hunting with a .410 shotgun

[supafrk432]

My friends dad has a .410 guage shotgun and he is convinced he could kill a deer with a 97 grain slug, is this possible. Or are .410 guage shotguns more for killing small birds and rabbits.

thanks in advance

 

[MDHunter]

Legality Question

Not sure where you live, but many states specify minimum velocity requirements for rifles and shotguns used to hunt deer - I think the 20gauge may be the smallest shotgun that meets the requirements, at least in Maryland where I live.

Michael

 

[Art Eatman]

Hmmm. That's one of those deals where I'd agree with your friend's dad--if he was in the same closet as the deer...

Art

 

[Lupinus]

I'd keep it to game birds and rabbits and stuff and leave deer to 12 and maybe 20 guage.

Sure it will do it, hell if you hit a deer right with a .22 it will kill it. The better question is how well, how quick, and how humanly.

 

[charby]

It can be done, just not my first choice for hunting deer.

I live in Iowa and you need a 20 guage slug or bigger to hunt deer with a shotgun. Even a hot 12 guage slug will not drop a deer in its tracks, unless the shot placement is correct and you have some luck on your side.

Charby

 

[one-shot-one]

can it be done

sure.
should it be done, probably not.

 

[mr.trooper]

Dont listen to those Na-sayers.

How many of you even OWN, let alone have hunted with a .410 shotgun? I thought as much.

Too bad i dont have the link to an article...An eleven year old boy took that states record buck with a single shot .410 a while back.

I know people that have been taking Indiana Whitetail Bucks with a .410 slug since they were ten years old. I actualy HUNT with a .410 and YES YOU CAN ETHICALY TAKE MATURE WHITETAIL WITH A .410 SLUG.

I would use a 1/4oz, 3" slug over a 1/5oz 2.5" though. Just a little more umph.

People dont complain about using a hot 45 Colt with a light cast lead bullet; same bullet type, same basic bullet diameter. .410 is no different, except the .410 has MORE ENERGY than the 45 Colt.

The problem is that people try to hunt the .410 like a shotgun. The secret to using a .410 for deer is to use it like a handgun: 20 yards or less, and dont take marginal shots.

Happy hunting!

 

[Lupinus]

At 20 minus yards sure. But what people say and do are often two different things.

But like I said you can also kill a deer with a .22. Just because it can be done doesn't make it a good idea.

 

[kudu]

Indaina says you can hunt with a .410 shotgun for deer. It has about the same power as a hot .357 mag load. It has accounted for quite a few deer in the last few years since it was approved. I have played with the slugs, and they are very accurate out of 3 of my .410 shotguns, never felt like taking a deer with one with so many other larger shotguns available.

If I had to choose between a .410 slug and a .45 round ball out of a muzzleloader, I would take the .410.

 

[charby]

Dont listen to those Na-sayers.

How many of you even OWN, let alone have hunted with a .410 shotgun? I thought as much.

Ha Ha Ha

 

[belton-deer-hunter]

well let me start by saying i own a .410 and yes you can kill a deer with a 410 slug but also i have been told (i have never tried it but it is supoosed to work) you can shoot .45 long colt through them and i know it will kill a deer but my grnadfather also has a .410 and he always carries a slug or two in his truck jsut in case he sees the deer he wants that day

 

[one-shot-one]

YEP

i've seen deer taken down with a .22 lr and .22 mag ( real patient guys and shot at less than 20 yards), and yes i have a two .410's and have hunted with them (squirrle & rabbit). i still say that there are too many "better" choices out there to go into the field with a .410 to take a deer. in an emergency when its all you have and you need to eat, sure but to plan a deer hunt with a .410 as your primary weapon is asking for disapointment.

 

[kudu]

i have never tried it but it is supoosed to work) you can shoot .45 long colt through them and i know it will kill a deer

Yet again another myth. Try forcing a .45 cal bullet down a bore that is between .385-.410. It will blow that barrel in a heartbeat, and maybe a finger or two, and whatever else the shrapnel happens to hit. Yes there are .45 Long Colt guns that can chamber a .410 shell and fire them, Thompson Contender being the most popular, but it is first a .45LC and second , with the addition of a choke device inserted in the barrel, a 410 shotgun/pistol.

Just trying to keep people from doing something dumb that could really hurt themselves. Not trying to offend anyone. Be safe.

 

[ziadel]

I could probably successfully land a jumbo jet, but would you wanna be on board when I tried?


20 guage is the minimum here in NY, but oddly enough we can hunt rifle with ANY centerfire cartridge, I'm willing to bet some oaf has tried going after deer with a .204 ruger, doesnt make it a good idea tho...

 

[JShirley]

Dont listen to those Na-sayers.

How many of you even OWN, let alone have hunted with a .410 shotgun? I thought as much.

As for trophies and such, the record Brown Bear for a while was taken by an Innuit woman who was out small game hunting, and eventually fired her .22 LR in self-defense at a Brownie that was following her. So, yeah, a .22 has been used to kill the largest land predator, but that doesn't make it a good idea. People have also fought off bears with pocket knives.

belton, there have been a few firearms made that will chamber and fire both .45 Colt and .410 safely, if not necessarily well. Those firearms will be marked accordingly.

Mr. Trooper, I personally would have no problem using a stout .45 Colt load on close deer, but yes, I have heard arguments against using .45 Colt on deer. As has been mentioned, a deer can be killed with almost anything, but a .410 is rightfully an expert's gun.

John, started out with a .410...

 

[belton-deer-hunter]

Yet again another myth. Try forcing a .45 cal bullet down a bore that is between .385-.410. It will blow that barrel in a heartbeat, and maybe a finger or two

that is why i havent tried it i figured something was wrong with the scence of putting a lead bullet like that through a shotgun but i still say a 410 slug will do the job bbut one question i do have is this


" if 410's use less lead, plastic, brass, etc.. why do the cost more than their bigger counter parts?"

 

[JShirley]

Fewer sales.

If you sell enough of something, the price usually can go down per each item.

 

[mr.trooper]

I never said that .410 is the BEST shotgun to use for deer. All I said was that those who bemoan the .410 bore as "Inadequate" and "Inhumane" don’t know what your talking about.

Use YOUR judgement on YOUR hunt.

 

[Matt G]

I was wondering when this question would come up, when I saw that nifty 1894-410 that Winchester started making last year. Now that looks like a barrel of fun, for squirrels and rabbits and close turkey and quail and close dove. I've no doubt that a mess of javelina, 'coon, 'possum, and some coyote will drop to 'em, too. If they're carried for those, you just know that someone's going to chance a shot at a deer or a hog with one.

The .410 bore is a mighty anemic proposition for anything above 50 lbs.

As with so many rounds, whether you can reload makes a difference. Check out the complete fetish made of .410 slug loads over at Doug's .410 Slug Forum! Most of those guys are reloading.

Doing a quick look at the big manufacturers' published data on their .410 bore loads, I'm struck by two things: How fast the MV is, and how light the slugs are. 1800+ fps is great, but 1/5 oz is only 87.5 grains!!! (7000 grains to a pound / 16 ounces / 5 = 87.5 grains)

My word. Consider how lame that is. We're talking about something with about the killing power of a .38 Special, without the penetration. I tend to think of the 87g load as a little light for deer out of a .257 Rbts or .250 Savage (at around 3000 fps!). Also consider that the manufacturers likely are using full-length (26 or 28 inch) barrels, whereas the most popular .410 bore guns sport lighter, handier barrels. So you're likely getting a MV somewhere in the 1750 fps range, with your handy 22" gun.

I tend to agree with Art's statement: it depends on the size of the closet the guy and the deer were in together. At handgun ranges (under 20 yards), on an unsuspecting deer that was standing still, with a broadside shot, with excellent sights and a load that proved very accurate, I wouldn't say that it was too big a stunt. I know I've related the tale of my friend who wanted to kill a deer with his family legacy .32-20, using my Dad as backup with an '06. Given the way he was trying it, it wouldn't have been too big a stunt.

But don't believe for a second that it carries the same killing power as a nice .45 Colt load, or a .357 magnum load, or even a nice .44 Special. Frankly, I'd feel a lot better equipped with a .38 Special loaded with hot 158g +P loads.

 

[Matt G]

Forgot to attach the comparison views of Winchester and Remington's slugs:

 

[JSR]

It worked pretty well for this lady using 3 in Brenneke 114 gr slugs.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=11&t=408051

 

[Matt G]

I forgot that Brenneke made a .410 bore slug! According to their website, their only .410 slug is a 3" with a 1/4 ounce projectile, which is 109 grains. At over 1500 fps (that link quotes 1755?), this gives 780 ft/lbs at the muzzle, but that diminishes to 342 ft/lbs by the 50 yard mark.

The nice thing about Brennekes is that they hit HARD. They have that "wadcutter" shape that exacts complete devastation over everything within the full-bore meplat. They're also pretty accurate through smothbores. Frankly, these are the way I would go, if I were going to try a .410 on deer. But it would require a 3" chamber.

Note: More good .410 slug information here.

 

[griz]

People dont complain about using a hot 45 Colt with a light cast lead bullet; same bullet type, same basic bullet diameter.

The lightest bullet I have ever heard of for a 45 was 155 grain, and that is nicknamed a collar button bullet. People that hunt with the 45 tend to start with 250 grain slugs and go up. I have no doubt an experienced hunter could make a 410 work at short range, but why?

 

[Matt G]

Well put, griz.

I handled a friend's new M9410 the other day, and found it to be the good Winchester M94 that we all know and love. It's not a thin shotgun barrel, but a bored-out .41 caliber smoothbore from rifle barrel stock. The one I handled was the full-length version, which is definitely what I would get for help with swinging on birds and moving game. Unfortunately, they come with only 2.5" chambers, so the Brennekes are out for them, unless you do what one guy on the Dougs .410 Slug site (previously linked) did, and cut the shells open, move the slugs back, and re-crimp them. He was, surprisingly, getting decent 50 yard accuracy with them. I wonder about the pressures, though?

In search of a use: friend who bought it is a big lover of hunting squirrels around his land where he usually fishes. I could definitely see the fun of stoking it full of #6 highbrass loads and going into the woods for safe, fun, fast squirrel hunting, with a couple of slug loads in the pocket for taking coons, bobcat, or popping a big fish-eating turtle off the edge of the stocktank or the creek. Likewise for popping daytime skunks at safe distances, or the unaware coyote. If you got lucky and got within 20 yards, highbrass loads to the head would do a good job on turkey, too. [shrug]

 

[Vern Humphrey]

People dont complain about using a hot 45 Colt with a light cast lead bullet; same bullet type, same basic bullet diameter. .410 is no different, except the .410 has MORE ENERGY than the 45 Colt.

Hmmmm . . . .410 shotgun slug load:

97 grain projectile at about 1200 fps. About 310 ft lbs.

My .45 Colt load:

255 grain projectile at about 1200 fps. About 815 ft lbs.