Poly Chokes

W

Wingbone

New member
Anyone any experience with poly chokes? I have one on a gun I picked up in a package deal. Good? Bad? Indifferent? Can I shhot slugs through it? Thanks again,
Ken
 
Poly chokes are an ugly stepchild to many of us and that's a shame. They do what they say they do, adjust the pattern as needed.

But, they also add weight as the muzzle. Sometimes more weight than we like. If the term "Muzzle-Heavy" was in the encyclopedia, the picture next to it would be an A-5 with a Polychoke.

Some of us find the "Onion" at the muzzle distracting.

And, some were installed off straight. These won't pattern in the right Zipcode.

However, many older shotguns come with them, the extra weight for some is a plus factor in keeping the swing going, and the fast, tool free adjustment is good in field and blind.

Slugs can be shot through them IF the thing's set for an open pattern. Legend has it that the "Petals" break off if a solid ball is fired through a Full Setting. Open will almost certainly give better accuracy anyway.

And the marking are oft just approximate. Patterning is needed to find out where the real IC, Mod, etc, lurk.

HTH.....
 
What Dave McC says is correct. The main reason Poly-chokes fell out of favor was the invention of the plastic shot cup and the choke tube. Polys work fine - many were factory installed - in most cases, but there were exceptions. I have heard that Polys will acumulate wad plastic between the petals so you will have to keep it clean.

BTW - TruGlow [the folks who make fiber optic sights] now offer a Poly-choke-type device that screws in to your choke tube threads. It says the advantage is the option of multiple choke settings without changing tubes. Go figure!
 
Thanks,

Both of you state it might be factory installed. The gun its on is a Mont. Ward Wersternfield if that means anything. I know its a lower end gun but like I said it came in a package deal. Would this gun be worth anything more than an oddity? Would you shoot it till it falls apart or oil it and put it away? Thanks again for the info on poly chokes,
Ken
 
Western Field means it was made by another maker, depending on the model it could be a Winchester, High Standard,S&W,Howa or Mossberg.

Shoot it. It may just be The Magic Shotgun for you.
 
Western Fields hold practically no monetary value, so shoot it till it falls apart (and it shouldn't. Despite being cheaper than air and more basic than the "basic" model the're based on, the're usually pretty robust.)
 
Wingbone,
If you will post the model number on your gun I will try to look it up to see which manufacterer it is and what model it relates to.
 
Thanks for the info guys. The model # is SB60A. I tried looking it up and I think its a Savage 620A or 620 Delux. Its very heavy but not a bad looking gun. I think I will start shooting it.
Ken
 
Polychokes aren`t as bad as some would have you believe. I have an A-5 with a factory Polychoke (the same gun pictured in the encyclopedia! :p ). It was pattering really (really) poorly. Then Dave McC tipped me off to the fact that the choke can be turned too far and screw up the patterns. I checked PolyChoke`s website and have them a call. Once I adjusted it properly it worked just fine. It patterns better than my Mossberg 500 with AccuChoke now. Marcus
 
I have a factory-installed Poly Choke on a Belgian Browning Light-12 that I purchased new in the mid-60's. I had to special order one with a Poly Choke. I have patterned it extensively with various loads and it performs exactly as advertised. Patterns will vary slightly with different brands of identical loads. I have had no problems with the gun for over 40 years and it still shoots great patterns. I would not hesitate to buy another shotgun with a Poly Choke. I had a Weaver adjustable choke on a Winchester Model 12 in the early 60's and didn't like it nearly as well as the Poly Choke. I traded it in on the Browning.
 
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