.410 Bore

About .410 Bore

.410 is the smallest common shotgun bore and the most misunderstood. It is routinely handed to new shooters because it recoils least, which gets the logic backwards: the tiny shot payload makes it the hardest shotgun to hit moving targets with, and a beginner who keeps missing learns very little.

In experienced hands it is a genuine skeet and small-game gun and rewards precise shooting. Its other role is in .45 Colt/.410 revolvers and dedicated defensive shotguns, where purpose-designed .410 buckshot and multi-projectile loads have made it considerably more capable than it once was. Note the terminology: .410 is a bore diameter, not a gauge, which is why it is the one shotgun size named differently.