410 Slug

[Bradley]

Does anyone make a slug for the 410? If so, I'd like to try them in the S&W Governor.

[bowenrd]

Try Google

[smoked turkey]

I don't recall exactly what it went for but I saw an old discontinued Lyman sell the other day on the 'bay' site for something like $120!

[carlsonwayne]

You might check into using a 40 bullet as a slug. Check the diameter and weight. I use the 440 grain 500 bullet as a slug for my 20 gauge. I cast it in pure lead for the shotgun and load the same as a one ounce shot load. Instead of shot, I just drop the bullet/slug into the wad, and crimp as if it were shot. I got the idea from Lee and their one ounce slug for the 12 gauge. If you can find a bullet that fits and weighs the right weight you want (or close to it) it should work fine for you. Mine will shoot through both sides of a propane tank at 100 feet. They shoot straight enough to leave one big lead splatter on a steel plate as well. You may also be able to to have Lee or your preferred Mold maker make you a good bullet/slug. I don't know what size, if any, bullet will fit right, but it may be worth checking into.

[Tatume]

T/C made a Contender barrel that fired 410 shotshells or 45 Colt bulleted ammo. Also, a fellow I know built a rifled 410 for deer hunting. He uses 460 S&W cases. I would suggest 45 Colt bullets for loading 410 slugs.

[deltaenterprizes]

A member has a die to swage Brenke style 410 slugs that are .410 diameter. Do a search, the thread had pics of the die and the slugs it produces. He has done a lot of loading slugs in the .410.

[GooseGestapo]

I have loaded some using a .40S&W bullet @ .401". I loaded them into a wad like loading a Lee shotgun slug in 12ga. to offset the bullet foward, I used "Instant Grits" as a filler.

However, I was shooting them through a "Snake Charmer" .410 that has no choke.
Proceed cautiously.... I will not make a powder recommendation...

At ~30' they shot close enough to POA that they were "useful".

The bore of a true .410 is in fact .410. A .452" slug would probably destroy the gun. I would not care to shoot a .452 or similar size bullet through my $$$$ .410 O/U.
FYI: The "judge" type guns and T/C's were/are .45LC barrels with .410bore chambers..... The T/C had a removeable choke tube that they required removal for shooting .45LC ammo.

The above .40S&W bullet/wad could be pushed through the bore of the .410bore shotgun with a cleaning rod. I'd likewise check your "load" and verify likewise before firing one...... I first tried it with a .411" bullet for the .41Mag but it was way, way too tight.
But, that's just me........

[snuffy]

You might check into using a 40 bullet as a slug. Check the diameter and weight. I use the 440 grain 500 bullet as a slug for my 20 gauge. I cast it in pure lead for the shotgun and load the same as a one ounce shot load. Instead of shot, I just drop the bullet/slug into the wad, and crimp as if it were shot. I got the idea from Lee and their one ounce slug for the 12 gauge. If you can find a bullet that fits and weighs the right weight you want (or close to it) it should work fine for you. Mine will shoot through both sides of a propane tank at 100 feet. They shoot straight enough to leave one big lead splatter on a steel plate as well. You may also be able to to have Lee or your preferred Mold maker make you a good bullet/slug. I don't know what size, if any, bullet will fit right, but it may be worth checking into.

It won't work for a smooth bore AT ALL! I'm unaware of ANY .410 shotguns made with a rifled bore, so it won't work in ANY .410. The reason is a plain .40 bullet HAS TO BE SPUN by rifling to be accurate. Pushing it down a smooth bored barrel will cause the bullet to tumble. If all you want is to scare the target, then okay, it'll do that!


T/C made a Contender barrel that fired 410 shotshells or 45 Colt bullet-ed ammo. Also, a fellow I know built a rifled 410 for deer hunting. He uses 460 S&W cases. I would suggest 45 Colt bullets for loading 410 slugs.

Yeah, the contender, judge, the S&W governor, and the Comanche are all .452 barrels with a .410 chamber. They could be used with .452 pistol boolits. But a normal .410 shotgun won't even chamber a .410 shell with a .452 bullet in it.

You're pretty much limited to buying what is offered in factory ammo. That's a 1/5 or ¼ ounce slug,(95, 114 grains), feeble at best. There's hand-loadable slugs made up by ballistic products, called LGS for light game slug. It's a .380 round ball pushed by a cushioned wad. Golden bear,(russian), makes a brass plated steel hulled slug load that's a 97 grain sabot slug.
http://www.ammunitiontogo.com/product_info.php/pName/100rds-410-gauge-golden-bear-97gr-sabot-slug-ammo/manufacturers_id/21?osCsid=oaqh4vvtvf5hpgub97bl2i19g7

[carlsonwayne]

My 20 gauge doesn't have rifling, and the 500 bullet is designed to be shot out of a barrel with a twist. And yet I still get reasonable accuracy. Not the same as if I were shooting a rifle, but good enough that I would shoot a deer at 100 feet or so and have no concerns that the deer would live more than a few seconds. I would bet real money that if he finds a bullet that fits inside the wad, and a good load for it, that he would have acceptable accuracy (depending on what and how far he is shooting) that he would be pleased. As soon as I get set up to load 410, I am planning on trying it. Since I am a victim of dictator osama's economy, it will be a while before I can get my 410 set up. As long as the bullet and wad will slide down the barrel, the WORST thing that would happen is he would find out that I am in error and it isn't accurate at all. It can only hurt to try. I did with my 500 bullet and have been pleased, and everyone else who has seen and shot it has been impressed. If anyone does try it, I recommend pure lead, since that is what LEE recommends for their 12 gauge slug.

[snuffy]

My 20 gauge doesn't have rifling, and the 500 bullet is designed to be shot out of a barrel with a twist. And yet I still get reasonable accuracy. Not the same as if I were shooting a rifle, but good enough that I would shoot a deer at 100 feet or so and have no concerns that the deer would live more than a few seconds.

How many times have you shot this load at 100 FEET? How many times did the bullet hit sideways? Or bass ackwards? I'd hate to be limited to 100 feet while deer hunting. Try that combo a 100 yards. You'd be lucky to hit a 4 X 4 target more than half of the time.

A bullet hitting sideways or backwards is not going to deliver much shock. Especially if it's tumbling, it would slow down quicker.

What part of "a conical bullet must be spun by rifling to be stable" don't you guys understand?

[carlsonwayne]

The funny thing here is that Bradly is looking for something to load and shoot out of a PISTOL, not a standard shotgun. So far, I have never had any of mine hit sideways, backwards, or any other way than nose first. In all my years of hunting, I have rarely had to shoot a deer at further than 50 yards (BTW that's 150 feet, not much more that what I have been shooting with the shotgun), and have taken several with my 44 mag pistol (no scope) at significantly less than that. Also, since you seem to want to start and continue an argument, I have never hunted with my shotgun and any kind of slug, I merely pointed out that when I shoot my cast bullet as a slug it works fine to at least about 100 feet. The distance may be further, or it may be a little less, I have never used any kind of measuring device to get an exact distance. Both me and a friend have paced it out to about 100 feet. Would I shoot a deer with it at that distance if the opportunity arose? Yes. Would I shoot an elk with it at the same distance? Yes. Moose? I would have to think about that one. Someone breaking in to my home? Definitely, but the odds I would have that in my gun at the time are pretty slim. Just because you have never done it, and everyone tells you it won't work doesn't make it true. I have had people tell me that certain loads in my 44 will blow it up, yet it is still in the same shape as when I bought it. There are people who tell me that pistol powder won't work in a rifle, and yet there are many of us using pistol powder to get safe subsonic loads. Therefore, since I personally have loaded them and shot them accurately (one big 2.5" splatter on the steal plate, and 1.5-2" on paper), I will continue to believe reality, and not you. As I suggested to Bradly, try it, it MIGHT work. On the other hand, it may not work with those bullets. And regardless of your adamant insistence that it won't work, I WILL try it as soon as I can afford to set up for loading 410. You never know what you can do until you try. Oh, how do I know they hit nose first??? I have shot them into wet phone books. Its the closest I can afford to a ballistic gel (I know it isn't gel, its wet paper). I consistently get .5" holes and every bullet I have recovered (my first try on one book went all the way through) has been sitting nose first with no indication of tumbling. Since you insist it won't work, and I know for a fact that the 440gr 500 bullet WILL and DOES work, there is little point discussing the topic any longer. Bradly, if you are reading this, I would at least try and see what happens. The worst thing that will happen, is that snuffy will be right about that caliber not working. Since there are no 20 gauge revolvers that I know of, I have never tried my loads in a pistol. I think it would be a fun and hand numbing experience though. The best thing that could happen, is that you find a nice bullet for a slug that works for what you want.

[carlsonwayne]

Just as I posted that, it occurred to me that the S&W Governor IS rifled. Therefore, according to snuffy, it WILL work. As for my opinion? I still say try it and see. With the wad getting the spin, it may cause more problems than no spin. Another thought here is to find a bullet that will load like a normal slug, and go that route. You can always get a mold for a size larger than the proper diameter and size it down to the proper diameter. Since I have never loaded the 410, I am uncertain what the proper slug diameter is. Probably around .450 or so. My bet would be closer to .445 in order to fit inside the shell and for the shell to chamber, but that probably wouldn't engage the rifling. If you can afford to, play around with the options, throw some lead at paper and see what happens. Don't read what snuffy and I have put here and take either of us as the bottom line. Whatever you do, be safe and have fun. Remember too that most slugs are hollow base (at least every one I have seen is). I think they expand to the barrel and since most have a twist built in, they spin themselves. I am NOT certain on this, but it is something to consider. And always remember that you never know what you can do until you try.

[leadman]

I am forced by a bum neck to use a 410 shotgun and have been thinking of a way to load boolits in the 410 case just to play with.
My shotgun is a Mossberg pump with a full choke that measures .395" at the muzzle. The OPs' pistol will have no choke so this is not a concern to him. But to others with a choked barrel it might be.
From the dimensions of my barrel a .375" boolit might work in a standard wad. Unfortunately I sold that mold many years ago.

I tried a Russian made slug in a brass plated steel case in my shotgun and it shot fine but the case stuck in the chamber. The case had expanded quite a bit in front of the web and I think this is the reason it stuck. I did remove it easily with a pocket knife. The temperature that day was well over 100' so this might have been a factor. I will try them again when it is cooler.

Interesting is the fact that these Russian cases are berdan primed. My friend gave me a bunch of 43 Mauser cases and RWS berdan primers and the primers are the size needed for the slug case. I had checked on buying these primers previously and was told this size was obsolete, but guess the Russians didn't know this.

To the OP: I am sure you will be able to find a combination that will work in your gun. Might check the various Lee black powder molds and see if there is a size in there you can use. Might also be able to use 460 S&W brass to load a boolit in. I played with this in my 45/410 Contender barrel and got better accuracy than with 45 Colt brass. Had to trim the length and of course a lighter charge of powder.

[Reg]

Just to throw something out there that might be food for thought (in other words--- gas on a open fire !! ). For a number of years now I have used 444 Marlin cases for loading 410 shotgun shells. Use them in a 311 Stevens but have to be careful as the extractors are a bit sloppy in fit but also in a CZ Ringneck that has tight fitting extractors and they extract fine. Only rarely will the 311 need a bit of help. I generally use a Remington plastic wad but have also cut wads from various materials but do use a thin ( .030 ) card wad as the top wad. I seal this with a good dollop of model airplane glue. Has worked very well with all loads so far and this is up to the 3" loadings. Patterns are OK and never a sign of pressure. They have taken uncounted doves, rabbits, etc.
Have yet to try a slug but wonder, Why not ? I would measure the bore and choke and never exceed this diameter which leaves out using a plastic wad unless you could find a slug dia. and wad thickness that would not exceed the choke or bore dia ( like a sabot ) but why not simply cut a hard card board wad or two for the bottom wads then cut a cushion wad from 3/8" cellotex and them dip them in hot parrifin to kind of lube things up a bit. I would build the wad collum as such one would not use a top wad but rather lightly crimp the case to hold things togeather. Would they be accurate ? Many years ago I seem to remember in the Rifleman or one of the other gun rags that an experiment was done in 12 ga. using the Lyman mold with the cast slug rifled them not rifled or as cast. At normal slug ranges I seem to remember it didn't make a lot of differance. In other words, rotation didn't seem to be much of a factor. Shape or center of gravaty of the head seemed to have more to do with it. Loading a few then shooting would tell a lot. Cronograph them and you can figure back to determine foot pounds of energy. This will give you an idea of killing power. How many foot pounds of energy does a .45 or say a .50 cal round ball have in a muzzle loader ? They seem to take a bunch of deer each year. How would a .401 or .410 200 grain bullet at lets say from 1000 to 1200 fps do at a nominal slug range of 75 yards do ? Other considerations, what is the weight of 5/8 oz. of shot in grains. This could give you a load starting point. If your bullet would be heavyer then you would have to drop the load a bit , perhaps change powder ?? I think there is some learning to do and fun to be had here >

:coffeecom

[turbo1889]

First of all I would like to say that if you are dealing with a combination gun that is designed to shoot either 45-Colt or 410-shot shells and has a rifled barrel then I would suggest you don't fool around with 410 slugs and just go with 45-Colt loads for you slugs. If you want more then what a standard 45-Colt load can do then depending on how your individual gun is chambered you may or may not be able to use a longer length shell then a standard 45-Colt with a 45-caliber boolit inside it. It mainly depends on how the guns chamber is cut but in some cases it can be done and you can build loads in the longer cases that provide greater power then what can be done with a 45-Colt especially if your gun can take higher pressure levels then a standard 45-Colt chambered gun.

One good load to use in 45-Colt/410-shot combination guns is to load three 0.440" round balls for a triple ball load in a 410 case. That is a scatter pattern load that works pretty good for a close quarters knock down and is a good compromise between the single big projectile provided by a 45-Colt load and the small shot found in most 410-shot shells. The larger balls provide a significant improvement over even OO or OOO buck loads (0.33" & 0.36" ball size respectively) in 410-shot shells. Usually the combination guns have chambers that are loose enough to except such a load even though the 0.440" round balls bulge the plastic cases (won't bulge thin wall brass cases such as MagTech but not all combination guns chambers will accept those).

Now if your gun is a true 410-bore shotgun with a smooth bore barrel and you want to load slugs. My first suggestion would be either a 0.409”-0.412” or a 0.395” round ball mold depending on whether your gun has a choke or not and how much of a choke. For guns with no choke at all that are true cylinder bore guns a nice hard WW-alloy round ball at about 0.409”-0.412” pushed hard and fast can provide some pretty incredible results on game up to and including deer with proper shot placement. For guns with a choke it is a combination of using softer alloy and or the smaller 0.395” size ball to ensure that the load works in your choke constriction. A dead soft pure lead 0.395” ball being suitable for use in all but the very tightest choke constrictions that are even tighter then what is considered the standard full choke constriction a notable example being some European and Soviet 410-bore shotguns with extreme choke constrictions of up to a full millimeter which is almost double the constriction on an industry standard full choke for the 410-bore.

You can also us 38-spl wadcutters inside the 410 shot shell as wad-slugs. A hollow base wadcutter is best of all of course and is best loaded in a plastic shot wad that has been cut down so that the depth of the wad cup is equal to the height of the HB wadcutter plus about an 1/8th of an inch. One places enough shot buffer in the bottom of the wad-cup to fill the hollow base of the boolit and raise it up that 1/8th of an inch to be flush with the cut end of the wad and then loads that as a package unit on top of an extended wad-column made up of another gas seal over the powder, nitro cards, and if there is room (usually is in 3” loads but not in 2-1/2” loads) a felt or fiber cushion wad preferably waxed is sandwiched in-between the nitro cards. It is also possible to use the short squatty 148gr DEWC that don’t have a hollow base and surprisingly enough they will usually fly straight without tumbling out to the 25 yard line no problem and about half of them will not start tumbling till after the 50 yard line. I call these ones that don’t tumble and fly straight even though they are not a round ball and are shot out of a smooth bore gun “volunteers”. The short squatty shape of a 148gr DEWC isn’t naturally stable like a round ball or hollow base slug or wadcutter is but it seems to be close enough that it will work out to a certain range before they start tumbling. You can load one inside a wad in the same way as I explained above as one would do with a HB wadcutter. Usually though, such loads are not as accurate as the simpler round ball slug loads explained above although they do offer an improvement in knock down compared to a round ball due to having a large flat meplat.

Now you could also have a custom slug mold made that cast hollow base slugs of appropriate length, diameter, and weight to use in a 410 smooth bore gun to provide both accuracy and the knock down of slug with a flatter nose then a simple round ball provides but that is mainly only useful for guns with very little or no choke since the slug for accuracy reasons needs to be full bore diameter and even if cast from soft lead if the mold is of conventional design there will be no longitudinal rifling/relief grooves in it to provide relief points for the lead to flow into when being squeezed down in a gun with a tight choke constriction and thus will be hard on the choke of such a gun, potentially disastrously so if the slug is cast from too hard of an alloy.

A full bore diameter slug with longitudinal rifling grooves to allow it to easily swag down when fired in a 410 smooth bore gun with a tight choke is the best answer but unfortunately it is very difficult and complicated to machine a mold that casts slugs with longitudinal relief grooves in them so usually this means the slugs must be swaged in a swaging die instead. Either way the cost is prohibitive for most people so most who are unwilling to put in the necessary financial expenditure, time, and effort would be best advised to go with a simple RB mold of appropriate size and casting from an appropriate alloy for their particular guns choke constriction as explained above. Having a dedicated slug gun without a choke constriction and good sights is also highly advisable with minimal expense and allows for the use of the larger full bore ball size in either soft or hard alloy.

[7br]

I have some 310gr gc'ed boolets that are sized to .412 iffn you are interested.

[firefly1957]

Maybe for use in 45 chamber only he may consider glueing shot together in wad?

[Baron von Trollwhack]

Does anyone make a slug for the 410? If so, I'd like to try them in the S&W Governor.

Did you ever think of buying a 5 pack of slugs and breaking one down for analysis?

Its been a few years back but Winchester was making slug and 3 ball shot loads. In my regular old singleshot 410 shotgun the slug was good for a pieplate target at 40 yards.

[BAGTIC]

Load a .452 caliber bullet in the .45 Colt case. Fired in a smoothbore that bullet becomes a shotgun slug. After all the .410 shotshell started off as a shot loading in the .44-40 rifle cartridge. Why bother with the shotshell case at all?

[Hang Fire]

IIRC, many years ago Lyman used to make a 375 grain mold for the .410. and the loading data drove it at a high velocity. But seems Lyman scrubbed it for some reason?

[Hang Fire]

Load a .452 caliber bullet in the .45 Colt case. Fired in a smoothbore that bullet becomes a shotgun slug. After all the .410 shotshell started off as a shot loading in the .44-40 rifle cartridge. Why bother with the shotshell case at all?

Uh, if I understand you right, might want to rethink. A regular 410 shotgun has a bore diameter of .410", it could get interesting forcing a .452" slug down to .410.

[turbo1889]

IIRC, many years ago Lyman used to make a 375 grain mold for the .410. and the loading data drove it at a high velocity. But seems Lyman scrubbed it for some reason?

Good grief, the fabled Lyman 410 slug mold is just like a darn fish story. It gets heavier every darn time it is told. The actual real world weight of the slug was a hundred and some grains. They made a typo in one batch of loading manual and put a "2" instead of a "1" for the first digit and the erroneous load data resulting from the error rears its ugly head every once in a while all over the darn net.

This is the first time I’ve seen it quoted with a “3” in front though (and the second two digits weren’t no “75” either). The slug mold in question was discontinued because it was horribly inaccurate because it was horrifically undersize for even a regular 0.410” diameter shot barrel much less a combination gun with a 0.452” barrel.

[W.R.Buchanan]

375 gr,,,please?

I actually have some factory loaded Winchester .410 slugs. They are 1/5 ounce! That's 88 grains guys! I bought them before reading the box! Then I said OH 1/5 oz not bad, then I used a caculator and came up with 87.4 gr? and went OK I won't be shooting any bears with that one.

My Makarov shoots a bigger slug! 95gr!

I'd just stick with .45LC rounds as the .410 slugs are pretty useless.

I wonder if my M6 Scout would swallow .45LC's?

My.02

Randy

[turbo1889]

I think the actual weight was about 130 grains if I remember correctly. I have scanned images of the load data both with the correct weight listed and the typo edition data with the "2" instead of a "1" somewhere on one of my computers.

[firefly1957]

410 slugs are about the same energy as a 38 +p special if you need power look at a 45 colt cartridge. Does any one know what the maximum pressure on the judges? it seems some fool could put a .460 S&W cartridge in it? Or am I wrong?

[turbo1889]

410 slugs are about the same energy as a 38 +p special if you need power look at a 45 colt cartridge. Does any one know what the maximum pressure on the judges? it seems some fool could put a .460 S&W cartridge in it? Or am I wrong?

As far as the safety issue and the ability to chamber 460-mag and 454-Casull it depends on how the chamber is cut. Most are slightly constricted after the depth of a 45-Colt shell to form kind of a throat for the 45-colt and prevent the chambering of a longer more powerful shell while still giving just enough room for the slightly smaller diameter plastic end of a 410-shell to slip in and chamber. I do know that they have come out with a "Super Judge" that works with 454-Casull/45-Colt/410-shot. And I have heard of one single shot long gun chambered for 460-mag/454-Casull/45-Colt/410-shot but have not heard of a handgun so set-up.

As to the power and ballistics of a 410 slug the most powerful factory loads push a 1/4-oz (109 grains) to a real world velocity (I've run them over a chrony) of 1,800-fps. Those ballistics aren't achievable in a 38-spl. +P even out of a carbine length barrel that I am aware of. That is more in line with the 9x25 Dillon cartridge which is a 10mm case necked down to take 9mm bullet which when loaded with a 115 grain jacketed boolit can push that kind of velocity. In fact it is almost exactly in line with the 9x25 if you loaded that round with a backwards bullet so that it had a 100% flat meplat to simulate the "iron pig" air drag coefficient of a shotgun slug. The lighter factory loads are almost exactly in line with the 357-Sig cartridge which can't muster quite that much velocity unless you drop down to a lighter weight boolit, once again the air drag on the boolit is not the same but at the muzzle they are about equal. All this of course is with the 410 slugs being fired out of a long gun and the 9x25 and 357-Sig cartridges being fired out of handguns. The 410 slug really takes a hit as far as velocity when fired out of a handgun so the 45-Colt is even further ahead of it when the firearm they are both being fired out of is a handgun.

Now as far as handloads go. I've been able to push a 0.412" round ball out the end of the barrel at over 2,000-fps while still maintaining safe pressure levels through the use of an unconventional for cartridge powder choice and have been able push pure lead swagged slugs (I have a custom swagging die to make rifled 410-slugs) weighing between 120 and 140 grains out the end of the barrel at 1,800-fps or more while still maintaining safe pressure levels. And I've been able to get 180 grain slugs up to about 1,600-fps but the slugs for those loads are a pain to make since they are too heavy to stabilize with a conventional hollow base so I have to screw a stack of nitro cards to their base to form a Brenneke type tail and I usually booger up half or more in the process of screwing the tail on so they are a complicated time consuming build where I get over a 60% cull rate so those are reserved for my own deer hunting (Red Dot sight equipped 410-bore only (not a combination gun) long gun with a true cylinder bore that prints very small groups) and that alone.

[BAGTIC]

Uh, if I understand you right, might want to rethink. A regular 410 shotgun has a bore diameter of .410", it could get interesting forcing a .452" slug down to .410.

He was asking about loads for the S&W Governor which is chambered for both the .45 Colt and .410 shotshell. If S&W thinks it is safe to fire a .452 projectile through that bore so do I.

[firefly1957]

Turbo Thank you for the information I do remember (now) reading that the 454 would not chamber in the judge, it has been a while since I read that. On a similar note as your load I have a .40 flinch-lock that shoots a .400 round ball @ 2275 f/s with 70grs. fffg powder and would not consider it for deer unless I was desperate. Normally I only use 40 grs. in that rifle but shot many loads over Chrony to see what they would do. That round ball has a pretty low ballistic coefficient and slows fairly fast.

[turbo1889]

The advantage that the 410 has over your flinch-lock is that for accuracy and loading ease muzzle loaders need to use a soft alloy round ball. Where as a true cylinder bore shotgun without a choke can use a very hard alloy ball. When deer hunting with the 410 with a had alloy full bore diameter round ball load I like to shoot for the neck and snap their spine and a hard alloy ball does that very well. My current preference as I stated right now is my 180 grain swaged lead attached tail Brenneke type slugs which are nearly twice the weight of a factory 410 slug or a round ball load and still moving at 1,600-fps or so those take deer down no problem if you put them in the boiler room since the big soft lead nose expands out to about 70 caliber or so and either punches out the off side leaving a fist size hole or gets lodged under the hide on the off side depending on the range and how many ribs the slug hits on the facing and off side.

Even with all that though a smooth bore 410 slug gun is a 50 yard or less deer hunter. With special loads if you, your load, and your gun are accurate enough you can push that out to about 70 yards maximum. Now a rifled barrel 410 slug gun (not a combination gun) with hand loads is a whole different matter (I've built one) and that is good out to 100 yards now problem and a long gun that is a combination gun that has a loose enough chamber to accept a MagTech full length brass 410 shell with a 452 boolit stuffed into the end and a case full of slow burning powder can put out performance about half way in-between a 45-Colt carbine and a 45/70. But in a handgun your options are pretty limited and your best bet for a single projectile "slug" load is just to load it with 45-Colt loads.

[Saiga .410]

Thanks for the info turbo it helped me quit a bit!!! sounds like you have a good deer setup on your hands:D

[Master24149]

Does anyone make a slug for the 410? If so, I'd like to try them in the S&W Governor.

Bradley, try BPI (Ballistic Products), the have multiple slug options in most gauges and if I recall correctly they carry a .410 slug.
Happy hunting!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bedbugbilly]

I'm not a "shotgunner" so please excue the question but what is the normal diameter of a 410 slug? I don't have any 410 shells or slugs or I'd tear a slug round apart and measure one. Seems to me that if there were enough fellows out there who wanted to load 410 slugs and there wasn't a good "stock mold" on the market, it might be worth a "group buy" to have some one like Accurate or NOE to cut some double cavitiy blocks? If a HB is required then a nose pour with a base pin for the hollow base shouldn't be that big of a deal to make?

My question on the diameter of the slug may seem a little stupid but I'm thinking of what the diameter needs to be to fit in a 410 hull without bulging the hull so it doesn't chamber. And, is there a different size for a plastic hull as opposed to a paper hull? Again . . . not a shotgunner but curious . . . . . and, does a 410 slug use a plastic sabot to hold the slug or can it just be loaded over a thick wad to push down the bore?

[Markopolo]

How about this for already published idea's...

198984

I spent a lot of time setting up a couple single shot 410 H&R types.. cut chokes off, and setup survival guns... I have experimented with BP round balls and all sorts of stuff... trying to make a SE Alaska black tail gun... the deer are pretty small and I think I have them setup enough for a short range deer kill, but would only consider in a survival situation.. I drilled the old wood stock's and have holes in them to accomadate a few brass shells and primers... hopefully I won't need them...

The one on the left is the BPI light game setup.... and the one on the right is a 210 SWC from a 41 cal lee mold... I have shot both with BP and non BP... they are both marginal for deer out to about 50 yards no matter how they are loaded...

[W.R.Buchanan]

Federal makes loaded .410 Slugs that are 125 gr at 1775 fps.

That is .357 Magnum Ballistics, which could be useful in a bug out gun.

Randy

[Newtire]

It’s 111 grains and .385” in diameter. I loaded some but they blew the backs off and hit the berm in 3 spots. I have a Russian Svarog .410 mold that is showing promise in my m/l .410. It is .408” in diameter and weighs 117 grains.

[Outpost75]

A .410 full choke barrel will pin-out from .390-.400 at the muzzle, whereas typical barrel bore diameters ahead of the chamber forcing cone vary from .420-.430 depending upon country of manufacture. My Beretta folding Garden Gun has a .395 choke diameter and .415 bore, whereas my H&R Garden gun, after cutting off the muzzle behind the burst where I shot a .44-40 jacketed load through it as a kid tapers from .425 at the breech to .420 at the muzzle where the burst 26-inch barrel was cut off to 22".

.425" diameter soft lead round balls with mild loads of 5 grains of Bullseye, loaded in .44-40 brass shoot fairly well in the cylinder bore H&R, 4-5-inch 10-shot groups at 25 yards just aiming with the bead-sighted barrel. Black powder .44-40 cowboy loads with pure lead 200-grain bullets keyhole and barely stay on a 21-inch target paper at 25 yards.

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I look at it as a fox, coyote and groundhog gun, not a deer gun.

[Outpost75]

Uh, if I understand you right, might want to rethink. A regular 410 shotgun has a bore diameter of .410", it could get interesting forcing a .452" slug down to .410.

Speaking from experience a factory jacketed .44-40 softpoint round with common .425" jacketed bullet when fired in a .410 full choke actually recoils FORWARD as the muzzle splits at the choke constriction and spreads open like the hood of a cobra. This I know from having done it over 50 years ago. Dad cut the muzzle off behind the split with a pipe cutter, recrowned the barrel by hand with a file and pipe chamfer tool, and we re-installed the front bead. The pipe cutter left a slight 0.005" constriction at the muzzle, which pinned out .420" with the rest of the cylinder bore being .425ish. Gun shoots much better after cutting it off and has killed truckloads of small game since.

My advice if you consider this mod is to go right to the pipe cutter and forget shooting the .44-40 softpoint round, they cost $2 apiece now and the extra money spent is of no benefit.

[leadhead]

Why not use a 410 from a 41 magnum bullet mold? They drop at .410
leadhead

[Outpost75]

Why not use a 410 from a 41 magnum bullet mold? They drop at .410
leadhead

Because choked .410 barrels are most often .390-.400 at the muzzle, so you may burst the barrel AND the elongated bullet will keyhole when fired from a smooth bore.