Favorite shotgun?

[Duck Nitz]

Well, FishWhipple, All I can say is Fuck Anyone who don't shoot a Benelli!!! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Fish]

Now, now Nitzcompoop, keep all punches above the belt.

[Duck Nitz]

THat aint no fun, FishSTICK!!

[dukhntr]

Since it's guage and shot you want to discuss lets start by saying.... I don't think you need the 10 guage at all. If I had a 16 ga, FW, I would use it every resonable chance I had. I firmly believe there is no need for any shot size bigger than 4's. I think 6's are an all around good shot size for any duck whether passing or decoying. Buy the highest DRAM equivalent with 1 1/4 oz shot, and you should do just fine. IMHO

[Carla Dee]

The nobody needs a 3.5" 12ga and nobody needs to shoot larger than #6 steel for passing birds line of thought is just simply foolish. If you like it and it works for you, fine, but don't think that you're right about that. #6 shot out of any gun (.410, 28, 20, 16, 12, 10, 8, steel, lead, HS, or whatever else) will kill a bird stone dead at a reasonable distance, but they are equal on passing shots at 60yds. Plenty of people will bitch about 60yd shots. Let em bitch. You can kill ducks with reasonable success at 60yds with 3.5" #4 HS all day long (#4 HS has greater than 50% more energy at 60yds than #2 steel does at 40yds). You just have to be able to put it on em.

If you are interesting in actually understanding the physics of shotgunning, do a little research. If not, keep on thinking that you know and spouting nonsense.

[Carla Dee]

And for you full time woodie wackers, shooting a woodie in the face in the flooded timber can be successfully accomplished with whatever the hell you got... rock salt through BBs. Yes, it is true that they will die if you hit them with a pebble at 20 feet.

The ballistics experts that I truely enjoy are those who scream about shooting ducks with #6 steel and shoot 7.5s at the doves. That makes a lot of sense...

[Chuck the Duck Slayer]

From now on I am going to start shooting my buddies 12 ga Western Auto bolt action shotgun when I go duck hunting. It has no recoil pad, made in the old days and kicks like a mule with dove load in it. But by god aint many people seen them much less own one.

[dukhntr]

In case you're lipping off at me, I said no need for shot size bigger than 4's, however, I like 6's. If you need me to post a quote, I will.

[Fish]

Originally posted by Carla Dee:
If you are interesting in actually understanding the physics of shotgunning, do a little research. If not, keep on thinking that you know and spouting nonsense.

Danielson...wax on, wax off. [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

I like the steel 6s for close quarters combat but if'n I'm a headin to Pamlico sound I may be inclined to pull out the ol' 10ga and load it with 2s or BBs. It does real well up there. Shot size and type depends on where and how. If I'm huntin over decoys and there is a chance that I will see big ducks I will have at least 4s in my gun.

[Carla Dee]

I hear ya, duckhntr, and I'm sure that you bust plenty of ducks with your 6s. I shoot 6s often, but I just don't agree with, "I think 6's are an all around good shot size for any duck whether passing or decoying."

[dukhntr]

no biggie, that's why they're called opinions, and that's why Whistle asked everyone on this site what they THOUGHT. I guess if he wanted to "understand the physics of shotgunning" he could've just asked you. That is also why I threw in the "IMHO"

BTW, I own a 3.5" gun and often shoot #4's, although I don't always feel I need it, sometimes it's all I can find.

[Carla Dee]

Yeah, I'm with you on the steel 6s, but only when you plan on only shooting the birds over the dekes, or if you are shooting little birds... teal or summer ducks. Otherwise, you are going to cripple a large number of big ducks that you shoot at over 35yds.

[Fish]

I stole a bunch of steel 6s from my buddy last year and shot a pile of birds with them. If I hit the bird I usually killed it stone, head on belly while its falling, dead. When I plucked these birds I noticed the difference in pellet wounds compared with 4s and 2s was dramatic. Often I would count better than 15 wounds with the 6s and rarely counted more than 5 or 6 wounds with the 4s and obviously even less with the 2s. There are exceptions but on average thats what I found. Reasonable shots of less than 40 yards with steel 6s resulted in clean kills...mallards and divers included.

[Fish]

Now back to the 16ga heavy shot. Whos seen it and where?

[Carla Dee]

Mikey, I'm afraid that you are going to have to "roll your own" with the 16. I would love some HS in 28 for the woodies...

[Fish]

Daaaamnit! Thats BS. A sixteen guage reloader will cost me a weeks work.

[Gander]

Your gonna have to weasle some 16 ga hevi from Snake. Just shoot the damn 10 ga and be done with it. I ain't never killed a duck too dead. I have some 10 ga Hevi I'll let you whack with. Some say you don't need 3 1/2 inch shells for ducks, but I also don't see any harm. The same medicine can be used for the geese that get stupid. The cost of the shells is negligible, shoot what kills them the best.

[Carla Dee]

And that makes sense about pellet count - 6s are only about 60% the size of 4s, therefore there are almost twice as many pebbles in the same load, so you should see quite a few more holes in your birds with those.

[scfowler]

Steel 1s out of my Benelli M1. They just og together.

[Fish]

Interestingly enough, and I forgot to mention, most of the no6 pellets passed through.