Haters go shit someplace else. Please.

So I recently picked up a Governor mostly for giggles but also as a canoe gun while paddling along remote parts of Florida.

A few questions if you don't mind;

1) Do I need to buy the S&W moonclips or can I use any if the generic 6 round .45acp moonclips out there. Are there some that just don't work?

2) Is there a trick to loading the moonclip into the cylinder? It seems to take me quite a bit of fiddling until the whole clip finally drops in.

3) What .410 shells will function properly in the Governor? I am not talking about best pattern but will actually load, fire and eject with the least amount of grief.

4) What .45 Colt loads do you like? I know the Governor is rated for better than "Cowboy Loads" but not for the "Blackhawk or Rifle ONLY" loads.

5) Holster recommendations? I am thinking of the DeSantis New York Undercover shoulder holster, particularly for canoing.

Thanks for any input.

OK... is there a point of your request?

Sorry, somehow most of my original post got deleted as I hit submit.

The Governor uses the same moon clips as the S&W N Frame 625 Revolvers; so S&W .45 ACP moon clips is what you order.

OP, How is your accuracy out of the governor with 45 colt and 45 acp?

I just traded a XDs for a governor, so far I think I had the better end of the deal!

I have only had it out to the range once so far.

Shooting at ~15' from a standing position;

With WinAA .410 #9 bird/snake shot it was a bigger pattern than I expected (maybe 25") but with good shot density. More than enough pellets hit my imaginary snake to get the job done IMO. I am going to shoot some more at butcher paper this weekend to get a better pattern measurement. The empty shells fell right out.

With Remington 4 pellet 000 Buck the 4 pellets went all over the place. Still @ 1800 fps it would have probably been good for fending off an attacking dog at contact range without a huge risk of over-penetration. The empty shells were a little hard to extract.

With 230gr. FMJ .45acp I was pleasantly surprised. All six rounds were quickly emptied into a 1 gallon water jug at 15' with little effort. Nothing that compares to a 1911 with a nice trigger but good enough to put down something bigger than a rabid dog before they get at you. Also, I was surprised at how light the recoil was. I expected a little more kick from .45acp in a short-barreled, Aluminum frame revolver. The moon clip took a little effort to load into the chamber but the empty dropped right out.

I have not had a chance to shoot any .45Colt. I am looking for a good load suitable for the Governor. Something to load into the last two chambers as a defense against something...bigger.

As I said, I was trying to fill a niche as a carry gun on canoe trips in the back waters of Florida (I have had a Water Moccasin get into the boat with me not fun). In my youth, the .410 snake charmer was a popular choice but in practice it really wasn't that great a choice. It was awkward to bring into action and the way it sat in the canoe always seemed to have the muzzle pointing at someone. Guides liked it because the light-load of lead birdshot did a number on snakes without penetrating the hull of those all Aluminum, Grumman canoes. The Governor in a good shoulder rig I believe will be perfect for that application.

OK. I have been playing around a bit more with shotshells.

Win.AA #8 patterns ~16" @ 10' on a 30 degree incline. In addition, the POI was a little lower than my POA. So, shooting at a snakes head at10' requires I aim just slightly over the top of the target. This is the same experience I had with shooting .38 snake loads through my 3" S&W model 60. The pattern was pretty even but I could probably carve out a few snake head size spots with no pellets. Still, I think enough pellets would hit to pin a snake down for a second shot if the first didn't fully take care of the problem.

I shot more of the Remington "Ultimate Defense" 4 pellet #000 Buck. This time, all 4 pellets were neatly clustered in about a 6" group at 10 feet.

All shells loaded and extracted easily and cleanly. I fired 30 rounds of the birdshot and 12 rounds of the buck mixing the rounds in the cylinder with no problems.

I have ordered moonclips and a loader/unloader from the outfit DasRonin recommended. These are the .040" thick clips not the .047" clips that I had tried before. I am hoping that they will allow the loaded rounds to more easily wiggle and drop into the cylinder with less fuss.

UPDATE: I had a chance to try the 0.40" thick moonclips and they drop right into the cylinder effortlessly almost everytime. The thicker ones (running up to 0.50") seem just a bit too thick for the Governor. They work but the whole unit is harder to "drop" into the cylinder (not enough wiggle) and the case head (I am shooting Fed AE) drags slightly against the breech face. Maybe it is just my particular gun. I don't know.

I had a chance to perform an unscientific but simple penetration test. Shooting Federal #9 2.5" shells, I fired a single round into a ~5"x7" piece of denim glued to a piece of leather (thick, cut from an old work glove) at 7' @~45 degree angle. I had good pattern density on the target and from what I could see, every pellet that hit the top layer of denim penetrated through the leather. I wasn't sure how this load would perform from a handgun but I have no doubt it would penetrate snakeskin with enough energy to put it down with a head shot. I have pics but my Photobucket account is being less than unhelpful.

The empty shells were a little hard to extract/eject but using the old school method of striking the ejector rod with authority knocked them out without any real problem. I had one shell that I could not load. Upon examination, it seems the shell mouth was slightly buggered during the factory crimping process. It fit and fired fine in my Stoeger Coachgun but I believe the Governor chambers are a little tighter in order to be able to safely accommodate the .45 Colt and .45acp cartridges.

I know owning one of these .410 revolvers is like dating a fat chick (lots of fun until your friends see you with her) but the more I shoot this gun the more I like it!

These guns seem to cause all sorts of arguments.

When I see a guy like the OP grab one up and rationally do a bit of shooting and testing I have absolutely no problem with it all .

Due to some past experiences I have a somewhat clouded opinion of anything Taurus but someday I would really like to get my hands on the S&W to play around with

The S&W is the only one I would own of that type of gun.

With the Federal Personal Defense 000 buck, mine will decapitate at 7 yards and guaranty ruin your day (center mass aim, all 4 pellets in silhouette 75% of the time over 40 rounds and minimum of 2 pellets) at 21 yards.    Remington 000 buck was worthless..  Lucky to get 3 in at 10 yards...
Cooper solid 45 colt rounds were not great but would 4 inch group off hand at 20.
45 colt lead were better at 2.5 inch group off hand.
I have not tried Winchester loads or 45acp... 45 acp might be fun to plink with but I stick with 3 bucks followed by 3 45 colt Cor Bon and more of the same in Bianchi Speed Strips.  Seems a good anti car jacking tool slash "I turned into the way wrong neighborhood", ran out of gas, and have to hike out...

For serious defense load in the Govenor I would try and find a box of 45 Colt WW Silvertip or even a flat nose 45 Long Colt round.  I would not trust my life with a buck shot load in .410 out of a Govenor.  A friend pumps oil wells and is constantly encountering snakes so she bought a Taurus Judge.  She was very concerned about rattle snakes and copperheads.  She carried three .410 # 6 shot shells and   two 45 Long Colt cartridges in hers (Judge is a 5 shot).    The Judge I shot seemed to shoot a little tighter denser group at close range with #6 shot as opposed to # 8  or 9 shot.  

The buckshot loads are inaccurate at any kind of distance beyond close contact and the 45 Long Colt or 45 ACP will deliver adequate accuracy for any self defense distance (25 yards or further).