choke tubes,loads

[chowder]

Back looking for feedback on goose chokes/loads. Thanks

[Traveling Circus]

my experience is all from patterning tungsten for fox/coyotes.... but, mostly with goose loads....Pick a shell, and then start patterning it on paper with a standard you will stick to and use for comparison....... for example, 40 yards in a 30" circle, or whatever you're looking to accomplish..........count hits and compare chokes....... I've patterned several different guns and have come to really like Remington HD BB's. It's a 3" load, 1 1/2 oz..... but what you will find is with tungsten, tighter isn't alway better..... some of my better patterns are shot through Improved Mod to Full...... and what one gun/choke combo likes, another won't.... another thing is that shot size in tungsten will influence pattern characteristics...... tighter chokes seem to work better with smaller shot......for me anyway.... I've done some limited patterning with tungsten 4's and 6's.... if you don't like what you see, pick another shell see how it compares to the first.....

Remington has discontinued their HD shotshells....... I've got enough for another season or 2, and then the process will start all over for me..... just when you get comfortable with something, it changes....... The best option is to roll you're own if you've got the equipment/ time/ and disposition.......

If you want some of my pattern data, pm me...... I'd be happy to send it along

Mike

[chowder]

Thanks Mike-good advice. Pretty much what I've done in the rifle dept and just need to buckle down and do it for the these Stoeger i-drive auto loaders for geese. We've got 3 of the same guns so at least that should make forward progress a bit simpler. PM sent

[Lund SSS]

One of the most leathal combinations that ever came out of my gun was a 3",#4 heavy shot. Thru a mod choke tube. Stoned geese at 35 yards but that being said, I'm not really fond a $3 a shot even if they are down right awesome . Start every season with a couple of boxes just to build up my confidence then transition to my norm 3" black cloud in BB. I was offered 4 boxes of the new 1660 fps snow goose loads but NONE of the feedback was good about it. A lot of different tubes shoot good but the best for my Berreta A390 ST has been a undertaker supermod for ducks/ geese at long distance 40 yards + and the factory mod for anything less. I'll also put in my 30" barrel if they will not decoy.

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[Missdemeanor]

Patternmaster.........

I did alot of research last winter and the PM was pretty dman good.....After all was said and done, I shot better with 3 1/2 inch Kent #3s steel than with HS.......Sea ducks are a P. I.T.A to kill, but I was folding em up each time with that combo......Good luck with the sky carp

[Reel Outlaw]

I've had great success with the new hevi shot chokes. I bought the 2 pack for 120 bucks at cabelas. one is mid range and the other is extreme range. Match them with hevi metal and you can't go wrong.

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[Quacksmacker935]

Patternmaster.........

I did alot of research last winter and the PM was pretty dman good.....After all was said and done, I shot better with 3 1/2 inch Kent #3s steel than with HS.......Sea ducks are a P. I.T.A to kill, but I was folding em up each time with that combo......Good luck with the sky carp

I could guess who this was before even seeing the name of your boat!!! Ill be getting a patternmaster this year to keep up with you big dogs out on the lake. Last year i just used my modified choke that came with my gun (mossberg 935) with 3 1/2 Federals #1s and i agree Sea ducks are tough as hell. For geese i like to use BBB 3 1/2s, and for puddle ducks i use 3" 2s thru 4s

[zackblain]

3'' blind side bb with the patternmaster blind side extended range choke was deadly on snow down in arkansas out to 60 yards

[Kevin J Legg]

I guess I'm behind the times or just plain cheap. I shoot Winchester Expert 3" in size 2 and BB's at 1550 fps. About $129 a case at Gander Mountain right now. I bought a bunch on sales at Dicks a couple years ago and with a factory re-bait paid less than $8 a box! With factory improved cylinder chock for decoying geese they seem to drop geese as well as the high price loads my friends sometimes shoot. I switch to Mod chock when pass shooting and also seem to do fine. I've tried the 3 1/2" shells and found they didn't add much if anything to performance and the added cost and punishment on the shooter and gun weren't worth it to me.

I haven't patterned the loads, or tried after market chokes for comparison (although I have for turkey) but from my goose hunting observations of myself and friends I'm sticking with what appears to work well for me at a very reasonable cost. Certainly not a scientific approach but maybe a good practical one.

[BLOCKHEAD]

+ 1.

2 or 3 " plain steel. Learn how to shoot. Or keep falling for pro staffed endorsed marketing hype.

[Missdemeanor]

Hype? Ok...I guess I fell for it....lol.......I went 2 thousand miles to shoot King Eiders last winter.....Sometimes I would be in a pass shooting situation, or over decoys....I brought the Patternmaster just in case I needed to shoot long....let's face it...that's a trip of a lifetime and I didn't want to limit myself with factory stuff....plus anyone who has hunted sea ducks, knows they are far from being candy a$$ES.

Glad I brought it....shot my kings, and a sweet Harli.

Could I have shotem with cheap ammo and factory tubes? Maybe.....but I practiced with the PM tube and was confident with the pellet count out to 50 yards......

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[Kevin J Legg]

I certainly wasn't judging the high test loads and chokes, which could very well be more effective under some circumstances. However, under standard over decoy shooting the Winchester Xperts seem to work just fine for me and are half to a third the price of the high test loads. It's always a good idea to pattern loads and chokes but field experience tells you a great deal too. Scout well, set up correctly with quality decoys, and pick your shots and you could kill them with a 410 when they are feet down over the decoys. That and it's a more thrilling shoot!

[BLOCKHEAD]

I'm the first to admit, i'm not a great shot. That said , i have met very few people who are consistently great shots at 50 yds plus. At 50 plus , steel lacks kinetic energy. Its physics, plain and simple. A pattern that works well at 50 is going to suck at 20. You cant have it both ways. I focus on what i can hit. Under 40. At this range, round steel kills anything flying. A round pellet is going fly better than any other shape. A 1 1\ 8 easily fits inside of 2 3\ 4 shells. Nothing sexy about it.

[zackblain]

A snow doesn't decoy anything like a canada does up here. You need to be able to reach out and get em and the pmaster/blind side combo is deadly. Like previously stated, why put time and money into scouting, traveling, decoys... only to skimp on the most important thing to have when it comes to putting birds on the ground

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[BLOCKHEAD]

Snows are tiny. Blindsides are silly IMO. Square flies better than round ? Think about it. Sure you could stack more square pellets into a shell. Or you could just use a 2 3\4 shell and have room left over. They created a solution for a problem that doesn't exist. Money would be better spent on tungsten or the like. I usually used duck loads,unless i was hunting a full blown snow goose spread.

[zackblain]

Snows are tiny. Blindsides are silly IMO. Square flies better than round ? Think about it. Sure you could stack more square pellets into a shell. Or you could just use a 2 3\4 shell and have room left over. They created a solution for a problem that doesn't exist. Money would be better spent on tungsten or the like. I usually used duck loads,unless i was hunting a full blown snow goose spread.

Think what you want. A few hundred dead snows had me more than convinced. 20$ a box ain't bad either,

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[chowder]

Ok we shot 3"Fed speed shok, BC FS Steel, and Kent Fasteel through our i-drive Stoegers w/ both the factory mod choke and a Carlson mod choke at 10" circles from 30 yds. Patterns were acceptable w/ all 3 loads with the factory choke and poor with the Carlson.-Andy

[seasquirrel]

Andy, I still shoot a Briley Light Modified with 3 inch # 2 drylocks or kents and they work for me over decoying and pass shooting ducks. Brought down plenty of skycarp as well. I have tried a couple other tubes and wasnt convinced they worked any better with steel. I would try another tube if someone convinced me it was worth it. I like the remington supersonics but not worth the extra cost to me. I know I shoot along side of other guys shooting the high dollar stuff and they arent shooting any better than me. We still have to get together for a goose or duck hunt Andy.

[chowder]

Andy, I still shoot a Briley Light Modified with 3 inch # 2 drylocks or kents and they work for me over decoying and pass shooting ducks. Brought down plenty of skycarp as well. I have tried a couple other tubes and wasnt convinced they worked any better with steel. I would try another tube if someone convinced me it was worth it. I like the remington supersonics but not worth the extra cost to me. I know I shoot along side of other guys shooting the high dollar stuff and they arent shooting any better than me. We still have to get together for a goose or duck hunt Andy.

Haven't had much of an early season here or up at the farm we hunt in Earlville, but we have spent a bunch of time shooting clays under different,higher patterns & have come to the sobering conclusion that, as usual, the 'nut behind the stock' is far more critical than chokes or loads. Some more prospects should emerge over the next week as my buddies w/the custom chopping business get going in Brisben. I'll give you a call or give me a shout if something looks promising.,-Andy

[flashpoint]

Hey guys,

I certainly agree with patterning & palying with new loads. I currently shot an 870 sp & 3&1/2 for turkey...but stick with 3" for ducks. I found that HS shot much better with standard full choke (again for Turkey hunting) as the super full from HS strut that i shot with lead really blew up the HS loads.

Now for ducks....I have usually shot Kent or Rem #4 steel for dabblers back here in Vermont. I did a weekend on the Cape for Sea Ducks ( your right MIss D....they are a P.I.T.A to kill) But shot the new Black Clud #2 in advice from the guide. Really liked the kknock down & Range. I am going back down Halloween weekend & plan on trying the new Winchester Blind Side with a MOd choke. Have heard good stuff & the tests seem to make sense. Now for back home I will probably stick Win #4 steel as we do a ton of pass shooting...& it gets fast & furiouse!

BTW....any body that has ever had the itch to try sea ducks.....Last year we hit 3 species of Scoter, Eiders & Squa....check out Jack Renfrew at Coastline Guide Service. http://www.coastlineguideservice.com . Jack is one of the best on the New England Coast....he won't steer you wrong!