How to begin a choke/ammo quest?

[bowmike]

As you all know I got a bad case of bird flu this year. i upgraded the 870 with a scope and bought 2 different chokes to try out. I got the Primos Tight Wad and the Tru-Glo Gobble stopper. I have read good reviews about both. This weekend a few buddies are coming in for Corbin's first birthday and we are going to hit the range. i plan on sighting in my 870 with target loads at a short distance to get dialed in and use the remington 3" magnums to see how the gun performs at 40 yards.

I have been checking other forums and am seeing guys put up huge numbers with certain brands of ammos in a 10" circle.

I am a not a rich person by anymeans and many of these high end shells are 5.00 a piece and only go up from there. It is hard for me to fathom buying multiple different boxes of these 5.00 a shot brands but want to put up better numbers than what I get now out of the 15.00 a box of 10 3" mag shells.

My question is where do you guys begin your quest to get that match that puts up good number?

What shells would you suggest. From my reviews I am seeing that Magnum blends are about the best you can get without getting into the NITRO brand and 10.00 a shot.

I want to shoot a shell that puts a lot of bb's in the birds head.

I don't want to get swept up in a numbers game, but how many pellets should I try to get in a 10" circle. Do you guys just count the bb's in a turkey targets head when deciding. I want to get the gun sighted in pretty decent, so i can pick one of these shells with minumal amount of money spent.

Do you think it is better to go wtih 6&7 to get more pellets on the target or go bigger with 4 or 5 to get more power?

Thanks

[FullChoke]

I have a suggestion for economically trying out a number of shells to determine the best for your gun. Organize a patterning day with a number of your buddies. Each person brings 2 boxes of the the pre-selected gauge of the same type of shell, and make sure that no two guys have the same shells. This way, there will be enough of a wide variety of shells to try and see which load does best in your gun.

As far as loads, I would start with any HTL shot in 6's or 7's and go from there.

FC

[the Ward]

First let me state I am no expert by any means,but I will give you my take on it.It kinda depends on your average hunting situation.If the terrain you normally hunt limits you to 30yd shots,there is no need to get fancy or pricy with choke and load selection.The generally accepted rule is 100 pellets in the 10" circle at the maximum range you wish to shoot.That is usually at 40yds.So I would start with a couple of boxes of lead 6s in different brands i.e Winchester,federal,and so on.If your friends go in on buying some it will save you some cash.Then pattern each brand to see what does the best and then stock up on it.Some of the better lead loads are the federal thugs,"grey box"winchesters,and the Winchester hi-velocity and doubel X.When you pattern make sure to clean barrel between shots,and shoot on a calm day so you can get consistent results to compare.Don't worry about the lethality of a good lead load,it will kill all day long at 40yds if the pattern is there to do it.I'm sure others can chime in with some good advice for you.......ward

[the Ward]

I have a suggestion for economically trying out a number of shells to determine the best for your gun. Organize a patterning day with a number of your buddies. Each person brings 2 boxes of the the pre-selected gauge of the same type of shell, and make sure that no two guys have the same shells. This way, there will be enough of a wide variety of shells to try and see which load does best in your gun.

As far as loads, I would start with any HTL shot in 6's or 7's and go from there.

FC

   

[WildSpur]

I may get flamed for this but here we go...sight in with lead turkey loads dead on at 25 yards.  I mean dead on...just a few inches off magnifies the distance at 40 yards.  Use a bench rest. Once you get your zero, try a htl load at 25 yards.  They should be very close if not the same.  Head out to whatever distance you want say 40 yards and try again.

Imo dont kill yourself chasing a pattern at 40 yards.   The wind will get you and your pocket book.  Just have a good solid zero at 25 yards where the wind will have little effect.

I know you dont want to spend a lot on shells but imo the advantages of htl are worth it.  I would be shocked of hevi 13 #6-7 or magblends wont give you what you are looking for (realistically 130+ @ 40 yards with about any htl approved choke).  You could realistically get this done with 3 shots.  Now I know what my gun will do I just shoot lead for practice and save the htl for hunting.

Hope this helps.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2

[the Ward]

That's a good idea and solid advice Wildspur,nobody should want to flame anyone for offering  advice unless what their saying is something that could maim or kill, lol!

[allaboutshooting]

You've had a lot of good advice. "Big paper" at least 3 ft by 3 ft is necessary to see where your pattern is going. I recommend putting a sticker of some kind in the middle of the paper for an aiming point. Starting at 25 yards is a great idea to maker sure your POA and POI are the same.

Prior to going to the range, I'd recommend that you "deep clean" the bore of your gun and your choke(s).

Since you are shooting and 870 (I shoot several of them both in 20 gauge and 12 gauge) you need to make sure your magazine cap is tight. That's the only thing that holds your barrel in the receiver and if it's loose, your patterns can scatter. I recommend hand tight and then 3 clicks with some padded pliers.

As far as shotshells, you just can't do better today than Hevi-13 "Bronze" shells with either #6 or #7 shot. With the 2 chokes that you have, I'd recommend #6 shot. I've shot both of those chokes in 870s. They both will pattern better after a few rounds are through them.

If one or both of those chokes work for you, you're ready to do. If not there are others that will give you some higher numbers.

Good luck and please let us know how it goes.

Thanks,
Clark

[bowmike]

Thanks for all of the great advice. I had a few buddies tell me they used break cleaner on the bores of their trap guns. Do you all advise. I watched the difference between this and hopped and was surprised but I am Leary of using that intense of a substance. I think I will start put with the loads I have to get on the bored with mg scope. Then try the loads all about shooting suggested since he used the with the chokes and gun that I have.

[bowmike]

Well guys I got the scope dialed in. A few of my buddies were in from out of state. Ohio and Virgina. Made a fun day at the range with 2 AR's, 6 Handguns, and 2 870's. Of course I would forget my turkey loads but I got it sighted in with target loads.

I was really impressed that at 30 yards and one of those Coldwell targets, I believe the diameter was about 8" or so, I shot the 2 3/4" highbrass just to see that pattern and got 70 hits on that target. The pattern was perfectly centered. I did notice that the perfect center of the pattern was a bit patchy but both sides of that line had hits covering the 8" diameter.



I did not count the outside 10" circle but imagine it would be somewhere around 80- 100 or so. This was also after shooting a few rounds to get it dialed in at 15 yards as well. THe numbers on the quadrants with the 2 3/4" high brass were 16,16,17, 21, so it is pretty consistent. We shall see once I start playing with turkey shells.



I was happy with what I saw and cant wait to try it with actual turkey loads, a super clean barrel, and a bit more time for fine tuning.