12 ga gel test: Remington #4 buck (27 pellet)

[Andrew Wiggin]

Link to video of test


12 gauge Remington #4 buckshot (27 pellet) fired from 18.5" barrel Mossberg 500A cylinder bore into calibrated 10% gelatin.

BB: 590.5 fps, 3.7"

Impact velocity: 1,245 fps
Min penetration: 11.0"
Max penetration: over 14"
Pellet weight: 19.2 gr
Pellet diameter: 0.249"


*Note: 7 pellets exited the back of the 14" block. That
means that 62.5% of the pellets that were captured in
the block exceeded the 12" minimum requirement.

 

[briandg]

hmmm.

 

[2damnold4this]

Looks like an extremely potent home defense load.

 

[briandg]

I have a friend who dropped a significantly large boar with #2. DRT. 30-50 ft range.

Every shot fired has a huge element of either it just went right or it just didn't work. A poor shot with it will result in just a few pellets going through, and you might as well just use a screwdriver.

In any case, agreed, that thing has the potential of being a great round for defense, if correct. Better to have 30 smaller rounds hit than 9 larger, at least sometimes. It should cause a whole lot more bleeding, and it has a much greater probability of massive organ damage and lung/nerve damage.

Do you want to have 27 chances of running a pellet right through his upper spine and potentially dropping the bad guy instantly, or would you rather only buy 9 tickets in the combat lottery?

 

[bamaranger]

30 yrs ago +/-

It may have been in the early 70's that a trend developed to use #4Buck in LE shotguns. I have an American Rifleman article by a guy named Jac WELLER that looks very late 1960ish (copy only) where he writes regards shotguns in southeast Asia in 1962 and analyzes the shotguns effectiveness on targets to 100 yds. WELLER liked #4B in his article, primarily 'cause more pellets increased the likelihood of more hits on paper out at 35-50 yds. He admitted that any buckshot past 50 yds was a roll of the dice, and at 100, near useless. (this from stock riot/trench guns barrels and IC and Cyl choke). WELLER did not address the smaller #4B pellets energy and penetration ( or lack of of it) at these intermediate distances.

My agency, as well as some other Fed outfits, used #4B as a duty load for a span of 10 yrs or so,m beginning about mid 70's then switched back to OObuck in the '90's. The #4B load was criticized for lack of penetrating power on heavy clothing, even moderate cover, and losing too much energy, too quickly, much past rock throwing distance. All this were negatives as a patrol round.

But, at bedroom/ hallway ranges, I see no reason why a load of #4B would not suffice.

 

[Dreaming100Straight]

This is a quote from a gelatin test by an unidentified source, which test results were published in the Truth About Guns.

#4 buckshot is what we here at [dead link] consider the minimum all purpose buckshot load for tactical applications. It balances decent penetration with a higher projectile count; increasing your first round hit probability over both #1 buck and 00 buck at medium shotgun range. If all pellets strike the intended target (likely when utilized at closer range) #4 buckshot offers several times the effective wound channel creation capabilities over both #1 and 00 buck

Most home defense distances are close range.

The same test concluded that lead BB has its place at close range.

We feel lead BB has it’s place, being a reasonable balance of penetration and pellet count. That being said, it is not recommended for medium range work. #4 buckshot is the minimum pellet size we recommend for general tactical applications.

It also opines that tungsten #1 BirdShot almost fills the bill if close range is guaranteed and overpenetration is an issue.

Designed as a better performing alternative to steel wetland bird loads, Tungsten Matrix is an exotic shotgun projectile material that has an even higher density than lead. It’s high density was what interested us in it’s possible application as a tactical shotgun load.

While approaching our minimum recommended penetration standard for an all around tactical shotgun load, this (#1 tungsten) birdshot load just does not quite measure up. Consideration of this load should be limited to an application where an engagement is guaranteed to be very close range and overpenetration is a significant and unacceptable risk.

While tungsten BB is not covered in the test, by extrapolation from the foregoing one might reasonably conclude it to be a reasonable choice where overpenetration is a factor.

 

[Dragline45]

I often keep my shotgun loaded with #4 buckshot for home defense, even compared to 00 it is an absolutely lethal round. Often times point men in Vietnam were armed with shotguns loaded with #4 buckshot, as well as several LE agencies throughout the country who still use it.

 

[wizrd]

Just happened to pattern several buckshot loads the other day, to get a handle on some good HD rounds. -- The no. 4 buck stood out as exceptional in my findings. -- Good to see these posts here -- great minds think alike.