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Ammunition Performance Reviews

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6cmGHz-4O4

For home defense you can't go wrong with either #1, #4 and 00 buck. I've got 8 shots of Hornady LE #4 Buck loaded in my 590 ready to go.... with a side saddle strip (velcro kind) of Brenneke 3" Black Magic Magnum's for the rare occasion that a Mack truck tries to invade my home :lol:
 
I appreciate the response and in the case of close quarters (1-10 yards, inhome distance) #4 buckshot is great. That video is the best and only video testing penetration of #4 buckshot that I've seen but its only at ten feet or 3.3333 yards. As we all know the farther projectiles travel the more energy they lose and I'm looking to find the longest effective range for #4 buckshot. I like #1 but its not easy to come by and even harder to come by at a reasonable price. #4, like #1 has more pellets, though smaller there are more shots on target which could mean more trauma (oo, even lower recoil will pass through targets and while that does mean damage, comparing 8-9 .33 caliber pellets that pass through a target to 21-27 .24 caliber pellets that remain in a target thereby transferring ALL the energy to the target means less wasted energy). I have no doubts about its effectiveness at very close range, all weapon systems and calibers have strengths and limitations, what I'm looking to find are the limits of #4 buckshot.
 
If anyone is interested in buckshot performance at 50 yards Brass Fetcher has a video on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pIuUrjUIyQ

The video is long but has great information on buckshot performance past close quarters. One important factor for anyone wanting to use birshot for home defense would do well to research the difference between heavier and lighter loads when it comes to loss of velocity and penetration from close to medium ranges. This video is a great reference.

I have a question regarding Spartan oo buckshot. From what I've read its along the lines of rio royal as far as a low cost but reliable load. Does anyone have first hand experience with this ammunition? It is a relatively new load and so far I've only seen two youtube reviews and very few written reviews. Any personal input would be appreciated.
 
I have recently put in some time at the range with the intention of testing reliability (not patterning) of rio royal and spartan buckshot. I would like input from others on how spartan buckshot has cycled through their 930 but I put a warning out to all. My 930 ate every OO and #4 rio royal shell I put through it (75), and with 15 spartan shells I had 4 failures to eject. No feeding issues, only failures to eject. After 25 rio OO I put the spartan through and had the failures, I thought perhaps my 930 had been sitting for too long and the rio ran too dirty for it so after the 4th failure with the spartan I switched to rio again and not one problem. My remington 870 however, had no issues (as most would expect) with the spartan. So in conclusion Spartan buckshot will only be used in my coachgun and 870.
 
I've probably run 900+ rounds of the Spartan 00 through my 930 Tactical this year.

Only had one failure through it all and it happened to be on my last trip out. The shell had a uneven crimp that slightly deformed the side of the hull and it hung up on the way into the chamber. Other than that, I've not had any issues. I wonder if perhaps there may be some recent QC issues resulting from a bad run?
 
I haven't seen anything that indicates the ammunition is deformed at all. I noticed last year when I ran a few spartan through the 930 and had the same isse the lip of the alloy case was deformed and it looks like the extractor was causing the deformation because the shells were getting lodged in once chambered and required a great deal of force (sometimesmore force to remove than the gas system could provide) to cycle through. I've had that issue with low brass birdshot loads here and there but never with anything highbrass, slugs or buckshot. So its possible its a cleaning issue on my part where I'm not as meticulous as I could be or perhaps I would do well to polish with a dremel or something similar the gas piston and other internals so it runs more smoothly and doesn't hiccup with low brass. I don't think its a recoil issue, rather something more to do with the low brass of the spartan OO either deforming/enlarging inside the barrel or upon extraction.
 
At 1300+ fps I wouldn't consider the Spartan to be "low brass" or underpowered by any means.

At least not to the point where you'd begin having cycling issues anyway. My 18" 930 is an ammo picky SOB when it comes to low velocity, but it runs Spartan just fine...
 
you guys cant believe on the box velocity, chronograph it or you are just guessing. You cant just say "this stuff is 3000fps".....out of what gun?, what length barrel?.....manufactures tend to fluff this number as well


I don't think its a recoil issue, rather something more to do with the low brass of the spartan OO either deforming/enlarging inside the barrel or upon extraction.

THIS is the #1 reason high brass was invented.

High Brass does help with the issue you describe but the expansion happens in the chamber.

Low brass/high brass has nothing to do with velocity, it so happens that when it was invented it was for magnum/heavy field loadings....magnum in shotshells are not the same as metallic cartridges and mostly refers to the payload weight not the velocity
 
Oil700,

Thank you.

I agree the velocity is not less than rio or other normal buckshot loads but it is literally low brass in that the metal (whatever alloy spartan uses) is shorter in dimension than rio or other 'high brass' shotshell loads. It is for this reason I suspect a more precise polishing job/barrel cleaning might fix the issue. LES, how do you clean your barrel, what solvents/supplies do you use and in what order? I will admit my firearms cleaning habits could be described as more hardy/simple and sloppy than someone with military training/experience/discipline or a meticulous disposition. Any secrets or embarrassingly obvious methods of barrel cleaning you or anyone else have that might be helpful? Thanks a lot guys for the input.
 
It is for this reason I suspect a more precise polishing job/barrel cleaning might fix the issue.
You might have a rough chamber , it never hurts to polish a shotgun chamber, especially a semi auto.

Another thing to check is the rim of the spartan head fit into your extractor on the bolt, might not get a good "bite" for whatever reason be it the extractor or the shell.
 
LES, how do you clean your barrel, what solvents/supplies do you use and in what order?

I only clean my semi-autos after 500 rounds or so and can't remember the last time I cleaned one of my pump guns. When I do clean them I run a bore snake down the barrel first to remove as much loose grime as possible. I do this at the range while the barrel is still hot and then again at home before cleaning. Then I spray BC Bore Scrubber down the barrel, load my cleaning rods with a 12 gauge bronze brush on the end into my power drill and go to town on it until the bore shines. I apply more bore scrubber as needed during the process until the barrel is clean. Once it looks good 'n clean I'll spray in some BC Powder Blast in the barrel and run either some patches or a Remington Squeeg-E through until it comes out clean...
 
High Brass is just a visual indicator that a shotgunner has a heavier payload shells in his gun. You can load a low brass shell to the exact same payload/velocity as a high brass #4. The problem is that visually the low brass shell at a glance looks like a trap/skeet load. High brass gives you a pause.
 
I'd like to see a performance eval done one Estate buck and slug. It's made in the US and is relatively inexpensive. From what I gather at vendor sites such as midway USA, cabelas etc. Online purchasers seem to like the stuff. Occasionally it goes on sale at cabelas for 15 bucks a box (25) and that is what I find attractive. Price wise it beats the buck plus a pop name brand stuff. Yet is it as good?
This post was from 2011 ..........today you can get Estate O.O Buckshot for less then $10 a box . Over 95% of the many reviews I read on line say it's great stuff !
However , the cases I'm buying state it's Made in France now .
 
High Brass is just a visual indicator that a shotgunner has a heavier payload shells in his gun. You can load a low brass shell to the exact same payload/velocity as a high brass #4. The problem is that visually the low brass shell at a glance looks like a trap/skeet load. High brass gives you a pause.

I got yelled at once on a skeet range for using high brass hulls that I reloaded. I was forced to stop shooting them and was asked to leave the range despite telling them they were reloaded with only 1oz or #9 shot.
 
I have stocked up on Fiocchi #4 Buck. I do like those clear cases. The pellets are nickel plated, which prevents deformation of the pellets and keeps the shot pattern tighter.
 
+1 for the Fiocchi USA #4 buck. It seems to have a tighter pattern than the usual +1" spread for every yard downrange too. The Low-recoil 00 buck is also a nice load and more comfortable to shoot. Both of mine are made in USA. I just ordered some made-in-Italy Fiocchi low recoil 00 buck from Able Ammo in TX and was very disappointed with this shipment. 6 of the 10 boxes I ordered were musty and had advanced corrosion on the brass plated rims. I actually sent it back...don't know if it was old, the subject of a humid warehouse or got rained on somehow, but this stuff was a big disappointment. Has anyone else had the same problem with Able Ammo or the Italian Fiocchi buck shotshells? Haven't had this problem with the USA stuff, even after years of storage.
 
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