Could it be that a bullet spends so little time in a barrel once the cartridge is set off that the shooter can't tell if they're feeling maximum acceleration (bullet still in the barrel?) or 'recoil energy'. Yes, this is the supporting theory for using total energy as the measure for recoil. Maybe, for the shooter to 'feel' recoil, there has to be some acceleration, or force. Yes, the recoil is manifested as force on the shooter. Wouldn't the gun stop recoiling once the velocity of the 'ejecta' stabilized. No, the recoil "stops" only after the ejecta exits the muzzle.
I recall a short article about a Marlin lever gun had six or eight bullets lodged in the barrel. I believe the shooter said he felt no noticable recoil and only heard a low muffled sound every time he pulled the trigger. I agree with 2-p that there must have been sub-standard ammo involved; like no powder, maybe. Otherwise, how did the powder gas pressure bleed off? Open the action on barrel pressure and you will likely get a face full of brass and gas. None of those bullets cleared the muzzle, but if maximum pressure was developed in the chamber or just in front of it, those bullets developed some maximum acceleration and then of course deceleration. I don't think this was the case.
My take on this story.
DDA
