Okay, it seems like the "What shot size to use for HD" is a pretty common question around here. I know I've asked it a time or two myself.
So, in the spirit of halloween, I purchased a few pumpkins and decided to do some experimenting.
I bought 7 pumpkins in the 15-20 pound range. They looked to be about the same thickness as an average torso. Supplied with targets, I went to the local gravel quarry.
The shotgun used for this experiment was as Non-tactical as you are gonna get. A 20 gauge Ted Williams Autoloader. Loads used were:
Federals Multi-Purpose Shot Shells(7.5 shot...the bulk stuff from Wal-mart)
Federals Classic #3 Buckshot
And Federal Slugs, 7/8 oz.
Okay, mmaximum shot distance in my house is about 13 yards. So, I set up pumpkins at 5 yards, and 10 yards, and commenced blastin.
If you think this data is going to be in a pretty chart, you are wrong.
At 5 yards, the slug went right through...about a fist sized hole in the back. Maybe if the pumpkin was frozen it would have expanded more.
At five yards, the results with the buck and trap loads were both pretty outstanding. Wish I had a time lapse camera set up...to my eye, it looked like both pumpkins just kind of fell apart. From the remains left over, it seemed like my pattern size was maybe 7 inches. If a person had been the target, they would have had a 7-inch by 8 inch whole in their chest. I would choose the cheaper one at 5 yards.
At 10 yards, the result with the slug was about the same, but since I didn't hit the target dead center, I kind of cut the left side of it in half. Need practice with slugs and bead sights.
At Ten yards, while it appears to my guesstimation that similar amounts of lead hit the pumpkins, the #3 Buck had noticeably better penetration. One or two pellets still went right through. The bird shot got about 6-8 inches of penetration...still enough that I feel a goblin would go down and stay down. At ten yards, my groups seemed to be more along the line of a foot to a foot and a half, by the calibrated eye method of measuring.
The final pumpkin got dressed in double thickness of jeans, and fell victim to a .40 S&W Golden Sabre...I wanted to find out what the deal was with 'clogging' hollowpoints. I KNOW!!!! This is the shotgun forum. So, I won't tell you how bad that pumpkin looked after two shots...
I hope this unscientific experiment helps some people out. Me? Untill I move to woods and start worrying about 4-legged predators, I'm not wasting $4 for 5 rounds of #3 Buck.
So, in the spirit of halloween, I purchased a few pumpkins and decided to do some experimenting.
I bought 7 pumpkins in the 15-20 pound range. They looked to be about the same thickness as an average torso. Supplied with targets, I went to the local gravel quarry.
The shotgun used for this experiment was as Non-tactical as you are gonna get. A 20 gauge Ted Williams Autoloader. Loads used were:
Federals Multi-Purpose Shot Shells(7.5 shot...the bulk stuff from Wal-mart)
Federals Classic #3 Buckshot
And Federal Slugs, 7/8 oz.
Okay, mmaximum shot distance in my house is about 13 yards. So, I set up pumpkins at 5 yards, and 10 yards, and commenced blastin.
If you think this data is going to be in a pretty chart, you are wrong.
At 5 yards, the slug went right through...about a fist sized hole in the back. Maybe if the pumpkin was frozen it would have expanded more.
At five yards, the results with the buck and trap loads were both pretty outstanding. Wish I had a time lapse camera set up...to my eye, it looked like both pumpkins just kind of fell apart. From the remains left over, it seemed like my pattern size was maybe 7 inches. If a person had been the target, they would have had a 7-inch by 8 inch whole in their chest. I would choose the cheaper one at 5 yards.
At 10 yards, the result with the slug was about the same, but since I didn't hit the target dead center, I kind of cut the left side of it in half. Need practice with slugs and bead sights.
At Ten yards, while it appears to my guesstimation that similar amounts of lead hit the pumpkins, the #3 Buck had noticeably better penetration. One or two pellets still went right through. The bird shot got about 6-8 inches of penetration...still enough that I feel a goblin would go down and stay down. At ten yards, my groups seemed to be more along the line of a foot to a foot and a half, by the calibrated eye method of measuring.
The final pumpkin got dressed in double thickness of jeans, and fell victim to a .40 S&W Golden Sabre...I wanted to find out what the deal was with 'clogging' hollowpoints. I KNOW!!!! This is the shotgun forum. So, I won't tell you how bad that pumpkin looked after two shots...
I hope this unscientific experiment helps some people out. Me? Untill I move to woods and start worrying about 4-legged predators, I'm not wasting $4 for 5 rounds of #3 Buck.
) and no spread. That's the advantage of a shotgun: spread.