38/357 shot shell

[womble]

Has anyone tried these ?
https://www.cci-ammunition.com/handgun/cci/pest_control_shotshell/6-3738.html
Seems a lot of fine print in bold red that basically says they’re crap and may wreck your rifle.
Thoughts anyone?

[niteowl]

Don't know specifically 38 Cal. but have used 44 Mag version. NO they will not damage a rifle, but as stated be aware of any "ports" in a barrel.
They are close range and for small targets, the term "hunting" is a bit vague and misleading.
Anyway they can cause a bit of leading in the rifling at times so need to check that after use and before going back to normal projectiles including lead ones.
I used one in a store one night to remove a parrot while the shelf re-packers were working

[Larry]

Ive used the 22 rat shot before. I was also told by the gun store that they were not great on barrels and to only use them in your not precision rifles. I would get some in 357 mag if thy were available yes they may not be great for the gun but the few that I would use over a lifetime would be minimal. Using the shotgun on snakes at close quarters in confined spaces is not practical in many instances. I dont want huge holes in the walls of my chook shed. The rat shot being a smaller spread and less velocity is much more suitable for the purpose. A small step up from the 22 round would still be practical and give a slightly larger payload to the target.

[bigpete]

I've made my own 44 mag shot shells out of 303 brass. Worked well on shed pigeons out to 10 or 15m. Did lead my barrel up a bit but nothing a clean didn't fix.

[womble]

Thanks for your input team

Cleavers has them and I might buy a box.
I sold my old 410 because I was downsizing. Selected the ones I don’t use much if ever.
And then I needed the 410 last week because I have chickens and I’m such a dumbass.
I’d never seen these rounds before but I think they will fit the bill. But if they damage my rifling I will be inconsolable.
But yes it’s only lead so I guess it cant.

[bigpete]

They'll be fine

[bladeracer]

Has anyone tried these ?
https://www.cci-ammunition.com/handgun/cci/pest_control_shotshell/6-3738.html
Seems a lot of fine print in bold red that basically says they’re crap and may wreck your rifle.
Thoughts anyone?

Use a gas check on the powder (or make your own using a Weet-Bix box or similar card). Put a disc over the powder, fill with small shot, another card disc on top, roll crimp it in place, or seat another gas check in the case mouth.

Don't expect it to be very effective at any distance through a rifled barrel. The shot charge leaves the muzzle at fairly high RPM so the pellets are spun out wide leaving a gap in the centre of the pattern. Even a subsonic will leave the muzzle doing 40,000+RPM. You don't need velocity so use a dense powder and aim for about 1100fps max so you can fit a decent payload in there.

I can't see any way it could damage the rifle if you use lead shot - steel, bismuth or tungsten might not be great so you might want to make a card shot cup for that.

[womble]

Damm a wide gap in the centre of the pattern is not really optimal is it.
I want this think dead not deaf.

[bladeracer]

Damm a wide gap in the centre of the pattern is not really optimal is it.
I want this thing dead not deaf.

If you're measuring the range in single-digit feet rather than yards I would think it would be effective. Perhaps less effective than a .357" diameter hole from a bullet though.

[bigpete]

Damm a wide gap in the centre of the pattern is not really optimal is it.
I want this think dead not deaf.

Don't expect much more than 10m. Within that distance it will be deadly

[Pendous]

Home rolled here.
Anyone load shot charges in metallic cartridges?

[womble]

Very nice. Thanks Pendous

[Jorlcrin]

I've not used the .357 ones, but I've rattled about 300 of the .45ACP version through my 1911 auto(5" barrel).

Freaking expensive, but handy to have for certain pest-control circumstances.
I've nailed about 5 large King Brown[Mulga] snakes with these shotshells, and at 3-4 metres, the results are pretty effective.
[We dont shoot most other snakes, aside from King Browns, Eastern Browns, and Speckled Browns, and only in/around the house.]
Also nailed a few rabbits at close range, as well as a number of toads.
[Expensive toad solution, though..]
From what I can ascertain, the .45ACP ones gave me the equivalent of a semi-auto .410, as far as knock-down power and range.
I can only imagine the .357 version would be a little more steamy than that?

Pros for these shotshells:-
- #9 shot is perfect for snakes and small pests.
- They are powerfull enough to cycle the 1911 action, so I can keep pulling trigger till the Bitey stops being a problem[Helpful in those brown-trouser moments..].
- Dont need to worry about anything behind the target beyond about 15-20 metres distant.
- Effective out to approx 7 metres on small animals.

Cons for these shotshells:-
- Dear as poison per round.
- the .45ACP ones dont seem to be imported any more[Have seen boxes of the .357 ones in recent years].
- Cases were made of light alloy, and only just barely survive one firing.
- Very occasional incidents of the head being ripped off the case during cycling, and so requires a tap with a wooden dowel to remove the rest of the case.

I did trial some out on water-filled 3-litre plastic milk containers.
At 4 metres, the spread was probably 8 inches across.
At 6 metres, the spread was covering most of the milk container, so I'd guess maybe12 inches diameter?
From the damage to the milk containers, the rounds were pretty nasty in the 3-5 metres range, but rapidly lost effectiveness beyond that.
[Which is pretty much what I wanted them for..]

I've also nailed many bitey snakes with the 'Shovel of Destiny', which was a trenching shovel with a sharpened front edge, but the shotshells gave me a bit more stand-off for the more emotional bitey snakes.
Never saw any increased/excessive 'leading' in the barrrel from using them; cant be that different to running lead practice rounds in the .45acp.

I dont regret having a box or two of these in the safe; they are handy for particular situations.

This has been my experience; if it's any help.

[womble]

Thanks Jorlcrin
No they’re not cheap, factory cci ammo works out 3.69 each. I’ll buy a dozen combined with a larger order.
Handy to have in the kit.
The patterns at various ranges you noted are not that bad really .

[mickb]

as most of said they wont harm the rifle. The caveat is they may not feed in it and potentially lose their shot cap thing trying to cycle them. As to effectiveness, they are good for pests measured in feet or a few yards yep. Small charge and rifling donutting the patten.