I’ve been wondering for a while about the effectiveness of CCI 22lr shotshell on snakes. I recently picked up an old Ruger Bearcat and thought it would be perfect to time to do some testing.
I picked up some CCI 22lr shotshells at the local Walmart for about $7 per box of 20 rounds.
This is what the shell looks like.
Upon inspecting the ammo, my immediate concern was the water resistance of these ammo. It looked like water could get into the powder as the plastic capsule could be rotated with finger pressure.
To see how water resistant they are I put three round in a water bottle and for three days I would shake it vigorously couple times every few hours. After three days I took them out of the water and wiped off the water with my hand and loaded them into the revolver.
To test the shot pattern I fired using single wall industrial grade cardboard box as test media. I drew a “snake” on the box and fired from 6 feet away (muzzle to target).
Here is the box with the target. I aimed at the center of the orange circle
The initial inspection showed a well centered spread of about 6 inches but I was not impressed with the way the target looked. I expected the box to look more ragged.
When I looked inside the box I was impressed with the penetration and how ragged the box was.
None of the shots penetrated the second layer of the box.
I shot a second round on the box from 4 ½ feet and only 2 pellets penetrated the second layer of the box.
Finally I shot the third round from 3 feet away and it penetrated both layers of the box.
Here is the entrance
And here is the back side of the second layer (exit)
Based on this simple test I think these shots will be pretty good for use against common snakes. The pattern is dense enough and has enough penetration on most snakes you’ll likely encounter… unless you come across and shoot a 20’ Burmese Python.
Oh, they are pretty water resistant as well as all three rounds fired after sitting in the water bottle.
I picked up some CCI 22lr shotshells at the local Walmart for about $7 per box of 20 rounds.
This is what the shell looks like.
Upon inspecting the ammo, my immediate concern was the water resistance of these ammo. It looked like water could get into the powder as the plastic capsule could be rotated with finger pressure.
To see how water resistant they are I put three round in a water bottle and for three days I would shake it vigorously couple times every few hours. After three days I took them out of the water and wiped off the water with my hand and loaded them into the revolver.
To test the shot pattern I fired using single wall industrial grade cardboard box as test media. I drew a “snake” on the box and fired from 6 feet away (muzzle to target).
Here is the box with the target. I aimed at the center of the orange circle
The initial inspection showed a well centered spread of about 6 inches but I was not impressed with the way the target looked. I expected the box to look more ragged.
When I looked inside the box I was impressed with the penetration and how ragged the box was.
None of the shots penetrated the second layer of the box.
I shot a second round on the box from 4 ½ feet and only 2 pellets penetrated the second layer of the box.
Finally I shot the third round from 3 feet away and it penetrated both layers of the box.
Here is the entrance
And here is the back side of the second layer (exit)
Based on this simple test I think these shots will be pretty good for use against common snakes. The pattern is dense enough and has enough penetration on most snakes you’ll likely encounter… unless you come across and shoot a 20’ Burmese Python.
Oh, they are pretty water resistant as well as all three rounds fired after sitting in the water bottle.
