Sergeant Earthworm
12-22-2012, 04:47 PM
Okay, so this isn't the coolest thing ever but it's gotta be right up there in the top 10%.
A couple years ago I found a Pedersoli 2nd model Brown Bess kit at a dealer, seems somebody ordered it but never picked it up, so the dealer sold it to me for about half the regular retail. Aside from the inherent "cool" factor of the Bess, I quickly discovered it has very limited utility as a sporting arm. Until about two weeks ago, that is.
The small game seasons are in full swing in Colorado, so I decided to take a shotgun out and see if I can find Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny. It then occurred to me that the Bess is a roughly 11 gauge smoothbore and about that time I discovered that .761 over powder wads and shot cards work perfectly and are readily available at Track of the Wolf and elsewhere. "Why not?" says I.
With 90 grains of ffg and an equal amount of #6 shot I get a consistent 32 inch pattern at 25 yards. I do get a little powder out of the vent when seating the over powder wad, but not enough to be a problem. Probably a bit hotter than necessary but it works.
Only downside is this past Wednesday while I was out looking for Peter and Benjamin a Norwester blew in and there wasn't a wabbit to be found anywhere. Either that or they all had the day off and nobody told me. Well, anyway, I'm all ready with carrots and potatoes and stew pot, so next time those wascals are in big trouble.
A couple years ago I found a Pedersoli 2nd model Brown Bess kit at a dealer, seems somebody ordered it but never picked it up, so the dealer sold it to me for about half the regular retail. Aside from the inherent "cool" factor of the Bess, I quickly discovered it has very limited utility as a sporting arm. Until about two weeks ago, that is.
The small game seasons are in full swing in Colorado, so I decided to take a shotgun out and see if I can find Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny. It then occurred to me that the Bess is a roughly 11 gauge smoothbore and about that time I discovered that .761 over powder wads and shot cards work perfectly and are readily available at Track of the Wolf and elsewhere. "Why not?" says I.
With 90 grains of ffg and an equal amount of #6 shot I get a consistent 32 inch pattern at 25 yards. I do get a little powder out of the vent when seating the over powder wad, but not enough to be a problem. Probably a bit hotter than necessary but it works.
Only downside is this past Wednesday while I was out looking for Peter and Benjamin a Norwester blew in and there wasn't a wabbit to be found anywhere. Either that or they all had the day off and nobody told me. Well, anyway, I'm all ready with carrots and potatoes and stew pot, so next time those wascals are in big trouble.