.410 or 12b

[RossM]

Was thinking of getting a .410 for rabbiting. I fancy a nice side by side model but then it occured to me that I could get a SB .410 hushpower which would be even better as it would be quiet but reading other posts on here about .410 hushpowers the general thought is that the 12b hushpower is quieter!!

 

So i guess my real question is how loud is a normal .410 compared to a 12b or should i go for a 12b hushpower?? Thing is i've always fancied a nice .410 so could end up buying 2 guns here!!!

[dunganick]

biggest difference between them is if you buy subsonic or supersonic carts.

 

if you dont buy subsonic carts then the 410 will be quieter as it has less muzzle noise.

 

however if you buy subsonics, i see no reason the silenced 12g usisng subs should be much louder than a silenced 410 using subsonics

[The Beater]

Ross,

what bout a 3 shot mossberg pump action .410. There rd £350 new and u can fit a silencer 2 them. Idea rabbiting gun and good 4 lamping with and will take 3" cartridges giving u more range. I use my .410 all the time 4 rabbiting but will only take with 65mm cartridge 14g load, but effective range isnt really more than 30 yards. Ive had my eye on the mossberg 4 a year now but a new 12b came 1st.

[The Beater]

ps the 410 is a bit louder than shooting an unloaded sping airrifle. nothing like a 12b.

[rarms]

I would say a .410 is very similar in decible level to a 12 bore

[dunganick]

i would be inclined to mostly agree, not quite hte same noise, a much softer noise, but not a long way off it.

[Hardy]

Recently did a rough comparison between my hushpower 12g using 32g subs & Wacker's 410 using fourlongs.

 

From our perspective there was very little audible difference, although we didn't check it from the rabbit's viewpoint for obvious reasons to see if the subs made a difference in that direction. Based on that I'm happy with the 12 although single shot has its drawbacks when you've a field full of bunnys.

[The Beater]

I think there must be somthing wrong with my ears or their ears if theres 2 to 1 that think a .410 is nearly the same loudness as a 12b. Basic maths and sicence really a .410 shell is a 1/4 the size of a 12b shell so more gun powder in 12b ,more of a bang. Like when u buy fireworks if u bought a rocket the size of a pen and 1 the size of a large sausage from chippy!! which normal is louder ??

[Hardy]

Ah but 2 things your not considering in your maths equation Beater:

 

The comparison is between Hushpower guns - fully moderated - the barrels absorbing most of the initial blast from firing the cartridge, also reducing the recoil. At this point the noise levels should be identical between the two.

 

The 12g cartidges are subsonics so no sonic boom as the shot leaves the barrels, compared to regular .410 shells, although as there is less shot there is less boom. If you use 3" magnum shells in the .410 however it gets lots louder.

 

If you could get .410 subsonics they would make that combination far quieter but I've never seen them.

[The Beater]

Hardy

if you read my answer i have NOT commented about a 12b hushpower, as i have never shot one.

 

Ross asked " how loud is a normal .410 compared to a 12b OR should i go for a 12b hushpower.

 

Iam saying a .410 is nothing like a normal 12b.

 

There's a guy who writes in Sporting Gun shooting answers, nov issue. Edward Cook a professional rabbit catcher working 10,000 acres. He states that most of his lamping is done on a 650cc quad with a mossberg pump .410 with silencer. One night the bag was 205 rabbits, which is a bloody good bag. So my opinion is the .410 has the advantage over the 12b hushpower because of 3 shots over 1. That guys earning a living using one so must be a good tool.

[rarms]

>So my opinion is the .410 has the advantage over the 12b hushpower because of 3 shots over 1.

 

 

You can get a moderated 12 bore semi.

 

 

> think there must be somthing wrong with my ears or their ears if theres 2 to 1

>that think a .410 is nearly the same loudness as a 12b. Basic maths and sicence

>really a .410 shell is a 1/4 the size of a 12b shell so more gun powder in

>12b ,more of a bang.

 

From this using my non-scientific brain I would deduce you are trying to tell me that a report from a .410 shotty has a quarter the voplume of one from a 12 bore?

 

Both shells regardless of size are both under similar pressure in a similarly sized barrel and both end results travel at similar velocities. I agree there should be a difference, but when I am shooting my .410's or my 12 bores I dont notice it to the extent I could say there is a huge difference in either.

 

A .308 shell is much bigger than a .223 shell but they both sound bloody loud.

 

 

I would go with the 12 bore hushpower, I have a single shot one and it it much more forgiving than a .410, can take sub sonic shells, can be used for any shotgun quarry including duck. Very versatile. Whereas I only really use my .410's for squirrels or close rabbits.

 

 

Kyle

[Down South]

Ross,

 

Do you need the shotgun to be silenced?

 

Before I got my .22 rimfire I used a sbs shotgun for serious rabbit control for many years very succesfully. I found that if you lamp from a vehicle the rabbits let you get much closer. With a lamp slung under the barrels you can get some got sport. I still do it occasionally when the rabbits start to get wise and run when they see the headlights.

[The Beater]

Rarms

this forum is about opinions. if u think the 12b hushpower is better fair enough. we havent spoke about a 12b 3 shot s/a moderater until your last post. Iam saying in my opion a 3 shot 410 is handier than a single shot 12b hushpower. you have your opinion i have mine.

 

Ross asked about a rabbiting gun, not something for shooting everything ie ducks like you do with yours.

 

another reason i'd go with the 410 is i like to eat my rabbits afterwards and less meat damaged with a 410, you can put a lot of lead in a rabbit at 25yards with a 12b and alot of meat damage.

[rarms]

>this forum is about opinions.

 

It is also about learning new things and contributing to discussions.

 

I dont know where exactly I have trodden on your toes but please do forgive me! B)

 

 

>Ross asked about a rabbiting gun, not something for shooting everything

 

I see he asked about rabbits, but how annoying is it to have a fox walk past you when you are not carrying the right tool? My point was why buy a gun unique to one scenario, when you can spend the same money on a more versatile one.

 

 

If we are going to buy a .410 just for rabbits, are we not better off with just an air rifle?

 

A silenced PCP type would be much quieter than a moderated shotgun, offers no meat damage and has a range probably equal to or greater than a .410?

[The Beater]

Rarms

I aint falling out with you.

Your right a good air rifle is better than a .410 for meat damage and maybe range, as long as you can group your shots well !!!

I have a .22 HW 77 silenced with 3-9 x 50 scope and do use it more than the 410.

 

I grew up shooting with a 410 for 3yrs and have a soft spot for them. There's is a few prestige game shots rd the country that have driven days for 410s only, the guys must be fair old shots !!

[dunganick]

just to throw a spanner in the works, ive briefly handled one of the 410 hush power mosberg 3 shot and it was very strange, the barrel is about 36 inches long if i recall correctly, this ontop of it being a pump action means the action then adds another 2 inches over a o/u so it has a massive barrel, and if im honest i cant see it having much use for anything other than a walk about gun for bunnies. i would imagine most dont have a cabbinet big enough for it, and taking the barrel off everytime is a bit of a fuss, i also cant see it being useable inside a car (one of the main uses i can see for a silenced 410)

 

i too like the 410, and i think it does have both advantages and disadantages over an FAC airgun. for example, i challenge any of the fac airgun owners to hit a wood pigeon on the wing, which the 410 can do. however the fac airguns can reach out to 60-75 yards, 410 is 30ish yards (dependant on personal opinion).

 

horses for courses, i think if your budget allows there is room for both a silenced 410 and fac airgun in your collection.

 

personally if i needed a silenced shotgun i would go for the 12b with subsonic carts.

 

quiet as the 410 (very nearly) and has 1/3 the effective distance again over the 410.

[RossM]

Thanks for all the advice. I have bitten the bullet and gone for a Lincoln .410 side by side. I prefered having the two barrel option as opposed to one and couldnt justify buying a Mossberg 3 shot. I'm very pleased with my purchase. My mate bought a single barrel .410 so we're going to see about fitting an aftermarket silencer to it and compare them. I do also have a .22 Rapid 7 air rifle too so have a tool for each occasion.