sp101 or snakes???

[thumbs]

Just wondering if anyone has used the 101 on snakes and how it did? I was thnikin about carrying it with some shot loads for hikein in snake country.

Is there enough pellets in the load to make a decent pattern at snake range or is it just askin for trouble? My preferred reaction to snakes is a retreat but sooner or later that won't be possible.

thanks for the help

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

Yes, the 101 works perfect with snake shot. The 357 shot works great.

 

[SR-SP101]

The SP101 is great for snakes. I make my own shotshells out of the shot from 12 ga target loads, and simply use a fired case to punch out cardboard wads. We don't see too many dangerous snakes here in Illinois, but a couple months ago I almost stepped on a rattler in the woods behind my house.

 

[mr surveyor]

I carry the SP101 daily as a "field tool"....and yes, shot shells from the 101 will take care of cottonmouthedcopperheadedcoralwaterrattlers. Been there, done that many times.


surv

 

[JumpmasterC]

The SP101 is great for that- 3-snake shot & 2- JHP's & it is an excellent woods gun. I went & had mine Magna-ported....works well for urban "snakes", but I can no longer throw snake-shot with it

So, now I got a NAA Mini-Mag w/ snake shot for outdoors....I sure hope I don't run into any big snakes or other critters, cuz the NAA might just make it mad! :shock:

 

[Calthrop]

NO. Is the usual answer. If you are close enough to use snake shot you are close enough to have been bitten. You live in a part of the country where copperheads roam yes? I guess you have some form of rattler too.

You did not say what flavor SP you carry. If it is a .22 I would stay with solid shot even with copperheads. As you no doubt know when molested those suckers can strike many times before a person can react and .22 shot will do you no good.

On the other hand if you are going to be in copperhead country and have a larger bore SP I might break with my usual rule of thumb and load a couple of shot loads. If you by chance were struck and were able to get your gun out you might stop the attack.

I say this because once I read an article in Field and Stream about a fly fisherman bitten by a copperhead snake. It was a cautionary tale to look before you reach. The poor man was bitten fourteen times before he could get away.
I have fly fished most all the Western States. Now that some clown has burned down some of Arizona's nicest camping and fly fishing areas. We have members who say that Illinois and the Carolinas are nice.
I may half to give up my beloved black widows, fiddle backs, five type of scorpions, a dozen species of rattlers, and limitless poisonous plants to fish clear cold falling water elsewhere.

Sorry this was not about me. On the rest solid shot. About the SP. It is the older type of .357 it is rated for 125gr. The newer ones sights are indexed for 158gr bullets.
Be careful with the double action. We had a fellow who jumped about at the slightest BUZZ and pulled the trigger all the while, someone was likely to be wounded. Pardon my humor. It really happened. Not to me mind you. The youth in question was remanded to a BearCat. Which we found out he could draw and fire very quickly, in timed fire as he was tough. For that trip he was referred to a 'snake magnate". As a rule we like to let them go there way. Some years when the rains are heavy the food is plentiful so are the predators. Calthrop

 

[Floridaoutdoors]

if you can shoot it you can simply just back off

It's the one you don't see that are the most dangerous

 

[jimd441]

If you can shoot it you can simply just back off

Outstanding advice

Jim

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

"NO. Is the usual answer. If you are close enough to use snake shot you are close enough to have been bitten."


This is an absolute false statement!!!!!

The CCI shotshells pattern really well because of the capsul and shooting a snake at 15 feet with the 38/357 is no task at all.

If you have a 45/410 type gun you'll also find that the 45 colt CCI shotshell patterns perfectly where the 410 birdshot is useless.

I've killed rattlers at 10 feet with the 22 long rifle shells but it usually takes two shots. NOT because it didn't hit them with countless pellets but because the pellets are so small.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

Here is one way you can do it. I think #7 or #9 shot is prefered.

http://www.gunblast.com/Snake_Stopper.htm

...Jimbo

 

[Bucks Owin]

"NO. Is the usual answer. If you are close enough to use snake shot you are close enough to have been bitten."


This is an absolute false statement!!!!!

The CCI shotshells pattern really well because of the capsul and shooting a snake at 15 feet with the 38/357 is no task at all.

If you have a 45/410 type gun you'll also find that the 45 colt CCI shotshell patterns perfectly where the 410 birdshot is useless.

I've killed rattlers at 10 feet with the 22 long rifle shells but it usually takes two shots. NOT because it didn't hit them with countless pellets but because the pellets are so small.

10X :wink: The CCI shotshells work so well, I don't even bother rolling my own any more. Especiall in .45LC. (But even the .22 WMR are pretty good IMO )

 

[donut757]

"NO. Is the usual answer. If you are close enough to use snake shot you are close enough to have been bitten."


This is an absolute false statement!!!!!

The CCI shotshells pattern really well because of the capsul and shooting a snake at 15 feet with the 38/357 is no task at all.

If you have a 45/410 type gun you'll also find that the 45 colt CCI shotshell patterns perfectly where the 410 birdshot is useless.

I've killed rattlers at 10 feet with the 22 long rifle shells but it usually takes two shots. NOT because it didn't hit them with countless pellets but because the pellets are so small.

Yeah that absurd amd comepletely wrong... i have patterned the .38 cci and 12 foot will give me a good effective pattern out of my security six 4". i would take a kill shot at 12' or maybe if it was a.very large.scary snake id start shootin at it farther away knowing id shoot a few times... ill load 3 shotshells and 3 .357s.

 

[twobisquit]

I have had very good luck with CCI shot shells including .22 and .45 ACP,.44, and.38 . I ran into one this morning and remembered that I had not loaded any shot shells this morning so I had to put a 240g swc between his eyes. It seemed to work as good or better than a shotshell.

 

[Major T]

My experience: The .22 shot seems to melt smaller snakes up to about 2.5-3'.

The .38/.357 shot capsules work pretty good with the following exceptions: I have had the recoil from my 42 cause the shot capsules back out. Have also had them back out from extended carry. Perhaps a drop of super glue might keep them in place. Either happening ties up the revolver.

Hoes and shovels are the gold standard snake eradication tools of west Texas ranchers.

You can PO a really big snake with a solid bullet body shot. You have to hit the head or neck just behind the head ( within a few inches anyway.)

The 12 ga loaded with almost anything is a wonderful tool, if you are where you can use it. Smaller gauges also work. Dad had a den near his house in his later years and killed lots of them with a .410. If he had just said something, we would have gassed them. He confessed that most of the rattlers had been white for several years. We could have sold them for good money.

If you go fishing at a ranch pond named "Snake Den," it should tell you something.

All measures from retreat to snake mayhem, require that you be alert and see them in time.

Rattlesnakes usually rattle if you get close, but not always. If you step on one, it may rattle and bite at the same time.

Snakes frequently go up trees in search of bird eggs and nested birds.

Water moccasins are like cape buffalo. They want to run you down and do you harm.

Some of us (right or wrong) like our snakes dead. The nasty ones bite us and our animals.

Little snakes grow up to be bigger snakes.

Be safe, Jack

 

[Major T]

Twobiscuit shows the photo of a good snake. good job, jack

 

[Major T]

twobisquit shows the photo of a good snake. good job, jack

 

[gak]

I was going to say, couldn't have happened to a better snake . I've had very good luck with CCI in both .38/.357 and .44 Sp/Mag on our large diamondbacks and even more lethal (but arguably not as beefy on average) Mohaves.

 

[BearStopper]

I used some of the blue capsule shotshells in 45 colt and they totally stunk for pattern. Literally need to be a foot away to get any shot on target. Not impressed with the idea at all. With all the varied answers try some out yourself. My guess is alot of these guys are quick to answer and short on actual usage of shotshells based on using a couple hundred of these to see what they can do, as I recieved a bunch of them along with a Uberti Cattleman and a bunch more ammo in trade for a ratty old aluminum boat.

 

[gak]

I used some of the blue capsule shotshells in 45 colt and they totally stunk for pattern. Literally need to be a foot away to get any shot on target. Not impressed with the idea at all. With all the varied answers try some out yourself. My guess is alot of these guys are quick to answer and short on actual usage of shotshells based on using a couple hundred of these to see what they can do, as I recieved a bunch of them along with a Uberti Cattleman and a bunch more ammo in trade for a ratty old aluminum boat.

In the calibers I've shot, 8-10' DRT. Of course I've always(and successfully) aimed for the head/"neck" and 50% of the time double-tapped to be darn sure (the other times, likely closer in, it was so immediately clear...) ...so have not allowed the situation to escalate with a long distance mid-body shot to be able to speak to that scenario.

 

[Calthrop]

I guess CCI makes those shot shells in 9x19mm for my 3" SP. I do not like the recoil of .357 in such a light gun// personal preference//. I'll see how they pattern.
The last shot cartridge I fired was a converted .303 Enfield rifle case from a OM Blackhawk .45 fitted with a Paradox barrel. That was back in '64 or '65. The gun was not mine it belonged to a recent veteran returned from Viet Nam in Southeast Asia. I looked the place up in my atlas. All I could find out was something about Saigon Embassy//Embassies places I would find out about soon enough.//. A decorated young U.S. Marine. He had a job yet his ambition was to be a long distance horse back rider. The kind that would become endurance types. We got along because we liked geology, maps and distance movement. For me it was a long distance speed walking//my first scout masters were Korean War Army Ranger survivors//.
My friend had made a prototype of what he hoped was to be a set of pommel guns. No rifles. To heavy. When his lease was up he moved out from next door. I guess he rode off because he sold his truck to a local guy.

Before I go to the range again I will buy some .38 special CCI's shot shells for one of my SP-101 short barrel guns. I might actually buy a container of .357's and stuff them in my three or five inch GP-100's. Perhaps if they come in 10mm Auto I'll chamber load for a test the first round for function in my G-20:so I'll not suffer abuse in my experience being insufficient. Thank you all that contributed for the correction. Calthrop

 

[gak]

Calthrop, straying a bit OT to your fishing country/fire comment, but ++1 - you sure got that right, some ofthe nicest country in Arizona - but you speak too kindly calling the perpetrators--accidental or not--"clowns." I know you were straining to hold yourself back there!

 

[Calthrop]

gak
Last I heard "one or more of those people" simply walked away from a fire. Yes, it was a bit OT. I was trying to make the point that because of a situation beyond my control I may forced to face deciduous trees. Thus the unknown that lives among them. All in the name in an obsessive search of varieties/sub species of salmon. Also ,I my case, hypothetically caring an illegal firearm.

So. A fishing story. A friend sent me a picture of himself standing along a road way holding a freshly beheaded copperhead that measured fourteen [14"] long. Fly rod in the other and wicker creel over his shoulder. He is a purist. He was gathering grass for the bottom of the creel. Lucky. He was using the kukri I gave him years ago to harvest that grass. No note.
Good eye. Calthrop

 

[gak]

gak
Last I heard "one or more of those people" simply walked away from a fire. Yes, it was a bit OT. I was trying to make the point that because of a situation beyond my control I may forced to face deciduous trees. Thus the unknown that lives among them. All in the name in an obsessive search of varieties/sub species of salmon. Also ,I my case, hypothetically caring an illegal firearm.

So. A fishing story. A friend sent me a picture of himself standing along a road way holding a freshly beheaded copperhead that measured fourteen [14"] long. Fly rod in the other and wicker creel over his shoulder. He is a purist. He was gathering grass for the bottom of the creel. Lucky. He was using the kukri I gave him years ago to harvest that grass. No note.
Good eye. Calthrop

10-4. No harm at all. I was just admitting to responding somewhat OT, and most certainly share your and most Arizonans disgust and tears over this. I think I feel for the wildlife most of all, fauna and flora, that provide for all of us critters.

About the copperhead, in my limited eastern meanderings (grew up early years in and have family in N.Va) don't think I've ever seen one. In my "Stand My Me" adventures mostly saw garters, some snapping turtles and lots of box turtles (tortoises). Have seen a few cottonmouths/moccasins in the SE - no thanks! I hear tell, they grow their diamondbacks even larger than ours! From what a Florida friend says, I think I'd pack/carry daily for such. He sees the mocassins almost daily.

 

[thumbs]

Ok this may be a stupid question but anyway........... These CCI capsules, willl they in anyway harm the bore? I am thinking because of the plastic it would act like a shot cup and not let the lead touch the bore. Anyone know if it will harm the bore??

 

[gak]

Ok this may be a stupid question but anyway........... These CCI capsules, willl they in anyway harm the bore? I am thinking because of the plastic it would act like a shot cup and not let the lead touch the bore. Anyone know if it will harm the bore??

No it should not, as the capsule carries through prior to "releasing" the shot.

 

[thumbs]

Kinda what I was thinkin. I am "assuming" if the lead contacted the bore there would be signs of leading. As stated in a previous post the home made ball and shot loads apparently did. Probably the lead ball more than the shot anyway.

 

[DGW1949]

Just wondering if anyone has used the 101 on snakes and how it did? I was thnikin about carrying it with some shot loads for hikein in snake country.

Is there enough pellets in the load to make a decent pattern at snake range or is it just askin for trouble? My preferred reaction to snakes is a retreat but sooner or later that won't be possible.

thanks for the help

During the hot periods of summer, I hunt poison snakes at night. My tool of choice is a Uberti SAA in 45LC, loaded with home-made "snake shot". I've also used a .357 but as is the usual rule, when the object of the excersize is to stop quickly, I think you'll find that bigger is better. Having said that though, I discovered early-on that the factory CCI shot loads do work perty-good out of a 357. The drawbacks to them was that they are rather pricey, and that occassionaly, one of the plastic capsules would move forward during recoil and jam-up my gun. For your situation, neither of those may prove to be a bother.
In passing, I'll add that I agree with MajorT in that a body shot with a soild projectile can not be counted-on to stop a big pit viper. Picking a head shot on a moving snake, particularly while using a flashlight in the dark, is tough to do. I once put 3 factory 357-HPs into a rattler before he quit the fight. Hence my switch to dedicated "snake shot".

I hope you found something here to be usefull.

DGW

 

[ronto]

I've used CCI 38/357 shot shells for copperheads out of my 2 1/4" several times...Had to get uncomfortly close though...I wouldn't try it on a coiled diamond back...Just turn around and walk slowly the other way.

 

[gak]

I've used CCI 38/357 shot shells for copperheads out of my 2 1/4" several times...Had to get uncomfortly close though...I wouldn't try it on a coiled diamond back...Just turn around and walk slowly the other way.

It may be the short barrel? -though I've heard here or other forum they're they're actually supposed to be better--or is that a myth? Mine have not been that short, but 3" and 4" Smith K, 3.5", 4.62" and 5.5" Ruger SAs, no problem on coiled d-back rattler's head/"neck" - 8', but then again I almost always have a quick follow up unless it's so obvious the first one completely decommissioned.

 

[Major T]

My dedicated snake gun for the Kawasaki Mule is an old no finish, but mechanically sound nondescript 20 ga single shot that I found in the in law's store room after the old folks passed away. I took a tubing cutter to the barrel and left it at a handy 20". Big or small, kills them all. I use whatever bird shot that is on hand-usually #8s. jack