Thursday, May 26, 2016

Snakeshot

Ever wondered what the characteristics of .22LR snakeshot are?  Me too.  So I set up boxes at 6 and 12 feet and shot them with a Colt/Walther .22 and a Ruger 10/22.  Unsurprisingly with the Colt/Walther Government Model at 6 feet the #12 shot in this CCI shotshell, hit well around this box

and penetrated both sides.
  Like a shotgun, it spreads fast, but packs some force: notice the box is tipped over.


At 12 feet, I thought perhaps I was aiming too low, but actually the spread was just too wide.
Some shot penetrated the cardboard.



The 10/22 provided a lot tighter group at 6 feet with better penetration as might be expected.


At 12 feet still more penetration than I want for intended purpose.

It also requires centering the scope crosshairs a bit high about 25 moa.  Recoil with both guns was minmal, even for .22 LR, and unsurprisingly neither gun succcessfully cycled the action.  I suspect this make more sense for a revolver.

3 comments:

  1. "At 12 feet still more penetration than I want for intended purpose."

    Mouse hunting in the kitchen?

    Would work better with a smoothbore, but alas, you're not allowed to make a handgun that way. Most rifles are still too short to convert.

    I did some testing about 25 years ago to check patterns at practical distances for .22LR, .38spl, and .45acp shotshells. Basically, I was looking for gaps that would be large enough to leave a snake's head untouched.

    The .22 was questionable more than one pace distance from your feet. Just enough space to keep your feet safe. IIRC, there wasn't much difference between a Jennings and a 7" Ruger.

    The .38 from 2" snubbies was about twice that range, and the .45's from an Officers Model (3.5") was good for about 12 ft, I think. I've got the targets stored away, I'll look for them this weekend. That Remington .45acp would cycle the gun, and feed well, since it was all brass, with the mouth formed into a FMJ profile. That paper punching was all I ended up doing with it. Didn't get the mountain property.

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  2. Something that won't penetrate cowhide but will still hurt.

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  3. I prefer .38 shot shells for outdoors. Gamo has a 22 shotgun, a spring piston variety for a reasonable amount.

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