.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