Shotgun "shot" size help.

I was not suggesting that anyone fire one pound or one ounce pieces of shot.
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....as I took care to point out in my post, I understood it was an analogy ...... would not want to confuse folks.....

I am not a hunter, but when patterning are you only looking to see that a single pellet hits the duck drawn or enough pellets to bring one down, if more than one is usually needed?
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I am looking to make sure there are not large gaps in the pattern, and there will be multiple hits in vital areas ....... most birds are not hard to kill with birdshot (turkeys being an exception-their feathers make pretty good armor, don't ask me how I know.....) all you need to have is a pattern dense enough that the vital areas you are trying to hit gets several pellets........

I don't hunt ducks, I hunt doves and turkeys ..... when patterning for doves, I want the largest pattern possible that leaves no more than about 2" between pellets at 30 yards....... for turkeys, I want a much tighter pattern ..... say, not more than 1" at 40 yards...... and any pellet outside of a 6 or 8 inch circle is wasted....... I am aiming just below the turkey's head and want to break his neck with a pellet or two.....
 
This is awefully confusing but I think I'm getting it now.
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Welcome to shotgunning.
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Shotgunning is not confusing..... it is the most natural of the shooting sports..... it is instictive: pointing as opposed to aiming. Overthink it and it gets hard.

Get some good guidance from guys you are hunting with ...... show up at a Trap club- there are plenty of folks that would be more than happy to give you some pointers.

Trap is fun, though the birds are not all palatable.
 
I used to hunt geese and duck. The reason you would use a 4 shot "over decoys" is the shots are generally closer in and with the duck coming in at slower speeds or even preparing to "sit" for landing. I would use number 2 shot for "pass shooting" where the distance was significantly futher often meaning at much higher elevation. As others have stated you will get more distance with heavier shot (number 2 shot) and a denser pattern due to the great number of shot with the larger numbered shot; i.e., number 4 shot.
 
Thank you for the welcome 8-)

Shotgunning isn't confusing it's just the 2,3,4 shot choke size, all that.
This will be my second season of duck hunting, and by god, I'm counting the seconds.
 
Good Day OP,

Ok, you stated that you were told to use #4 Steel over decoys. Why? I'll tell you why. Most decoy spreads are no more than 15-20 yard out from your position. Therefore, your shot range will not be that far and shot pattern density is more important. When making your decoy spread, the spread should have an opening in the "MIDDLE" where said incoming ducks will want to go, ie, the kill zone.

Will #2 steel work? Yes, but you'll have fewer pellets to achieve crippling/kill shots than with #4 shot. The shot selection would also dictate if you are hunting for a specific type of duck? For larger decoying ducks like Mallards, I would suggest 3inch #2's. However, if you will be hunting a wide variety, 3in #4's will cover a larger area for those faster, smaller ducks, like blue/green teal. For these birds, you don't need heavy hard hitting(#2's) so much as, smaller shotsize and denser pattern (#4's).

As for choke, Modified or improved Modified would fit well with either shot size but given your type of hunting, IM should work well. As some have mentioned, patterning your shotgun with the loads and chokes suggested will give you the best, full spectrum of information to make the best decision for your specific situation. I also suggest spending time on a trap/skeet range using the type of loads you plan on using for hunting, as each kind/type of shell has differnt characteristics and therefore lead will change and vary given different weathers conditions.

Feel free to ask for clarification on anything I wrote.

BC
 
I shoot 3" 1.25 oz #3 steel out of an IC or modified choke for about all of my duck hunting. I prefer a 1400 fps or faster load. That load has worked well on everything from little bluewings to big scoters. Steel pellets MUST be pushed faster to have anything approaching the killing power of lead. Keep your shots under 40 -45 yards, and you shouldnt have any problems.
If you dont mind dropping the coin Hevishot kills much better than steel especially on larger birds. I shoot #4 Hevi out of a modified choke for geese. It hammers them.
For practice, if you can get to a sporting clays range, concentrate on high crossers and incoming birds. That is mostly what you'll see duck hunting. Dont worry about shooting the same load that you hunt with for practice. Most ranges dont allow any shot larger than 7.5 and the difference in lead is insignificant.
 
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Is hevishot steel?
The reason why I asked originally is because I'd like to give Winchester's "Blindside" a go this season and it only comes in 2 and BB. And I'd like to see if it is alright to use 2 shot instead of 4.
 
Is hevishot steel?​
HEVI-Shot is 54% denser than steel and 10% denser than lead. Consequently, it's a non-toxic load that delivers much more energy on target than steel (or lead). And, it costs much more, too.
 
Beware of gimmics in waterfowl loads. It seems its something new and improved every year mostly, designed to seperate you from as much of your hard earned money as possible. I used to shoot nothing but WW Drylocs, then Kent Faststeel, I couldnt find either so I bought the $9.99 Experts at Wally World. It kills them just as dead, for half the price of the premium steel loads.

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Oh, is it worth the extra cash?

I'm a little weary of buyin the new shells. (Remington hypersonic, and winchester's Blindside) but I kinda wanna see how they do. Cause I've shot only Remington's sportsman hispeed Steel in the blind so far.
 
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