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Hey Pete,
I certainly don't know for sure, but somone once suggested that the doughnut effect for a shot pattern may be more pronounced with a longer rifled barrel, and that short pistol barrels are not long enough to produce the effect. I know my two pistol barrels (2 1/2 and 7 1/2 inches) do not doughnut the pattern at less than 15 feet. I guess I ought to make a shot load for my Marlin Cowboy rifle with its 26 inch barrel and try it. There's a big difference between my pistols and my Cowboy rifle. I'm down in Florida for the month, so I cannot do it right now. I will try to keep it in mind for when I get back home.
At fifteen feet, my pistol patterns are starting to open up quite a bit compared to a shotgun, but there still isn't a doughnut hole, and I think there are enough shot in the center to kill a snake. At ten feet, the pattern is really quite tight and would probably kill or at least put down a coyote sized animal. I make the shot loads to use on snakes, and while I have never had to kill a snake, I am sure both of my pistol shot loads will serve me well.
Best wishes,
Dave Wile
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