Is this a reason for a Judge or Governor?

I don't know the size of snakes some of the posters are encountering but 38 Spl. shotshells will not kill rattlers in my area. In fact it will make them very angry.

For handguns my smallest shotshell caliber are homemade 45 Colt. The Judge will 410's would be a great choice.

It is obvious that some folks have not patterned handgun shotshell loads.

BSA1 said:

I don't know the size of snakes some of the posters are encountering but 38 Spl. shotshells will not kill rattlers in my area. In fact it will make them very angry.

For handguns my smallest shotshell caliber are homemade 45 Colt. The Judge will 410's would be a great choice.

It is obvious that some folks have not patterned handgun shotshell loads.

Click to expand...

I've killed several larger Western Diamondbacks with .38 spl snake shot. Does it decapitate them as well as a 12 ga? Nope. Does the 12 ga kill them any more dead? Nope.

would one of the 410 / 45 hybrids be a good idea to keep downstairs for this situation?

Click to expand...

A one word answer would be YES!

A reason to buy a gun is a great thing
But in all honesty, any caliber with snake loads (or shotshells) would be a good solution.

On the other hand I have fired CCI .45 Colt shotshells in a .410 shotgun and was pleasantly surprised with patterns on pizza boxes and penetration on steel cans. Adequate for small vermin around the shed and quieter than .410 shotshells.

I carry shot shells sometimes too.
Believe me, I didn't like the Judge either until I got! a chance to shoot one. I thought it was uuuug ly.

Sure the 22, 38, 44, 45 shotshells will work, but at what range. I played a lot with 45 ACP and 45 Colt shot shells. Even tried longer ones with more shot in 45 WinMag. I was very happy when the Judge came out -- gives you a platform to shoot something that can hold much more shot (410 shell, 444 Marlin case with shot, and longer 45 Colt shot cups if they made them...)

I've never tried to shoot a snake with a 22 or 38 shot shell. I'd want to be real close if I tried since their patterns are so sparse. If you're within shovel distance, then perhaps 22's and 38's will work too. I'd like to be a bit further away.

I carry a .22 magnum in snake country loaded with snake shot. It has worked every time I have had to shoot a snake.

No, a single shot .22 or a single action .22 with a 6" barrel or longer would and is my pick. I use super colibri or .22 shotshells. Never had a snake go another inch after either choice was used.

A friend and former coworker bought a Judge several years ago as his snake gun for when he's bush hogging or otherwise using his tractor. He found the payload of birdshot from a .410 shell to be far more effective on vipers than any pistol or revolver rat shot / snake shot because it has better range and provides quicker kills. He finds the Judge in even a cheap nylon belt holster far easier to carry on the tractor than rigging up a carrier for a conventional shotgun.

The best thing about the .45 Colt / .410 shot shell handguns (Judge, Governor, Bond Derringer) is ease of carry. You mentioned dogs and grand kids. A Judge or Governor in a Fobus paddle holster, or a Bond Derringer in the back pocket is pretty unobtrusive. You could have the gun comfortably on you rather than trying to get the kids & dawgs safely put up and relocating the snake(s) after you retrieve a shotgun or axe handle from it's safe keeping spot.

If you want a .45 Colt / .410 handgun and have the money then go for it. If you want to think on it a little more, a box of rat shot / snake shot cartridges for one of your other handguns is a low cost way to hold you over.

Will it help to re-load the .38 special shotshells with smaller dust shot? just to get a better more dense pattern. Or will you make the shotshells less effective?

Thing is, pattern on paper is one thing (consistent, dense patterns are nice), but there's quite a bit of difference between 100 gr of #9 (38s) and half an ounce of #6 (410).... not sayin' the 38 might not work..... just sayin'.

Somehow it's okay to state disrespect for the Judge and ownership of one, but cause for an indignant pile on, if you have anything negative to offer about some senior bully's precious customized gun.

Love me, love my babies. Love me, love my guns.

I have used 22 shot shells, mostly 22mag, and never had a snake survive one shot but we do not have large rattlers. I would like to have a Governor and a Bond but will have to wait for the bank account to get flush [actually there are a lot of guns I want].

That's not a good enough reason to buy a Judge to me.
We've killed snakes for years with .22 shotshells - at least around the house. In the woods, I let them alone if they let me alone.

Hunter2011 said:

Will it help to re-load the .38 special shotshells with smaller dust shot? just to get a better more dense pattern. Or will you make the shotshells less effective?

Click to expand...

My brother has loaded some up with CCI shot capsules and some #12 shot that was around. They work, but the standard ones loaded by CCI and his reloads with 7.5 shot work too.
Really, people are worrying too much about the pattern. You're likely to get a donut shaped pattern if you get too far away because the rifling causes the load to spin and open.
But if you get within 10 feet of the snake, the pattern is adequate. No one is going duck hunting with .38 shotshells anyhow.

FWIW, the last snake I had to kill was close to 6' and got eliminated with a 5' birch walking stick.
I'd have let it alone in the woods, but it was in the driveway and there are kids around and a dog to worry about...

FWIW, I have used an H&R .410 single barrel as a general pest/snake gun because it's around. It is superior and probably still would be out of a Judge.
But I've got guns that work already. I wouldn't buy a Judge just to do something I can already do with guns already on hand.

Bond arms snake killer

Like Texan Scott, I too have a bond arms century 2000 with 31/2" barrel that will hold a 3" 410 shell. I too highly recommend it. Lots of applications available as barrel lengths and calibers switch out easily. Will take your snake problem out and be a fun addition to your arsenal. In 45lc or 410-000 a good SD weapon. They also make some nice holsters that would keep it readily available without the feel of lugging around a bigger weapon. Good shooting... I'm glad your pup's OK

You can also do this when loaded with 45Colt...

I cannot think of a reason to buy a Judge. Now that I have offended a bunch of owners of one of the ugliest revolver made I'll shut up about it.

I grew up on a cotton farm on the south plains of Texas that was surrounded by ranch land and really close to the edge of the caprock. Lots of snakes and about 40% of them were rattlesnakes. A hoe does a quick and efficient job on a snake. I spent all of my adult working life out in the oilfield. A shovel is just as effective as a hoe. I have never felt a need for a firearm to dispatch a rattle snake even when a little kid out in the cottonpatch swinging a hoe all by my lonesome.

On a side note I don't hate or fear snakes and really don't understand people that do. I only kill a rattlesnake, the only poisonous species of snake in this part of the world, when found around my home or around where people are working all the time. In other words when they are a danger to humans and their pets/stock.

"On a side note I don't hate or fear snakes and really don't understand people that do. I only kill a rattlesnake, the only poisonous species of snake in this part of the world, when found around my home or around where people are working all the time. In other words when they are a danger to humans and their pets/stock."

I agree with your snake philosophy for the most part. I followed a coral snake around our yard with a camera earlier this week and enjoy seeing the colorful garden snakes. I also have the same attitude toward spiders with the exception of brown recluses and black widows.

Our grand-kids were given a lesson on the ways of nature when we had a 'rat' snake ingesting a baby rabbit about two years ago. The snake was allowed to digest the rabbit in peace...

We have some very rattlesnake friendly areas on our place and my tolerance for them is very low. we lost a wonderful dog and 1200 dollars(vet emergency charge) to a rattlesnake about three months ago. I only had a 9mm available and did not make a clean shot, the wounded snake took it out on the dog.

I own a Judge but have it by my bedside since I believe it is a better inside self defense weapon than my 1911's; I have 1911's (yes, plural) nearby as a backup's to the Judge.

I normally have a 12 gauge in my 4-wheeler side by side but had lent it to a grandson just prior to the recent snake event. Before I mounted the shot gun, the Judge rode with me and it would have done the job on the snake.

BTW the Judge has been used in anger, took out both windshields as the jerk was backing up on me with a load of stuff stolen from my mother-in-laws house. I am sure a change of underwear was in order also. I had an empty cylinder or the man would have spent the night in the recovery or embalming room...

I am in Texas and the state allows citizens to save them court costs and room & board when someone is stealing your stuff...

I initially bought the Judge because it is big and ugly when looking at the business end... If I had to give up one of my 1911's or the Judge, the Judge would stay...

I apologize for repeating myself, I did not realize I already placed two other entries in this thread...:banghead:

You might notice in an earlier note I cited the vet costs as 1400 dollars and in the last as 1200 bucks; The initial charge was $1400 up front but was later reduced by $200 because the dog died before the last dose of anti-venom was given...

A lot of mighty expensive and extravagant solutions to killing a snake in this string.

Unless you're talking about something like a giant Python or Anaconda, any sturdy stick-like object will do the trick perfectly well. Stick, ax handle, hoe, shovel, PVC pipe, etc.

It's a snake...no arms, no legs, no claws. Wack it a good one and carry on smartly.

The best anti-snake tool is a long-handled hoe. They're not good for walking around with, true, but around the yard, they are quiet, don't upset the neighbors, and keep you from getting close. As a forester, I deal with snakes all the time, and if I'm in the woods (their home) I leave them alone. If they come into my yard (my home) that is it. This refers only to the venomous varieties. Round Eyes have nothing to fear from me.

Cottonmouths are easy to kill with a stick or even a cane pole. Pop them smartly on the back and it breaks. They go into the water and the break floats to the top. If you can't get to them, they drown all on their own. I learned that during my stint trapping beavers for Georgia Pacific.

Of course a hoe, axe, stick, etc.,. can be used to kill a snake. If one carries them regularly that's fine.
A handgun can be toted fairly easily and unobtrusively. Some tears ago, I was tasked with killing poisonous snakes at work. Used a.357 Ruger 4" with dismal results. Management purchased a .410 "Snake Charmer" and I was GTG.
Might try .44 Magnum shotshells in my new to me Mountain Revolver. Probably hand roll em' this winter. Bet the Judge w/.410 rounds can outperform the .44 shotshells.

ferretray said:

Of course a hoe, axe, stick, etc.,. can be used to kill a snake. If one carries them regularly that's fine.
A handgun can be toted fairly easily and unobtrusively. Some tears ago, I was tasked with killing poisonous snakes at work. Used a.357 Ruger 4" with dismal results. Management purchased a .410 "Snake Charmer" and I was GTG.
Might try .44 Magnum shotshells in my new to me Mountain Revolver. Probably hand roll em' this winter. Bet the Judge w/.410 rounds can outperform the .44 shotshells.

Click to expand...

Hmmm...

Granted that if one does not have a hoe, axe, or stick with them, then they can't be used. However, if I were to be tasked with killing poisonous snakes at work then it would seem to me that I'd be very likely to carry a hoe, axe, or stick with me as part of my preparation for the job.

I don't think people here are advocating manning up with concealed carry sticks for self-defense against snakes...just that considering a gun as the go-to weapon for snake defense doesn't make the best sense, given the behavioral nature of snakes and the vast majority of typical human-snake encounters.

If one has the time to consider drawing, aiming, and actually hitting a snake, then in most cases one very likely has the opportunity to simply step away and avoid the encounter or the option to use something else.


Don't get me wrong...if you're removing snakes as vermin, then by all means use whatever you wish, circumstances allowing.

Seems this subject has come up min my personal life from time to time over several decades, without me really seeking it out.
I worked in a gunshop for a bit some time ago. An older gentleman dropped off some ammo he had no use for. Included were some old (WW2 Era?) .45 ACP shotshells. Got me to thinking. Remembered my experience with the .357 SS's and their lack of adequate killing power on those Texas water snakes.
So happens I was having some fun reloading for a S&W Mountain Gun in .41 Magnum at the time. Made up some .41 SS's and tested em' on various media (Nothing scientific). Seemed to put a hurt on water filled jugs at "OH crap a rattler" distance.
I'm carrying a .44 Magnum Mountain Gun these days. In-law's have some acreage in rural Texas. MIL's rule is no snakes around the house itself, so I may have the opportunity to test a .44 shotshell when visiting.
Out in the field, I won't kill a critter unless I have to. If their in pest or food status, kaboom. Otherwise, I just go my way and let em' go theirs.

When poisoning prairie dog towns, rattlesnake encounters are commonplace. My dad has used a cheap .22 revolver loaded with shotshells, and never had an issue, and some of the snakes we've killed have been pretty good sized. I cannot imagine a .38 shotshell NOT killing a snake if the shooter does his part. Granted , these shots are very close range, but he's never failed to kill one with the 22 shotshells, and he's carried it for decades, probably killing at least 100 of them that I'm aware of...