Journalist describes the trauma of firing an AR15 for first time.

[Dial H For Hero]

https://m.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/shots-fired-a-reporter-visits-vermonts-first-indoor-gun-range/Content?oid=33532211

…..

While the pistol was manageable, even comfortable to hold and fire, the rifle was a different beast altogether. Everything about it — its weight, tactical scope and overall lethality — was downright intimidating.

……

When ready, I lined up the target in the cross hairs, pulled the stock onto my shoulder, squeezed the trigger and — BA-BOOM!!!!!

……


It is difficult to describe the impact — physical and personal — of that first shot. It felt like a meteor had struck the earth in front of me. A deep shock wave coursed through my body, the recoil rippling through my arms and right shoulder with astounding power. Being that close to an explosion of such magnitude — controlled and focused as it was — rattled me.


(Excerpt)

Rather breathless prose for a description of pulling the trigger on a firearm considered insufficiently powerful to legally hunt a deer in most jurisdictions.

[Atticus]

1. I agree the description is over-dramatized, but the AR15 concept was never meant for deer hunting.

It was designed to kill people, which is why it has been the "weapon of choice" of mass shooters for years.

[Kaleva]

7. The AR15 platform can fire many different rounds. Some suitable for hunting deer.

You can buy an AR15 style gun that fires shotgun shells.

Below are a list of center-fire cartridges an AR15 style rifle can fire:

.204 Ruger
.223 Remington
.22 Nosler
.224 Valkyrie
.25-45 Sharps
6.5 Grendel
6.8 SPC
.300 Blackout
.300 Ham’r
.30 Remington AR
.350 Legend
.450 Bushmaster

[Atticus]

8. I was responding to this in the OP:

"---insufficiently powerful to legally hunt a deer in most jurisdictions."

Addendum: your list omits the 308.

[Kaleva]

10. Ok. The .223 Remington is considered to be insufficient by many to cleanly kill deer

Many rifles beside the AR-15 fire such a round.

In Michigan, it is legal to hunt deer with .223 ammo.

As for the list I posted, I should have said that it wasn't comprehensive which i knew at the time or said that the ammo listed was just some of the calibers an AR15 style rifle can fire.

[Dial H For Hero]

12. To be pedantic, .308 is not a chambering for the AR-15, but rather the AR-10.

[Dial H For Hero]

11. Actually, my headline wasn't technically accurate as the rifle in question was an HK,

although presumably still chambered in 5.56x45.

[Kaleva]

14. Article does say it was an AR15 style rifle.

HK does offer a rifle that looks similar to the one in the pic that fires the 7.62 x 51 mm round.

But the mag in the pic looks curved so I suspect it's a HK that fires the 5.56 x 45 mm round.

https://hk-usa.com/product/rifles/

[Dial H For Hero]

15. One presumes that had he been firing a 7.62x51, he would have

described it as more akin to the Death Star destroying Alderaan than a mere meteor impact.

[Kaleva]

18. LOL!

[EX500rider]

23. He'd apparently would have passed out after firing my MosinNagant M-44 in 7.6254mmR lol

[intelpug]

26. AR rifle

Doesn't matter. It's still one of those black ,scary,evil looking military style guns

[sarisataka]

2. Is he sure he didn't

Grab an elephant gun by mistake?

I trained with and coached hundreds of Marines and soldiers, some of them very slight in stature. Not one ever expressed any difficulty with the recoil of an M-16. Any comments were how light the recoil was, not rippling through arms and shoulders.

ETA> his description of the "novel" idea of renting guns to try at the range is what is typical. Most ranges have rentals available so people can try different guns before making a purchase.

[WA-03 Democrat]

3. I agree

AR-15 very little recoil compared to a 9mm pistol or shotgun. Sounds like it was their first and last. With nothing to compare it too, yes it sure is loud and a lot of kinetic force. The writer’s reaction makes some more sense. When I first fired an AR I thought, where’s the pain? That was way too easy.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

4. These things are always so poorly done.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

5. Hmm...

At 17 I was a 135 lb skinny kid. I learned to fire an M-1 Garand. The first step was to spend 2 days with my friend and instructor reloading several hundred rounds of .30-06. I got an education in the chemical and mechanical details of the bullet. After each in the reloading there was a loud and clear announcement that the smoking lamp was out. Then came some basic education at the indoor PANG range: basics, more safety instruction, how to avoid M-1 thumb... all this after firing .22 M-1 training rifles for months. We went to an outdoor range to fire the Garands. Firing .30-06 in 50 ft indoor range with brick walls and concrete ceilings and floors is a bad idea even with the earmuffs. But with firing disabled we have an exercise indoors to get used to the kick of the rifle. Laying prone in a shooting position with the firing mechanism disabled, my instructor walked around in front of me and kicked the end of the barrel.

Short story, the muzzle energy of Garand was more double that of the AR. We reloaded 220 grain .30 cal ammo. IIRC the more than double figures compare 77 grain .223 compared to 220 grain .30-06 at 1300 ft-lbs (and change) to about 3000 ft-lbs, respectively.

My memory is that the kick of the M-1 was considerable but fell a bit short of Mr. McCallum's AR dramatics.
BTW I didn't miss the "assault rifle" mistake in there either.

I'm thinking the author's previous shooting experience may have been limited to paintball.

[yagotme]

35. Wow. 220's in an M-1 wasn't a very wise choice.

The M-1 has a fairly limited "balance" in it's ammo usage. Generally anything over 180 grains is a no-no, and slower burning powders are also a no-no. Warped/bent op rods are the usual result, at minimum. They also say to steer clear of modern factory '06 loads, as they may use slower powders, especially the "light magnum" loads. M2 ball is the only "recommended" load, or comparable reloads. I load 168's occasionally, but keep the powder type in the 4895 class.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

37. Sarge had a manual and a few hundred 220s to use up.

I know we switched to a larger load of powder for the 150 gr spitzers. As I recall we had one rifle with bent rod that we replaced and then had a smith check out. That was a few months before the reloading party.

It was a fun 2 days. The second day Mo gave me a ride in his brand new 3rd gen 442.

[yagotme]

40. Pass everything but a gas station???

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

41. What can I say? Gas was cheap.

[melm00se]

6. The word of the day is

"histrionics".

[beemerphill]

9. This may be a little hyperbole.

"It is difficult to describe the impact — physical and personal — of that first shot. It felt like a meteor had struck the earth in front of me. A deep shock wave coursed through my body, the recoil rippling through my arms and right shoulder with astounding power. Being that close to an explosion of such magnitude — controlled and focused as it was — rattled me."

The recoil of most AR-15s is about 3 Foot pounds. Either the author is VERY weak and frail, or he is being overly dramatic. Is it possible that he has an agenda he is trying to push?

LOL

[Dial H For Hero]

13. A Pulitzer Prize winning author pushing an agenda? Now you're just being cynical.

[beemerphill]

21. That's not the sad part.

An author who lies like this and presents such a false narrative is not the worst part of this story. The really sad aspect of this is that some simple-minded people are going to believe this sorry excuse for a writer. This writer obviously has some skill with words and their usage. He however has a major problem with accuracy and integrity. One of these days we will see his words being used as "Expert" testimony for more restrictive gun laws aimed at law-abiding citizens. When that happens those who know no better will believe what he says and vote based on these lies.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

22. It's happening as you read this.

Regular folks are reading what he wrote and similar writings by the hundreds or thousands like him. They are stopping their research into firearms because they are believing such misinformation.

I guess there's nothing more attractive than making a buck while pushing your agenda. What interests me is how such folks acquired their agenda. Was it something passed on from a parent? Maybe it was a conversation with a college friend at backyard barbecue.

What's disappointing is the stuff on both sides that passes for journalism and truth.

[LiberatedUSA]

16. Not even an AR-50 does that.

You know the bolt-action .50BMG, one shot, one reload rifle? You could shoot that all day long and your shoulder would be fine.

So I am going to have to question this person’s experience with an AR-15 loaded with the standard. Either someone is exaggerating or they were handed something a whole lot bigger as a joke.

[Dial H For Hero]

17. Let's not forget a journalist's description of his firing of an AR-15, some 5 years ago:

I’ve shot pistols before, but never something like an AR-15. Squeeze lightly on the trigger and the resulting explosion of firepower is humbling and deafening (even with ear protection).

The recoil bruised my shoulder. The brass shell casings disoriented me as they flew past my face. The smell of sulfur and destruction made me sick. The explosions — loud like a bomb — gave me a temporary case of PTSD. For at least an hour after firing the gun just a few times, I was anxious and irritable.

[LiberatedUSA]

19. LOL n/t

[LiberatedUSA]

20. I just figured out what that reminds me of.

How over-the-top that description is reminds me of this:

[intelpug]

27. journalist's description

The recoil bruised my shoulder, casings flying by disorented me, the smell of destruction , the loud bomb blasts, ect, ect, what utter crap

[Paladin]

24. Thanks for treating journalists like shit, Gun Enthusiasts.

I'd like to think I could return the favor by praising Wayne LaPierre---but I know my own limitations...

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

25. Maybe this would help

"The key objective of a journalist is to gather information, write news pieces, and present the news in an honest and balanced manner." - https://www.betterteam.com/journalist-job-description

[Dial H For Hero]

28. This thread is pointing out the absurdity of 2 articles.

How exactly does that equate to attaching journalists in general?

[Paladin]

29. Yeah, sure.

Never doubt my gratitude to you for posting that description of somebody's first center-fire rifle firing, and subjecting it to merciless ridicule. Bullseye---for my side.

It's been over 60 years since my first experience with a big-caliber rifle (I think it was a neighbor's .30-06). I believe the journalist captured the experience pretty well. Boiled down, it's the same motivating impulse that accounts for AR-15's outselling Winchester Model 70's a million to one: AR-15's look a lot scarier.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

30. Mea culpa. My apologies for introducing quantitative data. n/t

[Dial H For Hero]

31. Behold the earth-shattering recoil of the AR-15!

https://m.

Still think he described the experience of firing it “pretty well”?

[Paladin]

32. You owe it to yourself to find a better spokesman.

If such exists. Which I doubt.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

33. Oik then, let me speak with experience,

on my first deployment to Vietnam, we were issued the M-14, which fired the 7.62x51 mm round, that has somewhat of a kick, not too bad, but still a kick, especially when fired on full auto, on my second deployment to Vietnam, we were issued the M-16A1, which fired the 5.56x45 mm round and I will say with extensive experience that what the writer wrote in that article is pure bullshit, I could hardly believe the lack of recoil, and his statement that he was distracted by the spent shell casings flying by his face is another bullshit statement, unless he is left handed, the casings are ejected to the right side of the rifle, which means that no casings went flying past his face.

This author is full of shit on this subject.
And before you accuse me of being a "gunner", whatever the hell that is, I don't own any firearms, period, after 35 years in the Corps, I have no desire to have them around me.

[Dial H For Hero]

34. When all else fails, attack the messenger rather than the message.

In a video less than a minute long, he demonstrated that the article in question is objectively wrong.

[PTWB]

44. LOL

Maybe the journalist was emotionally bruised!!

You think someone caught and called out for bald faced lies helps “your side”? Telling… LOL 😂

[yagotme]

36. Have you fired an AR-15?

There is no near comparison to the recoil as to your neighbor's 30-'06. Especially if it was a bolt gun, which transfers more energy to the shoulder.

"motivating impulse that accounts for AR-15's outselling Winchester Model 70's a million to one: AR-15's look a lot scarier."

And, they recoil a lot less. Have fired a standard barrel 20" AR-15 one handed, with my right hand, several times. Used my left hand at the top of the rear stock as a counter weight to keep the barrel pointed at the impact zone, as that is a difficult way to hold a rifle. My wrist and arm are still here to tell the tale.

[Paladin]

38. Yes, I've fired an AR-15.

I've fired quite a few .22-cal. center-fires over the years---.222, .222 mag, .223, .22-250---and my favorite for warped entertainment, a .221 Remington XP-100 pistol. You've found a lot more unique styles of firing than I ever felt the need for.

[yagotme]

39. Unique, to show a point...

A friend of a friend was actually "scared" to shoot my AR-15, as it was a "military weapon", therefore, it would kick a lot. Shot it like I described, to show him how little recoil there was. He still refused to try it.

[Paladin]

42. And here you are, all this time later, getting mileage out of trashing him.

And I expect he's doing the same with respect to you. So nice when relationships stand the test of time.

[yagotme]

43. Just explaining my "unique" way of firing an AR-15,

per your previous post. Friend of a friend, couldn't tell you his name today to save my life. Met him the 1 time. As far as "trashing" him, just making the point that some people have pre-conceived notions about certain subjects, and no amount of proof will dissuade them of their opinion. As applied to the apparent original intent of this thread.