Win PDX1 410 & the Bond Arms Snake Slayer

Just wanted to give a quick range report on the Winchester PDX1 410 self-defense ammo shot from a Bond Arms Snake Slayer derringer.

Until yesterday I had only shot #7 1/2 out of the SS and it performed exactly as the name describes. Any critter out to about 10-15 feet would get thoroughly peppered. I wanted to see what a little more serious load would do in the pistol so I picked up the PDX 410 combo pack with the shotshells and .45LC ammo. The 45LC load functioned well and was accurate enough to keep it within a couple inches at 10 paces (acceptable to me considering the short sight radius and o/u barrel configuration).

The shotshell load was a different story. My first shot, again at 10 paces, put all 3 disks within about 3 inches but I couldn’t find a single hit from the BB shot. I shot another round and the disks all stayed almost touching in a tight cluster, but again no sign of the BB shot. A little confused, I finished up at the range and headed home. It was only when I was cleaning up that I noticed a few divots in my target board that were from the BB. Each shell has 12 BB shot in it and of the 2 rounds I fired at the target I only ended up finding 7 holes from the shot. The target board is approx. 2'x4'.

The defensive disks should do some damage but I would not recommend shooting this load unless it is at extremely close distances (~5 ft). The Winchester advertisement shows all shot staying w/in 10" at 7'. The BB shot coming out of a rifled barrel at ten paces only put 7/24 shots on a 2'x4' target, the rest were unaccounted for. This load may perform better out of a Judge and I'm sure would do well out of a shotgun but that's not really what it is designed for.

Lastly, the Bond Arms Snake Slayer is an awesome pistol. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a versatile, small, handgun for dealing with pests and for self-defense (in certain circumstances).

Kiln said:

The .410 isn't amazing for self defense, this has been proven by independent testing many times. According to "The Box O' Truth" regular buckshot would more than likely provide adequate power for defense from these little guns but still isn't on par with modern chamberings for most rounds as far as penetration goes.

Do guns like the Judge have a place in the firearms world? In my opinion they do and can be used effectively for self defense but they are far from the ultimate defensive weapon like Taurus marketing would love for you to believe.

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Agreed.

bassdogs said:

Have fired 3 boxes of PDX rounds and I just can't believe the claims posted on this thread. I did find that the spread on the disks tended to be within a few inches at a range of 15 to 20 feet, but the BB's were pretty well spread in a pattern ranging from 12 to 18 inches.

No one is claiming that the PDX is the greatest SD round nor do Judge shooters think the Judge is the best SD handgun. It is however a good choice for those who are not regular shooters who desire a point and shoot weapon forclose face to face incidents.

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What were you shooting them out of? Remember, I was using a Bond Arms Snake Slayer. The barrel is only 3.5". Throw a 2.5" shell in there and that's less than 1" of rifling and useable barrel (it will shoot up to 3" shells). I assure you the claims are true. I had pictures but didnt bother posting them since all they show are three holes in a paper plates from the disks and no holes from the shot.