Steel Shot Sucks!!

[Twud]

In the period between lead and Bismuth all we had was steel. I had a party of regulars one day and the birds just wouldn't toll "right". These three shooter were all very handy with a 12 gauge so I wasn't shooting. I remember we had 3 birds look us over hard, but wouldn't toll. I called the shot when they were overhead. I'll ways remember the sound of the steel rattling off their flight feathers. We only shot 6 birds that day (this was during the 3 bird years) had we been shooting lead I'm sure these guys would have been done in 40 or 50 minutes.
I had a case of Remington 3" 2 ounce NitroMag BB's with buffered copper plated shot that I contunued to use until it was gone. That stuff was the deal. You could sometimes see the bird get rocked by the impact.
TooTaxed you need to check the law. Federal law in Maryland prohibits the use of a rifle for goose hunting, and it's not hard to tell the difference in the report between the two. Two guys up here got busted for trying to shoot them with a bow. They were let go by the judge with a fine and a $2,000 lawyer's bill.

 

[TooTaxed]

Twud, there's no problem withe shooting these particular birds with a rifle...the farm owner has already registered them as pests and obtained written permission to dispose of them in any manner he sees fit. As I mentioned, if I don"r "harvest" them, he will probably poison them.

 

[gp911]

There's always 10 gauge... F shot, T shot...

Just throwing that out there...

gp911 (Yes, they are tanks, I know, but I'm really digging mine)

 

[macFarlaine]

MCgunner do you have any photo's of these wind socks in situ ?.We can still buy Bismuth in the UK it competes with Tugsten.Hevi shot is the new kid on the block,but steel outsells all of them because of price.
Our winter fowl are just arriving now in huge numbers,(one month late)but we have had so much rain they seem to be staying safe at the moment.

 

[MCgunner]

Wow, sounds like the situation here, birds just getting here and it's been wet as hell for a year. We just got a good cold snap, actually had light freeze warnings last night and I moved some potted tomatoes into my shop for protection. Maybe THIS one will bring some more birds in. I've got two weeks before a goose hunt I've scheduled with a friend who's bringing his youngest boy with him for the hunt.

Don't have any shots of my spread in action, but this is from www.mackspw.com where I got 'em. They work really well on speckle bellies and snow geese. Don't know how they'd work over there on whatever species you guys hunt. I'm clueless on that. LOL Picture shows mostly light geese, but there are some dark socks in there scattered about. If you click on the mpw site, go to "goose decoys" and drop down to "Texas Rags". Used to just drape white rags out on the ground in the grain stubble, but the wind sock style is lighter, doesn't soak up water and get heavy, and in the wind, they have movement. They work better than rags all around.

 

[macFarlaine]

Wow what a spread,thank you.We shoot Pinkfoot and Greylag,I think it would work maybe with a little fog ?.My father in law used to put old white rags on mounds of risen soil and attactch with a small peg,he used to swear by it.
Good luck on your next hunt,please keep us informed.

 

[redneck2]

I guess you need to look at how many rounds you're going to shoot and what it costs. Long time ago I used steel. Had your same experience. I've had guys (here and in person) tell me how great the "new" steel is. I'm not buying in.

I use Hevi-Shot. I don't hunt geese or ducks all that much, but when I do, Hevi-Shot hits them like a sledge hammer. Watching a dog chase a cripple that keeps diving gets old real quick. If you don't have a dog, too many get away. I live on a lake and see cripples that get away from hunters and swim around the lake but can't fly.

 

[hkenvy91]

im new to waterfowl hunting and me and a buddy are goin out this weekend to the nearby river and take a john boat out to one of the little islands and set up a spread and try and call a few canada's to us! they are everywhere right now, if it stays cold! anyways.... my question is,i will be shooting 3in federal blackcloud #2's through my remington11-87 sp with a 26 inch barrel, with a mod choke. will this do the job

 

[TooTaxed]

The Federal Blackcloud is steel shot at 1450fps. Steel is far lighter than lead and loses velocity quickly. #2 steel is OK for ducks, but too small for huge Canadas, with their hard outer feather and thick down "armor". You should use BB steel, and even then your effective range will probably be only 20 to 30 yards. You'll have to call 'em in close...and hope for a head or wing hit!

If you use #2 Hevi-Shot, penetration will be adequate and your range will increase ten to 20 yards.

 

[FLORIDA KEVIN]

steel shot too hard for older barrels ?

i have allwyas heard that stell ot tungsten waas too hard for older barrels ! i really dont get it because the shot should stay in the shotcup , almost like a sabot ? I can see it might ruin a tight choke tube ! but steel patterns tighter than lead too ! so you would think to use a more open choke ! What is the real deal with steel ? Kevin

 

[TooTaxed]

Kevin, steel shot is much lighter than lead or Hevi-Shot...air resistance slows it down quickly, and it doesn't penetrate well...much less momentum when it hits. It also isn't compressible and tends to poke through the side of the wad when it passes through a choke, scoring the barrel and putting a lot of pressure on the barrel constriction...lead and Hevi-Shot are softer and deform slightly when they pass through the constriction. It looks like the undeformed steel shot should pattern tighter...but from my range tests I dont notice a great deal of difference.

 

[FLORIDA KEVIN]

TooTaxed !!Thanks for the straight scoop on steel shot ! Kevin

 

[qajaq59]

Steel shot sucks........Yup, it surely does.