[MTA Tom]

Author John Barsness, writing about expanding bullets in the November, 2010, "American Rifleman" says:

"Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. This is what we feel when a 30-'06 Springfield recoils, the 'equal and opposite reaction' to the bullet leaving the muzzle. Actually our shoulder feels a little more than that, because part of a rifle's recoil is the rocket effect of hot powder gas leaving the muzzle--which the deer doesn't receive."

Is this correct?

 

[g7777777]

the total ejecta equals the bullet and the gases plus debris

that additional mass also has a velocity and thus momentum-- not rocket effect per se but that small amount is what he is talking about

regards from Iowa

Gene

PS- in a shotshell the ejecta would include the wad

 

[Neil Winston]

Yes, it is correct. The reason is that the momentum of the gun will equal the sum of the momenta of all the stuff coming out the muzzle. The wads, powder, shot all start leaving at (say) 1200 fps, but the powder is under pressure and so speeds up. It is this speed-up that adds to the V that (MV (powder)) represents, and is taken to be something like 20% faster, making the speed of the powder in the balanced momentum equation more like 1400 fps, plus or minus. The result is that the gasses account for about four or five percent of the recoil of a shotgun, and this puts a limit on the recoil-reduction available to porting, for example.

Neil

 

[PerazziBigBore]

This very simple device redirects the gasses from a 12 gauge barrel to pull the barrel forward.. The perceived recoil is vastly greater than the 5% Neil correctly stated.. I'll soon be mounting one on a Seitz barrel.. I sent one to Ken Rucker to play with a few years ago.. Anyone knowing Ken could ask him for his honest opinion.. It just flat out works.. All Good.. Mike