Fox,
I have but one .410, the boy outgrew the gun in perhaps a month, and is thrilled to be up to a 20 gauge. My wife will go to the range and play with us in a very narrow spectrum of conditions-perfect weather, weekend, her house is cleaned, and the laundry mountain is down to a reasonable, for her, level.
Her damn priorities are different than ours. So, it is just the boy and I, usually.
My problem with the .410 is not what it is, per say, but what it isnt. If we could get Chuck, Stan, Ky Jon, and all these guys who are really good with their .410s into a room and get enough bourbon into them for the truth to come out about how much money they had in figuring the science of the .410 out, it would be sobering for the guys feeding them the bourbon.
The curve is steep with the .410, and the price of admission is always higher, for anything involved with it. Im at a point where it isnt the money, well, not always, anyway, but, the time, to chase the .410 fairy, as it were, instead of just unleashing the 16 or 12 gauge tiger, to do its task, cheaper, and more effectively.
Yes, I could put chokes in my cheap little .410 pump. Then, burn daylight, ammunition, time, and money to find out that at around 25 yards, you need to start thinking twice about whether to take that shot at a wild bird ducking into the conifers at the end of his runway.
Or, just bring the 12, and call it good. Im not real good at pondering things in the midst of a Ruffed Grouse flush. I dont bring a bunch of guns to hunt with, either. Usually, just one.
If you got time and money to figure that stuff out, more power to you. Ive got a full time job, a 12 year old, other bad habit hobbies, and not as much time to hunt as Id like.
Our .410 is mostly a fun toy for the range.
Best,
Ted
