Question for any Judge owners

[bafsu92]

I just picked one up in trade, I thought they were kind of cool since they came out but always looked at it as more of a novelty. I was thinking about the option of different loads that could be mixed though and figured it might be useful. I always carry a pistol when I'm hunting as sort of a backup to handle problems with 2 or 4 legs. Last spring when I was turkey hunting I ran into a problem with no legs, a big, fat rattlesnake right on the edge of my blind. Luckily I was still at it moved along without issue but I started thinking do I really want to shoot this think with a 3 1/2" #5 turkey load from a couple feet away or make the extra motion of trying to draw my .45 from under my turkey vest then hit the thing in the head before it strikes me. The next time out a couple days later I threw a few 2 3/4" #8's in the vest but that's still not ideal since I'd have to load it.

I got to thinking about the Judge and figured it would make a nice hunting backup. When I got a chance to get one in a favorable trade I jumped on it. Right now my plan is to load the first chamber with #8 or #9 for that pesky snake or to shoot in the air at a tree top to chase away a wild dog or similar. I figure the next two get loaded with .45LC. This would give me a chance for 2 fairly decent precision shots at a hog or human threat. I figure I'll load the last 2 with the Federal PDX .410 load that mixes the buckshot pellets and the disc "mini" slugs. I really like this load in my Bond Arms Texas Defender and figure it will give me a last defense of two shots against anything I feel is getting too close. This isn't as big of a deal when I'm shotgun or rifle hunting but one of my Spring turkey spots I really prefer using my crossbow since it borders right up to a residential area. Right on the edge of where I start into this area I've run into both a homeless camp and a 350#+ hog so I obviously want more that just the crossbow. I really don't feel like I'm losing much by leaving my 1911 at home and carrying this setup instead. For what I lose in capacity I gain a lot of versatility an I can always throw in a couple Tuff Strips with the same or different assortment of .45LC/.410. Does anyone out there use a similar setup?

[seeker_two]

Why not carry the Bond as your snake gun and just load the Judge as your hunting backup?

[tombogan03884]

Why not carry the Bond as your snake gun and just load the Judge as your hunting backup?

Because it's a total waste of 2 inches of cylinder length.

[seeker_two]

Why not carry the Bond as your snake gun and just load the Judge as your hunting backup?

Because it's a total waste of 2 inches of cylinder length.

Exactlly...... 

[bafsu92]

I like the Bond for around town in a pocket but don't feel it's very efficient for the woods. It's actually not a whole lot lighter unloaded than the Judge. I really only want to carry one handgun since my Spring turkey spot is a pretty good hike I want to keep weight down as much as possible. Packing in a gallon or more of water already has me loaded down and I'm planning on taking my son this year as well so I'll have extra gear that he can't manage (a tent rather than my jungle hammock and extra water and food) so every little bit helps. I went the other day and shot some patterns with the judge using #9 shot the PDX and some 00 buck. I'm pretty happy with the results so I will give it a go. I'm probably going to load the way I was thinking and carry 3 extra tuff strips all loaded with one load so a spare 5 45LC, 5 PDX and 5 #9's. that and the crossbow (or 2 crossbows when my son goes) should do it. If I take the shotgun on a trip instead of the crossbow I'll probably leave the PDX at home and just load 45LC and #9 shot.

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