Is howdah 20 gauge a joke or could it be used for small game and close range deer

You need to see my howdah thread.



http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=482964

Accuracy-wise I think by the time you're close enough to shoot the deer you might as well whack it over the head with it. It's a short barreled smoothbore with minimal sights.

It's an extremely powerful short range weapon. If you have a use for an extremely powerful short range weapon (say, you're sitting on an elephant and might have a tiger jump on you) or just want to have a great time at the range buy one. If not, don't.

it was made for the purpose of repelling unwanted boarders!

I have "talked" to several Optima rifle owners who love their guns. Accurate, functional and relatively inexpensive but none had any first-hand experience with the Optima Pistol. All of them seemed to believe that the pistol was just a cut-down rifle with a pistol grip.

I would much rather have a "sawed-off" .50 cal pistol to hunt with than a smooth bore "cutesy" gun. In fact, the reason I contacted these people was to get info re: the Optima pistol. I still have not found anyone who owns one. If reports prove favorable, I will purchase one to use for hunting deer and hogs.

As BlackNet's photos show, his gun is gorgeous .. a work of art .. but is it suitable for hunting? I doubt it.

I bought a side by side 20 gauge right after Pedersoli came out with them. Yep, they are accurate enough and powerful enough to do what your asking.

I've shot everything from field loads, to .60 caliber patched round ball, to buck shot of various size(s).

I generally keep it loaded in the house... .60 round ball with #4 buck on top of that.

Buck and Ball, an American Tradition since 1775

I wouldn't consider a Howdah appropriate for hunting, but it is by no means a joke. It was quite lethal in close quarters combat.

Question as to hunting, I would have to counter ask what is the game. If you are going for elk then look elsewhere. If you are looking for fowl that you skeet type shoot in the field then this would be very workable. Keep in mind to that the distant vs spread with the small barrels must be taken into account. 23 paces you have a good 2 foot spread.

What I have is 50x20 so the 50 cal side is rifled so that is better but I would prefer 20x20 had I to do it over again. Doing skeet type shots with one of these is pure joy.

p.s.
Thanks for the kind comments on my howdah and yes it is indeed a work of art. I have had anti-gun people tell me how beautiful it is and they loved it. That says loads.

23 paces you have a good 2 foot spread.

Click to expand...

My 20X20 will hold around a 6-7 inch pattern at 10 yards (30 feet) with .00 Buck. The PRB is about as accurate as any other muzzle loading pistol once you get the hang of shooting with the shotgun type sights.

A Howdah is a platform on the back of an elephant used to carry passangers.

The howdah pistol is useful for shooting tigers that jump on the howdah to try to eat the passengers. (I would recommend the old Confederate load of three buckshot with a bore-side round ball on top.) Many original Howdah pistols were .577 caliber pistols with rifled barrels.

Seriously, it is a reproduction of a weapon for defense against large predators at close range. A historical replica, that has huge cool factor, even if it has noiche use.

I would want one just to reproduce the old Southern "snake gun" a similar niche use gun.

My 20X20 will hold around a 6-7 inch pattern at 10 yards (30 feet) with .00 Buck. The PRB is about as accurate as any other muzzle loading pistol once you get the hang of shooting with the shotgun type sights.

Click to expand...

That is about normal for that size, I should have mentioned I was using #6 shot.

This is the target. We have 0 buck size (approx 32 caliber), 50 caliber size and #6 shot at the same distance.

Carl N. Brown said:

A Howdah is a platform on the back of an elephant used to carry passangers.

The howdah pistol is useful for shooting tigers that jump on the howdah to try to eat the passengers. (I would recommend the old Confederate load of three buckshot with a bore-side round ball on top.) Many original Howdah pistols were .577 caliber pistols with rifled barrels.

Seriously, it is a reproduction of a weapon for defense against large predators at close range. A historical replica, that has huge cool factor, even if it has noiche use.

I would want one just to reproduce the old Southern "snake gun" a similar niche use gun.

Click to expand...

Howdah Pistols can be quite handy when quelling a native riot
http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/6/62/Gd29.jpg/600px-Gd29.jpg

(note the percussion caps and folding bayonet on this over/under)


or stopping a Tsavo Lion
http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/0/0e/Gd56.jpg/600px-Gd56.jpg

yhs

Higher def is here. ... http://youtu.be/6mXeuJOfUNM

Well I recently (in the last week) learned I may have an excuse to offer the wife as to why we "need" a Howda......

There is a tiger retirement/ rehab center within five miles the of house and her horses.......

Co-incidentaly there is also an elephant retirement rehab place within 20 miles and Rhinos about that far to the south and Lions about thirty miles North.....Florida, its just not like anywhere else.


Seriously, what is not to like about a muzzle loading, cap fired version of the Ithica Auto Burgler with no tax stamp needed?

-kBob

Well it was designed for big cats, so if you had a loose rhino or elephant, you are only going to make it cranky..., ok so "cranky rhino" is a bit redundant..., but you get the point.

It would be cool to have if I was a civilian living in DC as although the handgun ban was struck down..., getting a handgun is still a long and tedious process there... easier and quicker to get something in black powder. The cost of the Howdah though..., I think I'd rather opt for a CVA SxS and cut it down to something similar to what Mad Max carried, although it would be a caplock version.

LD

Honestly, I'll take nearly any Pedersoli over any CVA.
I've owned CVAs, and still own a Colonial pistol.
I'm just not impressed with CVAs quality. Their guns tend to be cheap.
Pedersolis are indeed expensive, but they are not cheap.

Besides, the Howdah holds a big payload, hits hard, and is lots of fun.
It's a lot more fun than any other BP gun I own or have owned.

I plan on carrying mine as a backup to my TC .50 Renegade, when BP hunting feral hogs. Hogs get BIG in GA.

How do you/did they carry one loaded safely?

Triple K makes a holster for it

I've really had very few problems with tigers since I got this thing. Highly recommended.

PS Part of why it's so fun is that the Pedersoli one can take an absurd load. Good times.

I've run 60 and 80 grains of ffG plus a .61 RB through mine. Good bit of wasted powder with 80 grains of 2f and a single ball. Probably burn more efficiently with a load of shot or buck n ball.
IIRC, 80 grains is a perfectly safe load for the Pedersoli 20 gauge double, just powder inefficient in the howdah.
Loads of fun, though.
No tigers have successfully boarded my Howdah since I got mine.

I think I've only gone as high as something like 60 3F. Which is plenty, really.

60 grains of 3f is definitely plenty. It seems to burn better/shoot harder than with 2f.
80 grains of 2f is just for more fire/smoke.

Thanks I been looking at getting one.