TrapperReady
Member
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2003
- Messages
- 2,732
Most of us are familiar with the standard shot sizes for upland hunting and target shooting. Pheasants seem to fall best when hit with #5 or #6. For target shooting, anything from #7.5 through #9 is popular and effective.
#7.5 shot is an interesting choice, since it is approved for most clay games, but also quite effective on game. But what about plain old #7 shot?
The nominal diameter of a #7.5 pellet is .095". A pellet of #7 is .010". How much difference does that extra .005" make? I think it's worth investigating.
Last year, I bought a case of 16ga 2 1/2" shells loaded with 7/8 oz of #7 shot. My intent was to use it for grouse, chukars, quail, and other "smaller than pheasant" sized birds.
A couple weeks ago, I went out and shot a few rounds of trap using a Winchester Model 12 and this ammo. While the shooting was from 16 yards, I was amazed at how much more devastating the hits were on the targets (I typically use #7.5 in my own reloads). My immediate thought was that this gun was patterning extremely tightly.
However, the pattern-board showed that while it was throwing roughly Full patterns, it wasn't ultra-dense. In fact, it was throwing a very even pattern... but with 1/4 oz less shot than the shells I normally shoot. With fewer pellets (due to the increased size and reduced capacity), I would not have expected the targets to disintegrate as completely as they did.
I'm intrigued by the performace, and plan to do quite a bit of hunting with this load and gun over the next few months. We'll see how things work out. With any luck, I may have a field report on the usefullness for doves within a week.
BTW, I did read an article in The Double Gun Journal a while ago talking about #7 shot as being a popular game load in England. The gentleman who wrote it specifically recommended an ounce of #7 as a good all-around game and target load. IIRC, he mentioned that the folks shooting International Trap liked the 24 gram loads with the #7 shot, as it helped improve the performance of the lighter payload.
So, for you handloaders out there, it may be something with which to mess around. Once caveat is that you may need to check the rules where you shoot, as some ranges have a maximum shot size limit of #7.5.
#7.5 shot is an interesting choice, since it is approved for most clay games, but also quite effective on game. But what about plain old #7 shot?
The nominal diameter of a #7.5 pellet is .095". A pellet of #7 is .010". How much difference does that extra .005" make? I think it's worth investigating.
Last year, I bought a case of 16ga 2 1/2" shells loaded with 7/8 oz of #7 shot. My intent was to use it for grouse, chukars, quail, and other "smaller than pheasant" sized birds.
A couple weeks ago, I went out and shot a few rounds of trap using a Winchester Model 12 and this ammo. While the shooting was from 16 yards, I was amazed at how much more devastating the hits were on the targets (I typically use #7.5 in my own reloads). My immediate thought was that this gun was patterning extremely tightly.
However, the pattern-board showed that while it was throwing roughly Full patterns, it wasn't ultra-dense. In fact, it was throwing a very even pattern... but with 1/4 oz less shot than the shells I normally shoot. With fewer pellets (due to the increased size and reduced capacity), I would not have expected the targets to disintegrate as completely as they did.
I'm intrigued by the performace, and plan to do quite a bit of hunting with this load and gun over the next few months. We'll see how things work out. With any luck, I may have a field report on the usefullness for doves within a week.
BTW, I did read an article in The Double Gun Journal a while ago talking about #7 shot as being a popular game load in England. The gentleman who wrote it specifically recommended an ounce of #7 as a good all-around game and target load. IIRC, he mentioned that the folks shooting International Trap liked the 24 gram loads with the #7 shot, as it helped improve the performance of the lighter payload.
So, for you handloaders out there, it may be something with which to mess around. Once caveat is that you may need to check the rules where you shoot, as some ranges have a maximum shot size limit of #7.5.
