From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia .410 bore
.410 bore
.410 bore with a heavier recoiling shotgun. Some shooters howev-
er discourage the use of the .410 as an introduction for
young shooters, both because the negligible recoil does
not familiarize the beginners with the heavier recoil of
larger cartridges such as the 12 gauge, and because of the
difficulty in hitting moving targets with the small charge
of shot used by the .410. Others believe starting young/
new/small shooters with large recoiling guns will cause a
habit of flinching and negatively affect their accuracy.
Some competitive shooters choose the .410 bore be-
cause of the challenge it presents; .410 bore guns general-
ly have full chokes to form a tight pattern with the small
load of shot, and this makes hitting moving targets very
challenging. By using sub-gauge inserts, a 12 gauge break
From left to right; a .45 ACP, a .410 Bore Shotshell, a 20 gauge open action can be temporarily converted down as far as
shotshell, and a 12 gauge shotshell. a .410 bore to provide additional challenge when train-
ing, or to handicap the shooter.
The .410 bore is also commonly used for small game
Type Shotgun, Revolver animals such as squirrels and rabbits, where the small di-
ameter patterns of a full choke are less problematic than
Place of origin United States
with birds.
Production history The .410 bore is inferior to the traditional 12 gauge
shotshell for defensive use,[1] though a number of com-
Produced 1900 onwards
panies market defensive guns chambered in .410, such
Specifications as the Mossberg 500 Home Security model. Defensive am-
munition is becoming easier to find although most .410
Overall length 2.5-3in.
bore shells remain loaded with birdshot. American Der-
ringer and Winchester market .410 bore 000 buckshot
bore, gauge,
.410 bore commonly misnamed the .410 gauge is the
with 5 pellets in 3-inch (76 mm) and 3 in 2.5-inch (64 mm)
smallest gauge of shotgun shell commonly available. It
shells,[2][3] compared to 12 00 pellets in a 3 inch 12 gauge,
has similar base dimensions to the .45 Colt revolver car-
9 00 pellets in a 2¾ inch 12 gauge or 8 000 pellets in 12
tridge, though the .410 is significantly longer, up to 3
gauge.
inches (76 mm), allowing many single-shot firearms and
some revolvers chambered in that caliber to fire shot
without any modifications. Survival arms
The small size of the .410 bore makes it popular for use in
Origin compact firearms carried for emergency use. Commonly
these are combination guns, with a .22 Hornet or .22 rim-
The .410 is a relative latecomer in shotgun sizes. It ap-
fire rifle barrel mounted over a .410 bore shotgun barrel.
pears to have become popular around 1900. Some suspect
The most famous of these is the M6 survival rifle made
that this shotgun arose from converted rifles of a similar
by Springfield Armory, Inc. for the US Air Force, and a
bore diameter. The first ammunition was two inches
number of copies are made by other makers. The orig-
(5.08 cm) long, compared with the modern 2.5 and
inal has a 14-inch (360 mm) barrel, the same length as
3.0-inch (76 mm) sizes.
the stock, and folds in half for storage, making a com-
pact package. With the short barrel, this is classified as a
Uses short barreled shotgun in the United States, so 18.5-inch
As the smallest of traditional shotgun sizes, .410 bore (470 mm) barreled models are made for civilian sales, as
guns throw the least weight of shot, but are very easy to well as a 16-inch (410 mm) pistol version in .22 over .45
handle. This results in a very low recoil, so the .410 is of- Colt.[4] Special flare cartridges in .410 were issued with
ten chosen for young shooters, who might have problems the USAF model.
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia .410 bore
The Thompson Center Arms Contender pistols are
commonly encountered with a special .45 Colt/.410 bore
Capacity, compared to other
barrel. The barrel is rifled for the .45 Colt, but has a spe- gauges
cial choke and vent rib to make it function as a shotgun.
Due to the rifled barrel, the assembled firearm is consid- Length & #000 Buckshot #4 Buckshot
ered a rifle or pistol (depending on barrel length) and Load (.36") (.24")
thus is not subject to the National Firearms Act 18-inch 2½", 410 bore 3 or 4 pellets 8 pellets
(460 mm) minimum barrel length.[5]
3", 410 bore 5 pellets 9 pellets
Handguns 2¾", 12 gauge 7 pellets 34 pellets
3", 12 gauge 10 pellets 41 pellets
The fact that the .410 bore shell fits in a .45 Colt chamber
has resulted in some unusual applications. While shot-
guns are often limited in minimum length, a firearm
chambered in .45 Colt, such as the Contender pistol, is not
References
defined as a shotgun even though it can chamber shot- [1] Chuck Hawks’ updated rec.guns FAQ on defensive
gun shells. American Derringer has long offered .45 Colt/ ammunition
.410 bore Derringers,[6] and recently Taurus and Mag- [2] Winchester .410 buckshot
num Research both began to offer revolvers with extend- [3] American Derringer .410 buckshot
ed cylinders, chambered for .45 Colt but long enough to [4] S. P. Fjestad. Blue Book of Gun Values, 13th Ed.. Blue
hold .410 shells as well. Magnum Research offers a single- Book Publications.
action revolver in their BFR (Big Frame Revolver) line, [5] "G2 Contender Pistols". http://www.tcarms.com/
while the Taurus Judge is similar in price to their oth- firearms/g2ContenderPistols.php. Retrieved
er double-action revolvers. The now discontinued MIL 2007-09-20.
Thunder 5 was also chambered in .410-bore. [6] American Derringer model 1
Other fireams makers, such as Bond Arms,[7] offer [7] Bond Arms
various derringer models which chamber both .45 Colt
cartridges and .410 shotshell. External links
• The Shotgun Report review of the Remington 870 in
28 gauge and .410 bore
• The .410 Bore by Chuck Hawks
• The .410: What Good Is It? by Randy Wakeman
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=.410_bore&oldid=460069236"
Categories:
• Shotgun shells
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