410 vs 20 gauge

[sir-lamp-alot]

Started my son off on a .410 and he got on ok with it but lets face it its hard to bring stuff down with a teaspoon of 6's so Ive just moved him upto a 28bore just to make life easier for him. Biggest thing from going to a double barrel from a single barrel is how much weight is pushed forward for a small childs frame to deal with so a youth size gun is a must my lad is 12 but quite short and can only just handle the 28" barrel with what would equate to a short adult stock so I would say if your child is 12 a youth gun would be an absolute must it will also make it easier for them to carry but truth be known I dont let my son do hardly any walked up shooting as as its much safer for them to be stood static roost shooting ect but that choice is yours

 

[tackb]

I had a couple of seasons with a 28g (o/u 32’’) I absolutely loved it , seems to punch well above it’s weight , i also love the 410 but it’s nowhere near as capable for some reason even with similar weight loads ?

Use a light load in the 20b and I’m sure you will be fine , people try to throw heavy loads from a 20b to make it a 12 , it’s not ! Use it properly and they are delightful

 

[chriswjx]

I'd imagine Braidwood has 28b cartridges? Granted I think prices tend to increase as the gauge gets smaller...

Johnny Carter of TGS just uploaded a video of him out with some smaller gauge william powell guns.

I do kind of want to try 20b and smaller, friend of mine recently picked up a 20b Beretta EL o/u which felt a dream to mount.

 

[sir-lamp-alot]

I do kind of want to try 20b and smaller

you really should give it a go I bought myself a o/u .410 this year and its just magic its like your starting shooting all over again ticking off species and when you do fold somthing up (I say that as trust me your average hit rate will fall compared to a 12g) its almost like it shouldnt of happend and youve pulled off some kind of fluke

 

[chriswjx]

you really should give it a go I bought myself a o/u .410 this year and its just magic its like your starting shooting all over again ticking off species and when you do fold somthing up (I say that as trust me your average hit rate will fall compared to a 12g) its almost like it shouldnt of happend and youve pulled off some kind of fluke

If I see something in side by side was already considering making the next shotgun a 20b sbs, as I absolutely love using my Aya no4 12b.

 

[Beretta V]

About 6/7 years ago my dad got a pair of 20g sxs to start off he wasn’t confident enough to use them regularly but once he got confident it’s all he uses now.
They are so much lighter than a 12 and if you are carrying a gun all day they make a difference

 

[enfieldspares]

I have had the same discussion with myself for my ten year old.

What I have worked out is that out of the three gauges, or bores, that the .410" gauge will possibly weigh the least the 20 bore the most and the 28 bore will possibly weigh near enough the same as the 20 bore weights.

Or thereabouts. Sort of. But I've also see .410" side by side guns that weight a full 6 lbs!

So to my mind the weight of a 28 bore is so near the weight of a 20 bore that you might as well get the 20 bore of the two. You then compare 20 bore vs .410" gauge and at that point start to decide what exactly you want to do and the likely chokes and patterns of the two cartridges.

And to make that decision you need to think about what the intended use is. On easy birds under twenty yards or out to twenty-five a suitably open choke .410" will get the job done. Ditto on easy clay targets. Beyond that the 20 bore is "king".

Heart might always say 28 bore but head says 20 bore. Or .410" gauge.

 

[Beretta V]

I have had the same discussion with myself for my ten year old.

What I have worked out is that out of the three gauges, or bores, that the .410" gauge will possibly weigh the least the 20 bore the most and the 28 bore will possibly weigh near enough the same as the 20 bore weights.

Or thereabouts. Sort of. But I've also see .410" side by side guns that weight a full 6 lbs!

So to my mind the weight of a 28 bore is so near the weight of a 20 bore that you might as well get the 20 bore of the two. You then compare 20 bore vs .410" gauge and at that point start to decide what exactly you want to do and the likely chokes and patterns of the two cartridges.

And to make that decision you need to think about what the intended use is. On easy birds under twenty yards or out to twenty-five a suitably open choke .410" will get the job done. Ditto on easy clay targets. Beyond that the 20 bore is "king".

Heart might always say 28 bore but head says 20 bore. Or .410" gauge.

There was no way I was letting my son try to learn with a .410.
I wanted him to build confidence and that’s difficult enough but chuck the tiny pattern of a .410 and hit ratio will be less so I went 28g. It’s lighter than 20g and bloody capable.
He hits a few which keeps him happy. If he didn’t I could see him lose interest.

 

[Heym SR20]

 

[Heym SR20]

I am trying to decide which I like best. I now have side by sides in 12, 16, 20 and 410.

I will happily keep shooting them all until i work out which I like best.

 

[Smellydog]

View attachment 343681

Not the same class I know but.... .410.

 

[Smellydog]

If I see something in side by side was already considering making the next shotgun a 20b sbs, as I absolutely love using my Aya no4 12b.

I was shooting with a chap the other day with an Aya 20g. Lovely thing it was and he could shoot it!

 

[Rhodesianjess]

I regularly load for a chap who uses a pair of Browning Centennials,chokes used in both guns generally skeet and quarter. Cartridges always 21 grams of 7 1/2 Hull Pro Twenty.
Regularly have 4 birds dead in the air, partridge and pheasant. Very tall birds only choking changed,half and three quarter. Really only 28 bore load, just going to prove that if the shot is in the right place the bird comes down.
On the other side of the coin, I've seen chaps using 28 gram loads in a 28 bore or 32 gram loads in a 20 bore. Can't for the life of me figure out why they don't match load to bore size.

 

[Button]

If I see something in side by side was already considering making the next shotgun a 20b sbs, as I absolutely love using my Aya no4 12b.

I have a couple of 20's which I am going to be selling both mint and neither silly money

 

[Button]

A lovely gun but probably an order of magnitude outside our price range!

I have a lovely side by side that may be of interest drop me a PM if you want

 

[Mungo]

Been out with mine today.
Love it.
View attachment 343638

410 or 20?

Sorry - just noticed the cartridge against the tree! 410

 

[Crowstalker]

I was in a similar position in deciding whether a 20,28, or 410 was needed. In the end I'm awaiting a 410 hatsan pump action. I know others have said the 410 tends to be too tightly choked, the thing that probably sold the gun to me apart from the price of it was the ability to change out the chokes to what works best for the shooting/cartridges your using.

 

[Smellydog]

I was in a similar position in deciding whether a 20,28, or 410 was needed. In the end I'm awaiting a 410 hatsan pump action. I know others have said the 410 tends to be too tightly choked, the thing that probably sold the gun to me apart from the price of it was the ability to change out the chokes to what works best for the shooting/cartridges your using.

That's awesome. Try the cylinder choke, you may be surprised!
Cartridge wise most are 11g . It's because of old guns.
If you see any 14g and of American or Italian make, buy them.
If you go with 3" avoid eley! Hull are better and fiocchi are very good.
Try to not go above #7 shot.
Forget anything over #6!
The 2" cartridges, if your gun will cycle them are good on rats and 15yd birds.

 

[Crowstalker]

That's awesome. Try the cylinder choke, you may be surprised!
Cartridge wise most are 11g . It's because of old guns.
If you see any 14g and of American or Italian make, buy them.
If you go with 3" avoid eley! Hull are better and fiocchi are very good.
Try to not go above #7 shot.
Forget anything over #6!
The 2" cartridges, if your gun will cycle them are good on rats and 15yd birds.

Great advice, thank you! Hopefully won't be too long till I can get real life experience!

 

[User00053]

Find fiocchi 3” 7-71/2 shot through American skeet choke heap good in Remington pump, for decoying out to 30 yards anything 25 yards or so is devastated, pop thud with that combination.
Think if you can shoot to a reasonable standard the .410 with modern cartridges opens up a lot of possibilities and our American cousins pioneered shooting skeet targets as a discipline, certainly surprised me as to what can be achieved.
28 bore a real babe! IMO.