The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - can .45 caliber knocksomeone off their feet?

chris in va · May 11, 2005, 02:09 PM

I have a question though. The recoil of the gun is counterbalanced by the bullet travelling the opposite direction.

But what if the bullet stayed stationary and was fired...wouldn't the force of recoil be horrendous? What I'm getting at is I don't believe the forces are equal here. I would think being hit by a .45 bullet would have a lot more force than just the simple recoil felt at the gun...no?

So say the recoil at the Kimber is more like 10ft/lbs, and the bullet has what...450ft/lbs kinetic energy?

May 11, 2005, 02:09 PM	#9
chris in va Senior Member Join Date: December 26, 2004 Location: Louisville KY Posts: 13,806	I have a question though. The recoil of the gun is counterbalanced by the bullet travelling the opposite direction. But what if the bullet stayed stationary and was fired...wouldn't the force of recoil be horrendous? What I'm getting at is I don't believe the forces are equal here. I would think being hit by a .45 bullet would have a lot more force than just the simple recoil felt at the gun...no? So say the recoil at the Kimber is more like 10ft/lbs, and the bullet has what...450ft/lbs kinetic energy?