Grouse Hunting with The Rossi Brawler – Does it Pack Enough Punch?
Sam.S 12.21.23
Recently I had the great pleasure to review one of the most fun guns I have ever reviewed. This of course was the new Rossi Brawler 45/410. To check out that review make sure you follow this link. Aside from some fun times at the range, I had my annual grouse hunt/deer stand fixup trip in northern Minnesota. I figured I’d take the Rossi Brawler out and see if it packed enough punch to down a bird. Let’s fly right in!
Note: I did triple-check with the DNR and made sure that my state did not have a law against using a 410 and or a handgun to hunt grouse. I was basically told that in Minnesota you can use just about any cartridge you want.
Rossi Coverage on AllOutdoor
- AllOutdoor Review – Rossi Brawler 45 Colt / 410 Single Shot Pistol
- Affordable, Light, Convenient – The New Rossi Poly Tuffy Survival Rifle
- $200 Break-Action Pistol?! NEW Rossi Brawler .410 Gauge / .45 Long Colt
- NEW Rossi R95 .30-30 Win Lever-Action Rifles – 16″ Trapper & 20″ Rifle
- Pump Action Rimfire Rifle – The 15-Shot Rossi Gallery 22
Specifications: Rossi Brawler
The Rossi Brawler is a pistol chambered for the 45 Colt cartridge but can also accommodate 410 shotgun shells up to 3”. It comes stock with iron sights (front fixed and rear adjustable built into the rail) but also has a rail for any given optic you deem necessary. I used a holster to lug this bad boy around so a red dot was unfortunately out of the question.
- Caliber: 45 Colt/.410 Bore (2.5” & 3”)
- Capacity: 1 Round
- Front Sight: Fixed
- Rear Sight: Serrated, Mounted in the rail, Elevation Adjustable
- Action: Single Action
- Barrel Length: 9 Inches
- Overall Length: 14 Inches
- Overall Height: 5.90 Inches
- Overall Width: 1.30 Inches
- Overall Weight: 36.80 oz (Unloaded)
- Twist Rate: 1:24 RH
- Grooves: 6
- Frame Material: Polymer
- Frame Finish: Black
- Barrel Material: Alloy Steel
- Barrel Finish: Matte Black
- Safety: Thumb Safety, Transfer Bar
Preparation: Grouse Hunting with The Rossi Brawler
As far as any preparation goes I prepared by looking into holster options. I honestly thought there would be next to nothing but the kind folks at Rossi informed me that they make one! Good for them for supporting their product right off the bat. Genuinely that is a breath of fresh air. It is a very basic and affordable holster. They make a hip or chest option.
I bought the chest version for $40. It comes with six cartridge loops on the strap which work for 45 or 410 without issue. As far as the cartridges I brought with was some Herters 45 Colt just in case I saw a pesky red squirrel asking for some overkill and some Federal 8 shot for the grouse in question.
The Hunt: Grouse Hunting with The Rossi Brawler
So as I stated right off the cuff this trip was not solely to grouse hunt but also to check up on deer stands and trails and such on the family land by the cabin. Years of recent past have seen a resurgence of grouse so much so that they are far more findable than they were when I was a kid. It is nice to see these silly birds back and thriving despite the influx of tourists in this particular part of Minnesota. I say silly birds because, well, sometimes they can come off as a little intelligent.
Regardless of the influx of bird population around camp most of our group had not spotted or kicked up much of anything while working on stands and re-clearing trails. So, on day one I saw nothing BUT I did wear the chest holster and Brawler all day while working. Observations from that would be that the holster has a tendency to pull up on your shirt so I would recommend tucking your shirt in or wearing an over shirt. The straps felt fairly comfortable and did not dig into me so that was nice. The holster itself tended to slouch forward away from me and no matter the amount of adjusting I tried this continued to be the case. It was not unforgivable just slightly annoying.
Fast forwarding to a day where hunting was the only bullet on the list I was walking trails as normal until I kicked one up. To those of you out there who are not familiar with grouse or how they act, they are basically a camouflaged chicken that will thump their wings on the ground as they fly away. When this happens and you are close by it will normally make you jump.
So I kicked up a grouse and unholstered the Brawler but this was too slow for such impromptu action. I continued my walk toward where my bird flew with the Brawler unholstered, on fire, and with the hammer forward. Cocking the hammer back is much faster than changing my grip for the safety on the fly.
Speaking of on the fly it was not long before I came to an open area filled with pine trees next to a small lake. Besides the beautiful view of the lake and a beaver damn close by it was actually pretty shady and creepy but I knew my bird was in there and I was determined to give the Brawler a chance at being a new grouse gun.
Eventually pacing back in forth probing to kick the bird up, it did just that. It was about 30ish yards away and flying parallel to me. I lifted the Brawler and cocked it in the same movement and with a combat hold led it significantly then fired off some 8 shot. To my honest surprise the bird tumbled beak over tail feathers to the ground.
Skipping forward to the cleaning portion and without the gory details, I was unsurprised to be able to report that the only evidence of the grouse taking on some lead weight was a hole in the neck. The breast was as clean as can be and I wish I could say my lucky shot (because that is what it was) made it taste better but it does not get much better than grouse.
Conclusion: Grouse Hunting with The Rossi Brawler
That ended up being the only grouse I hit with the Brawler that day. I did chase and shoot at some more with some confidence but only left the woods with the first bird and some ringing in my ears from the blast of a 410 pistol. So my conclusion would be that it would make an okay backup gun or 4-wheeler/trail gun in a hunting setting. It definitely isn’t what its meant for but it is capable. For me personally I will continue having fun with it as a novelty and leave the hunting to the bigger guns.
In closing, I want to say thank you again to Rossi for allowing AllOutdoor and myself the opportunity to try out one of their Brawler pistols! That is greatly appreciated. Also, we would like to know what all of you guys and gals think? Do you believe that this pistol is something worth spending your money on? Would you run to the range with this affordable fun? Would this be your go-to fun gun at the range? Let us know all of your thoughts in the comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.
