Caliber Conversion Adapters - What's The Consensus?

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Since I recently had a thread asking about... AR Preference - .22 LR Conversion Kit or Dedicated Upper or Dedicated Rifle?... I thought it might make a good 'bookend' to ask about caliber conversion adapters. Most of those I'm aware of these days are for shotguns, though there have been some 'inserts' and/or 'sleeves' in the past for various handguns and even rifles.

Those made by Short Lane Arms adapters were pushed (and, I suppose, still are) by Dave Canterbury of Dual Survival, Dirty Rotten Survival, and YouTube fame.

Savage made the popular "Four Tenner."



Chiappa markets some of their own.



Chaszel also offers a selection.



What's the consensus on these at Calguns?

Price vs. value? Accuracy potential? Caliber availability? Using older manufacturer vs. new manufacturer? Those sorts of things.

Once again, no dog in the hunt. Just curious and attempting to create an interesting thread.

[JagerDog]

I've only had Seminole 12 to 20g adapter. Worked well. Sold it when I bought a dedicat ed 20g barrel for my 682.Going down 1 gauge will worker better than going down 2 or 3.

I wouldn't waste my time trying to put say a 357 bullet down a 45 pipe. Maybe if the insert is rifled, but I suspect most/all aren't built around quality/accuracy.

While I understand the prepper concept of being able to shoot most anything out of one firearm, I think most would be better served with a nice pistol caliber carbine and carry ammo vs adapters.

I do like my convertible Blackhawks in 45 Colt/45 ACP and 357Mag/9mm. By the same token, I've only verified operation with the ACP and 9mm.

[PTAGP100]

Sir pls dont stone me to death,lol. Is there a way to make this work on my 1301 even just one at a time only.

[PTAGP100]

I mean those cartridge adapters bdong used in break action shotgums.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Sir pls dont stone me to death,lol. Is there a way to make this work on my 1301 even just one at a time only.

I mean those cartridge adapters bdong used in break action shotgums.

Not so far as I know. As you note, they are made for break action shotguns; i.e., single shot, side-by-side, and over/under.

[PTAGP100]

Not so far as I know. As you note, they are made for break action shotguns; i.e., single shot, side-by-side, and over/under.

Thanks sir!!!

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Found these videos on accuracy from some of the adapters listed in the OP.






Evidently, the YouTube creator doesn't allow embedding of this video... Pattern Testing the Savage "Four Tenner" .410 Shotgun Gauge Adapter.

[Imageview]

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Short rifled (3-5”) versions seem pretty inaccurate, 3-4” at 25 yards from what I’ve heard. Also most guns they are being used on have a bead, not sights, which isn’t going to help. Longer (8-11”) seem slightly better from reports, but still like 2” at 25 yard. Full length shotgun adapters are probably substantially better but still relatively short range guns. Also there are concerns about pressure, depending on manufacturer. So some limit to 38 but no 357, or very mild 45 colt.

Ironically these are almost all primarily used on h&rs, which can accept rifle barrels. The sb1 (weaker kind) receiver can handle 12g-410 (not 10 gauge), 357, 44mag, 22 hornet, and maybe if you are careful 30-30 or 45-70 (trapdoor loads at least). Sb2 receivers can handle anything short of African game cartridges. Admittedly barrels aren’t as cheap or convenient as an adapter, but they actually work well. My version in the “survivor” stock has dedicated barrels in 243, 7.62x39, 22 lr, and I’ve used it with a 20” 20g barrel with mod choke before. With one centerfire barrel, the 22, and the 20g total package would be around 11-12 pounds and be versatile enough for anything in CA except elk. Well you could, but 243 is on the very low end anyways.

I don't think the caliber adapters have ever been touted as intrinsically 'accurate;' particularly as compared to the guns themselves or 'barrel alternatives.' My sense is that the marketing bullet point has been the 'convenience' of having multiple calibers, ready to hand, literally "in a pocket." The idea never seemed to be accuracy equal to or better than stock, but accuracy that was "good enough" for emergencies and "fun."

I'm pretty sure I remember seeing one of Canterbury's videos several years ago (I'm not going to go looking for it) where he was 'challenging' critics over the idea that if you can't stalk close enough, then you need to work on your stalking skills rather than rely on... I remember, at the time, reacting that hunting in the 'woods of Ohio' is a bit different than hunting in the more open country here in the West. While stalking is an useful and necessary skill, its utility can be limited at times short of what most would view as 'extreme' skill.

It got me to thinking that 'traps and snares' might be a better alternative (for a number of reasons) than adapters if the primary thrust was food gathering where 'small game' was the emphasis. Then I got to considering the Liberator pistol and its purpose insofar as a 'survival' firearm and granted that the mindset seemed to be carrying over with the adapters. Then I got to thinking about my 'rule of thumb' in terms of hunting calibers; i.e., my tendency to stick with calibers that you should be able to find in any store, be it big box or 'food, fuel, bait, and coffee' shop in Podunk, WY. It may not be the bullet weight or brand you want, but you'll have something that goes *bang* in your firearm.

30 or so years ago, a friend of mine played with the H&R/NEF, multiple barrel concept as his (what would now be termed) "bug out bag" firearm. The two issues he deemed significant were: 1.) the barrels 'needed' to be 'fit' to the receiver via H&R/NEF (not to mention that the proper variant of the receiver needed to be the base to conform with the pressures) and (2.) how many 'barrels' he could reasonably expect to carry in the pack. I kinda like the idea at the time and will say it still holds some attraction. I always suspected that the first was a bit exaggerated and had more to do with legal CYA, where a competent, local gunsmith could get 'er done. But, the second was difficult to argue with other than, as you allude to, relying on a compromise in accuracy and versatility with something such as the caliber adapters.

But, all of that is part of why I started the thread... To get a sense for how Calguns Members viewed the caliber adapters.

Thanks for your contribution.

[Imageview]

Fit is actually a thing - manufacturing tolerances were wide. I have a spreadsheet to track which barrels fit which receivers. You've got decent odds one will fit a receiver, but not a sure thing. Work can be done, but competent local gunsmiths are not super common at least around me. The ones who are actually competent tend to be busy.

I guess it comes down to why you would want adapters. They give you pistolish accuracy at best in a long arm. They would have to have some inherent advantage over just carrying a pistol. Since I am not worried about scavenging ammo, I figure if things ever get to that point we'll all have much bigger problems, what advantage do they offer? Form factor wise they are convenient, but so is a holster. I liked the idea of adapters because I wanted the ability to shoot 357 out of a long arm that I was already carrying, but in the end a revolver was basically superior.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Fit is actually a thing - manufacturing tolerances were wide. I have a spreadsheet to track which barrels fit which receivers. You've got decent odds one will fit a receiver, but not a sure thing. Work can be done, but competent local gunsmiths are not super common at least around me. The ones who are actually competent tend to be busy.

I guess it comes down to why you would want adapters. They give you pistolish accuracy at best in a long arm. They would have to have some inherent advantage over just carrying a pistol. Since I am not worried about scavenging ammo, I figure if things ever get to that point we'll all have much bigger problems, what advantage do they offer? Form factor wise they are convenient, but so is a holster. I liked the idea of adapters because I wanted the ability to shoot 357 out of a long arm that I was already carrying, but in the end a revolver was basically superior.

Yep. "Fit" was a thing and you could ship your firearm back to H&R/NEF to have it done 'properly.' Of course, that meant being without your relatively inexpensive ('budget') firearm for a time and you needed to make sure you had the correct receiver type. Here's a 2019 discussion on it at TheHighRoad. Basically, the issue for many came down to the trouble/expense of sending off a "$100 rifle" to have a "$50 barrel" fit properly or just buying another complete gun or getting a 'local' gunsmith to 'make it work.' (That's about what the prices were on the used market the last time I looked. I didn't pay much attention to MSRP on them.)

The two 'advantages' were a longer sight radius and less weight than an handgun. The trade-off was that many of the adapters weren't rifled, so there was an inherent loss in accuracy. Chaszel offers 'long' adapters; e.g., here's an 18" rifled version to convert your 12 Gauge into a 30-30. But, as before, you need to make sure you have the correct receiver; i.e., the 'stronger' one to handle the recoil. Additionally, it kinda brings me back to the idea of why not just have the extra barrel and how many barrels can you carry in the pack?

In other words, we don't disagree and you are correct in that, for most, it does come down to what you want them for or, more accurately, the context in which you intend using them vs. the cost and 'logistics' of having complete, alternative firearms or extra barrels.

[k1dude]

IIRC, they're basically heavy and inaccurate.

Seems like a waste of money to me.

[ysr_racer]

I have Seminole Chambermates in 20ga for use in a 12ga. They work fine. The only issue is sticky ejection, sometimes.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

I have Seminole Chambermates in 20ga for use in a 12ga. They work fine. The only issue is sticky ejection, sometimes.

Here's a 2004 'review' of... Small-Gauge Inserts: Briley, Seminole Products Save Money