Browning gold hunter

[jbennett]

In in the process of purchasing a Browning Gold Hunter 3.5". I am wondering if any of you have some info on which choke patterns beat with hevi shot magnum blend. I have several boxes of the 3.5" in these shells and want the highest recommended choke! Thanks for any advice you can offer.

[TheSportsman]

The Primos Jellyhead .670 and the Pure Gold .670 both shoot  very well in my browning gold with Hevi MagBlends

[DC101]

I shoot the 3" Gold Hunter for Turkeys and have had excellent results with 3" Hevi 13 2oz loads of 6s and 7s.

I have had excellent rsults with the Hevi Shot Choke and with the Jellyhead.

My SX2 in 3 1/2" (basically the same as the BGH) prefers 3" 2oz loads of H13 6s using a Hevi Shot Choke.

Both combos have been the end of quite a few birds over the years.

The Mag Blends in 3" pattern very well in both guns with any of the above metioned chokes, I just personally prefer the H13 loads for my hunts. I have never shot a 3 1/2" turkey load in my guns, or in any gun for that matter so I cannot give real world pattern results for those shells. I am sure they do well though.

[jbennett]

What restriction on the jelly head choke?

[jbennett]

Also, what sight do you guys use?

[camodawg]

I just bought an sx3 which should be pretty close to the same as the browning. I got lucky and found an indian creek BDS .665 in the classifieds.
I patterened it this weekend with 3 1/2" mag-blends and got 192 in the 10 @ 40 yds. And got 203 with a 3 1/2" hevi-13 #6 2.25oz.

[allaboutshooting]

Also, what sight do you guys use?

If you are looking at open sights, I really like the Truglo "Pro Series" fiber optic open sights. They are all steel and fully adjustable for windage and elevation.Your gun takes the TG944C.

I'd also encourage you to "deep clean" the bore of that gun. It helps more that you might imagine with fine bores like those on Browning shotguns.

I too find that the 3" Hevi-13 "Bronze" shells with 2 oz. of #6 deliver excellent patterns and do all that's necessary to cleanly kill a turkey at all ethical ranges, up to 40 yards. The Magnum Blend shells are also quite good but do have a good bit more recoil than the standard loads, especially in the 3.5" version.

Chokes. There are really a variety of chokes that work very well in that gun and with the Magnum Blend shells. I shoot several Invector+ barrelled guns and have tried a real variety of turkey chokes over the years with a variety of shells.

Lastly, I'd recommend that you pattern your gun in temperatures as close to those in the spring/fall when you'll be hunting. There can be great differences in patterns shot at 40 degrees and at 60+ degrees. It's just important to know.

Thanks,
Clark

P.S. Last month, I put 193 in 10" at 40 yards at 42 degrees with no large gaps (no gaps 1.5") using 3" Hevi-13 standard loads with 2 oz. of #6 shot. To me the quality of the pattern is more important than the number of hits and for that reason I measure the gaps as well as the number of hits.

[SKFOOTER]

Also, what sight do you guys use?

If you are looking at open sights, I really like the Truglo "Pro Series" fiber optic open sights. They are all steel and fully adjustable for windage and elevation.Your gun takes the TG944C.

I'd also encourage you to "deep clean" the bore of that gun. It helps more that you might imagine with fine bores like those on Browning shotguns.

I too find that the 3" Hevi-13 "Bronze" shells with 2 oz. of #6 deliver excellent patterns and do all that's necessary to cleanly kill a turkey at all ethical ranges, up to 40 yards. The Magnum Blend shells are also quite good but do have a good bit more recoil than the standard loads, especially in the 3.5" version.

Chokes. There are really a variety of chokes that work very well in that gun and with the Magnum Blend shells. I shoot several Invector+ barrelled guns and have tried a real variety of turkey chokes over the years with a variety of shells.

Lastly, I'd recommend that you pattern your gun in temperatures as close to those in the spring/fall when you'll be hunting. There can be great differences in patterns shot at 40 degrees and at 60+ degrees. It's just important to know.

Thanks,
Clark

P.S. Last month, I put 193 in 10" at 40 yards at 42 degrees with no large gaps (no gaps 1.5") using 3" Hevi-13 standard loads with 2 oz. of #6 shot. To me the quality of the pattern is more important than the number of hits and for that reason I measure the gaps as well as the number of hits.

What gun and choke did you shoot this pattern with Clark??

[allaboutshooting]

Keith,

That one was with the SX3 and I used the SSX choke and 3" Hevi-13 "Bronze" shells with 2 oz. of #6 shot. I've been doing a good bit of work on the quality of patterns and not just numbers. Many times I see patterns with good numbers but large gaps or holes in them. I consider any gap over 1.5" to be a potential problem.

I've been using a small plastic circle that's actually 1 3/8" in diameter (the plastic inside seal of a childproof prescription bottle) to measure gaps within patterns. It's clear so it's easy to see through and move around the pattern. There are no perfect patterns of course but if there are large gaps or too many of them, there's probably room for improvement.

I also like to look at the fringe pattern around the 10" pattern. I've been looking at 15" diameters for that fringe lately. I know that a turkey or a hunter can move just as the shot is fired and it's good to have some insurance in that event.

Since ammo prices have gone up so much, I have concern that it may discourage hunters from patterning their guns. We've learned a lot and probably saved a number of turkeys from being wounded and not cleanly killed by all the patterning that has taken place over the last 10+ years.

I'm looking at ways to get more information from fewer shots so that we can still pattern our guns and get good information without breaking the bank. It's a work in progress but I think one that is worthwhile.

Thanks,
Clark