I don't get the turkey choke obsession

[chow hound]

I succumbed to the turkey choke obsession one year and just don't get it.  My experience with multiple guns is that it is virtually impossible to have your pattern not kill a turkey 40 yards with just about any #6 or #7 12 gauge load out of a factory full.  On the other hand, it is really easy to miss a sub 20 yard turkey with a turkey choke.  It seems to me that any range advantage that you think a turkey choke gives you would be offset by the misses.  I have definitely shot more turkeys sub 20 yards than over.  Turkey chokes just feel like a "need" that has been created by marketing.  What am I missing?

[guesswho]

Nothing

[High plains drifter]

I've used a turkey choke for 20 years.I have only missed one bird, and he was flying, and it was long range. They are not that great under 15 yards, but you have to use the same load, every time you hunt, if you want to get good with the extra full.

[Ozarks Hillbilly]

You are right it's is a marketing thing, but that can be said about most things in the Hunting and Fishing industry. Most of it is designed to catch us the sportsman. I feel they are doing a good job of it if you look in my hunting closet or in my boat.

[penna shooter]

Your not missing on anything....Some turkey chokes better than others, some just Meh....I just used Carlson chokes and kills just fine....I stopped there....No IC, Jebs, and Kicks, etc..endless....oh Mullers....Very pricey....people pay it.....oh, let talk about shells.....$50.00 plus for TSS....Good grief man.

[g8rvet]

I would not shoot at a turkey at 40 yards with #7 1/2 lead shot.  Regardless of the choke.

[the Ward]

It's all about choices. If you want a gun capable of an ethical killing pattern at 40 yards, then it's going to be tight at 20 yrds. Even a stock full choke is pretty tight at 20 yards with a good turkey load, while probably not being able to put 100 in the 10" at 40 yards, the widely accepted minimum to ensure an ethical kill. A simple set of clamp on sights will help with those close in shots. I'd rather take a chance of missing one up close, than "missing" one at 40. Most "misses" at 40 are not misses at all, it was a failure to put enough pellets in the vital area to kill due to a poor pattern density. It boils down to what your personal methods and limits of the hunting you do as to how to best choke your gun.

[Goodtimekiller]

A deer rifle can miss a deer at 10yards if sighted in at 200 too. If you want the most effective pattern at 40 yards then you should also know where your gun is hitting at 10 and aim accordingly.


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[fallhnt]

My pattern told me otherwise.

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[zelmo1]

Not an obsession really, its our ethical obligation to the animal. If your stock choke gives you a good pattern at the max distance that you will shoot, you are done. If not, try till you do. Everybody has a conscience, some just don't listen. Just my 2 cents. Good Luck everyone, Al Baker

[dublelung]

Same can be said about anything out there. Some like fast cars and soup them up for high performance while some drive stock cars without doing anything but gassing it up and changing the oil. Some cultivate their gardens and some feel a hoe does just fine. Some run non ethanol fuel while others don't.
Fanning vs non fanning.  Dekes vs no dekes.  It's all personal preference and what you feel works for YOU. We were never meant to understand why someone else does something. Shoot whatever you want and be happy.

[tha bugman]

I'm a pattern junky and I like chasing the numbers almost as much as I like chasing the birds.....but not quite   

[Gobble!]

Its a hobby of its own.

[dirt road ninja]

See the above. Just cause.

[BrowningGuy88]

While I have killed quite a few birds with a factory full choke in a Remington 870 and a fixed full in a Model 12, it by no means makes me want to not have a better pattern.

I use turkey chokes to maximize my efficiency in killing turkeys. The shot is the least of my turkey hunt. I just want to know when it gets to that point, there is very little question as to the outcome.