Mercury recoil reducer?

bhcarl · August 1, 2014, 04:09 PM

How effective are they and how do they work, other than adding weight?

A400 Fan · August 1, 2014, 04:36 PM

They also add some inertia that is supposed to help mitigate the recoil pulse. Some go into the stock, some (for gas guns) can go on the mag cap. The additional weight you mentioned also helps.

Wyosmith · August 1, 2014, 04:53 PM

They do work. The addition of weight is helpful and to this is added momentum so the combination is effective.

It's not like they can make a 12 gauge kick like a 223, but they do help

BigJimP · August 1, 2014, 05:31 PM

Every lb you add reduces recoil around 15 - 20% ....so yes, they work, most of them I've seen are around 8 - 10 oz...

( on the cheap ) you can add weight to the inside of the stock with a spent shell full of shot / tape it up ..../ and you can use 'lead golf club tape" under most forends ....again inside.

Before I add weight - I put some blue painters tape ...on the side of the receiver / mark the balance point, with a marker ( rest the gun on your finger until it balances and is level - and mark it).... then I like to add say 8 oz inside the stock /and 8 oz inside the forend..../ and position each of them ( move them fore and aft ) until I make sure the balance point remains the same as it was before I added the weight.

I don't like a nose heavy or butt heavy shotgun...

1stmar · August 1, 2014, 06:08 PM

I have a haarts recoil reducer in my 1911, it replaces the guide rod. I like it but I don't think they are made any longer. I heard there were issues or concerns with mercury leakage. I never had an issue. I'd buy another one if I could find one.

Pahoo · August 1, 2014, 07:39 PM

It isn't just about adding weight, it's about dispersing/obsorbing the shock and reducing recoil. The way it was presented to me, many years ago, is on discharge, the mercury explodes and absorbs the shock. That is the characteristics of Mercury. .....

Be Safe !!!

zippy13 · August 2, 2014, 09:00 AM

I have a breako in the mag tube if my 1100. Before that, I had a shot filled shell. I don't know if I can tell the difference, but the breako is a tidier installation.

Derbel McDillet · August 2, 2014, 01:44 PM

When the gun recoils backward the mercury, contained in a tube, doesn't "move". The tube moves backward and "collides" with the mercury, which has the effect of damping recoil and muzzle flip because the mass of the mercury is shifted to the forward part of the tube - moving the tube's center of gravity forward (toward the muzzle).

Years ago I had a Haarts recoil reducer (mercury filled hollow recoil spring rod) in my Beretta 96FS. I couldn't tell any difference and I sold it. It probably worked better in 1911s, which have a thicker guide rod. (IIRC the Haart's recoil reducer may have also contained ball bearings too.)

I also believe Haarts made a mercury filled recoil reduced for shotgun buttstocks but I don't have any experience, nor do I know anyone who had one.

eastbank · August 5, 2014, 07:40 AM

several years ago i bought a model 12 field grade that was turned into a trap shotgun,by adding a simmons rib and new stocks with a recoil reduced in the butt stock(edwards firearms recoil reducer,made by jesse b. edwards). the gun was just to butt heavy for me with it in, so i took it out. reasonable recoil does not bother me, if it was in a lighter shotgun i may have left it in. eastbank.

August 1, 2014, 04:09 PM	#1
bhcarl Member Join Date: November 16, 2011 Location: northeast ms. Posts: 54	Mercury recoil reducer? How effective are they and how do they work, other than adding weight?

August 1, 2014, 07:39 PM	#6
Pahoo Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2006 Location: IOWA Posts: 8,783	Dispersing or absorbing the shock !!! It isn't just about adding weight, it's about dispersing/obsorbing the shock and reducing recoil. The way it was presented to me, many years ago, is on discharge, the mercury explodes and absorbs the shock. That is the characteristics of Mercury. ..... Be Safe !!! __________________ 'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing.

August 1, 2014, 04:36 PM	#2
A400 Fan Junior member Join Date: June 17, 2014 Posts: 242	They also add some inertia that is supposed to help mitigate the recoil pulse. Some go into the stock, some (for gas guns) can go on the mag cap. The additional weight you mentioned also helps.

August 1, 2014, 04:53 PM	#3
Wyosmith Senior Member Join Date: December 29, 2010 Location: Shoshoni Wyoming Posts: 2,713	They do work. The addition of weight is helpful and to this is added momentum so the combination is effective. It's not like they can make a 12 gauge kick like a 223, but they do help

August 1, 2014, 05:31 PM	#4
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Every lb you add reduces recoil around 15 - 20% ....so yes, they work, most of them I've seen are around 8 - 10 oz... ( on the cheap ) you can add weight to the inside of the stock with a spent shell full of shot / tape it up ..../ and you can use 'lead golf club tape" under most forends ....again inside. Before I add weight - I put some blue painters tape ...on the side of the receiver / mark the balance point, with a marker ( rest the gun on your finger until it balances and is level - and mark it).... then I like to add say 8 oz inside the stock /and 8 oz inside the forend..../ and position each of them ( move them fore and aft ) until I make sure the balance point remains the same as it was before I added the weight. I don't like a nose heavy or butt heavy shotgun...

August 1, 2014, 06:08 PM	#5
1stmar Senior Member Join Date: March 21, 2012 Location: Connecticut Posts: 2,378	I have a haarts recoil reducer in my 1911, it replaces the guide rod. I like it but I don't think they are made any longer. I heard there were issues or concerns with mercury leakage. I never had an issue. I'd buy another one if I could find one.

August 2, 2014, 09:00 AM	#7
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	I have a breako in the mag tube if my 1100. Before that, I had a shot filled shell. I don't know if I can tell the difference, but the breako is a tidier installation.

August 2, 2014, 01:44 PM	#8
Derbel McDillet Junior member Join Date: September 6, 2013 Location: Kitsap County, Washington Posts: 316	When the gun recoils backward the mercury, contained in a tube, doesn't "move". The tube moves backward and "collides" with the mercury, which has the effect of damping recoil and muzzle flip because the mass of the mercury is shifted to the forward part of the tube - moving the tube's center of gravity forward (toward the muzzle). Years ago I had a Haarts recoil reducer (mercury filled hollow recoil spring rod) in my Beretta 96FS. I couldn't tell any difference and I sold it. It probably worked better in 1911s, which have a thicker guide rod. (IIRC the Haart's recoil reducer may have also contained ball bearings too.) I also believe Haarts made a mercury filled recoil reduced for shotgun buttstocks but I don't have any experience, nor do I know anyone who had one.

August 5, 2014, 07:40 AM	#9
eastbank Senior Member Join Date: February 7, 2008 Location: pa. Posts: 2,450	several years ago i bought a model 12 field grade that was turned into a trap shotgun,by adding a simmons rib and new stocks with a recoil reduced in the butt stock(edwards firearms recoil reducer,made by jesse b. edwards). the gun was just to butt heavy for me with it in, so i took it out. reasonable recoil does not bother me, if it was in a lighter shotgun i may have left it in. eastbank.