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Wanted to point out that while Wally World won't have this ammo, the 24 gauge, which is as you might already know exactly halfway between the 20 and 28, and the 32 gauge, do exist and at least Fiocchi makes ammo for them. I think we have at least one poster on here with a 32 gauge gun he inherited from his ancestors.
These are apparently less rare in Europe. They even have ammo for the 9mm rimfire shotgun. I'm not certain what you would hunt with that, maybe insects?
Interesting to note that the .410 bore is actually a 36 gauge, and in Europe you might find some shorter than 2.5 inch shells marked as 36 gauge. I have some Turkish BPS brand .410 2.5" shells, the box is labeled both .410 and 36 gauge. Well it's actually marked 36 caliber and .410 gauge, but, hey, their English is better than my Turkish, I know what they mean.
I guess my point is that if you find one of these for sale, you might get a very good price because the seller does not know that while the ammo is not common, it is available.
My hunting buddy looked at me like I was crazy when I used my 16 gauge for Spring turkey. My last shotgun buy was a .410. Why? I justified it by saying that my youngest daughter will eventually get it and she really likes the single shot .410 she has now.
When my father in law passed away in 1992, I was given custody of his 1929 Springfield 16 gauge shotgun, and several boxes of shells from the 1970s - the last time he hunted. I never fired the gun.
back in the day...the 16 gauge was the "gentleman's gun" where i lived.
.410 was the "under 12" (years of age) gun. now, the .410 is the HOT
gauge for turkey using Tungsten shot, and the regular .410 ammo
has been hard to find, too. my Grandfather had a 28 gauge and
an 8 gauge "punt". gave the 8 away when it was banned for
ducks/geese/etc.
Yeah, in the South particularly, the 16 has a certain panache. A buddy shoots an 8 gauge at targets, since you can't use it for migratory birds legally - well you can use it IIRC for upland birds but an 8 hardly makes a great quail or pheasant gun.
The .410 is kind of a contradiction in itself - shooting so little shot, for hunting you are just about stuck with full choke, yet you have to shoot fast (range) and point accurately (small pattern) if you want to make a kill. My dad's dad gravitated to one later in life, he knew what he was doing very well but didn't have the physical strength to handle a bigger gun. I have a Winchester Model 42 Field gun in .410, IMHO better than anything you can buy new now. I won't use that tungsten shot ammo in it, if the shot cup fails, it will score the Hell out of the bore, and replacement barrels are long ago out of stock.
Giving a kid a .410 for a first shotgun makes sense on one level but not on another. It's light and does not kick much, true. But, it's hard to hit anything with. A small pattern with not much shot in it. It's more an elderly expert's gun. Maybe a 28 or 20 is better for a kid. I started out with a Belgian Browning A-5 in 20 gauge, still have it, the best Christmas present my Dad ever gave me hands down. The regular 2 3/4 one ounce 20 is a good compromise between enough shot and not much recoil. Of course if you have a 3" 20 gauge you can find some powerful and hard kicking ammo for that.
Now the 28 is a real peach, I don't have one (yet) but it's nearly as light as a .410, but has a usefully bigger payload.
My hunting buddy looked at me like I was crazy when I used my 16 gauge for Spring turkey. My last shotgun buy was a .410. Why? I justified it by saying that my youngest daughter will eventually get it and she really likes the single shot .410 she has now.
The Fiocchi ammo for the 24 and 32 seems to be priced pretty close to more popular gauges. Certainly in discount stores you can find 12 gauge "dove and quail" cheap loads, usually 1 oz shot, for less money.
Of course you don't go away from a 12 into a small bore to save money on ammo. You do it to be a cussed maverick who does not follow the herd.
Not much is more satisfying than downing a bird your buddy missed with a 12 using a small bore shotgun. Possibly using a gauge most casual shooters don't even realize exists adds to it, have not yet experienced that.
My Grandpa gave me his 1947 vintage Winchester .410 Model 42 in 1956. It is a family heirloom to me and will pass it down to one of my grandkids soon.
I have never been a bird hunter, so it has rarely been fired by me…. and not for the last 55+ years.
I have a .410 Stoeger coach gun for home defense. The rationale is that it won’t overprnetrate - but it’s hard to find good loads for it. It’s either buckshot where you get three pellets (no thanks) or bird shot (no thanks). I don’t have it in front of me, but I had found a 3” load with 11/16oz of, IIRC, #7.5 shot which I deemed a good balance of pattern spread and pellet size. I don’t even see this stuff in stock online anymore.
BIL has a 16-gauge, and they don’t call it a sweet 16 for nothin’. I’m not a big guy so it’s not pushing me around like a 12 gauge, it’s really quite a lovely shooter.
Actually a good 16ga. will kick about the same as a 12. The 16is generally lighter in the receiver and barrel making it easier to carry and point to in the field.
My Browning A5 sweet sixteen is a delight to carry, but kicks about as much as my old Browning Belgium made A5 12 ga
Actually a good 16ga. will kick about the same as a 12. The 16is generally lighter in the receiver and barrel making it easier to carry and point to in the field.
My Browning A5 sweet sixteen is a delight to carry, but kicks about as much as my old Browning Belgium made A5 12 ga
I dunno, it felt softer than 12ga. Just enough to take the edge off. I low key want one now.
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