a good comprimise?

D

doctor_brevic

New member
Hello everyone, another one of my threads was debating slugs vs buckshot. However I may have discovered some good middle ground. Winchester pdx1. A 2 3/4 in. Shell containing 3 rounds of 00 buck and a 1 oz. Slug! That's right, in the same shell! How do you guys feel about this stuff? I put a couple rds. of it through my 870 and found that it delivers a nice accurate slug and the 3 .33 caliber plated balls tend to spread in patterns about 1 ft. In diameter at 20 feet. This is out of an 870 express 18" fixed cylinder bore. Any advice and info is appreciated thanks!
 
A good compromise for what?

If I am shooting at something that warrants a slug, why would I want to include buckshot with it? If I am shooting at something that warrants only buckshot, why would I want a slug going down range?
 
well... perhaps you are keeping rounds in the cabinet next to your shotty with the intent to load them up in the event of a home invasion, or large violent creature outside. I do see your point, I actually have an 18" 6+1 870 express loaded with 3" remington 00 buck and right next to it I keep a mossberg 500 20" 7+1 with 3" remington 1 oz. sluggers. the purpose of this post however is what if you don't really know exactly what is going to be on the other side of that door? you hear something outside and if it is a big cat I like the idea of buckshot so if I knew that that was the case I'd want a little 00 in the gun, or if I was sure it was a person. however if I was sure there was a bear out there I'd want some slugs, absolutely! I agree! but I ask you sir, what if you can't be so sure? If I grab my slugger than I am certainly not going to be as comfortable entering thick brush or close quarters. Yet on the contrary if I were to grab my buck shot gun I would feel inadequitely preped for a bear encounter. So I thought maybe with this compensation for aim error involved in a close quarters quick shot and still a slug for the serious knock down, this would be better than either one alone. hopfully this clarifies my question, I am asking if this is as good as it sounds or if it is in fact too good to be true.
 
For any possible home defense situation involving human intruder, the 00 will suffice for the first shots at least...

For anything else, I have smaller shot of various size for different specie of problem.

Buck and ball does nothing better than a 00 or a slug and due to inherent issues, it is not as good as either.

Brent
 
"Buck and ball does nothing better than a 00 or a slug and due to inherent issues, it is not as good as either."

that is an interesting concept, I appreciate this input as these posts have in the recent past, and still continue to strongly influence my decisions as far as the standard procedure of carrying. could you be more specific as to how exactly they "arent as good as either"? not saying I don't belive you or take your word for it as I can imagine you are a premiumly experienced individual in this matter. I am just curious as to the ballistics of said product when put up against something like a 1 oz. slug load ar some 3" 00. ie: muzzle energy comparisons, effective range, et cetera.

thanks!
 
the purpose of this post however is what if you don't really know exactly what is going to be on the other side of that door?
Click to expand...

In that case, I sure as heck won't be pulling the trigger, slugs or buckshot or both. Properly identifying your target before shooting is quite necessary, IMO.

That being said, have you ever heard of a select slug drill? I practice it regularly when running through my shotgun drills. If you are not familiar with it, Google it and check it out....it works well when you don't want to send the wrong load down range.

As for your bear and big cat scenario.....why not shoot either with a slug? I would much prefer dispensing a large cat (I assume you mean mountain lion) with a slug rather than buck shot. And since you are talking about bears and mountains lions, one can assume you are living out in the country so hitting the next door apartment with a slug becomes a non-issue (of course, buck and ball would kind of mess up an apartment wall too). Why not just keep slugs loaded all the time? Two legged bad guys go down well with slugs, just like tigers and lions and bears, oh my. :D
 
you're correct, I do live in the mountains and have no neighbors to speak of. While I understand your concern about target identification you must understand that I am not at all talking about blowing rounds recklessly through the door, I am talking about grabbing one shotgun and heading out to engage the threat where it will then be properly identified and blown away if fitting, repeat as necessary.:) but as you know by that time it will have been too late to run back and grab the other gun or ammo. I do fancy your selective slug fire method but I see a few problems as to a charging bear, time is critical, and I also agree that a slug is better for the infamous lethal kitty as it is for anything at all that you want deader than it currently is, but in my environment I would consider a very close encounter virtually unavoidable, and cats are rather quick! thats why I prefer that aim compensation of buck. It would'nt be abserd to assume one would have less than a fraction of a second to get a round down range. (hence the problem with selective slugging) and if the threat in question is hungry for a little more than buckshot I want a slug, but of course this leads back to the issue of not wanting to miss my only shot, so you see, this pdx1 seems to have its benifets for me. I am only asking if it really does knock down like a slug should, or if there are any misfiring or quality issues involved. as you ponder my difficult situation I hope you see why both buck and slug downrange simultaneously is important to my unique problem. I appolagize for being unclear, I'm not asking if the item in question is better than a slug for when a slug is required for I know that it is not, nor am I asking if it is better that buck for when buck is required for I aslo know that it is not. I only ask if it is free of well known issues like anything from blowing up my 870 barrel to not firing at all. or perhapse it does not like to eject all the time? I have decided that I like the idea of this stuff, just wondering if its gonna be rough on the shotty or cause a feeding/ejecting problem. once again I am sorry for the unclarity, won't happen again.:D
 
If you were at an appropriate range for buckshot, some might argue you might be better with an ordinary buckshot cartridge for maximum hole poking and hit probability.

If you are a more appropriate range for a slug, the buckshot in the buck and ball load will miss. In the woods, this doesn't really matter. An ordinary 1 oz slug would have more velocity or less recoil than the buck and ball load, and that's about it.

In a more urban environment, you now have three misses you are responsible for. Where will those buckshot pellets end up? Next door? Down the block? It's a little more troublesome.
 
Another compromise may be Tri-ball shells made by DixieSlugs.

As the name implies, the shells contain three large round balls, and they are said to pattern very tightly (around 6" at 40 yards).

As others have said about the "buck and ball", is tri-ball better than buckshot or slugs? I wouldn't want to shoot it in my house (over-penetration), and I don't suppose it'll reach out quite as far as slugs.

However, if I were shooting four-legged pests outside, these might fill a niche from about 30-50 yards, where they'll offer more downrange power and tighter patterns than buckshot, and maybe give me a better chance of hitting vitals (due to the three wound channels) than I'd have with a slug.
 
I have a box of Centurion rounds for my shotgun. 5 00would buckshot pellets and what looks like a large musket ball. I don't know that I'm gaining anything as a practically, but putting that many holes in something makes me feel pretty good
 
All these HD options are making my head hurt (she says as she puts the Models 66 and 627 back under the pillows and puts the shotguns back in the gun room)
 
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