Dave McCracken
Moderator In Memoriam
They rode the wind down from Canada,an Alberta Clipper cradled them and carried them hundreds of miles in a day. The big goose leading the V had made this trip before, keeping the routes and stops in her memory. She used a long string of landmarks to bring her group safe to the winter grounds. Now they lowered into a field she has fed in before, seeing geese on the ground and hearing their calls.
Under hat brims pulled low to hide the shine of our foreheads we watched the geese set their wings for the long glide into the empty spot in the midst of the decoys. Sleet stung our faces but the shivering came more from excitement than the cold. At the proper time we rose to make thunder, and memories...
Americans have been hunting waterfowl for thousands of years, though success rates stayed low until firearms entered the scene. Decoys made over 2000 years ago have been found in dry caves near Tule Lake Ca.
Muzzleloading arms,including the trusty musket that hung over the fireplace, accounted for tons of waterfowl.To our ancestors, the term Waterfowl included herons,cranes and swans as well as more mundane geese and ducks.
Big birds, big payloads. When Fred Kimble, a market hunter in Illinois, decided to make himself a new shotgun, it was a 6 gauge. He found that if the muzzle was a little smaller than the bore, it killed distant mallards better than before. This is now called choke.
Those with some money to spend bought the big doubles from LC Smith, Ithaca, Parker, or the imports like Greener to use on the rivers and bays. 8 and 10 gauges were common, 12s were regarded are a little light, and many tons of lead went back to the earth in wet places an ounce or two at a time.
Nowadays the ten gauge is as large as one can go by law for waterfowl. Repeaters are limited to three shots, and lead's prohibited in the US. The non toxic loads meant to replace lead started off as a very poor substitute, but 20 years plus of R&D have improved things greatly. Bismuth, alloys of Tungsten, steel(actually iron) and other metals are loaded into shells these days and they all have their fans.
Now the guns....
There's no great shortgage of good waterfowling guns. As a rule, they're 12 gauges or 10s. The smaller gauges really do not have enough room to pack in sufficient amounts of non-tox shot, though this will probably change soon. I'm no Magnumista, but this is the place for long hulls and heavy shot charges. A 3" capability is darn near mandatory.
And, since the loads run to the heavy side, the shotguns should be heavier also. That Rule Of 96 again. While I think the upper limit of an upland shotgun is about 7 lbs, anything I fire goose loads through should be at least that, and 8's probably better yet. My current goose load is 1 3/8 oz of shot at 1400 FPS in a 3 inch case. That packs about 3 times the free recoil of my trap load, if my mental figuring is correct.
If I were using 3 1/2" shells in a 12 gauge, I'd want at least another lb of weight to mild the kick a bit.
If I were using the big 10 gauge, make that at least 10 lbs and make it a gas auto. Things like detached retinas and arthritis happen to those who go too light in the shotgun and too heavy in the load.
As for fit and setup, a generous butt with a top quality pad is recommended. LOP a bit shorter than you would use otherwise. Often these are used while one's wearing many layers of warm clothing and wishing for more. A POI of 50/50 to 60/40 works, but experiment a bit for your style and conditions. Shoot some practice rounds with your hunting clothes on, it's amazing how much difference a quarter inch of wool and polypro make.
Chokes should run to the tight side, though Full is no longer automatically the best choice. Pattern with Light Modified up, and go with whatever gives the best 24-28" spread.No holes, no clumped shot.
Gas autos have less kick than other action types, including the recoil operated Benellis and the old A-5 Browning. Pumps, quite reliable and relatively cheap, oft are found giving good service decades after first use.
Holding my 870 tightly, I rose to meet the geese,performing an old art to get meat. The big goose in front dropped,the rest learned something and left. I thanked the Creator of All, turned my head, and it wasn't just the wind that made my eyes water....
Under hat brims pulled low to hide the shine of our foreheads we watched the geese set their wings for the long glide into the empty spot in the midst of the decoys. Sleet stung our faces but the shivering came more from excitement than the cold. At the proper time we rose to make thunder, and memories...
Americans have been hunting waterfowl for thousands of years, though success rates stayed low until firearms entered the scene. Decoys made over 2000 years ago have been found in dry caves near Tule Lake Ca.
Muzzleloading arms,including the trusty musket that hung over the fireplace, accounted for tons of waterfowl.To our ancestors, the term Waterfowl included herons,cranes and swans as well as more mundane geese and ducks.
Big birds, big payloads. When Fred Kimble, a market hunter in Illinois, decided to make himself a new shotgun, it was a 6 gauge. He found that if the muzzle was a little smaller than the bore, it killed distant mallards better than before. This is now called choke.
Those with some money to spend bought the big doubles from LC Smith, Ithaca, Parker, or the imports like Greener to use on the rivers and bays. 8 and 10 gauges were common, 12s were regarded are a little light, and many tons of lead went back to the earth in wet places an ounce or two at a time.
Nowadays the ten gauge is as large as one can go by law for waterfowl. Repeaters are limited to three shots, and lead's prohibited in the US. The non toxic loads meant to replace lead started off as a very poor substitute, but 20 years plus of R&D have improved things greatly. Bismuth, alloys of Tungsten, steel(actually iron) and other metals are loaded into shells these days and they all have their fans.
Now the guns....
There's no great shortgage of good waterfowling guns. As a rule, they're 12 gauges or 10s. The smaller gauges really do not have enough room to pack in sufficient amounts of non-tox shot, though this will probably change soon. I'm no Magnumista, but this is the place for long hulls and heavy shot charges. A 3" capability is darn near mandatory.
And, since the loads run to the heavy side, the shotguns should be heavier also. That Rule Of 96 again. While I think the upper limit of an upland shotgun is about 7 lbs, anything I fire goose loads through should be at least that, and 8's probably better yet. My current goose load is 1 3/8 oz of shot at 1400 FPS in a 3 inch case. That packs about 3 times the free recoil of my trap load, if my mental figuring is correct.
If I were using 3 1/2" shells in a 12 gauge, I'd want at least another lb of weight to mild the kick a bit.
If I were using the big 10 gauge, make that at least 10 lbs and make it a gas auto. Things like detached retinas and arthritis happen to those who go too light in the shotgun and too heavy in the load.
As for fit and setup, a generous butt with a top quality pad is recommended. LOP a bit shorter than you would use otherwise. Often these are used while one's wearing many layers of warm clothing and wishing for more. A POI of 50/50 to 60/40 works, but experiment a bit for your style and conditions. Shoot some practice rounds with your hunting clothes on, it's amazing how much difference a quarter inch of wool and polypro make.
Chokes should run to the tight side, though Full is no longer automatically the best choice. Pattern with Light Modified up, and go with whatever gives the best 24-28" spread.No holes, no clumped shot.
Gas autos have less kick than other action types, including the recoil operated Benellis and the old A-5 Browning. Pumps, quite reliable and relatively cheap, oft are found giving good service decades after first use.
Holding my 870 tightly, I rose to meet the geese,performing an old art to get meat. The big goose in front dropped,the rest learned something and left. I thanked the Creator of All, turned my head, and it wasn't just the wind that made my eyes water....
)
