Shot snake spout: English or Irish?

[BillinOregon]

If anyone here has experience with both styles, which do you prefer and why?

 

[BrownBear]

I'll take the Irish every day. The English tend to leak small shot, and you're stuck with their one or two dispensed amounts. You can get handy with a file and easily change that with Irish. Lots harder to handle and feed your gun in the field too, manipulating the whole snake to the muzzle. Only time I use the English spouts now is on my own rigid leather "shot flasks." You can one hand them almost like a powder flask, so they're handy. So long as they're dispensing the amount you want. And so long as you're not using smaller shot.

 

[BillinOregon]

Gracias, Brownie. That about settles it. Only issue I see with the rish is losing the measure, but I'm sure that can be solved.

 

[Khufu]

I prefer the English type, took a bit of effort to "tune it up" but mine works great with 7 1/2 and 6 shot. for bigger size (bb) I use a dipper.
I use the BBs for goose and they are bismuth and lighter and the english head (at least mine) throws 1 oz and 1 1/4 oz and in bismuth 1 charge is too light and 2 too heavy. but for upland game, I have an English snake and I find it easier to confirm a full shot charge

 

[BillinOregon]

Khufu, I would likely be using No 8 or 8 1/2 for our quail and grouse. Too small for the English?

 

[omarick1948]

Bill, Isn't an Irish Shot Measure a full bottle?
:blah:

 

[George]

Only issue I see with the rish is losing the measure, but I'm sure that can be solved.

My solution has worked 100%, so far.



Spence

 

[BillinOregon]

Rick, no, that's the Scotch.

:haha:

Spence, that looks like the ticket. Your chargers have a lovely patina!

 

[Patocazador]

The Irish is ideal once you have figured out what charge you want to throw consistently and modify it slightly for that. However, unless you are going on a long walk and expect many shots, I've found it easier to carry pre-measured amounts of shot in small plastic vials.

 

[Khufu]

I have never used rhat small of shot, in a shotgun, but I do have a bag of 12 shot I use for handgun snake loads, I can surely put some in and try it. I would think its ok, the slots are smaller than 12 shot and I tuned the spring and remade the brass doors from thicker brass, I will fill it up and see for sure.

 

I have both and lean toward the Irish.
Whichever one you get, try to get it on Ebay. I have found original English chargers to work a little better than reproductions. Since I have no experience with reproduction Irish chargers I can't comment on any differences there. At any rate, most of the ones I have are original, and I got them on Ebay for a lot less than I could have bought brand new ones from TOW or DGW. Most of the time the leather is shot, but making a new pouch is a simple project.

 

[Khufu]

The 12 shot did not leak, but thats about the limit

 

[swathdiver]

Track of the Wolf suggests that the Irish shot charger was designed to work best with smaller shot sizes such as 8 and 9 and the English charger with the larger sizes.

Mine own limited experience seems to bear this out.

However, I just came across an 1869 patent for a shot flask by Allen with an English charger that had four compartments internally for different sizes of shot, accessed by rotating the head I believe.

 

[BillinOregon]

Well, now I have bought one of each off eBay, so I can compare.

 

[armymedic.2]

I much prefer the irish. I hate lifting the whole snake to the muzzle with english

 

[Lorne Johnson]

With a shot snake I much prefer the Irish spout, for the same reasons as Brownbear and Medic.

English might be okay with a shot pouch, but I've never used one.

 

[BillinOregon]

Green, I expect I'll leave the English on the shot pouch, which needs mending, and I'll install the Irish on my snake.

 

[BillinOregon]

Irish bag came. Man, that's a stout spout!