Has anyone seen this? Cut Shells.

[Viking350]

This was done when slugs weren't commonly available or couldn't be used (as in my fathers case in Korea). I would consider it a last ditch effort to try when you really have little else to lose. Beside the try it and see what happens factor I don't see why anyone would be doing this to any great extent considering how common slugs are today.

One reason might be slugs are about a dollar a round at my local Wally World. Bird shot in the value pack is about 25 cents a round.

[coppertales]

for 40 years or so. I just make two cuts leaving about an 1/8th between the cuts on each side of the shell. I only load them in my sxs that has been cut back so no choke....chris3

[Viking350]

for 40 years or so. I just make two cuts leaving about an 1/8th between the cuts on each side of the shell. I only load them in my sxs that has been cut back so no choke....chris3

Excuse my ignorance, but is a sxs a side by side, pump, auto......?

[blobman]

oh yeah,thats an old trick my buddy always talked about,thats funny as i waa sjusting telling my BIL about it the other day

[Mark Ducati]

I had a thought... what about using a dremel tool with a "cut off wheel"?

I'm thinking you could zip/score a line/ring around the shell... not quite deep enough to totally separate it nor perforate the outter plastic casing, but just enough to weaken it so it would separate and fly off when fired.

Using a dremel for this though, the friction of the cutoff wheel might be enough to heat the plastic so it melts and you might have to take some light sand paper to smooth it out, but #1) I bet it would feed and #2) it would also extract...

But this would definitely take some experimenting, practice, and experience to learn how much of a zip/score line/ring would be required.

[Mark Ducati]

Or maybe using a hacksaw blade?

[Bluntforce]

Wonder if you'll get a build up of plastic in the bore after repeated firings? I'd also be a little leery of the hull getting stuck in the bore. The whole premise seems to be that the hull and all exit the bore and hit the target. If the crimp opens I could see the shot and wad seperating from the hull and the hull lodging in the bore especially if you have a full choke. He was using a modified.

My Winchester 1200 has a 20" riot barrel w/o choke on it and my .410 bolt action also has no choke. My 16 gauge Mossberg with the external dial choke and my 20 gauge Remington youth model with its screw-in choke will not have cut shells shot through them because I agree with your point. At the very least the choke could beat the projectile out of shape and defeat the purpose.

This cut is too drastic with the Winchester shot shells I have on hand, the wad is compressed and the shells are bent. They will fire fine, I am at a loss to explain the extraction problem.

I don't have any Remington shot shells on hand to check their inner compression. I'll trash a Federal 20 gauge with the spiral cut method to see if they bend out of shape.

Just checked the Federal 20 gauge, yes they bend also.

[Bluntforce]

Just cut a 12 in the two cut method and it's still in shape. This is much better than messing around with four cuts.

I'll load five and test.

[Viking350]

Just cut a 12 in the two cut method and it's still in shape. This is much better than messing around with four cuts.

I'll load five and test.

I think your two cut method has promise. You will have to experiment. I think you have to get them on the hairy edge for it to work.

[Bluntforce]

Just got back from the neighbor's, he has a range and I have a gun shy dog.*

1/8 of an inch on both sides is too much. It did not separate and did not extract.

I think the culprit on the extraction is the tiny extractor on the bolt of the 1200 coupled with the inertia assisted recoil gimmick of Winchester. For the purpose of extracting stubborn shells it would probably be better for the bolt to be locked tight until manual extraction begins.

It's raining, my neighbor has left and it will be dark soon.

I'll pick this up again when the humidity has dropped below 90% and the sun is up.


* That might not matter normally but it's a 90 pound pit bull that could get out of his pen if he's motivated. (Local rescue, he came up to my house cut up and scared of his own shadow in November. If he gets out someone will shoot him or his old owners find him and feed him to the fighters that tore him up to begin with.)

[Bluntforce]

I think your two cut method has promise. You will have to experiment. I think you have to get them on the hairy edge for it to work.

Coppertales used this idea before I did. I use good ideas but I always cite who I ripped off.

[Sidartha]

Excuse my ignorance, but is a sxs a side by side, pump, auto......?

It's short hand for a side by side.
(side) x (side) = sxs.
Clever no?

[Viking350]

It's short hand for a side by side.
(side) x (side) = sxs.
Clever no?

Very much so. In this case, you siders have the advantage. No feeding issues.

[gunslinger]

It could work in a pump-action by just reducing the amount of cut portion.
Or doing just two half-moon cuts. Plastic is not that tough, and all you have to do is to "encourage" the front portion of the shell to come off.
But, man, that's HEAVY abuse of the gun!
You see, the barrel has the diameter of the INSIDE of the shell!
That is, of the plastic sabot containing the shot.
Cutting the shell you are basically sending an overcaliber bullet down the bore.
The guy in the video is doing it with what seems to be a very sturdy shotgun.
Some magnum caliber combat shotguns could probably get a steady diet of those without problems, perhaps. But it's not something I'd do on a regular basis...

[deth502]

But the wad is designed to go done a bore, the hull isn't. The wad is also smaller in diameter then the hull.


If correct a 12 gauge bore is 0.729"

The diameter of a 12 gauge hull is 0.800"

A full choke restiction is .035" which means at the choke the bore is 0.694"

Pushing a 0.800" hull through a 0.694" Full choke may not be the best thing.

Someone please check my math.

dont have the specs to check, but this was my thought exactly. that hull is awfully large to try to shove down a bore.

[Mark Ducati]

Here's another "safer" method...

[abpt1]

Or maybe using a hacksaw blade?

Did you hear that first one sounded funny ...Think Ill pass on this one .... ...

[Bluntforce]

Just shot a cut shell in a 500 Mossberg Tactical with double extractors. Ejected with no trouble (12 ga.).

It was the double extractors that was needed all along. Will not try to feed cut shell from magazine.

Single extractor pump or semis are not suitable for such shells and cut shells should be directly loaded into the chamber are my conclusions. IMO, YMMV, etc.

[O.S.O.K.]

For home defense, I'm not aware that standard loads are in need of any improvement insofaras lethal effect.

This would be most effective in the situation where all's you had is a shotty with birdshot loads and needed to make something to take deer with - or make killing shots in general instead of wounding shots.

Interesting but not of much use if you've prepared.

[Sidartha]

For home defense, I'm not aware that standard loads are in need of any improvement insofaras lethal effect.

It's not for the lethality that I'm interested, it's for the lack of collateral damage.
At a range of 30 yrds you might still hit with the majority of 00 Buckshot pellets but the minority are now shooting off into the ether.
Basically if you are caught in a riot type situation and only had to shoot one guy threatening you but didn't want to hit the people in the background this would have the 'precision' of a slug without the risk of over-penetration.

But of course all this is moot if the damn thing don't work.
(we need a kaboom smiley)