guys shooting tss pattern question

[Bigeclipse]

was wondering... guys shooting new federal tss shells.  3 1/2" should have around 800 (9 shot bb's) wonder why the pattern numbers are so low in the 10 pattern count seems off... am I missing something?  i'm interested in shooting tss but trying to justify the price from my current longbeard ammo

lots of comments on this thread are very misleading and should not be considered. There are two reasons for TSS, use a smaller gauge shotgun OR shooting further (which people do not like talking about on this website).

TSS gives you very heavy shot allowing good penetration with smaller pellet size which gives you higher pellet count. The fact is, 90-100 pellets in a 10inch circle (assuming they are evenly spread) at whatever distance (assuming the pellets can penetrate the bird to vitals) is ALL you want. Any more, and you are just adding more shot to the meat area. Any less and you risk a wounded bird. With any 12gauge shotgun, you can buy much cheaper ammo to achieve these numbers with #6 lead pellets (especially in a 3.5 inch magnum load). So why bother buying TSS? Well as I stated above, you can now use a 20, 28, or 410 size shotgun and achieve these same patterns with #9 shot. So why do they make TSS in 12gauge? Well, because more and more hunters want to shoot further than the typical 40 yard max distance. With 600-800 TSS pellets in a load, you can use a more modified choke yielding about 200 pellets in a 10inch circle at 40 yards and then 100 pellets in a 10in circle at much further distances. The TSS at these distances will still penetrate a gobbler just fine.

So basically what I am saying is unless you are using a smaller gauge shotgun OR you intend to shoot past 40 yards at turkeys...you are really wasting your money shooting TSS.

Super high pellet counts in a 10inch circle are simply a waste of meat and a waste of shot and honestly...indicate your pattern is likely too tight increasing your chance for a miss for close range shots under 20 yards.

Moderator...Please do not remove my comment about far distances I am just trying to relay information.

[BB30]

How much breast damage do you see with TSS and a 50/50, 350/350 split?  I've seen one breast shot bird and the feathers and shot are hard to remove from the meat.

Well I killed two birds last week in the 35-40 yd range - no breast damage.  Only found one TSS pellet and it wasn't lodged in the breast meat.

I am loving the IC .555 with the TSS in a 20 it is bad news for the turkeys for sure.

[DirtNap647]

Can I ask what shells your shooting I have a 20 gauge also

[G squared 23]

was wondering... guys shooting new federal tss shells.  3 1/2" should have around 800 (9 shot bb's) wonder why the pattern numbers are so low in the 10 pattern count seems off... am I missing something?  i'm interested in shooting tss but trying to justify the price from my current longbeard ammo

lots of comments on this thread are very misleading and should not be considered. There are two reasons for TSS, use a smaller gauge shotgun OR shooting further (which people do not like talking about on this website).

TSS gives you very heavy shot allowing good penetration with smaller pellet size which gives you higher pellet count. The fact is, 90-100 pellets in a 10inch circle (assuming they are evenly spread) at whatever distance (assuming the pellets can penetrate the bird to vitals) is ALL you want. Any more, and you are just adding more shot to the meat area. Any less and you risk a wounded bird. With any 12gauge shotgun, you can buy much cheaper ammo to achieve these numbers with #6 lead pellets (especially in a 3.5 inch magnum load). So why bother buying TSS? Well as I stated above, you can now use a 20, 28, or 410 size shotgun and achieve these same patterns with #9 shot. So why do they make TSS in 12gauge? Well, because more and more hunters want to shoot further than the typical 40 yard max distance. With 600-800 TSS pellets in a load, you can use a more modified choke yielding about 200 pellets in a 10inch circle at 40 yards and then 100 pellets in a 10in circle at much further distances. The TSS at these distances will still penetrate a gobbler just fine.

So basically what I am saying is unless you are using a smaller gauge shotgun OR you intend to shoot past 40 yards at turkeys...you are really wasting your money shooting TSS.

Super high pellet counts in a 10inch circle are simply a waste of meat and a waste of shot and honestly...indicate your pattern is likely too tight increasing your chance for a miss for close range shots under 20 yards.

Moderator...Please do not remove my comment about far distances I am just trying to relay information.

Great post, great points.  Really impossible to argue against.  More isn't always better; sometimes it's detrimental.  But for the guys that care more about numbers than turkey breast, more IS better.