A local sporting goods store was closing down ten years ago and we bought the last three Past Recoil Pads they had in stock. We got the Magnum Shield, #300010, the Mag Plus Shield, #310010 and the Field Shield, #350010, all for $30. Three for the price of one was the deal of a lifetime. For awhile, it seemed like Past had dropped out of the market, as they could rarely be found in stores. However, now with Battenfeld taking over, they are again readily available.

If you have ever used any of the multitude of butt stock pads or bargain-basement shoulder pads on the market, you are well aware of their limitations and failure to perform as advertised. Not so with the Past Pads. We use the Mag Plus on the range for sighting in the .300 Win. Mags. and 7mm Rem. Magnums. Shooting from a bench with a front rest and rear bag delivers all of the recoil right to your shoulder; there is very little �give� on a bench. Because Jim only weighs 155 lbs dripping wet, magnum rifles tend to beat him up. He even had to wear pads when he was in airborne training, to keep the parachute straps from cutting him in half. When we go to the range to sight in our magnums, the family takes turns with the Mag Plus Shield. We get to sight in our guns without flinching or having to nurse a sore shoulder the following day.

During high-power competitive matches, Susannah, who shoots F-Class, wears the �regular� Magnum Shield. It is not as thick as the Mag Plus and very comfortable under her shirt or jacket. We also found the Mag Shield to be very beneficial when sighting in our .50 caliber muzzleloaders.

On his hunts, Jim wears the Field Shield, which was developed for trap and skeet shooters, but it is also ideal for field use. In fact, he was wearing the Field Shield under his coat on his Persian Ibex muzzleloader hunt in 2010.

The Past Shields have been using a dense foam material for years, which literally spreads the recoil impulse over its entire surface to reduce the felt recoil. They do not bounce against your shoulder like other pads when subjected to big bore rifles, such as a .50 caliber muzzleloader loaded with 140 grains of powder. An additional advantage of the Past pads is that they are reversible, allowing left or right hand shooters to use the same pad.

While there is no way that we can test the claim that a Past pad reduces the felt recoil by up to 85%, I will say that without the Past, Jim can only shoot our 50 caliber muzzleloader three or four times and he�s done. With the Past, he has been able to shoot more than 20 rounds without flinching or feeling any pain. If that doesn�t equate to 85%, it is darn close. Ten years experience with the Past Recoil Pads has convinced this family that they are worth every penny of the MSRP of $24.99 to $44.99 (depending on the style) that they cost.