[Texsun]

What's the best 3 inch shell to use (Texas coastal area.)

[ArmedBear]

I hope it's a crappy O/U, or that you have a lot of oil with you!:)

Something not steel (Hevi Shot, Bismuth, exotic shot) is probably "best", but you'll pay for it.

[chas08]

I hope it's a crappy O/U, or that you have a lot of oil with you!

Something not steel (Hevi Shot, Bismuth, exotic shot) is probably "best", but you'll pay for it.

Spoken like a true Idahorean, given the amount of salt air you deal with. ;) The reality is, the better care you give your gun before and after salt air exposure is far more important than the exposure itself. But I dont recomend taking an hierloom into the salt marsh. As to the OP's original question. If you are using Steel Shot... T-Shot... period. If you are using Hevi-Shot... B or BB... I've used them all and steel T-shot is my favorite overall. It will pass all the way through a Snow goose at 100 yards if you get the "Golden BB" right in the middle. If it has choke tubes and you don't have time or place to pattern it. Put an I/C in one barrel and a Mod in the other and go have fun. Assuming your gun and chokes are steel compatible.

[Texsun]

chas08, Thanks for the info! Sounds like you're an old pro! I'll assume to shoot I/C first then Modified correct?

[chas08]

Not a Pro by any measure but I've been an avid waterfowl hunter since I was 10 yrs old and went Duck hunting for the first time. I started Goose hunting around Eagle Lake,Tx. in the early 80's. Most of my experience has been with a BPS 10 ga. I currently shoot a Remington SP-10 for Geese. As for chokes, the pattern board is your friend. Large steel behaves differently than other shot sizes in most guns. I found that T-shot patterned better in my BPS with an I/C choke at 50 yds than with the Modified. I definitely wouldn't try anything tighter than Modified. As for the order in which to fire your barrels, generally, it's loose choke first / tighter choke second. Ive known fellows who have ran the same choke restriction in both barrels for long range performance. In Texas you will, as a rule, shoot at more geese at 50 yds plus than 40 yds or less. Good luck I hope you have a great hunt.

[MCgunner]

Lead is best, but thanks to game laws......

Jeez, I read this as "28 gauge". ROFL! In a 12 gauge 3", bend over, put your head against the wall, whip out your checkbook, and hope the check don't bounce. BB hevi shot works as good as 10 gauge T shot, but you pay for the privilege. That's why I bought a 10 last year, price of Federal Tungsten Iron went from a buck 30 a round to about $3.50 a round. OUCH! I'm paying a buck a round for 10 gauge, but just got my MEC press fired up and am going to order me some steel soon, though midway has it backordered. :rolleyes: I think I can cut the price in half.

I think, last time I looked, hevishot was running around $2.50 a shot. Take 50 rounds with ya, but you won't burn it all up. I've burned up a box before of BB steel out of a 12 gauge with minimal results when they wouldn't come down below 50 yards. I finally got fed up and bought a 10 gauge. Like Chas says, T shot shoot right through 'em, leaves an exit wound. Pretty awesome when you know how pathetic BB steel is at beyond 45 yards. I swear you can hear the stuff hit and bounce off, bird gains 5 yards iin altitude and flies on.

Now, it really matters what kind of a day it is. If it's a good low ceiling day and they're coming down readily, a 20 gauge with 2 shot is plenty. But, such is not often the case down here. On some days, 50 yards is about as close as it gets.

[ArmedBear]

Spoken like a true Idahorean, given the amount of salt air you deal with.

A lot of my life, I lived within a mile or two of the ocean. As a surfer and outrigger canoe racer, I was always tracking salt around and having to worry about rusting stuff. Down in Texas, where you have salt humidity, I can't imagine how nasty it must be on steel.:)

[chas08]

A lot of my life, I lived within a mile or two of the ocean.
:D(LOL) Yeah, AB I remember reading your posts when you lived in CA. I was just yanking your chain to get a rise out of you, all in fun. ;) Nice post and pic about Gus's first pheasant. I would love to hunt those someday before I get too old to walk much.

[ArmedBear]

Oh, not a rise at all. I just know how insidious saltwater can be. It follows you to bed at night, it climbs into your car. I really don't know how you guys keep your guns from falling apart in your hands down there.:)

[MCgunner]

And then there was the time I unknowingly drove through the 50 percent caustic spill at the plant on a Monday morning. But, that's another story........poor little Toyota, may it rest in peace.

[chas08]

I really don't know how you guys keep your guns from falling apart in your hands down there
I suppose there are as many techniques as there are hunters. I start with wiping the gun down with rem oil before it goes in the case. I keep the case zipper down in the gun rack for the boat ride. The case is very water repellant with a wrap of closed cell foam under the outer cover for flotation. I prefer full length zippers. I keep a liberally soaked oily rag in my blind bag or coat pocket and will wipe the gun off as needed during the day. I never needlessly handle the metal surfaces of my firearms. Thats what the wood or plastic is for. If every thing gets soaked, gun, case, etc... I thoroughly deluge the metal surfaces with a spray can of Rem Oil and slip it in the case dripping. I never let a gun stay long in a wet case. I'll either have an extra dry case in the truck or unzip the full length zipper and let it lay open in the back seat. I know it sounds obsessive, but they cost too much to not take care of. And a thorough complete tear down cleaning when I get home.

[MCgunner]

Hard case for boat rides. I wax the gun, all over, with paste wax, then when that dries, I put a coat of Corrosion X on it. That seems to work pretty well on a blued finish. I don't know about an 870 express, though. Those things are rust magnets. Paste wax couldn't hurt, though. The camo finished Mossberg doesn't need as much TLC. THAT is one corrosion resistant finish! I don't bother with the wax, just Corrosion X it before the hunt and after cleaning when I get home. Beats the heck out of any bluing. I like the Benelli Nova Idea, but really, I've been impressed with the camo finish.

[MCgunner]

Don't know if you're familiar with this area, Chas, but where I beat up a beautiful side by side goose hunting was hunting Brazoria NWR. There's a HUGE roost there, 10K geese on there minimum I'd think. I grew up pass shooting those geese as they flew inland off that roost near Jones Creek which is between Freeport and Brazoria. You have a mile or so boat ride in a shallow creek getting down there, right off the gulf, just a small island other side of the intracoastal from the Gulf of Mexico. We didn't have a "bay" there. In a dry year, you were lookin' at 35 ppt salinity, just like in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, ore pretty danged close. LOL In a wet winter here, all the river run off and the bay is 20 miles inland of the gulf, it can be near fresh. Well, that old gun got beat up on those boat rides, got some rust spots on it from the environment, really tough hunting. Those kinds of hunts are where a Nova would be nice.

There was some good goose hunting there, but like any public area, I got my fill of idiots. A guy I worked with and I made up about 400 full body deeks out of paper tins. Young and dumb at the time, they were heavy as hell! We usually could take about 50 each at best so we'd get as many guys as we could fit in the boat to go. LOL We'd set up a big spread, add some rags, and when we got 'em coming in, these IDIOTS who didn't bother with deeks would camp out on the edge of ours and sky blast. :banghead::fire:

After moving down here, I had one lease that was decent and was in a hunting club with spots with Larry Gore's outfit in Katy for a while. Now days, for a good goose hunt, I use a local guy. It's 150 a gun, but it sure is nice, all to ourselves. There is a small, but decent roost out on the WMA here, though. It's a long walk back in close to 'em and the hunting's over 30 or 45 minutes after they get up and decide to move inland.

[chas08]

Now days, for a good goose hunt, I use a local guy. It's 150 a gun
Thats about the going rate these days. The last few years I've had trouble getting the four man minimum that most guide services require. I haven't been on a guided hunt in a while. I hunt a small place near Bay City and another near Bloomington. They are by invitation. I only got to go twice last year because of other commitments. I gave the Ducks a run for their money though.

[paintballdude902]

+1 for paste wax

[interlock]

I have got some spray on oily stuff that is like a cohesive grease. I spray it all over my guns, little bits of dust and flies etc get stuck to it, but thats ok. I don't use my nice guns on the marsh i have a cheap spanish sbs blne. I use eley HV bismuth #5 shotfor duck and hevi shot 3 inchers for geese#3 shot. i used to use winchester magnum 3 shot for geese when you could use lead, they were good. the tning with a goose is that they are not armoured - but they are big and very fast fliers. when shooting them don't look at the body treat the head a bit like a pigeon or a partridge and take your lead from the head.

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