"Shooting Threads"? What the heck!?

[TrapperReady]

Yesterday I was talking with a guy who is not a clay target shooter, but says that he knows quite a few and he even rattled off some names of guys I run into on the sporting clays circuit. Anyway, he mentioned to me that one shooter he was talking to sometimes simply removes his choke tubes and shoots with no tube in the gun at all.

I nodded my head and thought "Yeah. Right. :rolleyes: ".

Well, tonight I was reading a thread on shotgunworld.com and lo' and behold... someone mentioned that they will sometimes "shoot threads" for close targets.

Personally, I'd never do it with one of my guns. However, is this a practice anyone else has heard of? Or done? On purpose?

[DWARREN123]

I would not because of the chance to get the threads leaded.

[45auto]

To me, that's about the dumbest thing I've ever heard of doing, or one of them anyway.

I'm no expert, but without the choketube you are removing barrel thickness that was "designed" to be there. No doubt you will eventually damage the threads, if not the barrel. You can buy cylinder chokes...or skeet.

And last, :) , if that person thinks he will hit more targets because of minor difference in chokes, i.e. skeet, cylinder, IC, then he's very mistaken.

IMHO of course.

[JohnBT]

I've heard people say they've done it on purpose.

Not me.

Maybe they think the barrel threads will grab and slow the wad and give them a faster spreading pattern.

John

[TrapperReady]

Maybe they think the barrel threads will grab and slow the wad and give them a faster spreading pattern.


That's about the only thing I can think of. I would think that it would retard the wad, but that the threads would be prone to getting fouled with plastic and possibly lead. The barrel steel is much harder than the lead, so theoretically it shouldn't cause any damage... but I wouldn't want to test it with anything of mine.

I figure you can always either screw in a CYLINDER choke tube or something like a Cobra, which is very open and designed to help strip the wad early. I use my guns pretty hard, but "shooting threads" crosses the line into outright abuse.

[ArmedBear]

Even if you have REALLY protective wads, you'll have to clean the plastic from the threads, best case. No thanks.

[BozemanMT]

No offense, but that's just stupid.
The threads are there for a reason, to hold the chokes.
I would think shooting more than a couple of times would destroy the threads.

[PJR]

I did it once by accident:o

No damage resulted and since then choke tubes are ALWAYS left in the gun.

I've seen guys do it and consider it a profoundly foolish act.

[P95Carry]

First time I have heard of that - certainly never occurred to me to even try - respect for threads primarily I guess ;)