I can get this #2 "Self-Defense" load locally for ~$1.50/rd. My next option is lead #4 ($0.75rd) to #4 Buck (~$2.50/rd).
I need to shoot dogs (domesticated livestock killers) and beavers close to a public road and around water in my pasture. I am concerned about ricochets leaving my property so, #4 Buck has been ruled out for that reason mainly, along with pattern density.
#4 lead shot should be very effective on beavers at 20~30 yards with good pattern density as swimmers don't present much of a target to hit. I have been attacked by dogs 3 times so, I don't really want to be forced into changing loads in my shotgun or transitioned to a handgun during a fast attack from behind. There are also some animal hoarders which are the main problem with the domestic dogs as they are all starving to death and just trying to survive. With people like that, you never know when they will pull out a shotgun or 30-30 to "protect their dogs out in the country where they can do anything they want to!" With Meth and Marijuana in rural East Texas, occasional weird criminal encounters are not unheard of (I had an explosive destroy my mailbox and arson burned down a neighbor's house).
I have taken nearly 100 of those dogs with my rifle in the past two years on other parts of my property, including two on my front porch when I heard something get knocked over before my first cup of coffee one morning! If I didn't open the door with a pistol in my hand while wearing shorts and flip-flops, my morning would likely have involved an ambulance ride into town!
Will the Winchester copper-plated #2 self-defense load (S122PD25) work reasonably well for the situation I described with beavers and dogs? Or, is there something better for similar money for my shotgun? I want humane kills that reduce the risk of off-property ricochets and good pattern density. I know Tungsten loads would work better but over $12/rd just isn't an option. Heck, $3~$4 isn't really an option either! Local options are also very restricted unless you want lead 7.5 shot target/upland loads. I have scored a box of #4 shot lead Remington shells for the near term which I found for $18/25rds! However, I really want something with more energy for dogs.
TIA,
Sid
I need to shoot dogs (domesticated livestock killers) and beavers close to a public road and around water in my pasture. I am concerned about ricochets leaving my property so, #4 Buck has been ruled out for that reason mainly, along with pattern density.
#4 lead shot should be very effective on beavers at 20~30 yards with good pattern density as swimmers don't present much of a target to hit. I have been attacked by dogs 3 times so, I don't really want to be forced into changing loads in my shotgun or transitioned to a handgun during a fast attack from behind. There are also some animal hoarders which are the main problem with the domestic dogs as they are all starving to death and just trying to survive. With people like that, you never know when they will pull out a shotgun or 30-30 to "protect their dogs out in the country where they can do anything they want to!" With Meth and Marijuana in rural East Texas, occasional weird criminal encounters are not unheard of (I had an explosive destroy my mailbox and arson burned down a neighbor's house).
I have taken nearly 100 of those dogs with my rifle in the past two years on other parts of my property, including two on my front porch when I heard something get knocked over before my first cup of coffee one morning! If I didn't open the door with a pistol in my hand while wearing shorts and flip-flops, my morning would likely have involved an ambulance ride into town!
Will the Winchester copper-plated #2 self-defense load (S122PD25) work reasonably well for the situation I described with beavers and dogs? Or, is there something better for similar money for my shotgun? I want humane kills that reduce the risk of off-property ricochets and good pattern density. I know Tungsten loads would work better but over $12/rd just isn't an option. Heck, $3~$4 isn't really an option either! Local options are also very restricted unless you want lead 7.5 shot target/upland loads. I have scored a box of #4 shot lead Remington shells for the near term which I found for $18/25rds! However, I really want something with more energy for dogs.
TIA,
Sid