Might you have something in your archives on 8 gauge paper buckshot loads that were pre 1920ish .

I once read about a Parker 12 that was ordered with the instructions -"pattern to shoot close with buckshot" The old fellow was a bear hunter in Canada.

From what I've seen only Winchester and Union Metallic Cartridge Co. later Remington Arms - Union Metallic Cartridge Co., etc. offered 4-gauge NPEs and 8-gauge loaded shells and NPEs. None from Western Cartridge Co., Peters Cartridge Co. or U.S. Cartridge Co.

Union Metallic Cartridge Co. 1900 --

Attachment 93705

1901 --

Attachment 93703

1905 --

Attachment 93704

1909 --

Attachment 93702

Attachment 93711

Remington Arms - Union Metallic Cartridge Co. 1913-14 --

Attachment 93707

Attachment 93709

The Remington Arms Union Metallic Cartridge Co., Inc. 1918-19 --

Attachment 93708

Attachment 93710

Was that the one Jason Peck wrote an article about and later sold it to a descendent of the original owner ? That was somewhere in Cannanada .

Buckshot was illegal in New York when I was a kid. But in those days that meant little to me. There was a thick swamp close to the house that the deer frequented. It was a perfect setup for buckshot, so I went to work testing different buckshot handloads. I settled on #1 buck which patterned well from the modified barrel of my grandfather’s 12 bore DHE. I melted candle wax over the shot column and used plastic wraps that I purchased from Herter’s. I killed a few deer with buckshot which included a big eight pointer. I sure was proud of myself.

From going through my old ammunition catalogs it certainly seems the the specific Buck Shot offerings were in 10-, 12-, 16- and 20-gauge shells.

Attachment 93723

Attachment 93722

From 1900 to 1909 UMC just mentioned a bit extra cost for Buck Shot loads. From 1910 through 1919 the Buck Shot loads were listed as the ones from the 1911-12 Rem - UMC catalog I show above. I suspect that the demand for 8-gauge Buck Shot loads was so small that they were never a catalog symbol item.

The only Winchester catalog of the period I have is 1916, and it's Buck Shot load offerings mirrors the Rem UMC Buck Shot offerings shown above. While Rem-UMC only cataloged 8-gauge loads with black or bulk smokeless powders, I see Winchester offered their 8-gauge LEADER shells loaded with dense smokeless powders as well.

Tom:

Not to hi Jack a thread but....

I have always found interesting the difference in regulations between NY and NJ. No slugs were allowed in Jersey until more recent history yet back in the day we could go a half mile from the last house I liven in in Jersey and be in Rockland Co. NY and shoot slugs.... Go figure.

I never could understand the use of buckshot only in NJ. I would hate to have to hunt with it exclusively. I guess the reason was that it was a populous state. Even so, allowing the use of slugs was a wise decision.

I never took a shot over 40 yards with buckshot and made damn sure that I knew what my buckshot loads were capable of. i shot a lot of paper back in those days. The right modified barrel of the DHE was a sure killer at 40 yards with #1 buck but things fell apart after that.

The problem with buckshot is that the average hunter has no idea how his gun shoots with buckshot. He just grabs a box of 00 buck (I never had a gun that would pattern them worth a damn) and probably takes shots he shouldn't. I'll bet the percentage of wounded deer went down in NJ after slugs were allowed.

When I first started doing the buckshot thing with my grandfathers old Scott I only had 00 to load and it did okay to about 25-30 yards . Have an Ithaca NID 10 Super that we’d owned thirty years and never fired so I tried it on paper as well . Anyway to make a long story short over the last eighteen years I’ve spent a fair amount of time fooling with buckshot in everything from an 8 gauge down to the little 28 gauge . I’ve also put a decent amount of time in slugs for all the same gauges . To a lesser degree the punkin ball (round ball ) as well in the 8 , 10 and 12 . So in most cases now if I’m in a treestand the double barrel will have buck in whichever barrel patterns better and a slug in the barrel that shoots closer to point of aim at 25-30 yards . I’ve been fortunate with the 10 gauge having killed deer with every size buck from #3 up to 00000 . Also with all three of my 10 gauge suitable slugs although I’ve not plunked one with a punkin ball yet .

your probably right about there never being a factory loaded brass shell for buckshot except those for the military snd those duck boxes of Remington buckshot...I always find the researching of your very enjoyable...thanks charlie