Cosmodragoon
April 6, 2014, 02:34 AM
Whether Judges or standard shotguns, people often knock the .410. It fires a much smaller load of projectiles and the effective pattern is obviously less than other gauges. On the up-side, the shells are small and the recoil is light. In self defense or tactical scenarios, that seems like exactly the kind of thing we might look for in a modern sporting rifle like the AR. Then I discovered that you can get a .410 AR with 15-round magazines. :D
Sure, it is the lightest in a shotgun but are we really comparing it to other shotguns? In the AR platform, I'd put it up against the much broader category of modern sporting rifles, home defense weapons, and emergency guns. There, we have some interesting things to consider.
First, is there sufficient power? Any shotgun blast will be devastating to an unarmored human at point-blank range with just about any number shot. (Try it out on test media if you don't believe me.) The question comes with distance. As air resistance spreads out and slows down your swarm of projectiles, the .410 starts showing its limitations compared to heavier gauges. At longer distances, concerns with lighter shot may be well founded. Heavy buck like the 00 or 000 could be a different story. Correct me if I'm wrong but by weight, an average on-target strike should be on par with a triple-tap of .32acp or .32 S&W Long. Both are maligned self-defense calibers in their own right but a repeatable three rounds rapid of either is definitely nothing to sneeze at!
Second, is there a reason to think this may be safer in closed structures such as inside a home or business when friendly positions might not be known? (I understand that discharging any firearm in such a situation is inherently unsafe. I'm talking about situations of absolute need.)
Third, how poor a choice is this against the rare threat of armored bad guys?
Any other advantages or disadvantages come to mind?
Sure, it is the lightest in a shotgun but are we really comparing it to other shotguns? In the AR platform, I'd put it up against the much broader category of modern sporting rifles, home defense weapons, and emergency guns. There, we have some interesting things to consider.
First, is there sufficient power? Any shotgun blast will be devastating to an unarmored human at point-blank range with just about any number shot. (Try it out on test media if you don't believe me.) The question comes with distance. As air resistance spreads out and slows down your swarm of projectiles, the .410 starts showing its limitations compared to heavier gauges. At longer distances, concerns with lighter shot may be well founded. Heavy buck like the 00 or 000 could be a different story. Correct me if I'm wrong but by weight, an average on-target strike should be on par with a triple-tap of .32acp or .32 S&W Long. Both are maligned self-defense calibers in their own right but a repeatable three rounds rapid of either is definitely nothing to sneeze at!
Second, is there a reason to think this may be safer in closed structures such as inside a home or business when friendly positions might not be known? (I understand that discharging any firearm in such a situation is inherently unsafe. I'm talking about situations of absolute need.)
Third, how poor a choice is this against the rare threat of armored bad guys?
Any other advantages or disadvantages come to mind?