20 ga. VS .410 for Rabbit/Squirrel

There will be those who disagree with me, but if hunting is on the agenda give me a 20-gauge over a .410 every single time. No matter what you're hunting.

i said 20, but I don't own a .410 anymore, though i've shot squirrel and rabbit with a .410 in my youth. I think the 20 would have a few more yards of effectiveness and I really like the way number 5 shot patterns in 20 gauge.

Truth be told, though, most of my intentional squirrel hunting is done with a .22 pistol. Even pistol shot two rabbits this year. But, hitting a rabbit on the run is best done with a shotgun and an I/C choked 20 makes for a wider pattern on a running bunny. My SxS 20 stays choked I/C Mod.

20ga, #6 shot will work for both.

I used to hunt rabbit with a .410. Got everyone I shot at.

I would opt for the 20 as its considerably less pricey to shoot compared to .410.

I used a single shot for bunny and squirrel for many seasons, had pretty good success, including a pair of squirrels running on parallel branches, two shots two squirrels

20 ga. I've used it for game for 45 years, taken everything from squirrels to ducks. Much easier to find shells, loading components. IMHO it gives you 15-20 additional yards of range. Many .410s don't weight that much less than a 20 unless it has a dedicated receiver.

I use a NEF 20 ga single break action for squirrel, rabbit, turkey, deer and unwanted vermin. Best firearm I ever purchased and the cheapest as well. As already stated #6's work pretty well in the 20 ga for just about any small game to turkey.

neither......I like the 28 gauge for that

Never had a 20, but the first gun I ever bought was a 410 and I still have it. Always did the deed as needed. Jim

20 gauge. I find it to be all around more useful than the .410. No longer own a .410, but I'll always have a 20 gauge in my stable.

My dad has an old Western Field pump axction .410, and I absolutely love it for hunting rabbits. Maybe a 20 gauge would be better, but I never had an issue being effective with the .410.....

A 20 will put a lot more pellets in the pattern and is cheaper to boot. A gun weighing about 6# would be ideal (preferably in a nice SxS)

2 reasons that the 20 ga. is the choice to use:

1) In order to hit a running target, only a very good shot can hit with a .410 due to amount of pellets and available chokes (Almost all .410s are full choked).
2) Cost of 20 ga. shells is much cheaper.

I turkey hunted near a guy on Saturday who killed a gobbler with a 9" beard with a 20 ga. Try that with a .410.

I turkey hunted near a guy on Saturday who killed a gobbler with a 9" beard with a 20 ga. Try that with a .410.

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I reckon it could be done but you'd have to get mighty close.
However with a 20-gauge 3" mag, you can do nearly anything you can do with a 12 gauge. I said "nearly" so don't flame me.

I hunt with a guy that swears by all that's holy he killed a gobbler at 60 paces with his 20 gauge. After being around him for a few years and seeing him shoot I have no reason to doubt him.

I voted for the 20ga, but I think it really comes down to whether the hunt is for producing rabbit meat or for the fun of hunting rabbits. It may also depend on the amount of rabbits in the area. Back in the late 60s and early 70s my Brother-in-Law had rabbit hounds. There were also more rabbits than rabbit hunters. While we started out with 12 ga shotguns, after getting hundreds of rabbits a season, we migrated to .22s to make the hunt more challenging and so rabbits we did get had less holes and more edible meat. We didn't get as many rabbits, but got almost the same amount of meat, while having a much more challenging hunt. Using .22s, we had to be much more aware of where the rest of our party was and what was behind the rabbit in the distance as we shot. Using .22s on running rabbits also improved our shooting when hunting deer during those infamous Wisconsin "deer drives". As the years went on and the numbers of hunters increased and numbers of rabbits decreased, we started to use the shotguns again.

20 ga because you added squirrel, just bunnies with beagles a .410 SXS is just too much fun.

If it weren't for ducks and steel shot laws, all I'd need is a 20. 12s do better with steel, though.

^ back in the olden days my waterfowling was done with lead and my favorite duck gun was an old Mossberg bolt action 20 gauge with the polychoke.

30pound compound bow with fluflu arrows. Skirls and bunnies are a lot more fun when they are harder to hit.

Really depends on the type of hunt. I personally like to use a .22 but most of my squirrel hunts are in river bottoms full of oak trees so I just find a nice comfortable spot to sit and call them in and if I happen to see a rabbit I can just as easily shoot it with the rifle. When I go out with dogs I take a 20 guage and use either 7 1/2 or 6 shot with a mod choke.

Kinda two fold; I prefer the 410 for squirrels if restricted to scattergun but if looking for a one gun solution 20 Guage with 5/6 shot and hold off the squirrels and catch them with the annular ring in a tight choked (imp, mod or full) gun. Prefer skeet or cyl for squirrels as the pattern opens quicker and tends to not tear them up and loose a shoulder or hindquarter.

Personally I like 410 because I started hand loading 410. Small game hunting gives me another outlet for my shells (so I can reload them again). It is also just as challenging to knock a squirrel out of a 60-ft tree as it is with a 22. I can't buy 22. I can't reload 22. 410 gives me two pleasures at once.

20 gauge, and if you can afford it buy the NEF with screw-in chokes, otherwise get it choked in modified. With screw-in-chokes you can take anthing from turkey to dove, to squirrel to deer.

LD