What would the pattern be like using a 50 cal rifle as a shotgun

[Mustangs Rule]

I have a Thompson 50 cal 1/48 twist muzzle loader . Any ideal what the pattern would be like to use it as a shotgun firing pellets

 

[Diablo]

Terrible. Try it and let us know.

 

[R.K.]

Crap. There’s no choke on it. And it could potentially damage the rifling.

 

[Blue Steel]

For fun one time I tried shooting 00 buckshot out of a 24' rifled shotgun barrel. At 15 yards was lucky to get even one pellet on target.

 

[OleRedbeard]

No choke and with the rifling you will basically have the best one shot grouse gun ever made for shots out to about 5 or ten yards... even with a shot cup the rifling is going to eat it up before it leaves the muzzle. Best bet is to get online and order a smoothbore barrel for it. If its the older TC Hawken style its nothing more than a hook in the back of the receiver and 1 or two pins holding the barrel onto the forearm, simply lifts out. If its a TC encore you have lots of relatively cheap options for a drop in. If its the Hawken style you can probably check green mountain or a couple others that make aftermarkets for them. Regardless... you will not have good results with a rifled barrel and using shot.