it, (one of the reasons I am a fan of Weaver stance because it is more or less the same for handgun as long gun) and remember a gun is not Waterford Crystel, rack that slide like you meant it. You're not going to break it and if you do it needed fixing anyway.

Good advice, particularly for beginners. I don't subscribe to the old "Rack it like you hate it" theory though. If I had to rack it hard for it to operate correctly I would sell it. The key is really racking it completely in both directions, particularly with a 37 or a KSG. 97 is a whole different animal. Mossbergs, BPS and 870s will never fail even if they're on fire. lol

I work on all my slide action and keep it lubed. I like it to feel like it's rolling on a ball bearing.

 

[bc22wm]

. I don't subscribe to the old "Rack it like you hate it" theory though.

But ya don't ease it back and then forward either like your scared of it or afraid it will break. Run it like you meant it, like you have a purpose, that don't mean abuses.

 

[Bassbob]

But ya don't ease it back and then forward either like your scared of it or afraid it will break. Run it like you meant it, like you have a purpose, that don't mean abuses.

A lot of the guys who bought the 1st generation KSGs ( mine is a 1st gen KSG25) were having issues with FTF. So the common advice was "Rack it like you hate it". Eventually they settled on what they called a "Fluff and buff", which involved some buffing and honing of several key parts. My opinion is that most of them were short stroking it. I never had those problems with mine. And I never had to buff anything. Well, rather I chose to buff my parts by putting a couple thousand rounds through it. I did smooth a few things out later on the action bars just to smooth it out, but it is basically the same action as an Ithaca model 37. All the action is in the last 1/2" of travel, both ways. The only problem I had with that shotgun is the tube selector switch which was a bad piece of engineering. it should have used a shoulder screw and a slightly different design on the hole on the switch so that you could tighten it all the way down and it would still travel freely. So after about 1500 rounds that screw got loose, which caused some failures to feed. I cleaned the screw and the threads with alcohol and then put some blue LocTite on the screw and tightened it down, then backed it off just enough for it to move freely. I've put about 1500 more through it since then and it's still tight.