You ask a hard question to answer, depending on the gun a .357 can be too much in a scandium frame 2 in pistol with hot loads and is for a lot of people. My tolerance varies depending on platform a light 4 in .44 mag is too much for me whereas in my 10 in Blackhawk its shootable. My 15 in 30-06 Encore is NOT shootable for me without the brake, with the brake it is a very shootable gun, my .480 Ruger Super Red with Pachmayer grips is ok ,with Ruger grips NO! so a lot depends on the platform and how it is set up. A 454 Casuell is NOT shootable in any gun I have tried, a .475, 500 linebaugh a short barreled Ruger Alaskan in any flavor, or any Scandium framed revolver, hell no. That's where I draw the line.