410 Bore ammo

[DAKA]

Not meaning to start a huge discussion re: 410 vs 12 gauge for defense...
Just looking for an answer on which 410 ammo would be best for HOME DEFENSE...

[mehavey]

Plain old 000 (triple aught) buck
3-4 pellets depending on shell size
Provides both pattern & req'd penetration

[FrankenMauser]

The above would be my suggestion, as well.

Or, you can try one of the "Defender" loads with stacked disks and smaller shot (roughly TT, I believe); but most of those are made for short barrels (Taurus Judge, Public Defender, etc.).

[DAKA]

I sold my 12 ga, too much "kick" for me any more, bought a Henry !
All the LGS are out of stock on 410, but I can order HORNADY TRIPLE DEFENSE a bit pricey but it's not like I'm going to shoot off a ton of it....This would be for HOME DEFENSE only....

[44 AMP]

Just looking for an answer on which 410 ammo would be best for HOME DEFENSE...

Home Defense can cover a few different things, it would be helpful if you would describe the situation you envision. Expected engagement range, for one, in particular.

Inside your bedroom? Inside the house? to the tree in the yard, 30yds away?

I mention this as important, because when talking about shotguns using some size of shot, (multiple projectiles) pattern size at different distances is a factor.

Using buckshot (or the "defense loads) in a .410 where there are only 3-4 projectiles is where pattern spread is a "double edged sword". And what I mean by that is, while multiple projectiles increase the odds of a good hit with at least one pellet, pattern spread at various distances can decrease the odds of a vital hit as well.
And this can happen even when your aim is "perfect".

what you need to do, to be sure, is to get some of the ammo you are considering using for home defense, and pattern it from your gun at different ranges, to see what it actually does. Don't rely entirely on someone else's tests, what they got might not be what you get.

IF your buckshot load is the size of a silver dollar at across the room, but the size of a paper plate at the end of the hallway, you need to know that.

The .410 is the smallest, and least powerful shotgun round common. Just because it is a shotgun doesn't mean it is magic.

One round I rarely see mentioned is the .410 slug. Everyone seems to focus entirely on buckshot, and the idea that multiple hits and pattern spread means effectiveness. It CAN, but its not any kind of guarantee, and it works better the bigger the shotgun used.

Slugs do put you back to one single projectile per shot, same as rifle and handgun rounds, but slugs also go "fast", generally faster than shot, buckshot included, because shot speeds are kept down to the speed that produces the best patterns.

Bird shot is in the 1100fps range, buckshot about 1,300fps. .410 slugs are moving at 1,700-1,800fps (from full length barrels, not pistol barrels)

A 3 inch .410 slug weights about 1/4oz which is approximately equal to a 9mm pistol (109gr vs 115) and is lead, not FMJ. That, to me suggests it would be an effective defensive round, more so than 3 pellets of 00 or OOO buck which might hit somewhere...

Perhaps I'm being unrealistic, but I just have the idea of aiming COM to stop a bad guy with one slug landing close to where you aim, compared to 3 smaller, lighter pellets striking somewhere possibly several inches away in different directions.

What works very well with the mass of a 12 ga simply doesn't work the same with the small mass of a .410. Not saying .410 buck won't work, only that you need to test it, for yourself, and see if it works well enough to suit you.

[Schlitz 45]

Shotguns of all gauges have pretty much the same velocity, the only real difference is the size of the payload.

[44 AMP]

Shotguns of all gauges have pretty much the same velocity, the only real difference is the size of the payload.

With shot.

Slugs can be, and usually are faster than shot loads.

[DAKA]

44 AMP Very detailed...thanks