Cut shells are stupid.

[Andrew Wiggin]

https://youtu.be/ML-TicFwke0

I think I forgot to mention that they'll jam up your shotgun. They also said rude things about your mom. And shotguns are a poor choice for defense, anyway.

[Jeep]

Good test of a very stupid concept. Why play around with cutting shells when you can get all you need out of slugs or buckshot? Even if it worked it would be a fix in search of a problem.

[Jim Watson]

I don't recall what he said but the cut shell goes back to the Depression at least. You might not be able to afford slugs or buck on the off chance that you would see a deer while hunting small game. Game laws might have forbidden you to have slugs or buckshot on your person during small game season. It gets rediscovered on facebook every couple of weeks.
So does the "wax bullet" formed by pouring melted wax into a shot load. I have been assured that this is superior in power and accuracy to any slug made. Really.

[Kyle Reese]

Good test of a very stupid concept. Why play around with cutting shells when you can get all you need out of slugs or buckshot? Even if it worked it would be a fix in search of a problem.

12 gauge slugs and buck are readily available and inexpensive. Not sure why I'd mod shells for this purpose.

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[Unobtanium]

Cut shells could turn a depression era squirrel hunt into a successful deer hunt. When your family depends on your hunt for food, sportsmanship and ethics are secondary to "did the deer end up on the table or not?" That said, knowledge and techniques do not always fade into obscurity once their imperatives of invention do. Good test! I dunno how you did it, but I've seen plenty of cut she'll YouTube video that shows a .7" Dia hole in plywood at 20 yards etc. Just like a fragile slug. The shells were cut 100% through in 4 places near the base of the wad, with maybe 1mm of she'll at the 4 cut junctions to maintain integrity until fired.

[Jeep]

Well, personally, I've heard more dumb ideas for shotgun shells than anything else. For awhile (and this is more than a few decades back) it was to use dimes instead of shot. The stack of dimes cost more than a slug and were ineffective beyond a few yards, but it was fashionable. And, of course there were cut shells and wax with bird shot (and glue with bird shot), and ball bearings of different sizes, etc. etc. etc.

If any of them made sense, someone would have turned it into a commercial product. When that doesn't happen, you have a pretty good clue that the idea doesn't really work.

[Caballoflaco]

Cut shells could turn a depression era squirrel hunt into a successful deer hunt. When your family depends on your hunt for food, sportsmanship and ethics are secondary to "did the deer end up on the table or not?" That said, knowledge and techniques do not always fade into obscurity once their imperatives of invention do. Good test! I dunno how you did it, but I've seen plenty of cut she'll YouTube video that shows a .7" Dia hole in plywood at 20 yards etc. Just like a fragile slug. The shells were cut 100% through in 4 places near the base of the wad, with maybe 1mm of she'll at the 4 cut junctions to maintain integrity until fired.

I would bet a lot more deer were killed cleanly with a .22lr than cut shells during the depression. Knocking a hole in plywood is not the same as deeply penetrating a deer's abdomen.

While I have a lot of respect for that generation, they weren't immune from spouting bullshit just like their fathers before them and the generations that will follow us.The ability to fabricate grandiose lies is one of the things that separates us from the lesser beasts.

[fishing]

I would bet a lot more deer were killed cleanly with a .22lr than cut shells during the depression. Knocking a hole in plywood is not the same as deeply penetrating a deer's abdomen.

While I have a lot of respect for that generation, they weren't immune from spouting bullshit just like their fathers before them and the generations that will follow us.The ability to fabricate grandiose lies is one of the things that separates us from the lesser beasts.

I think what you are missing is that not everyone had or could swap for a .22, and also that to a certain degree of effectiveness, the cut shell allowed someone with birdshot only (for squirrels or wingshooting) to also have a chance at taking a deer in an effective and humane manner.

[Lon]

Well, personally, I've heard more dumb ideas for shotgun shells than anything else. For awhile (and this is more than a few decades back) it was to use dimes instead of shot. The stack of dimes cost more than a slug and were ineffective beyond a few yards, but it was fashionable. And, of course there were cut shells and wax with bird shot (and glue with bird shot), and ball bearings of different sizes, etc. etc. etc.

If any of them made sense, someone would have turned it into a commercial product. When that doesn't happen, you have a pretty good clue that the idea doesn't really work.

[Wayne Dobbs]

I always called them "Red Neck Slugs" and was introduced to the concept by a red neck friend.