Painted

I'm considering buying a new shotgun; my shooting shoulder can't take more than one or two 12 gauge shots, so it's either 20 gauge or .410.

Anyways, my question is, if I get a .410 shotgun, can I use .45 LC revolver rounds in it? I heard that was possible. Also, will the gun need to be a break-open action due to the different length of the .45 LC cartridge and the .410 shotshell?

And probably the most important question, would it make any difference from using a slug shot?

Much thanks in advance.

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Fire

some 45 LC weapons will shoot .410, if they are designed for it, but I believe that the pressure differences between a shotgun shell and pistol cartridge make it dangerous in extreme to go the other way unless the gun is designed for it- it should sat .45lc/.410 or be noted in the instruction manual- as to the slug difference, I have no clue......anyone with more knowledge feel free to clarify/correct me.....

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ziadel

what are you using this peice for? .410 is not a lot of lead by any means, you're not gonna be able to bag much more than a rabbit with that.

I'd do 20 guage, no pounding, ammo everywhere, it's money,



the .410 is really a niche gun.

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cj2112

Go to Wal-Mart, and order a 20 Ga. Semi-Auto Beretta. I own one, my 80 lb daughter, who has almost zero pain tolerance shoots this gun w/o recoil issues. What model 12 ga. are you shooting?

Painted

I currently have an old hand-me-down bolt action 12 gauge, thats about four feet long...heh.

I would mostly use this gun for small game (rabbits) and ducks, which I can guess a 20 gauge would work very well, but a better 12 gauge might be too much. I imagine .410 might not have enough power for ducks, does anyone have any input on that?

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The_Dunedan

A .410 will kill anything that walks the Lower 48...if you're close enough. It's a great platform for squirrels, rabbits, quail, dove, maybe even grouse if you're fast enough. Anything bigger than that, and you need to be miiighty close for that little shot-string to still be cohesive enough to put enough pellets into the target to kill. .410 slugs are fine loads for deer in thick brush, but slugs and shot are two differnt considerations.

If you're wanting to chase waterfowl, go for the 20-bore. I personally find 20s much less pleasant to shoot than 12s; they seem to have a sharper, more forceful recoil. But for big birds at long ranges, you need that extra charge of shot. All birdshot of the same size is going to run out of steam at about the same distance, regardless of bore size, if te vlocities are roughly equal. At that point, the question becomes one of hit count, which is a function of the size of the string and number of pellets in the air.

ziadel

um, no it won't.



um, again, gotta disagree, no they are not, you should never toss pills that are smaller than 20 guage at deer. ever. for any reason.

bears, forget it, mountain lions, nope. .410 is kinda useless for anything but brushworking rabbits. much better and more available options for grouse, pheasant, quail, dove exist...

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Boo

.410 are out dated and obsolete.

As for shooting anything bigger than a turkey, ummm NO!

Ammo is expensive!

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SSJTWIZTA

Jesus, a 410. i havnt seen one of those sence i was 8. When i was a child i used a 20 ga, those familliar yellow shells bring back memories. shit, i use my 20 ga more than my 12 or my 3 and a half inch magnum..

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cj2112

I would suggest going down to your local trap/skeet/sporting clays club and talking to some of the guys shooting semi-auto's-specifically gas operated semi-auto's. I think you will find that a gas operated semi-auto 12 ga. is going to have much less perceived recoil than anything you are shooting now.

woohog1

Have you thought about maybe something along the lines of the 16 guage, or the 28 guage? Both of those are possibly not often thought of as hunting guns, but they can be worth it. Just something to think about.
If you are wanting a good 20 guage, I suggest a pump mossberg. I have one, and it has never failed me yet, I can take it duck hunting in the morning, then switch loads and use it to whack rabbits in the evening. Think about the mossberg, since they tend to cost less the Brownings/Benellis/Remingtons, and work just as well, better in my opinion.

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The_Dunedan

With proper shot-placement, um, yes it will. It might not be a good idea, but it will work. Steel-cased .410 3" loaded with slugs are used by trappers in Russia for everything up to and including bear. Head-shots only, and only at extreme close range, but it puts 'em down.

Having known two people who successfully used .410 slugs as close-range (under 25 yards) deer guns, I have to insist. These were not one-time flukes; one gentleman still uses his .410 in this way. It limits you to bowhunting ranges, but that's why he likes it. More challange and less ruined meat. It also lessens the chances of a miss, ND, or blow-through flying far enough to cause collateral damage.

More available, yes. But -nothing- is as fast as a .410, and with grouse and quail, speed matters. A LOT. It takes practice to get good enough with a .410 to hunt with it, but it works. I use a .410 hammer double for all of the above except pheasant, and have never had a problem with it. Fewer pellets means less ruined meat and less shot getting stuck in your teeth. My short .410 is the fastest-swinging shotgun I've ever used, and a 12-bore in such a handy length would be vastly unpleasant to shoot.

Next time you pontificate on the impossibility of something, make sure someone hasn't already done it.

ziadel

listen, we're dudes and dudettes on TFP, not SAS agents.

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The_Dunedan

Who said anything about the SAStards?

If someone can't place their shot accurately, they have zero buisiness hunting. If someone can't make a heart-shot at 25-30 yards, using a shoulder-fired weapon, they have no buisiness hunting. Hell, if a person can't make a head-shot at those ranges, they have no buisiness hunting. A .410 performs similarly to a patched round ball or large-bore unpatched ball at those ranges, and people take deer humanely and quickly using those weapons every year. A neighbor of ours uses a flintlock kit-gun he bought from Cabelas which has a .32 calibre bore; considerably smaller than the .410. He's gotten his meat with it every muzzleloader season for three years now. My stepfather has taken deer out to 50 yards with his Charleyville for even longer than that*

*One thing about the Charleyville; they don't get up. That huge ball hits like a -train- at those ranges. The .410, being lighter, has less kinetic energy, which limits the useful range to, IMO, 30 yards or less. This is no handicap, since bowhunters take deer at that range all the time, and many times call te deer in even closer before taking the shot.

Hanxter

my 2 cents...

a 16 or 20 would be fine for ducks, maybe a good head shot on a goose... but remember a .410 only has an effective range of maybe 30 yards and your shot pattern will be the size of a large pumpkin...

i have a thompson contender 45/410 that i use for heater hunting partridge and rabbits... the 45 if i get a dumb deer...

you said yer shoulder can only take 2 shots??? just how many shots do these ducks give you???

woohog... try finding 28 shells around here... heh... like finding 22 hornets

dunedan... we're talking shot, not slugs... who would use a slug on a rabbit let alone a duck???

The_Dunedan

Nobody, slugs are for Deer. I was simpy making the point that the .410 was, IMO, a great deal more capable and versatile than people usually give it credit for.

For rabbits, I use #7-#8, same for Squirrel. Never have tried it on Duck, but I'd probably go with #5 for that. I'd have to be a -much- better shot than I am now, though, before I'd even attempt such a thing. For Dove or Quail, however, I like nothing better. Never have gotten the chance at a thunderchicken, but I'd use it, probably with #6 or #5. Wouldn't want to try my luck on Turkeys; they're usually too wary to come within the .410's limited range.

Edited to add: Several of the above birds I have never purposely hunted. However, in "rambling season" I carried my SxS with #7 in one barrel and #5 in the other, both cylinder bores. I did get a shot at a Duck setting up to land with the #5, and it worked, though I wouldn't do it again willingly. I also carried a single-barrel .410 and an assortment of the above shells for rabbit and squirrel, and it excells for those.

ziadel

*sigh*


Listen, its not hard to peg something in the face at 25 yards at all, but this is hunting, not shooting we're talking about, theres too many other variables. Thats why its a good idea to use a bit more gun than is needed, but not too much. I could in theory drop a buck with a .22, but I won't, I don't see a need to even attempt such a thing.

as for the SAStard thing, well, their most god awful shitty soldier on his worst day is still a SAS member....

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woohog1

Hanxter, first of all where do you call "here"?
Secondly, the wal-mart in my local town carries all the shell guages that I mentioned.
I would imagine that it would need to be a break open action to accomodate the differing lengths of said cases. I personally have never tried that, and I dont really see the need to do so. How much does a box of .45 "long" Colt go for today? I would venture to guess much more than a box of .410 shells.

As far as the .410 being able to take down game in the lower 48, technically I guess its possible, but if my life didn't depend on it, I sure wouldn't want to try. There are just so many more cartridges available today. That isn't to say that the .410 doesn't still have its place. It can be very fun to shoot, whether it be at the sporting clays range, or in the quail field. I know I usually take mine to shoot skeet with, since it usually takes much more skill to break a bird with a .410 than it does a 12 or 20 or any of the other guages equally. Just find it more of a challenge as well. It can also be very useful for training someone to shoot with. I have trained a few people to shoot a shotgun on the .410. The same principle applies when learning to shoot a rifle or a handgun, the small the caliber you start on typically the easier it is to shoot accurately and enjoy shooting as well.

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Fire

New england firearms makes a single shot .410 made specificly to handle .45 LC as well- it is called the survivor- their other single 12 gauges and .410's are avalilable at walmart for 99 dollars so it should be affordable at least......

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