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New Federal Shorty Shotshells

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  • Sporter

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    Federal now makes minishells like the Aguilas. I recently bought some and tried them back to back with the Aguilas to see how they compete.

    Aguila vs Federal.jpeg.jpg


    The Federals are a bit taller but with lower brass.

    Federal vs Aguila.jpeg.jpg


    However, the Federals definitely have more punch than the Aguilas. The Federal impact hole is on the bottom, the Aguila impact hole is on the top. Recoil in a Mossberg Shockwave was noticeably stronger than the Aguilas.

    image1 (1).jpg


    I think I'll let my wife use the Aguilas in her shockwave and I'll use the Federals in my KSG. Federals were slightly cheaper too. Snakes beware!
     

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    SAWMAN

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    Wondering if the Federals will work with the OpSol adaptor installed or if the little bit of extra OAL will allow them to feed in my Shockwave without.
    Could you please measure the Fed and let us know the OAL. Looks to be about a 1/4" longer.
    For me . . . the Aguila's work perfectly and are of the appropriate power and load density in bird or buck. (Especially for woods AND household snakes.) If I feel the need to step up,there are somewhat reduced power bird and even buck I could use.
    Thank you sir for your post. ---- SAWMAN
     

    wildrider666

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    Federals Mini's additional length might allow it to cycle in Rem 870 actions like the TAC-14. Might not be just a length issue, shell center of balance with low brass may also help keep the shell level while in transition from tube mag to chamber. Somebody will review that potential application sooner or later.
     

    Sporter

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    Sporter

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    Aguila birdshot is 1.36" in length. Federal birdshot is 1.51" in length. I don't have any real scales but the Federal definitely feels a tad heavier.
     

    Sporter

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    Completely forgot about the new Challenger minishells I bought last Christmas. They are 1.45" in length, are right between the Aguilas and the Federals in power and are currently slightly cheaper than the rest.



    Aguila, Challenger, Federal

    minishells.jpg



    The holes in this heavy wooden exterior door are left to right: Aguila, Challenger and Federal. Shot in succession from the same gun, same distance, same stance.

    Aguilla Challenger Federal.jpg



    The Aguilas are made in Mexico and are just over 5/8's of an ounce (18grams).

    The Challengers are made in France and are 5/8's of an ounce. Not sure why the box has a huge Red Maple leaf that looks like the Canadian flag on the front but they are actually made in France. Who knew?

    The Federals are made in the USA and are 15/16's of an ounce.


    My primary use for these are to turn poisonous snakes into good snakes from a safe distance. I have 150 acres with a creek and spring fed 20 acre swamp in the middle. Lots of fish, frogs and rats for the snakes to eat. State of Florida says you can have up to 280 moccasins per acre in such an environment. I believe it as I usually kill one a day when I'm up there. I've also killed rattlesnakes and copperheads.
     

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    Snake-Eyes

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    The 45GAP discussion had a comparison of 45ACP vs 45GAP akin to 12-gauge standard vs minishells.
    It reminded me of the Paul Harrell review videos. Here they are (original, and the part-2 with the Opsol adapter)

    [video]https://youtu.be/13LaTffG1K0[/video]

    [video]https://youtu.be/vIiMmWv9h7Q[/video]

    Synopsis: the Aguila minishells have fewer pellets, slower velocity, and worse accuracy than standard ammo. Recoil is comparable to lighter-recoil standard ammo, but at a higher price per shell. The Aguila performance on the "meat target" showed decent potential for home defense.

    This alternate "minishell" ammo from Federal and Challenger might do better. If it runs in a pump without the need for an adapter, that's a great plus. If it's more accurate than the Aguila, even better. The higher recoil might indicate better terminal effects.

    Any experience with the Federal and Challenger in an 870?
     

    wildrider666

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    I see Remington now has a wood furniture version with a longer mag tube that increased capacity even with the Mossy. I don't know what took them so long to do it, being -1 surely cost them in sales. This version is about $400 (ouch). The Detachable Mag (DM) version has been out for awhile, looks a bit awkward with standard mag. Then there's Semi-auto versions. Anybody seen the Standard Manufacturing RKO Mini with 25 shell drum?
     

    Snake-Eyes

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    Hickok45 had a review last year. Seems like the ambi-safety is Huuuuuge and quite the knuckle-buster from other reviews, too.

    [video]https://youtu.be/ObS9JpYAdjQ[/video]


    I'd just like the increased capacity of the shorter shells, as long as accuracy and reliability were good.
     

    SAWMAN

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    Wondering - - -> how do you gauge/determine shotgun accuracy unless you are only talking slugs in which I would say,in the 14" pump guns are not even close to useable. --- SAWMAN
     

    BluesBrother

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    FYI I'm not trying to be a smart ass but Challenger is made in Quebec, a predominantly French speaking Canadian province. I have bought the bird shot, the buck shot, and the slugs from Brownell's and all boxes are marked made in QC, Canada. The boxes I received have a small white maple leaf (The maple leaf has symbolically represented Canada for hundreds of years.) on red background of the white C in Challenger on the top left of the lid. Again, Quebec's first language is French. By the way, Brownell's has the Challenger Super Shortshell on sale quite often for $0.34/round in bird shot. Comes FedEx right to your front door in three business days, free shipping and no sales tax. Thanks to Sporter for patterning these rounds.
     
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    Snake-Eyes

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    Wondering - - -> how do you gauge/determine shotgun accuracy unless you are only talking slugs in which I would say,in the 14" pump guns are not even close to useable. --- SAWMAN


    Slugs or shot: the holes/pattern can be measured. As long as they are repeatable, you can adjust sight picture. But if the powder load is so erratic that the results are inconsistent, then I wouldn't use that ammo for anything important.

    Sporter: what kind of shotgun did you use for the tests? Obviously the shells all went "bang", but are we talking manually fed SxS, or a tube fed pump? (since I seriously doubt these short shells would cycle a semi-auto). Any feed issues?
     

    Sporter

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    Sporter: what kind of shotgun did you use for the tests? Obviously the shells all went "bang", but are we talking manually fed SxS, or a tube fed pump? (since I seriously doubt these short shells would cycle a semi-auto). Any feed issues?[/QUOTE]

    Mossberg 590 Shockwave with the rubber insert for minishells.
     

    Snake-Eyes

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    Mossberg 590 Shockwave with the rubber insert for minishells.

    Thanks. I can't believe I missed that info at the bottom of your first post. My bad.

    Since the KSG seems to like Aguila minis without issues, and you have both the Mossy Shockwave and a KSG, I will infer that all three of these rounds feed/cycle without any problems? (Assuming using the Opsol adapter for the Shockwave)

    Good to know.
     

    SAWMAN

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    So . . . let me be clear. When you sre talking "accuracy" you are saying test this with something OTHER THAN a 14" Moss or Rem ?? (Just trying to learn something new here.)
    My Mossberg Shockwave has fired about 180rds of Aguila,both buck and bird,using a OpSol adaptor,without and problems whatsoever.
    It absolutely hates the Aguila slugs. I fired three and will never use them again. They shoot fine in a single shot NEF. --- SAWMAN
     

    Snake-Eyes

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    If the tests I've seen on the youtubes were correct, the Aguila slugs grouped "ok" out of a standard length barrel, and the shotshells patterned the same size as regular shells, just less dense. Not the most effective for self-defense, but if recoil reduction plus ammo capacity increase are your two top criteria, then...

    I'm more concerned with feeding issues of the two "new" minishell brands that Sporter mentions in this thread. Followed by the ability to hit what I'm aiming at consistently.

    Yeah, these shorter rounds would be useful to increase the capacity of the already shorter tubes of the 14" raptor-grips, and the decreased recoil would make those same firearms a bit quicker to get back on target. However, if they jam sporadically or are so inconsistent that the less dense patterns or slower slugs don't match POA to POI, then they aren't useful for self-defense.

    To me, the 14" Mossy or Tac-14 are conveniently sized for self-defense. If the ammo won't live up to that role, then it's a non-starter.

    Long way to get to: I hadn't heard of the Federal or Challenger minis, and I wanted to know more about them from someone who shot all three.

    I'm glad you shared your experience with Aguila mini-slugs and your Shockwave. Have you tried the rest of those slugs in a longer barrel to see how they do?
     

    SAWMAN

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    The OpSol adaptor is/was designed for the Aguila Mini Shells, - - ->> (the OAL of the Mini Shells). Wondering if the other two will feed and eject when using the OpSol. Also when the extra OAL ABOVE the Aguilla's is multiplied by the mag capacity,what do you loose in firepower ??
    My gun is a 8+1 with Aguilla. I can live with that. ESPECIALLY because my gun is a HD,SD,inside my truck,usage gun. NOT a tactical,kick down the door and spray the room,gun. Not a hunting gun. And definately NOT a slug gun. (fer Christ's sake why do you think these weapons are called a SHOT-GUN.)
    BTW . . . this is why I was wondering about the accuracy thing. For me,a 30" pattern at 15-20yds would be great. Right not the pattern is tooooooo tight. In fact,I am pondering having JJ build and fit me a "duck bill" for the bbl or possibly cut the muzzle into a "duck bill" without shortening the OAL of the bbl. ---- SAWMAN
     
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