Click pictures for a larger version.
Walnut stock is of good quality, with dense figure and
well-executed bordered cut checkering.
Wood-to-metal fit is excellent, as we have come to
expect from Henry.
24-inch version comes with a screw-in full-choke tube,
and will accept all Invector-style screw-in tubes.
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Henry Repeating Arms
has been in the rifle business for several years now, first
filling the need for a reliable 22
rimfire levergun, and moving up to the big bores later,
satisfying a growing market for leverguns for competition and
hunting. When other American rimfire levergun makers were
abandoning the market, Henry was expanding their line of
affordable, reliable, and accurate lever-action rimfire rifles.
From the basic black finish to the beautiful Golden Boy to a
wide array of commemorative rifles, Henry has a rimfire levergun
to suit most any need.
In addition to their popular rimfire rifles,
Henry also has centerfire leverguns chambered for cartridges
such as the 357 and 44 Magnums, 45 Colt, 30-30 Winchester, 45-70
Government, and 308
Winchester, which have also proven to be smooth, reliable,
and accurate.
Now, Henry Repeating Arms has introduced two
versions of a 410 bore lever-action shotgun; a twenty-inch
cylinder bore, and the gun featured here, a twenty-four inch
with a threaded muzzle, which comes supplied with a
full-choke-constriction choke tube, and will accept other
Invector-style screw-in choke tubes.
410 bore lever-action shotguns were once
popular in the rural United States, as they were handy weapons
with which to dispatch vermin and pests around the farm or
homestead, and also served well as reliable hunting arms for
game such as rabbits and squirrels. Lever-action shotguns were
working guns, and could be used around barns and livestock to
shoot that which needed shooting, without blasting holes into
the barn roof. Also, while not my first choice, a 410 shotgun
can be loaded with buckshot and put into use as a defensive
weapon around the home. While many people dismiss the 410 bore
as useful for such, the popularity of 410 bore handguns proves
that many people think otherwise.
The Henry 410 Shotgun is based upon their
excellent steel-framed 45-70 lever-action rifle, but chambered
for 2.5 inch 410 bore shotshells. The Henry shotgun wears a
blued steel action and barrel, with a pistol-grip checkered
walnut stock, which is fitted with a ventilated synthetic rubber
recoil pad and sling swivel studs. The twenty-four-inch shotgun
is listed as weighing 7.5 pounds, but can vary a bit with the
density of the wood, and the sample gun shown here weighed in at
seven pounds, eleven ounces on my scale.
The length-of-pull measures fourteen inches, and the
trigger released crisply with just a bit over four pounds of
resistance. The overall length measured 42.75 inches. The
capacity of the tube magazine is listed as five rounds, but mine
holds six rounds of 2.5 inch Winchester or Federal shells in the
mag, plus one in the chamber for, a loaded capacity of seven. As
far as I can determine, there is no magazine plug available yet
that would make the Henry legal for doves and other migratory
birds, but Henry has one in the works at the time of this
review.
The wood-to-metal fit of the Henry is
excellent. The walnut is straight-grained, but with enough
figure to make it interesting, and the bordered cut checkering
is well-executed, with no overruns. The blued steel barrel has a
nice satin finish, which goes well with the matte receiver. The
barrel wears a simple brass bead at the muzzle. The magazine
loads through a port in the mag tube, which has a brass
inner-tube, as do other Henry lever-action firearms. Loading the
Henry mag tube is as easy as withdrawing the inner-tube and
dropping in the shotshells.
The Henry Lever-action Shotgun has a solid
heft to it, but balances very well, feeling pretty much like a
Henry rifle. It is a handsome shotgun, reminiscent to me of the
classic Winchester and Marlin lever-action shotguns of years
past. Both Winchester and Marlin have discontinued their
lever-action 410 bore shotguns, leaving Henry as the only game
in town from a US manufacturer, but Rossi imports one from
Brazil.
While the Henry will shoot 410 slugs just
fine, I prefer to use it with birdshot or buckshot, as for a
single slug, the Henry centerfire rifles cover that use much
better than would a 410 slug. However, I do like the Winchester
PDX-1 shotshells, as they throw three flattened disks along with
twelve BB-sized shot, for a good “buck-and-ball” type load.
For pest control on vermin such as rats and venomous snakes,
number 5 or 6 birdshot is hard to beat, and for larger critters,
number 4 shot works pretty well. The Henry shotgun fires 2.5
inch 410 shotshells only, and every brand tried cycled smoothly
through the action.
On the subject of shotgun power, killing
birds and small critters is done with just a few pellets from
the shotshell’s payload. The 410 throws its shot just as fast
as do the larger gauges; it just doesn’t throw as many. Since
vermin and birds only need a few pellets to put them down,
accurate placement of the shot load is more important than
throwing a handful of lead shot to kill a small animal. Even a
wild turkey can be cleanly killed with the 410 bore, if you can
place a few pellets into the head and neck region. For
antipersonnel use, there are better choices, but I certainly
would not feel helpless with the Henry shotgun loaded with seven
rounds of Winchester PDX-1 when the door gets kicked in at
night.
The Henry lever-action shotgun shown here
cycled without a problem. Every shell fed, fired, and ejected
flawlessly. I used Winchester, American Tactical, and Federal
birdshot, Winchester 000 buckshot, and Winchester PDX-1 combo
load shells in the Henry, and all functioned perfectly. The
lever cycled smoothly, and the crisp trigger pull was a delight
to use. Also, the Henry pointed very well for me, placing the
shot load where I wanted it to go. I think that the Henry
Lever-action shotgun is going to get a lot of use around here as
a good, all-around utility shotgun. It fills a niche which
needed filling.
Like all other Henry firearms, the lever-action
shotgun is “Made in America, Or Not Made at All”.
The manufacturer’s suggested retail price
is, as of the date of this review, $902 US. The twenty-inch
version is $52 less.
For a look at the extensive line of Henry
firearms and accessories, go to www.henryusa.com.
To find a Henry dealer in your area, click on
the DEALER FINDER at www.lipseys.com.
To order the Henry shotgun online, click on
the GUN GENIE at www.galleryofguns.com.
To
order quality shotgun ammunition, go to www.luckygunner.com and www.midsouthshooterssupply.com.
Jeff
Quinn
 
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Click pictures for a larger version.
Magazine loads from a port in the magazine tube.
Shot patterns: Winchester PDX 1 at 10 yards (top),
Winchester Number 4 Shot at 25 yards (bottom).
Shotgun balances perfectly at the front of the receiver,
for easy carrying.
Sling swivel studs are included.
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