IMAGE DESCRIPTION:
BY MARTIN KRUSE PHOTOS BY H. KRUSE
BACK ON PAGE 27 OF THE ARMORER AN ARTICLE APPEARED UNDER THE TITLE "SPECIAL PURPOSE SHOTGUN AMMO."
THIS ARTICLE DEALT WITH IMPROVISED TECHNIQUES FOR MODIFYING REGULAR SHELLS TO PERFORM SPECIALIZED FUNC- TIONS .
IN DISCUSSING THIS WITH CLYDE, HE INFORMED ME THAT SEVERAL READERS HAD WRITTEN HIM QUESTIONING THE USE, FUNCTIONABLILITY , END SAFETY OF THESE LOADS. HE WONDERED IF I COULD SHED ANY LIGHT ON THE USE OF ANY OF THEM
WELL, I HAVN'T TRIED ALL OF THEN* BUT I HAVE HAD A GREAT DEAL OF EX- PERIENCE WITH THE ONE DESIGNATED IN THE ARTICLE BY THE LETTER "0". THIS IS AN IMPROVISED SLUG MADE FROM A REGULAR SHOT SHELL. THIS REALLY IS AN OLD HILLBILLY TRICK. WE CALL IT "RINGING A LOAD" OR "CUTTING A RINGED LOAD." ITS USE GOES BACK TO THE TIME WHEN THE FIRST BRASS BASED PAPER SHELLS CAME OUT, AND IN SOME PARTS OF THE COUNTRY IT'S BEEN A PRETTY COMMON PRACTICE EVER SINCE.
TO MAKE A RINGED LOAD, ALL YOU NEED IS A SHOTSHEL I AND A GOOD SHARP KNIFE. JUST CUT THROUGH THE SHELL AT THE WAD COLUMN LEAVING ON- LY A NARROW STRIP, MAYBE ABOUT 1/16 O* AN INCH, OF SHELL CASING HOLDING THE TWO SECTIONS TOGETHER. I'VE NEVER BOTHERED TO HEAT SEAL THE END OF THE SHELL CASING SO I GUESS IT REALLY ISN'T NECESSARY, BUT YOU CAN IF YOU WANT TO. HOWEVER, MOST OF THE TIME THIS IS USED IN A PINCH, OR AS A SURVIVAL MEASURE AND A SOLDER- ING IRON JUST ISN'T HANDY.
WHEN A SHELL TREATED IN THIS MANNER IS FIRED, THE ENTIRE SHOT LOAD REMAINS INTACT WI THIN THE SHELL CASING AND WADCOLUMN, IMPACTING THE TARGET AS A SINGLE PROJECTILE. FRAG- MENTATION TAKES PLACE DURING PENE- TRATION.
FOR THIS REASON, THE RINGED LOAD DOES FAR MORE DAMAGE IN MANY CASES THAN A CONVENTIONAL RIFLED SLUG.
I'VE TAKEN WILD PIG AND SEVERAL COYOTES WITH THEM AND I KNOW GUYS IN ALASKA WHO'VE USED THEM ON MOOSE AND BEAR. THEY'RE A LITTLE TOO DE- STRUCTIVE FOR REGULAR MEAT OR HIDE HUNTING BUT THEY SURE DO THE JOB IN A PINCH.
THE EXPLOSIVE NATURE OF THEIR CONSTRUCTION AS WELL AS THE ACCUR- ACY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE RINGED LOAD MAKES THIS A GOOD CHOICE FOR DEFENSIVE USE. THEY SHOULD BE ONE HELL OF A MANSTOPPER, AND CERTAINLY
BETTER THAN A BIRDSHOT LOAD USED IN THE CONVENTIONAL MANNER. WHAT'S MORE, THEIR ACCURACY AND SHOOTING CHARACTERISTICS ARE SUCH THAT YOU MAY CHOOSE THE RINGED LOAD OVER THE CONVENTIONAL RIFLED SLUG FOR MANY ANTI-PERSONNEL APPLICATIONS.
SOME TIME AGO, IN PREPARING AN ARTICLE FOR ONE OF THE MORE CON- VENTIONAL GUN MAGAZINES, I RAN E«- TENSIVE TESTS COMPARING THE ACCURACY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE RINGED LOADS AND REGULAR FACTORY RIFLED SLUG LOADS.
COMPARISONS WERE MADE IN 12,16, AND 20 GAUGES THROUGH A WIDE RANGE OF BARREL LENGTHS AND CHOKES. TESTS WERE MADE FOR BOTH BALLISTIC PER- FORMANCE (EFFECT ON THE TARGET) AND ACCURACY OF THE THE PROJECTILES. IN SIDE BY SIDE COMPARISONS, THE RINGED LOADS' PERFORMANCE WAS TRULY SURPRISING. THIS 'FIELD CONVERSION' ACTUALLY OUTSHOT THE FACTORY LOAD.
THE BIGGEST PLUS I FOUND FOR THE RINGED LOAD WAS THAT THEY SHOOT MUCH FLATTER THAN THE RIFLED SLUG.
THE GREATEST DIFFERENCE OCCURED WHEN BOTH TYPES OF PROJECTILES WERE FIRED THROUGH FULL CHOKED BARRELS OF STAN- DARD 28" LENGTH.
ONE REASON FOR THE GREAT DIF- FERENCE IN THE TRAJECTORIES OF THE 2 LOADS IS THAT THE CONSTRICTION AT THE END OF THE BARREL HAS MORE SLOWING EFFECT ON THE RIFLED LEAD SLUGS THAN ON THE SLICK HULL CAS- INGS. THIS IS BORN OUT BY THE FACT THAT BOTH LOADS SHOOT FLATTER IN MORE OPEN-CHOKED BARRELS, BUT THE AMOUNT OF DIFFERENCE WAS GREATER WITH THE SLUGS.
THE REMINGTON FACTORY CHART FOR THEIR 12 GA. RIFLED SLUGS GIVES A
DROP FIGURE OF 10. V' AT 100 YDS.
THIS FIGURE IS ESTABLISHED USING A TEST BARREL DESIGNED AND CHOKED SPECIFICALLY FOR RIFLED SLUGS. FIR- ING THESE RIFLED SLUGS THROUGH SEV- ERAL FULL-CHOKED BARRELS, I GOT BE- TWEEN 33 AND 37" DROP AT 100 YDS. RINGED LOADS FIRED FROM THE SAME BARRELS DROPPED FROM 15 TO 18" BE- LOW THE POINT OF AIM.
BOTH LOADS GAVE THEIR BEST PER- FORMANCE THROUGH SPECIAL SLUG BAR- RELS, OR RIOT GUNS. BARRELS OF THIS TYPE WERE TRIED IN LENGTHS OF 18, 20,22, AND 2V R , WITH CHOKES OF IMP. CYL. BORE.
THE 12 GA. SLUGS DROPPED AN AV- ERAGE OF 12 " AT 100 YDS. (AN AC- CEPTABLE AMOUNT OF DEVIATION BETWEEN FACTORY CLAIMS AND ACTUAL PERFOR- MANCE.) THE RINOED LOADS CAME IN WITH AN AVERAGE OF 9" THROUGH THE SANE GUNS AT THAT DISTANCE.
NO SPECIAL SLUG GUNS WERE AVAIL- ABLE FOR TESTING IN 16 AND 20GA., SO A 1 1 TESTING WAS DONE WITH REGU- LAR FIELD GUNS. THEY SEEMED TO SHOOT A LITTLE FLATTER THAN THE 12 GA, BUT THE SAME DESCREPANCY OCCURRED BETWEEN LOADS. THE FLATTER TRAJECT- ORY MEANS A DECREASE IN NECESSARY HOLDOVER. THIS REDUCES THE POSSIBLE ERROR AT UNKNOWN DISTANCES AND GREATLY INPROVES CHANCES FOR A CLEAN KILL UNDER FIELD CONDITIONS.
IN ADDITION, THE RINGED LOADS SHOWED CONSIDERABLY LESS LATERAL DISPERSION. TEST GROUPS WERE FIRED FRON A BENCH REST AT 25, 50, AND
