:morning:
I had the need for some barrel work and choke installation on my Browning A5 Mag Belgian and was talking about TSS vs Long Beards and the topic came up about cleaning the harvested bird that had been shot with the nines vs the LB sixes and how difficult it was to get all of those little shot out of the meat prior to cooking it. Sixes are bad enough to find and remove but the nines are very difficult by comparison. He went on to say that since the sixes are lead and you were unfortunate enough to bite down on one he thought that the lead shot would be more forgiving than the TSS shot because of the hardness difference between the two. It's something I never considered because I don't shoot TSS, but thought it was worth mentioning as cracking a tooth is no laughing matter especially now with most dentists in quarantine... :camohat:
So far the 3 turks I shot with tss almost all the shot went to the head . I did find a flyer or 2 in them . but I didnt have any problem finding them. To your point though I can see where biting down on one is not a good thing.
I'm not sure how true it is as i've never shot a bird with TSS, but i've read when pellets hit the breast they pass all the way through the meat. Again, not sure how true this is but I'm interested in finding out.
That's a comment you would hear from someone who has no first hand experience.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
I've got plenty of time to pick out shot regardless of what it's made of.
Quote from: fallhnt on April 15, 2020, 09:39:07 AM
That's a comment you would hear from someone who has no first hand experience.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
Exactly
I've shot 8 birds with #8.5s and haven't had that problem yet. I think one of them had a shot or two that hit the breast, but they apparently passed all the way through. I rarely shoot low enough for it to be a concern.
Shoot them where you are suppose to and you wont have that problem. We all know that sometimes things dont go as planned. I have killed at least a dozen birds , ate them all and never bit down on one of those 9's. Same for my family. I have had some shot go into the breast on a few of them , but they never stayed in the bird. Blew through like butter. Most of these birds have been under forty , the majority 20 or 25 yards. You fling those long shots and we all know the pattern opens up considerably and can very easily end up with some pellets where we dont want them. Will they stay in the bird? At those longer distances , very possible. Also when you clean the bird , you will see the blood shot where the pellets hit. Just check them and make sure none are there. The ones I recovered , gets cleaned and loaded for the next bird.
Quote from: Spitten and drummen on April 15, 2020, 10:05:09 AM
Shoot them where you are suppose to and you wont have that problem. We all know that sometimes things dont go as planned. I have killed at least a dozen birds , ate them all and never bit down on one of those 9's. Same for my family. I have had some shot go into the breast on a few of them , but they never stayed in the bird. Blew through like butter. Most of these birds have been under forty , the majority 20 or 25 yards. You fling those long shots and we all know the pattern opens up considerably and can very easily end up with some pellets where we dont want them. Will they stay in the bird? At those longer distances , very possible. Also when you clean the bird , you will see the blood shot where the pellets hit. Just check them and make sure none are there. The ones I recovered , gets cleaned and loaded for the next bird.
That's what my experience has been, even going back to my lead days I dont think have had to ever remove more then 3 or 4 pellets from the meat of a bird I shot, certainly not a chore and with TSS i've always seen just a few wound channels and no shot stuck in the meat. But I aim for the neck at appropriate distances with a good choke and and an accurate reddot.
If I guy purchased TSS so he can body shoot and roll a bird at 76yds well then I hope he chips a tooth.
Same experience here. Pinhole pass throughs everywhere.
Killed 5 in 4 states last spring and had no issue with TSS in the breast, farthest was around 50 yards,,,I misjudged the distance and still had only a couple of shot in the breast...Devastating patterns and knock down at 40 yards with TSS Federal No 9.
Speaking of which Cabelas had them on sale last night for 18.99 a box for 3 inch, no 9 shot! I ordered 10 boxes I love it so much! Today it was back to normal! $33 A BOX
I've bit down on a few #9s Tss and it comes as a shock for sure. You can tell its not lead. That being said it's not a big deal. I might chew a little slower but the benefits far out weigh the negatives.
No matter what pellet you bite down on it hurts the same!! Biting down on lead ain't exactly like biting bubble gum
Our minds make us believe it hurts less with lead, but done on pellets in birds others killed that you may not know of the shot type used, I sure bet you can't tell which it is before you see it.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Dental insurance should help with the pain. LOL.
Steel shot for duck will chip teeth just as bad as the next
Lead shot is toxic , I wouldnt want to accidentally injest that , migratory birds were doing that when dabbling in ponds and that is why it is banned for waterfowl hunting
My son was eating some turkey poppers about 2 months ago and bit a tss #9 (man they are tiny) chipped his tooth. Seems like can't see wound channels with tss 9s like lead 6s. Lead would drag feathers in wound channels but those little 9s don't as much. I've been considering maybe a metal detector, thought remember duck hunters using something like a pointer type metal detector some years back.
If you look at my avatar, that bird was shot with HW#7. There are not many pellets retained even though it was 25-30 yard shot and the head was devastated. I had radiographed birds shot by me with both lead and Hevishot #6 and the difference was impressive - meaning less pellets that were retained by HW#7 than Hevi 6 than 5 lead. I would assume the same would be true that #9 TSS would be even fewer. Smaller size with greater retained energy means greater penetration.
I did watch a bird strut for a long time once and finally decided it was time to kill him, but he would not pick his head up by then from feeding and walking away, so I shot him with his head down at about 30 yards. He had a few in the breast and the off wing was broken at the humerus! That was Hevi #6.
PS Got to thinking about it and I had a side by side pic. The left one is HW7 and the right is Hevi 6. About the same distance for the kill.
Yes, you should be concerned. Wife slices breast thinner and holds up to light now that I'm using T9.5s.
I am trying 9's this year and that didn't cross my mind. Thanks for keeping me on my toes!
A few year ago I missed a H13 pellet and chipped a tooth.
I will be chewing slow this year (hopefully)!
Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk
Broke off part of a tooth on a gobbler my wife shot with Federal 8x10 TSS. Required a crown. i thought I had found all the shot in the breast. There wasn't much evidence of shot in the breast when I prepared to cook it. All it takes is one! TSS does not give. Just be extra careful when cleaning the bird and preparing to eat it.
Her gun does not shoot low, but she tends to on occasion. $1200 later, my tooth is good as new.
I can tell you for a fact that if some stray TSS hits the body some will stay in the breast tissue.I bit two pieces a few days ago and was fortunate not to break a tooth. The bird that this happened on was shot at 24 yards. Only a few strays but they stayed in the breast muscle. I ordered a small metal detector.
I think you are right reflex. It is the strays. there are always some outside the major pattern. Muzzleloaders are pretty bad about that too. Worse than modern. I had to clean a few tracts out of my son's bird before I cooked it.
I read all the time on forums that, "oh, don't worry, they all blow through." As evidenced in this thread, and based on personal experience, just like with lead and Hevi-shot, they do not always do that, even up close. No matter the circumstances, you can end up with some stray pellets out of the core pattern. I've picked them out if the skin, outer edge of the meat, throughout the meat, against the breast bone, in the legs, you name it. I go over the meat of every bird very thoroughly and sometimes still overlook them, which I chalk up to what was mentioned above about them not always leaving a visible, bloodshot wound channel or pulling in feathers like larger pellets.
Absolutely love shooting the stuff, but don't kid yourself that it's a guarantee that you don't need to watch out for shot in the meat. They don't give when you bite them. ????
what kind of metal detector, anybody used one or recommend one?
Little Wizard II https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00005NMUO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_MElMEb6X8JP9Q
This is the one I use. Chipped too many teeth on steel shot.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
People are funny.
I will radiograph the meat for y'all. Go halves on the breast meat for payment. :drool:
Quote from: Old Gobbler on April 15, 2020, 04:52:38 PM
Steel shot for duck will chip teeth just as bad as the next
Lead shot is toxic , I wouldnt want to accidentally injest that , migratory birds were doing that when dabbling in ponds and that is why it is banned for waterfowl hunting
Bite down on a steel pellet out of a duck breast once and you'll do your best to never miss a pellet ever again. In my opinion wound channels in turkey breasts are very easy to follow, and find and remove any pellets, especially if cut into nuggets or thin strips, you should be able to see the pellets pretty much.
Make clean ethical shots at clean ethical distances with a good tight patterning shotgun and eating shot wont be a problem. Cleaning out 9s from a bird isn't that hard, I too thought it might be, it aint. Where the pellet enters the bird. the area will be bloody, bruised, have a feather that got sucked in, something to let you know that you need to investigate for a pellet. Now if you shoot a bird at long range and absolutely pelt him with pellets from head to toe that might be more laborsome on your end to get them all out....but how could I feel bad for anyone who made a shot far enough to do that.
I shot a lot of pheasants over the years. When I find a pellet hole I send the knife blade down the hole till I find the pellet. Seems to work well for me. Not the prettiest breast when cooked but better then a damaged tooth.
steel & TSS definitely harder then lead. They all hurt and cause damage but there is a little give in lead.
I've shot quite a few with #9 and they do not pass all the way thru the breast. There are always flyers that drag feathers into the breast meat and stop.
I broke a crown on a tss #9 pellet that I didn't find while cleaning. it is a valid concern but somewhat avoidable
I bought the Little Wizard II metal detector. I had it happen out of 3 different guns. I love the patterns and it kills like lightning but I can't ever remember #5 copper plated lead staying in the meat.
I believe as posted prior, you were speaking with someone that hasn't a clue what they were talking about. Clean the turkey before cooking, I take pride in that. Do it with care and you will not bite down on any shot. Steel, TSS, or lead, doesn't matter they are all hard to bite down on, just like bone.