VIDEO: Aguila Minishells: Home-Defense Solution or Marketing Gimmick?
The shotgun is an excellent tool for home defense, but if you could double your gun’s ammo capacity and reduce recoil without making any alterations to your gun, wouldn’t you take advantage of it? Aguila’s Minishells make such a promise. But I had a few questions: Will they generate enough pressure to operate a semi-auto’s action, and will they feed the same as a typical 2 ¾” shot-shell?
*To test the shells, I selected a Browning A5 and a Remington 870 for my automatic and pump, respectively. I assumed that a side-by-side or over-under configuration would work with these shells regardless of their length, and didn’t test them.*
The good:
The Minishells yielded a considerable reduction in felt recoil. This could prove to be a significant advantage for follow-up shots and if the gun may need to be operated by a smaller person or child. Their reduced length allows for a doubling of shell capacity in the shotgun’s magazine, while still maintaining enough shot for home-defense purposes. (Even enough to break a few clay pigeons on the wing, I found.)
The bad:
These little shells may be half the length of an ordinary shell, but they’re twice the price. You can expect to pay around $10 for 20 rounds. But hey, if they work, right? Well, they don’t, really. They lacked the pressure to operate my Browning A5’s action, and even with a stock Remington 870, I experienced regular jams and failures to feed—the short shells tumbling as the elevator brought them into the chamber.
Conclusion:
Because Aguila seems to be the only company producing these Minishells, I figured there must be a reason they haven’t caught on. Now I know why. Unless you’re defending the home with a side-by-side or over-under shotgun (in which case the smaller case length of the Minishells is of no tangible benefit beyond reduced recoil, as capacity is still two), I’d steer clear of these quirky little rounds.
ristin59 Agreed–I think the Judge/Governor “revolution” changed the entire game when it comes to 410 ammo now making it a “viable” defensive choice…
ristin59 Wouldn’t be my first choice, but even a .410 with birdshot is a bad day for an intruder at across the kitchen ranges. With a hot defense load it would be even more so.
csmallo17 If you have an 1887 Winchester then buy a couple boxes of brass hulls and do it right.
Most shotguns don’t cycle this well in my experience. I know the winchester 1300 is one. I use these in my KSG and they work great. I can load 11+11+1 totalling 23 rounds. One tube gets slugs the other duplex or 00 buck.
Winchester 1300 does cycle just to be clear.
I feel the need to defend these shells after reading the article. It’s been over a year since it was posted, but I can’t help myself.
Aguila clearly states that these rounds may not function in any specific pump action gun, and that you may need to modify your pump shotgun to feed them reliably. They also stated outright that they are highly unlikely to feed at all in any semi auto. Just because they didnt work in those 2 models you tested (one of which the manufacture says don’t even bother trying) doesnt make the product a dud. There are videos all over YouTube of people having a blast loading them in Kel-Tec KSG’s. It’s clear to me, if I can fit 24 slugs in my shotguns tubes instead of 14 or 12, I’ll pick 24 all day. Also in a home defense situation you have the option of using a shell that won’t penetrate doors/walls/nearby homes like a magnum load will (weak argument I know). I won’t argue lethality, or recommend this shell over a 2 3/4 or larger shell when your life depends on it, but it sure is a hell of a lot of fun to pump 20+ times, pull the trigger and hear bang without reloading. I own a KSG and keep 1 tube stuffed with 3″ Slugs and the other tube with the buckshot mini shells. I’ve shot several different types/sizes of ammo including mini slugs and mini buckshot out of my 12ga and haven’t had any problems that weren’t caused by operator error (You can’t short stroke a ksg like you can an 870 or moss 500 and get away with it). I’ve put several hundred rounds through it, and really enjoy a day at the range with my favorite shotty and a few boxes of shorties.
There is a new dual tube fed pump 12ga on the market now called the DP12. This gun has 2 tubes, and 2 barrels, pump once, pull the trigger twice, repeat. I’d really like to see how these shells cycle in that behemoth.
(Off topic note: –‘again I’m addressing comments that are about a year or more old, but I’ve seen one, maybe two negative reviews on YouTube of the ksg, I’ve seen literally 30x more positive ones. Just look for the ksg durability test video that’s up where they are tossing the thing around like a football, dropping it down stairs, off ledges, dunking it in the mud etc, and never had a ftf, fte, or anything remotely close to what some describe as “finicky”. I add this comment because I’m still seeing people question the ksg reliability all over the Internet, but the evidence out there clearly shows its a workhorse. They might have had some issues with the 1st gen, but Im not even sure thats true. I know they have tweaked the design and are producing multiple models now, all of which function flawlessly with a competent operator. Work the action like you got a pair, pull the trigger and it will go bang.)
Yeah… This author should be ashamed for having done no research before writing this article. If you look on Aguilas website, or even read the damn box it is very clearly written that the mini shells are purpose built and intended soecifically for winchester pump shotguns and break action guns. I really hope this author didn’t get paid for this.
they work great in my keltek ksg..