Long barrel, more forgiving?

[Big Treble]

So this 870 I have had has a 28inch barrel. And trust me if there was a $150.00 choke I could purchase that would pattern right the first time. I would do it.

The thought of spending 100.00 for a pattern master, that might not group well nearly makes me sick.  But I hate to start buying $40.00 chokes to go through 5 and then find a winner.

Had been looking at a jelleyhead (60.00)and was ready to order one when I noticed the reviews on a HS Undertaker that sold for 22.00.

Would the longer barrel perhaps let me be a bit more forgiving when picking a choke?

[Oconeeguy]

 Yessiree. It my experience that longer barrels shoot a denser pattern at distance com paired with shorter barrels. Did an experiment once between a 20 inch barrel on a Mossberg 535, and a 28 inch barrel on a 500. Both clean and used the same Type shell from same lot and same Jellyhead choke. 28 inch was Significantly denser at 40 yds. A real eye opener when I com paired paper side by side.

[gwa]

I do not think barrel length is that big of a factor...

Contact William at Sumtoy, he is a site sponsor and makes great chokes. If the choke he sends you doesn't work out he will usually swap it out until you get the desired results.

Something else to consider is to try different shells. Winchester Longbeards are a good starting point in my opinion.

Denny

[BandedSpur]

Ditto. Call William @ Sumtoy. He will work with you to meet any reasonable expectation. A lot safer bet IMO in the long run than buying a bunch of less expensive chokes hoping to hit on a good combo.

[Big Treble]

Got some time to do some pondering, but thanks for the tips and ideas.

[grayfox]

Another thing you can do is buy some Hevi-13 #6 or 7.  If I could have used these to begin with I could have saved myself a lot of time & money on shells & chokes.

[allaboutshooting]

So this 870 I have had has a 28inch barrel. And trust me if there was a $150.00 choke I could purchase that would pattern right the first time. I would do it.

The thought of spending 100.00 for a pattern master, that might not group well nearly makes me sick.  But I hate to start buying $40.00 chokes to go through 5 and then find a winner.

Had been looking at a jelleyhead (60.00)and was ready to order one when I noticed the reviews on a HS Undertaker that sold for 22.00.

Would the longer barrel perhaps let me be a bit more forgiving when picking a choke?

To answer your question directly, yes, a longer barrel of at least 26" is more forgiving than a shorter one. That is not to say that you can't get a shorter barrel to pattern well but it's just easier to get the longer one to work. It's also true that each barrel can be different. That's why you'll often hear that someone has a short barrel that's a "patterning machine".

Lastly, sometime folks give up on a choke after firing only a few shells through it. Chokes, like barrels of rifles, pistols and revolvers, need a break in period to perform at their optimum level. There can be quite a difference between the 1st  shell fired through a turkey choke and the 10th and you don't have to use turkey loads for all those shots.

Thanks,
Clark

[Big Treble]

Thanks to Clark and everyone else willing to help educate me