I don't know about others, but here is my "reality":
I think it is great that we preach the "forty-yard max" mantra. We should stick to that...and the reason we should stick to that is because, based on what I have personally seen, the great majority of turkey hunters probably have no clue as to how the shotgun they are shooting performs. However, I think most modern shotguns will kill a gobbler out to forty yards with a "turkey load"...and I would hope that those hunters in that majority class would at least be that conscientious.
Most of us here are not them, I would hope. I have a pretty good idea as to how far the shotgun and loads I use will kill a gobbler. It is considerably farther than forty yards. Still, I try to have the self-discipline to not pull the trigger beyond our agreed-upon mantra distance...and at least nine times out of ten, the question of my self-discipline does not ever come into play because, when I pull the trigger, the gobbler is well within that distance.
On the other hand, under the circumstances I usually hunt, I almost invariably have to judge the distance a gobbler is at by using the "mental imagery" set in my brain over the years which tells me he is either in range or he is not. The fact is, circumstances related to terrain, vegetation, lighting conditions, etc. have thrown off my mental calibration a few times over the years and I have pulled the trigger beyond forty. In all of those cases except one, either the gobbler has died on the spot or I have missed because of "user error".
The one case is etched in my brain, though. I did not miss and the gobbler ran off obviously hit hard...and I did not recover him. If there is any good that came from that incident, it is that I will no longer ever pull the trigger when my mental imagery tells me a gobbler is out of range...or even remotely looks like he might be.
Wild turkey gobblers are too majestic a bird and too valuable a resource to be taking "golden BB" shots at them...and no matter what weapon and load one uses, there is a point where a shot taken fits squarely in that realm.
