foraging gun

plumberroy

plumberroy

Joined
Jan 27, 2007
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I finally found my foraging gun after a long search an old H&R 162 buck 12 ga. smoothbore slug gun it shoots shot well enough to kill small game out to 25 yards. todays trip to the range showed remington sluggers are the slug loads it likes :D I am in the hunt for a buckshot load it likes..
To me a foraging gun needs to take any game in the area and fit your style of hunting. This gun will break down to fit a daypack. It will work well for thickets and brushy hollows I like to hunt
bottom gun
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all I need for foraging is a .22 revolver. Bird or squirrel accurate to 35 yards, consistent, light weight, reliable.
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For what little I got back for them, I've sold far toooo many H&Rs.
I still have my Forager, a Topper in 12ga.
I sent it to Poly-choke for their "Deluxe" choke and had them cut it back to 18.5 so it fit's nicely strapped to a ruck.
I "Englished" the stock as the pistol grip didn't do much for me either way.

I recently bought a Shakari in 45-70 but I'd much prefer one in 44mag.

Glad to see someone else enjoying the old break opens.:thumbup:

Since I started this post before supper, I see that my 22lr revolver of choice has been added to the thread.
 
Try 1 1/2oz of high brass 4's in your Topper. Kicks like crazy, but really lays the Smack Down.

For casual hunting of easily killed things, an ounce of 6's works Great in 12 gauge Toppers. Your effective range with this is anything under, say, 40 yards. If you pattern some rounds plus pick and choose cartridges, you can find some stuff that kills well w/ an ounce of shot, but won't kill your shoulder. HINT --> mind your dram equivalence.

My Topper in this gauge patterns the "loss leader" cheap rounds available in late Summer, nicely.
 
Erasmus said:
Try 1 1/2oz of high brass 4's in your Topper. Kicks like crazy, but really lays the Smack Down.

For casual hunting of easily killed things, an ounce of 6's works Great in 12 gauge Toppers. Your effective range with this is anything under, say, 40 yards. If you pattern some rounds plus pick and choose cartridges, you can find some stuff that kills well w/ an ounce of shot, but won't kill your shoulder. HINT --> mind your dram equivalence.

My Topper in this gauge patterns the "loss leader" cheap rounds available in late Summer, nicely.
Click to expand...

I have 1 full box and 10 loose rounds of Fed. copper coated 4s that are reserved for the Topper...I added a Rem. recoil pad so the recoil is tolerable.
 
I am not saying I'm the best pistol shot around but, no one out shoots me real bad with a pistol . If I am depending on a gun to feed myself I want something more than a handgun. That being said chances are if I was in a foraging situation there would most likely be a little taurus revolver on my belt along with a long gun. Erasmus I have a H&R "turkey gun" made before they did the screw in choke stuff 24" barrel full choke I use the promo shells to open up the pattern when I don't want the full choke pattern .
I am a H&R holic In rifles I have a 45-70, 30-30 ackley improved 17 hmr shotgun wise 10 ga, 2-12 ga, 3- 20's and a 28 ga. plus a rossi 410/22 set and a rossi 410 So I have a couple break open guns :D
Roy
 
Those are nice little guns. My forager is an H&R 20 with a modified choke. Will kill all the rabbits and squirrels I throw at it, and it couldn't be more reliable.

Frosty
 
H&Rs that got away:
410
44mag
30-30
22 Hornet and 20ga in electro nickel.
The worst one I let slip away: a 357 that I had bumped to 357 max.
The idea that you could shoot 38sp wadcutter to 180gr. JHP Maxes is a myth...change in point of impact was a real PIA.
 
I really like the 20 gauge as a good foraging choice. I haven’t had much opportunity to really put the inserts to the test and I haven’t made my mind up about the funky stock (I still have the original). The inserts are for .357 and .22LR, but I really haven’t tested them for consistent accuracy…they do “look” like a good addition, but the jury is still out. The functional simplicity of the single shot break-open shotgun is often overlooked.

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ROCK6
 
My Savage 24 camper model in 20 gauge 22lr...Took me a long time to find one and it breaks down to fit in a pack.
 
CellerDrummer beat me to it...let my Savage 24C get away...though I think I'd use slugs for dangerous game and 2 legged protection, and unless you can take a turkey or larger game bird, don't know if a shotgun is cost effective relative to the transport weight of shell per ounce of meat taken from small birds... where I live, an accurate .22lr would be my choice...fell a tree section across a small creek and shoot mullet...rabbits, squirrels, ground shoot birds...

try some Fiocchi Aero slugs...very accurate out of my 21" Benelli
 
Rock, what stock is that?
makes it look like a "snake charmer"
thanks for your time!
Ted
 
TedPalmer said:
Rock, what stock is that?
makes it look like a "snake charmer"
thanks for your time!
Ted
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's very similar but fits the H&R single shot 20 gauge; I think I picked it up from Midway USA. The length of pull is a little short, but it's a decent size overall.

ROCK6
 
Ed Harris mentions that your effective range with minor caliber pistols on small game is the distance you can shoot 2" groups. So...

This is the perfect pretext to take a couple of your pistols or revolvers and shoot them at hand drawn life size pics. of game animals. Take a full size pistol and revolver, and try your best to put your bullets in the head or breast of a life-size grouse target. Or Turkey. Quail for the experts.

Its as fun as it is illuminating. I'm doing my best work with either a 4" .38 or a Ruger MKII gov't target model. Neither shoots straight enough to meet Harris's 2" criteria past 25 yards.

I've done way better with old surplus rifles and reduced power cast lead bullets. I shot my first and only MOA group of my life with my No.4 Enfield, and a 215grain LRN-GC. That's exceptional, though. Practically any sort of shotgun is a "gimmee" on stationary targets at less than 40 yards. I suppose we're talking "survival" here, not really "fair chase".

Kids LOVE shooting at hand drawn game targets at very moderate distances, even with a humble .22 rifle.

"Now, just relax and carefully shoot him in the head, SweetiePie.":)



"Goodness, you've shot his beak off. Aim a little to the left, and you'll have him."
 
the father of a shooter friend said that during the Depression, powder was difficult to obtain in Florida, but they could get primers.. coated the primer mixture with shellac before priming the case, added a couple drops of gasoline, and seated a OO buck pellet into the neck of 30/30 and 30/06 cases.... shot rabbits and squirrels....said they were good for a couple of hours
 
That flammable vapor propellant business sounds interesting. And dangerous.

I wonder about a little blast of something flammable in the cartridge casing.. Sounds perilous and inconvenient. Hard to meter the proper amount of flammable stuff?! Maybe an eyedropper?

Your buckshot trick is more easily and commonly done easily with Alliant Bullseye powder (3 grains) and any .30 caliber rifle. I've shot scads of them out of my .303, .30/06 and 7.62x39.

Google "bullseye buckshot load" for the skinny. Fun and quiet.


I think the Navy was fooling around with liquid propellants for cannons.
 
A 12 gauge is game producer for sure. I use to have an H&R single shot like that. It will flat out knock squirrels from tall pecan trees something my 410 has trouble doing.
 
I am a big fan of the Savage over and under guns. My favorite is the Camper 22/20. I have had one for many years. I purchased a Marlin Papoose not long ago and it seems to be a fine shooter. The magazine is a plus for follow up shots, but no shotgun. You have to make the first shot count anyway, but the ability to change magazines is nice. You can have different ammo in each magazine. CB to velocitors.
 
I found a couple boxes of federal Black cloud steel with federals flite control wads on the clearance I had heard good thing about the flight control stuff. with the gun having no choke You don't have to worry about that I gave them a try . This ammo is a game changer Out of my cylinder bore slug gun #2's and BB's throw a full choke pattern and they make the loads in lead . Regular shot in #6 and 7 1/2 for close in bunnies and birds federal flite control stuff to reach out and remington sluggers or brenneke mags slugs and I'm looking for flite control buckshot I'm told it preforms well too. This gun will take anything in the lower 48 with the above ammo as long as you aren't recoil shy:D
Roy
 
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