410/45 colt

[ozarkgunner]

Can I shoot 45 long colt thru my 410 bolt action? Is that something reserved for only shotguns built and sold as combos and the Taurus Judge? And does it need to be a rifled barrel?

 

[ReloaderFred]

The firearm has to be constructed to handle the higher pressures of the .45 Colt before it can be made to handle the .410 Shotgun shells. Since your shotgun was made for the lower pressures of the .410 shells, it most likely isn't safe to shoot .45 Colt rounds through it.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Milkmaster]

I would be scared of the higher pressure. The barrel also is not rifled and would not be as accurate as you might expect. I wouldn't do it to my .410

 

[MCgunner]

NO! The gun would probably shed the front part of the barrel where the choke constricts if not blow up and cause much facial damage. The TC Contender has a choke on its barrel that unscrews for use with the .45. It's not designed for .45 pressures anyway, as mentioned by above posters. Even if it'd fire, it's not a rifled bore. You couldn't hit squat with it.

 

[oneounceload]

You could shoot it...............once............ and after you get out of the hospital, you'll realize it wasn't a good idea. 45 pressures are WAY too much for a 410 shotgun.

 

[Maverick223]

There are a few exceptions, but in general NO, this is a very hazardous combination. If you want to shoot both you need something like a H&R Survivor or a Rossi Circuit Judge.

 

[DeepSouth]

I'll just have to disagree with everybody, here's why.

The pressures really aren't that different. The hottest load for the 410 in the Lyman Shotshell Reloading Handbook #4 is 11,600 LUP (lead units of pressure. Alliant hottest is 12,700 PSI. So we can assume that the shotgun in question is capable of at least that pressure.

Now, I understand (but have not verified) that the standard pressure of a .45 Colt cartridge is around 10,000-12,000 with a max pressure of 15,000, so it's really not a HUGE difference.

With a Cylinder Bore Choke I think it is possible to safely shoot a low pressure 45 Colt through a 410 barrel, heck I'd bet my next paycheck on it.

BUT, I would not bet my life on it. So I would never do it and would strongly advise against it. But that doesn't mean it can't be done, to me it's one of those things that there's only one way to find out, and if it ends wrong..........well, it want be good.

A good rule of thumb is to look on the barrel and shoot what it says there.



EDIT:
If the pressures are wrong feel free to correct me, I did do a little reading up on this a while back but I am not a reloader so I only half understood what I was reading.

 

[Bluehawk]

I believe there is a clip on Youtube where a guy shows how to load and shoot .45 colt through a .410 shotgun as a survival weapon. I saw it some months back but don't recall the name of the video.

 

[trstafford]

Why not

Why not just shoot a 410 slug?

 

[Bud Tugly]

Seems to me trying to shove a .45" prohectile down a .41" diameter barrel that narrows even more at the tip is a formula for disaster.

 

[RyanM]

I've heard of people trying it, without the gun blowing up (though from what I've heard they did become loose and rattly immediately after that one shot, and were therefore damaged beyond servicability, even though not "blown up"). Apparently, with lead bullets, you end up with a large "ring" of lead left behind in the chamber, and the center portion of the bullet making it through the barrel. Not unlike what's said to happen if you try to shoot 9mm in a 7.62x25mm.

I'd guess jacketed ammo is a much bigger "blow up" risk. Never heard of anyone trying it. Could be because they're all dead, or have no fingers or face left.

 

[Maverick223]

Could be because they're all dead, or have no fingers or face left.

Yep, it takes forever to type out a warning with a straw in their mouth...give em' a few days.

 

[rmfnla]

Most .410 shotguns use the bolt base as their primary locking lug (like a .22 rifle). Pressure numbers be damned, I just don't get a good feeling from such an arrangement for .45 Colt!

BTW, DeepSouth, we Californians want to remind you that we have Ronald Reagan to thank for some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country.

 

[MCgunner]

Seems to me trying to shove a .45" prohectile down a .41" diameter barrel that narrows even more at the tip is a formula for disaster.

Well, even IF the barrel is back bored, the choke is cut off, it wouldn't be much of a survival gun, anyway. No rifling, you ain't gonna hit squat with a bullet. No choke, 20 yards maybe on small game!

If you want a rifle, buy a rifle. If you wanna combine .410 with .45, get a Contender barrel with removable choke. The TC choke does two things, too. It chokes the shot charge, of course, but it also stops the rotation of the shot string. That's important if you want a decent pattern.

Even in the proper barrel, both loads are compromised. Excess free bore causes accuracy lose in the .45 to an extent.

I prefer two guns for two jobs, myself. But, my contender barrel is fun to play with. A 10" pistol I've taken running rabbits and flying birds with and even shot some clays.

 

[publiuss]

I wouldn't do it but I did conduct a little "experiment" once. took an old beat up single shot H&R and loaded it with one of my mid-power .41mag.'s and clamped it in a leather padded vise with a 20ft. string on the trigger. Got it lined up with a paper plate 15ft. away and pulled the string. Hit paper plate dead center and no visible damage to the gun. I'm not going to do it again, kinda like when I filled an arrow shaft w/blackpowder and glued a primer pith a bb glued to it on top.

 

[ozarkgunner]

Chamber pressures are what I was concerned about. I wasn't sure what they were. It's an older Italian .410. I've checked the barrel, and I don't see a choke of any kind. But that doesn't mean it doesn't have one. Just like my Mossy 500.


Any ways, was just curious if it was something I could do. Thanks for the info.

 

[goon]

I slugged the barrel on my full choke .410 once and it measured .379. A .45 Colt projectile will be .452.

Short answer - if you do this you might blow your face off.