TSS and 20ga convert?

[hush]

Almost convinced to make the switch from 12ga 3 1/2s HV13 to a lighter 20ga with TSS. Help me make the decision. I've read up on the TSS loads from a 20 and it sounds like a win. Is this really a 40yd gun? Are 20yd shots too tight? Any downside? Will there be 9 shot in the breast meat? 7 or 8 a suitable choice? Best link to a ballistics chart with TSS energy? Rem 870 compact would be most likely.
Thanks.

[dirt road ninja]

It will do everything your 12 is doing only better & lighter.

[DBell]

You could switch to 20 ga and have a 40 yard gun without TSS. Hevi 13 or even longbeards will get you there with the right choke no problem. From what I've seen and heard, TSS will go far beyond 40. Smaller and lighter toting the 20 around, that's enough for some people to switch. I have a 20 ga 870, not the compact, and it's been nothing but great to shoot and carry. If I was gonna shoot TSS id go all out and setup an optic or adjustable sights. I wouldn't want have a bird full of #9 cause I shot a little low. But maybe they go right through. If youre shooting under 40 yards, I guess it comes down to if you want to kill the bird with 100 pellets in the 10 or 300 in the 10.


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[davisd9]

I wouldn't want to and have a bird full of #9 cause I shot a little low


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You won't as it goes through the meat.  I have yet to find a TSS pellet in my breast meat and I have been shooting it going on 4 years.  If you stick to ethical ranges then you will have no issue with pellets in meat.

[DBell]

I wouldn't want to and have a bird full of #9 cause I shot a little low


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You won't as it goes through the meat.  I have yet to find a TSS pellet in my breast meat and I have been shooting it going on 4 years.  If you stick to ethical ranges then you will have no issue with pellets in meat.

I thought that might be the case since it's so dense and small. Zip right through


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[Gobble!]

With smaller #10 TSS 40 yards isn't a worry in the least.

20 yard patterns can be tight depending on how the gun is setup. Some people want to shoot 20 gauges with crazy tight 40 yard patterns so 20 can be extremely tight with those setups. But you can produce forgiving 20 yard patterns while still out patterning 12 gauges shooting lead at 40 yards of setup appropriately.

Only downside is the cost. It's not cheap to shoot the best.

I shoot a 2.5oz load of #9s. 900 pellets in the load and I don't have issues with excessive pellets in the breast, most cases none at all.

#8s are a good choice if #9s AREN'T available but I have no desire to shoot #7s. Those larger #7s take up too much space especially in smaller payloads which reduces your overall pellet count in the load.

No ballistics chart around here but expect TSS to perform like lead four sizes larger. It's really impressive stuff.

[BandedSpur]

Why drag a boat anchor through the woods and get your fillings knocked out and retinas detached if there is a better way? A 20 ga with TSS is the better way. It can be way more than a 40 yd gun if that is what you are into, or it can have a very wide and forgiving pattern at 40. Shoot 9s unless they are not legal in your jurisdiction. I generally find 0-4 pellets in the breast meat, and that is only because I shoot most of my birds inside 40 yds with a light mod choke from the open barrel of my O/U which has a very wide and forgiving pattern. Having shot TSS for 10 years, I would not shoot it without an optic of some sort, esp. with a single barrel gun, as patterns can be tight.

Don't know where to find a TSS energy chart, but the best money I ever spent was for the KPY ballistic program (now sold by BPI). You can find out anything about any pellet ever designed to be shot from a shotgun and its external ballistics. BTW, TSS does not kill with energy, rather with penetration. A TSS 9 pellet has no where near the energy of a lead 4 pellet, but it doesn't need it, and will penetrate just as far. The extreme density of a TSS pellet coupled with its very small surface area allows it to smash bone and penetrate as deeply as a lead pellet 5 sizes bigger, even though it has less energy. Energy was a meaningful metric when there was only one shot material...lead, but is less useful given the proliferation of denser materials that allow you to step down in pellet size for similar performance.

[g8rvet]

All good advice. 

The one thing I have never understood (and my nephew said this for years until I helped him understand better at the patterning board) is why everyone is so concerned with a pattern being too tight.  With my Federal HW #7 in my 20, at 15 yards I am shooting a pattern as big around as a softball (or grapefruit).  I would feel pretty confident at 15 yards with a 22LR for accuracy, so a softball sized shot column should be fine!  If your gun is well patterned and your optics (be it beaded, red dot or scope) is consistent and you know where it shoots, it should not be a problem.  Many moons ago, I shot at a running turkey at about 10 steps.  He took off flying and I just waited until he got out to about 40 and folded him up - an easy passing shot with a shotgun and that was with #5 high brass lead (it was a long time ago). 

Pattern your gun and you will be fine on the up close shots. 

[hush]

Man! Thank you for all of the info! I am convinced to give it a go. I may have waited a bit too long as Apex TSS 9s appear to be gone! Excited for a 20ga build though!

[Gobble!]

Man! Thank you for all of the info! I am convinced to give it a go. I may have waited a bit too long as Apex TSS 9s appear to be gone! Excited for a 20ga build though!

Call them every few days. They sell a pile of shells this time of the year. Check mackspw.com daily as well.

[gobblers roost]

Tss and ooad yourself satisfying

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[gobblers roost]

Tss and load yourself satisfying

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