TargetTalk

I shoot a Walther LG300XT and have used .53g / 8.2 gr. H&N, Meisterkugeln, and Vogels. All are very accurate, but upon firing there is a very slight muzzle rise. This is least noticeable with the Meisterkugelns so that is the pellet I have chosen to shoot. I have my rifle balanced so I don't want to add weight to the muzzle to overcome this. Has anyone tried using light pellets with their rifle to overcome this? Will lighter pellets reduce the muzzle rise following the shot? Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
Vinny

Vincent wrote:I shoot a Walther LG300XT and have used .53g / 8.2 gr. H&N, Meisterkugeln, and Vogels. All are very accurate, but upon firing there is a very slight muzzle rise. This is least noticeable with the Meisterkugelns so that is the pellet I have chosen to shoot. I have my rifle balanced so I don't want to add weight to the muzzle to overcome this. Has anyone tried using light pellets with their rifle to overcome this? Will lighter pellets reduce the muzzle rise following the shot? Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
Vinny

I would think that you would notice much difference in your muzzle jump. However, do what must have done and that is experiment borrow or buy a can and find out for yourself. You might be giving up some accuracy in your effort to control muzzle jump. The little studying I have done on ballistics would seem to usually indicate that a lighter projectile is subject to more deviation then a heavier one.

You might be better off trying to control things like your follow through or train using holding exercises. The slight muzzle jump an air rifle will give is nothing compared to a high powered or even a smallbore rifle. I am just guessing but it sounds like the jump your seeing is more of a distraction then anything else and your going to have to go through some mental exercises to overcome that issue. You will have to learn to ignore that the muzzle is jumping and concentrate on whether your sights go back to being centered and aligned with the target after you fire. This is just my 2 cents and somebody might have a better insight.

why would lighter pellets give less muzzle flip?

With proper follow through I can achieve some good scores but I figure with less movement in the process follow through would be easier. I figured lighter pellets might give less muzzle flip due to less back pressure created during the shot cycle. I'll try this out at the range, but was just curious if anyone had any similar experiences. Thanks, Vinny

I think it's you.

robf wrote:why would lighter pellets give less muzzle flip?

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

It takes less energy to move a lighter object at the same speed as a heavier object. The energy used to propel the pellet out of the muzzle is identical to the energy that comes back into the rifle. So with more energy(heavier pellet) there is more recoil. It the same reason why a 6mmbr shooting a 107 grain bullet recoils much less than a 308 shooting a 210 grain bullet.

With proper follow through I can achieve some good scores but I figure with less movement in the process follow through would be easier. I figured lighter pellets might give less muzzle flip due to less back pressure created during the shot cycle. I'll try this out at the range, but was just curious if anyone had any similar experiences. Thanks, Vinny

Recoil is a good thing. It gives you alot of information about the shot. I LOVE it when i shoot the shot and you can feel the recoil flow through my body. When that happens I know that I was fully relaxed and that was a good shot.
Best wishes,
Matt

Muzzle rise (recoil) is not a problem. All guns have some amount of recoil. Inconsistent recoil is a problem. Instead of trying to eliminate recoi (whish is just physics), develop a solid position and work on consistent follow through.

WesternGrizzly wrote:

robf wrote:why would lighter pellets give less muzzle flip?

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

It takes less energy to move a lighter object at the same speed as a heavier object. The energy used to propel the pellet out of the muzzle is identical to the energy that comes back into the rifle. So with more energy(heavier pellet) there is more recoil. It the same reason why a 6mmbr shooting a 107 grain bullet recoils much less than a 308 shooting a 210 grain bullet.Matt

Right but an airgun doesn't work like that. A light pellet will be subjected to the same energy, it will just end up moving faster. If you really wanted to try reducing recoil, you'd need to reduce the velocity (i.e. turning down the regulator).

I too think pellet weight is essentially irrelevant to the recoil pattern seen.

Rob.

hmm...

it doesn't really work like that.

the muzzle velocity of a pellet will vary due to it's efficiency in a barrel as much as it's weight, a 7.9gn pellet can fly at the same speed as an 8.4gn pellet in some cases... but before you jump up and say "ahah" the difference in energy is tiny in comparison.

also, you can actually increase muzzle energy by going to a different pellet.

if you're having problems with flip (which i find hard to comprehend on a 6ft-lb recoil damped rifle like the XT), i would suggest looking at your hold, and the balance of the rifle. Even with weight centralised around your perceived ideal point, it's worth testing to see if that is indeed the case. Also balance between muzzle and butt can be kept the same, but the balance point moved in another direction to help, and weight can be changed as well, all keeping the same balance point, but making the rifle behave in a different way.

Aside from that, there could be a number of other factors at play.

Either way, I personally think that dropping to a lighter pellet will yield zero effect, except perhaps because of placebo, which is not to be dismissed, but it's better to get to the root of the problem.

If you remember that muzzle flip occurs after the pellet leaves the barrel, it might get you thinking about the possible solutions. Muzzle brakes etc help good follow through, the pellet is long gone. High speed video of shots with much higher muzzle speeds will reveal that the movement is not going to be shot related.

If recoil is inconsistent, you can alway chrono and check out the XT system is ok... but i think chasing a lighter pellet is probably fruitless.

Damn, Rob, I think you nailed it! Right on every point!

I appreciate everyone's feedback on this.
Thanks
Vinny