Just a question

[Moss_835]

Has anyone thought or used the new Taurus Judge 45/.410 on rabbits yet? Being a "handgun huntiing nut" am thinking along the lines of the model 4510 with the six inch barrel. I also like the 4510TKR which is a 3 inch magnum but it only comes in a 3 inch barrel.
So was wondering if anyone here has used either of these and their likes or dislikes...

Thanks in advance

Moss

[Doodle]

Moss,

Here's my 2 cents after some good range time w/ shot sizes from #9's to #4's, 000 buck, slugs, and various .45LC using 3" barrel & 2.5" cylinder.

Effective range w/ shot is 3 to 5 yards at best, based on your target size and pellet density. My guess is the rifling is the main determinant when it comes to range and that the barrel length is irrelevant, since there is no forcing cone or taper, and the whole barrel remains .45.

Try all the different loads you can get your hands on. The rifling seems to engage different wad architectures with different results. My best performing shot loads are Remington Premier STS. Winchester AA loads did not pattern as nicely and recovered wads were chewed-up more by the rifling. Also, watch out for the shape of the shotshells. Malformed and bulging plastic (e.g., overcrimped) will not feed into the cylinder; seems to happen more with #4's and #6's. The cylinder may have tighter tolerances than a typical .410 bore shotgun.

With any of the shotshells, the pattern opens really quick. There is no reason to try and aim with shot, just point and the target is covered. For hunting, I'd limit shots to jumpshooting. Wide patterns make it inappropriate if there is a dog or person anywhere in the peripheral field of view.

Slugs appear to be less than effective compared to .45LC; perhaps not enough barrel to burn the powder and make pressure, but they're still plenty loud. 000 buck (3 pellets) makes a triangle a little larger than a pie plate at 7 yards. .45LC is great and I find the fixed sights are actually pretty good. .45LC is accurate and at my novice level I quickly felt comfortable out to 15 yards or so. Winchester .45LC silvertips in 225 gr. are the ticket for me, shooting single action. Would likely be a good deer gun at bow ranges.

Best thing about The Judge is that it is just an absolute hoot to shoot! The 3" barrel and 2.5" cylinder is fairly compact and holsters nicely. Still looking for 5 shot speed loaders for this revolver, btw.

Hope this helps and let me know your experience.

[bigcountrysg]

I personally wouldn't use the Judge for hunting rabbit.