GUNS AND AMMUNITION. 



399 



BLACK POWDER IN SMOKELESS SHELLS. 



Why cannot black powder be used in the 

 30-30 Winchester or Marlin cartridge, with 

 hardened lead bullet, as well as in the Sav- 

 age? 



The Savage people load 40 grains black 

 powder in a shell, for black powder ranges, 

 and if it can be successfully used in that 

 gun I do not see why it cannot in Winches- 

 ter or Marlin? The twist is about the same 

 and the calibre is not enough larger to 

 make much difference Will some one 

 please enlighten me 



A. D. A., Newcastle, Wyo. 



I referred this to an expert rifleman, who 

 replies as follows: 



Black powder, with hard bullets, will give 

 excellent results in the 30-30 Marlin, and 

 should in the Winchester also, as this rifle 

 has a barrel bored and rifled to the same 

 size. The Savage cartridge, which is ad- 

 vertised, has black powder with a metal 

 cased bullet. I have never seen any adver- 

 tisement of the Savage cartridge, with black 

 powder and lead bullet, except the short 

 range cartridge. The factory cartridges, 

 for the Marlin and Winchester rifles, are 

 the smokeless with full metal cased bul- 

 let; smokeless with soft point bullet, metal 

 patched, and the smokeless short range 

 cartridge with, of course, a light lead bullet. 

 The rifling in the Savage and Marlin rifles 

 is exactly the same, one turn in 10 inches, 

 and as the Marlin people make both rifles 

 it is apparent that anything which the Sav- 

 age rifle can do the Marlin can also, as the 

 material, rifling, etc., are the same. 



The new Marlin catalogue, which has just 

 been issued, gives complete information re- 

 garding the Marlin 30 calibre cartridge 

 with several loads of black and smokeless 

 powder, and hardened bullets, which have 

 1 been tested in this rifle. A careful reading 

 of this catalogue will show A. D. A. that 

 he is laboring under an error. In asking 

 for the catalogue he should mention Rec- 

 reation. Marlin Crank. 



DANGER IN CUTTING SHELLS. 



In a recent issue of Recreation there is 

 an article signed C. S. S. in which he says: 

 " I was recently told by an old hunter that 

 if I would take a common paper shell and 

 cut it almost in two, clear around just below 

 the powder load, and then fire it I could 

 bore a hole through a 2 inch oak board at 

 250 or 300 yards. I tried it and found it 

 would carry, accurately, up to 250 yards." 



I do not think such a charge would shoot 

 accurately, owing to its shape. Further- 

 more it is dangerous to shoot a portion of 

 the shell, containing the shot load and 

 wads, from the shell chamber through the 

 smaller barrel. No doubt it would com- 

 press the shot so that it would ball, I 



should like to hear from some gun maker 

 as to the safety of such a load. 



I sometimes shoot round bullets from a 

 shot gun. I fill the shell with wads until 

 there is enough of the shell projecting 

 above the ball to crimp and hold it firm. 

 I do not think it wise, or necessary, to put 

 a wad in front of the ball.- A ball that will 

 slip through the muzzle easily, loaded in 

 this manner, with lubricant, will shoot 

 fairly well up to 100 yards. 



Frederick H. Belcher, Irvington, N. J. 



I have a 25-36 Marlin repeating rifle, 

 which is a beauty. Do you think it a good 

 gun for me to take into the woods this fall, 

 to shoot deer? I want your opinion on this, 

 or that of some of your readers. Do you 

 want to hear about the work of my 25-36, 

 and what I know of my gun? 



J. W. Griffiths, Randolph, Wis. 



Answer: Your 25-36 is too small, and 

 carries too light a bullet, to be effective on 

 deer. Of course, it would kill a deer if you 

 hit him in the brain, the heart, or the spine; 

 but missing these, you might shoot him 

 through any other part of the body, and 

 while the wound might prove fatal, in time, 

 he might run a mile, or 3 miles, before stop- 

 ping, and you might never get him. 



The 30-30 Marlin, or the 30-40 Winches- 

 ter, while but little larger in the bore, car- 

 ries more powder, and the bullet has much 

 higher velocity, consequently greater stop- 

 ping power. I should certainly advise you 

 to get one of these rifles, for deer hunt- 

 ing. — Editor. 



12 OR 16? 



I note in my beautiful Recreation that 

 J. A. B., Osage, la., would like to be en- 

 lightened as to which shot gun of the same 

 make has the greater killing power — a 12 

 or 16 gauge. Some say the 16, some say 

 the 12. Of course a good 16 is better than 

 some 12 gauges that are made nowadays; 

 but we are talking of the same make, and 

 same style of bore. I have studied and 

 experimented on these lines for years. 

 Have had 8, 10, 12, 16 and 20 gauge guns. 

 The 8 gauge is the gun to kill. 



You can find this out by taking a 20 and 

 an 8 gauge gun, and shooting them sepa- 

 rately, into pine boards. You will find 

 there is more penetration in the shot from 

 the 8 gauge than from that of the 20. You 

 will always find that part of your shot have 

 better penetration than the others. Why 

 is this? Because the shot that lies on the 

 powder wad has the best momentum. The 

 back shot always passes through the upper 

 part of the charge, in flight; and the upper 

 shot have one inch slack to fall back. That 

 is where the upper shot loses its strength. 



