.410 Baikal s/b Hushpower

[richness]

Hi guys
Quick review of my new Baikal .410 single-barrel hushpower-moderated shotgun:

I LOVE my hushpower 12b pump action so quickly fell for this little .410 when i saw it at my local RFD.

Knowing how well the 12G pump is moderated, i knew that the longer mod afforded by the single barrel design of this .410 would work significantly better.Added to the fact that .410 is way quiter than 12g....i reckoned it would be practically silent.
Which it is.
I used it around horses stabled around a 50m courtyard, without any frek-outs, which is exactly why i went for it.
All good stuff. The black synthetic stock on the Baikal is smart and the gun looks solidly built.

What surprised me really, was how hard the little guage hits! My very first shot with it was a big flying rook that lifted out of a tree at about 40y. I snapped at it and it folded right up, just like that! It's the same thing as my 12g - the removal of the gases seems to do wonders for the integrity of the pattern, making the gun shoot sweeter, further than you'd expect.
With retrospect, i suppose that the shot is the same size and flies at the same speed as a 12G; it's just that there is half as much of it. So you either hit or you miss....

Anyway, using gamebore 2.5 and 3" 11gram and 16gram no6, i was very impressed by the tighness of the patterns. 2.5s are a mite quieter.
Feral doves, rooks, rats...all dispatched with ease.
Doesn't look like a driven-rhino gun like the 12g pump does, too so quite discreet for for use around buildings etc.
It tracks and mounts very nicely, too. I added a longer butt-pad as i like a longer pull than is normal.

Heartily recommded for when you need something TOTALLY discreet, even with standard cartridges.
When you reach for your air rifle/FAC air rifle, think twice whether a shotgun would be better, because this gun can do anything that I would normally use my air rifle for, and more

[tikkapaul]

I am sure that it is now illegal to shoot starlings as their numbers a declining?????? not in my garden.

[jax13]

as tempted as i am to sell mine to pay for a nice 12 i just don't want to part with it, it'll dust clays nicely, fairly quiet so long as you are in a bit of space and i find its weight and balance really nice too.

mine is a wood stocked version and the wood and finish are pretty cheap but it is a cheap gun to start out with. I may re-finish the wood in time but i'm in no big hurry to do so. To be honest, that is the only fault i can pick with it!

[hawkeye]

I am sure that it is now illegal to shoot starlings as their numbers a declining?????? not in my garden.

You are correct they are no longer on the list of quarry that may be legally shot as pests !
In most areas of the uk there has been a decimation of thier no.s .
Brian

[richness]

In most areas of the uk there has been a decimation of thier no.s .
Brian

lol yes they're all on my shoots

anyway, enough of that
back to the gun

I'm starting to think that it might shoot better with the 2.5s over the 3" - anyone else found this?

[Tony.T]

I find mine pretty loud- but it's only had 25 cartridges through it, eley 3'' subs. It does appear to be getting quieter with use as I was told to expect. (the can needs sooting up apparently. Anyone else found this?

[richness]

I find mine pretty loud- but it's only had 25 cartridges through it, eley 3'' subs. It does appear to be getting quieter with use as I was told to expect. (the can needs sooting up apparently. Anyone else found this?

Oh yes, they get much deader-sounding as time goes by and it gets all coated inside. Also, you soon realise that its report , though sounding harsh to you, doesn't even stir horses 30yards away....

[Chris St. MH]

You are correct they are no longer on the list of quarry that may be legally shot as pests !
In most areas of the uk there has been a decimation of thier no.s .
Brian

They're still on the general licences in Scotland (the new ones issued this January) so you can still shoot them here if you comply with the conditions.

[Pudding]

Richness,

Is it the fully moderated version you have, or the one with the 9" moderator on the end?

Thinking of getting something like this for my 10 year old to introduce him to shooting...assuming it's not going to be too heavy or unwieldy.


Cheers

Harry

[richness]

Fully moderated mate
It is alot heavier than a normal 410, mind. That's still not very heavy, mind. And well balanced. Depends how strapping he is!
BFN

[Pudding]

Cheers Richness - will have a look at at one at local RFD.

Harry

Forgot to mention - he takes after his mother for sturdiness!

[UnclePete]

I find mine pretty loud- but it's only had 25 cartridges through it, eley 3'' subs. It does appear to be getting quieter with use as I was told to expect. (the can needs sooting up apparently. Anyone else found this?

You'll find 2.5" much quieter than the 'subs', I think just about every Hushpower shooter has found that.

[richness]

You'll find 2.5" much quieter than the 'subs', I think just about every Hushpower shooter has found that.

God yeah, and way cheaper! That said, the hushpower carts throw even tighter patterns...so they can come in handy for some purposes. Generally though, the express are different class. Anyone tried the 3" version of them?

[UnclePete]

God yeah, and way cheaper! That said, the hushpower carts throw even tighter patterns...so they can come in handy for some purposes. Generally though, the express are different class. Anyone tried the 3" version of them?

Yup, I got some when my middle-of-nowhere-only-open-two-days-per-week supplier ran out of 2.5". Basically I don't think the extra 2gm of shot justifies the extra noise, although they do not sound as fierce as the Eley subs. Living in hill country, every sound comes rolling back to me and everyone in the glen, which is why I bought the hushpower.

I am seriously tempted to buy the kit to check the velocity of the Eley subs, just so I could embark on a dispute with them. Really I think their sub is over-stuffed, 18gm is awfully close to a light 20 bore load. Making a cartridge for hushpower they should have used a lighter load to help keep the noise down.

Quietest of all I've tried are 11gm Hull 2.5", sometimes with them I've just heard the hammer click and thought it was a misfire. But you've got to have enough pellets in the pattern so my favourite are 14gm 2.5" Express. I imagine that in the Baikal they are even more subdued than in my Mossberg.

[philifa]

I've had a .410 Hushpower for about 12 months. Its a marvellous tool for vermin, especially near to houses. I have always used Eley 2 1/2 and 3" cartridges because of their fibre wad. I thought I had read somewhere that you should not use cartridges with plastic wads with these guns. Anybody know for definite?
Phil