go ahead and push a .41 mag into a .410 (if it will fit, I don' t think it will), try and fire it, then go buy a new gun!!! The pressure will be much more than a .410 pistol can handle. As far as using .5oz slugs on bruins, it might be ok, put I wouldn' t trust my life to it! Let alone the fact that you only get one shot if one should charge, but most .410 slugs are weakly constructed. If you had one that was really going to hold together, a 217gr slug (~.5oz) at 1400fps wouldn' t be that bad, but remember 1400fps is coming out of a ~26" bbl, so you' re probably only going to get something around 500-800fps from your pistol, considering that it' s probably using slow burning powders (much of which is going to burn OUTSIDE the barrel, giving you lost MV.) Now, a 217gr slug at 800fps isn' t going to whack anything very hard, much similar to a .45acp. A .45acp is marginal to put down a wounded bear, let alone a charging one, even with the fact that you get 7-10rnds, use only one, and you' re carrying a gun that would do better as a club than a shooter, it' s just going to make you feel good to know you have a gun, giving no more real support.
That said, bruins rarely charge, so maybe just the flash/bang of the .410 would help, but then you wouldn' t even have to shoot the bear, so you wouldn' t need slugs. With a bruin, you' re more likely going to have it come into your camp for food, if it' s not high-tailing it away from you, and in that case, I' d use #4-6 shot and shoot the bear in the body, a large bang, a big flash, and a goodly sting all over will help it decide that you aren' t anything it wants to be around.
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"When you tell a fellow to go to hell, you had better be sure you can get him there."--LBJ
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my hunting experiences, I' ve used .410 slugs for yotes, and from seeing their performance, I wouldn' t even use them on deer unless they were the high velocity type and only at about 40-65yrds.
As for your flares, I' m pretty sure that no one makes a .410 flare, and I' m even more sure that most guns aren' t supposed to fire them if they make them (I know you' re not supposed to shoot 12ga flares through real 12ga pistols, only in flareguns.) I don' t think it would blow up, but it' s not supposed to be good for them, I' m not really sure why?
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"When you tell a fellow to go to hell, you had better be sure you can get him there."--LBJ
take your .410 quail hunting.....maybe a little more.....but it' s a horribly anemic round for big game hunting. A 28 Ga is a century of improvement over a .410
BTW..... .5 oz slugs is a bad misprint.....it' s 1/5 oz slugs......and that' s 85 grains.....and that' sa horribly anemic round.
Leave the .410 at home. get a Taurus Tracker in .41 mag or .44 mag. or a Ruger Blackhawk. Look for 4" Barreled guns 5" tops. If you are in a area were bear are hunted they NORMALLY just run away anyway, not counting the National Park Bears, I have a great story about the bears in Smokey Mtn Park wanting to occupy the camp latrine. That is my experiance in Tennesse, North Carolina, Minnesoetta, Wyoming and Montana.
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Aim Straight,
NBH
" If guns cause crime......mine are defective" ----Ted
Nugent
" Fast is fine......accurate is final "
NRA Life Member
Nice save vapodog, I completely bit the mistype, hate it when I forget to think of things like that. I didn' t even think about .5 oz .410 slugs being non-existant, even considering it at .5oz, things were bad, but try it with a fifth!!
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"When you tell a fellow to go to hell, you had better be sure you can get him there."--LBJ
For ease of carry and emergency survival I can' t thing of a better gun. Its a break action single shot shotgun with an 11 inch barrel and an overall length of 28 inches. It weighs about 4 lbs.
Even if it was legal to carry a handgun while camping I would still prefer a light shotgun for emergency survival.
I was hoping someone would know about alternative rounds and flares.
Yeah its a great little gun. Emphasis on little. It is what it is. It is like a 22 LR in that you can carry plenty of ammo for it and use it to get food in a survival situation. However, if you are planning on encountering anything bigger than a jackrabbit you need to rethink your weapon.
.410 Versatility
If you are in a area were bear are hunted they NORMALLY just run away anyway, not counting the National Park Bears, I have a great story about the bears in Smokey Mtn Park wanting to occupy the camp latrine. That is my experiance in Tennesse, North Carolina, Minnesoetta, Wyoming and Montana.
