Curved buttstock placement on the arm/shoulder..........

[david w]

Hold it between your shoulder and bicep, and shoot across your body. I've seen photos of guys with cuts and bruises on their shoulder. It's hard to have sympathy, they're created such that holding it incorrectly is uncomfortable without even pulling the trigger.

I use 100gn 2F swiss in my 54 and 120gn swiss in my 50. Photo shows the latter. Big game require it and both loads are comfortable.
View attachment 192314

That's a lot of meat to put in the freezer!

 

[beardedhorse]

I watched the black powder to how to shoot video in detail. I would caution anyone from pouring a charge of black powder directly from a cut-off spout flask. Not as dangerous as pouring directly from a powder horn but still a big no-no. Any safety range officer in any of our clubs would call you on that.

 

[jimairwin]

Did a net search on this and came up with nothing. Its been said that the proper buttstock placement on the body is on or close to the biceps. Does this mean directly in the center of the biceps, on the side of the biceps, or between the shoulder and the biceps?

Its also been said to keep the rifle close to the body while doing so.

So, what exactly is proper form when shooting the old style, curved buttstock ML? Does anyone have pics they could add to aid in explaining this?

Most folks know to put the butt plate in the "pocket" at shoulder. Do that with a typical iron curved antique style buttplate ONCE and never again! OUCH! The guideline is simple and probably defies the specific info you request.
So...Try it and move it around until you find the fit that fits you. You'll know it when you do.

 

[N.Y. Yankee]

I build the occasional flintlock for me. When the type rifle sports a heavily curved , and pointy butt plate , a bench vice , and 20" wrench or two , can take a lot of the bends out of a pointy butt. Also , a battery powered hack saw will do miracles , too , to remove recoil pain from shooting the rifle , with pointy ends on it. Bending a cast butt plate , is not difficult , just be slow and judicious. ......oldwood

This is totally unnecessary if shot as intended.

The crescent of doom butt plate is one of the reasons I won’t build a southern style rifle (at least for my own use). My GPR is bad enough and I’ve entertained selling it lately. They are pretty though from a stylistic standpoint but unpleasant in use especially in larger calibers.

You are not doing it right.

I have a number of guns with crescent buttplates... both muzzleloaders and an unmentionable in 25-20.

They work just fine with lighter loads, try something like a heavy No Excuses bullet and a heavy charge of powder, and you will get punished whether or not you place the gun butt correctly. They can be shot though, remember, it's a muzzleloader. If you are hunting, you are only going to shoot once or twice.

All that said, I'd love to see somebody make a crescent buttstock for an AR platform rifle....

Ive never found this to be true. Shooting crescent buttstocks for 35 years and shot many heavy loads. I gues I was taught well right from the start.

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

This is totally unnecessary if shot as intended.

You are not doing it right.

Ive never found this to be true. Shooting crescent buttstocks for 35 years and shot many heavy loads. I gues I was taught wll right from the start.

I admit to being a recoil wimp.

 

[French Colonial]

This is totally unnecessary if shot as intended.

You are not doing it right.

Ive never found this to be true. Shooting crescent buttstocks for 35 years and shot many heavy loads. I gues I was taught wll right from the start.

Early Winchesters with crescents in large calibers like 45-110's etc. are really not bad shooting offhand, shooting off the bench can be an issue unless you use a recoil pad.

 

[Dale Lilly]

I never spent much time shooting from a bench. I never had anyone to instruct me when I began shooting muzzle loaders. For some reason, shooting across my body with the curved butt plate resting right where the bicep begins [with arm raised to 90 degrees] felt normal. I have shot a very light rifle belonging to my wife with 90 grains of 3f. Never noticed any hurtful recoil. However, a friend, who had shot only unmentionables, shot the same rifle, so loaded, and almost dropped it. He accused me of loading it just to see him react. I have shot about every sort of butt plate on a rifle. I only weighed about 160 pounds most of the time. I have no idea why we are so varied in our sensitivity, but I know we are. Maybe we are all different, ya think?

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

I never spent much time shooting from a bench. I never had anyone to instruct me when I began shooting muzzle loaders. For some reason, shooting across my body with the curved butt plate resting right where the bicep begins [with arm raised to 90 degrees] felt normal. I have shot a very light rifle belonging to my wife with 90 grains of 3f. Never noticed any hurtful recoil. However, a friend, who had shot only unmentionables, shot the same rifle, so loaded, and almost dropped it. He accused me of loading it just to see him react. I have shot about every sort of butt plate on a rifle. I only weighed about 160 pounds most of the time. I have no idea why we are so varied in our sensitivity, but I know we are. Maybe we are all different, ya think?

I actually think that the more you weigh, the more you suffer as you soak up more momentum before your body moves. I weigh about 220 these days... a far cry from my old "fighting weight" when I was called Sergeant Raby.

 

[Dale Lilly]

Yeah, I weighed 140 when I went in the AF, about 155 when I retired, 213 for a while. Now 'only' 175. [Sergeant] Lilly

 

[N.Y. Yankee]

Early Winchesters with crescents in large calibers like 45-110's etc. are really not bad shooting offhand, shooting off the bench can be an issue unless you use a recoil pad.

Now shooting off the bench is a different deal. One may not be able to get their body in a good enough position to mount the crescent butt correctly and if that is the case, they may be getting the butt too much into the shoulder and yes, they will get beat up by it. I have had to sit side-saddle on shooting benches in order to get in a good position but that too is uncomfortable because it is too far to the side so standing, really, is better for shooting that type.

 

[Kmcmichael]

I agree with larger individuals feel more recoil.

i shoot a crescent butt plate from a bench weekly at this time. It does have a tendency to torque at the shot. I try to test it slightly and adjust. I plan to try a slip on pad next week in order to get the buttstock in a more center position.

 

[Idaho Ron]

I was shooting a Cresent butt plate on the bench.

 

[ETipp]

I was shooting a Cresent butt plate on the bench.

Ouch! Heavy conical?

 

[Idaho Ron]

Ye

Ouch! Heavy conical?

Yes

 

[ETipp]

Ye


Yes

Ron, been shooting conical for years. I have a new to me .54 GPR to try out as soon as I feel up to it. I purchased it for shooting RB. I hope this one isn't quite so bad. Not recoil sensitive, but I don't really like getting pounded either. This is my first big bore with a curved stock.

 

[Idaho Ron]

Ron, been shooting conical for years. I have a new to me .54 GPR to try out as soon as I feel up to it. I purchased it for shooting RB. I hope this one isn't quite so bad. Not recoil sensitive, but I don't really like getting pounded either. This is my first big bore with a curved stock.

I cut mine off and replaced it with a limbsaver

 

[ETipp]

I cut mine off and replaced it with a limbsaver

Ha, I have been thinking about that. It would have to be a last chance for me to do so on this ML but we shall see. I reckon you were shooting those .500 SW bullets that hammered you arm so badly?

 

[Idaho Ron]

Ha, I have been thinking about that. It would have to be a last chance for me to do so on this ML but we shall see. I reckon you were shooting those .500 SW bullets that hammered you arm so badly?

Worse, it was a 550 gr 45 cal.

 

[chorizo]

Like Idaho Ron, I shoot heavy conicals and send them with a stout load.

No fan of curved buttplates, as I have so "eloquently" stated in the past. Bring on the fingers and slamming doors.

 

[Bushfire]

I was shooting a Cresent butt plate on the bench.

With respect Ron, I look at that photo and where the bruise is and can't understand how you had the butt placed there and felt you had the correct hold.