Howdah gun's ballistic handicap?

[Naphtali]

Since the howdah gun most of us might have seen and/or used is one of Pedersoli's, I'll ask for information about it.

Compared with standard barrel length (25-30 inch barrels) cap lock 20 gauge shotguns, what is a good rule of thumb for the amount or percentage of muzzle velocity for larger pellets and buckshot Pedersoli's 20 gauge howdah gun loses by way of its short barrels? I am anticipating propellant charges remain reasonably constant between shotgun and howdah gun.

[johnson1942]

ive seen howdahs at cabelas at rapidcity. ive thought that would be a good two shot self defense gun to carry in a car. light load of powder. and three balls down each barrel, one tight against the other. be like a walker colt only larger cal. and three balls per shot. really snorts and speaks with bark and a large bite. if i had extra cash and no place for it i would get one of those pricey but nicely made guns.

[GhostHawk]

Shotgun tends to run slower/lower pressure as is. Not like rifles and pistols.

I suspect depending on barrel length you could see 2-300 fps between long barrel and short.
A lot would depend on load. A fast burning powder like Red Dot/Promo could be fully burned and up to speed in a quite short 6-8" barrel.

I think the only way to know for sure is to take a known load and shoot it over chrony in both short and long barreled guns.

With the right load the difference could be minimal.

Pattern will spread a lot faster, which could be a good thing.

Wife saw a Bond Arms Snake slayer in .45lc/.410 on tv last week and positively cooed like a dove.

"what would that be like to shoot?" Kick like a mule, but if you ever really needed it you would not notice the kick.

Shame those seem to have gotten expensive. 400$ seems rich for a 2 shot gun.

[dondiego]

Don't use Red Dot or Promo in a muzzle loader!

[Nobade]

I would think that at the range they are designed to be employed, ballistic differences wouldn't matter much. They are fairly heavy, but full 20ga. charges might get a bit unpleasant to hang on to.

-Nobade

[Texantothecore]

Shotgun tends to run slower/lower pressure as is. Not like rifles and pistols.

I suspect depending on barrel length you could see 2-300 fps between long barrel and short.
A lot would depend on load. A fast burning powder like Red Dot/Promo could be fully burned and up to speed in a quite short 6-8" barrel.

I think the only way to know for sure is to take a known load and shoot it over chrony in both short and long barreled guns.

With the right load the difference could be minimal.

Pattern will spread a lot faster, which could be a good thing.

Wife saw a Bond Arms Snake slayer in .45lc/.410 on tv last week and positively cooed like a dove.

"what would that be like to shoot?" Kick like a mule, but if you ever really needed it you would not notice the kick.

Shame those seem to have gotten expensive. 400$ seems rich for a 2 shot gun.

I have a Bond Defender with 3" 45/410 and the recoil with a 250 grn bullet at 700 fps is identical to a 357. I've had it out 4 times and I don't notice the recoil anymore. First time it felt very heavy but I decided to simply disregard the recoil because it doesn't affect the accuracy.

I suspect that it is a cast bullet gun as my groups at 15 yards are shrinking very rapidly each time I go out. I have had some surprised comments from very good shooters who did not know that the gun could be shot accurately. The gun is really coming together much more quickly than any of my other pistols.

I am very pleased with it and can't wait to run black powder under a 454 round ball through it at about 700 fps. Should be a hoot.

[pietro]

I would think that at the range they are designed to be employed, ballistic differences wouldn't matter much.




+1 - Howdah guns were first designed to keep a Tiger from getting into the Howdah strapped to an elephant's back during Tiger hunting.

The effective range they were designed for can be measured in feet.


http://l7.alamy.com/zooms/2785513d2f194b4bb0ae7d5deed19590/hunting-elephant-tiger-hounting-collection-picture-lithograph-circa-bxfhwd.jpg


.

[John Taylor]

Many years ago I made a 72 caliber pistol and was shooing hollow base wad cutters for target shooting. It did very good with 15 grains of powder and a slug that was close to 600. I traded it to my brother-in-law and he started testing it with more powder. When he got it up to 45 grains he said the recoil was about all he wanted. He shot a little black tail deer with it and messed up way to much meat. I just finish another 72 and I'm using round ball. So far I have only put 30 grains in it and it shoots fair, all in the black at 25 yards. I would think in the 62 Howdah for defense a 60 grain charge would be plenty. It would most likely go through a person and hit someone behind said person at close range.