44 spl Trail Load

[BullSkater]

Just loaded some .429 120 grain wad cutter bullets from a a old Lee mold. I stacked two and loaded them to 725 fps second. At 10 feet they spread about half a inch and at 20 yards they spread about 2 inches. Should be a good trail load for snakes or wild dogs.

 

[Walkalong]

Back in the day when we did a lot of "creek wading" and walking around in swamps, my snake load for .44 SPl was a Speer capsule full of #9 shot. It is very effective. I also make my own with no capsule, but the capsule will allow you to load more shot. If snakes are out of shot range, they are not a threat.

For everything else, it was my own cast 208 Gr WC's, or 240 Gr SWC's. All shot from my Charter Arms Bulldog.

 

[BullSkater]

My best snake gun is a shotgun but the little charter is so easy to pocket carry.

 

[James2]

I'll never understand the "need" for a shot snake load. Good grief, if a snake is over 6 feet away it is no threat. If closer, surely anyone who can shoot at all can hit a snake with any bullet? In any event, move away from the snake. Why even shoot it?

 

[mdi]

I agree with James. If there ain't any toddlers or pets around, let the snake be (unless you're hungry and want some rattlesnake stew).

 

[mavracer]

I'll never understand the "need" for a shot snake load.

that's why I always refered to it as rat shot.

 

[loose noose]

I agree with Walkalong on this one, however on my Charter Arms Bulldog, I got a few Speer shot capsules that were a bit too long as they had a little tit on the end of the capsule and hung up on the forcing cone. It got a little hairy when a buddy and I were walking back to camp, and right by the edge of the trail was a Mohave Green Rattler coiled and ready to strike, fortunately for us it just straightened out and slithered to the other side of the trail. Needless to say when I got back to camp I checked the newly purchased loads and did some minor surgery on the caps. By the way I don't go out of my way to shoot snakes, as they are a necessary creature of nature.

 

[Walkalong]

Me either, but sometimes they leave you no choice. Shot capsules vs standard bullets give you a better chance of killing them instantly with one shot in an adrenaline charged moment. IMHO of course. I have been many a mile in creeks and swamps, and snakes can pop up out of nowhere right under your feet.

 

[cfullgraf]

...in an adrenaline charged moment.

A few weeks ago I had a squirrel wonder through my shooting range while i was shooting. Squirrels are undesirables on my farm.

The dumb thing just sat there. I unloaded a cylinder full of 44 Special SWCs at it at about 12 feet and missed with everyone.

Guess he wasn't so dumb after all. But, it is a good example how shooting skills go to pot when the adrenaline gets going.

 

[BullSkater]

I kill every poisonous snake I can near my house. Have lost two dogs to snakes. My neighbor and nephew were bitten by snakes. They were in bad shape for weeks. We have lots of them in South GA. I kill 5 or 6 a year in the yard. Mostly Coppperheads. You can make pets out them if you want. To each his own.

 

[4895]

000 buck shot fit into a .44 special Speer shotshell capsule. Add a little 7.5 shot or whatever you have around to fill. I just buy a box of 000 buckshot and cut the shells open to steal the shot. Load them up and try them out. You may be surprised how well they do. At 10' I can hit the center of a 20 oz. water bottle with a 2" snub with all of the buckshot and some of the birdshot.

For .357 mag, I use #1 buckshot. 3 balls fit inside just perfect, as opposed to 2 in .44. Rattlesnakes out here just don't give a darn.