Spaniel Posted January 25, 2010 Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 Hi Just wanted to pick your brains... Up to now i have been using quarter choke in my escort with size 4 cartridges for the ducks and this seems to work well. Well today i actually had a few shots at some geese but never made any contact what so ever.. I was using size 1, 3" cartridges but still with the quarter choke, what choke would you use on the geese (Mainly Greylags). On a side note i had a blinder today i actually managed to turn 3 greylags over my head twice using my Canada Goose call. My heart was beating so fast i thought it was going to burst with excitement not only with turning the geese around but the fact after two seasons this is the first time i have managed to have a shot at a goose, just a shame one never came home with me but there is always next time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC Posted January 25, 2010 Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 Quarter choke is fine, I would hazard a guess that you missed the geese behind. They are a big bird but they also fly very quick. As my old mentor used to tell me shoot the pilot not the passengers. A 3" no.1 is plenty for a sensible range goose. If you a using steel it patterns fairly tight anyway so there is no need for tight chokes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted January 25, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 Thanks MC i wasnt sure if i was using the correct setup or not, I think the excitement got to me to be honest Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted January 25, 2010 Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 (edited) The choke you need for wildfowling depends on the range most of your shots are taken and what sort of non toxic shot you use. If most of your duck and goose shooting is over decoys or flight ponds open chokes are fine. However if you are taking high birds comming over the sea wall a fair degree of choke will help. Tungstun matrix patterns best in less than 1\2 choke. Bismuth can be used in full ( 40 points ) choke. Hevi shot is tight and too heavy a choke will need some very acurrate shooting. In most guns a max of 1\2 choke should not be exceeded when using steel or their is a real risk of dammaging your gun. If you used big steel pellets ( BB or BBB ) a tight after choke will give the best results for high geese. Until this season I have always used improved cylinder chokes for wildfowling. However with my new gun a Undertaker extra full steel choke ( .700 ) came with it. The results on high birds has been stunning when used with BBB pellets on geese. Unless the geese are very close I would suggest No 1 steel pellets are a bit light for greylags. No 1 was a good lead size , but for steel you want to think about going up a couple of sizes. So there is no right or wrong answer to your question , it depends on the range you expect your quarry to be and the type of pellets you use. We always used to say inn the old lead days , put a dozen wildfowlers in a bar, give them a couple of pints of beer and none would agree on the best shot size\choke\ load\shell brand to use. With the abundance of non toxic shells available today there is no hope of agreement. Edited January 25, 2010 by anser2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted January 25, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 I should of said i use steel shot, my escort will let me fire steel shot through quarter and half chokes only. I wouldnt normally take a shot at anything over 30yds to be honest, my sort of comfort zone while shooting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COACH Posted January 25, 2010 Report Share Posted January 25, 2010 I`m with MC on this one, take your amount of lead from the head of the bird not the body or you will always miss behind. 1/4 or 1/2 choke depending on distance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudpatten Posted January 26, 2010 Report Share Posted January 26, 2010 With the end of the season in sight, and I can fully understand your concern about the technicalities of choke, think about getting some shooting tuition and plenty of practice during the close season. If the ranges were sensible, the reason you didnt kill those geese was that you missed `em. And that had little or nothing to do with choke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrispti Posted January 27, 2010 Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 I`m with MC on this one, take your amount of lead from the head of the bird not the body or you will always miss behind.1/4 or 1/2 choke depending on distance. Them geese are flying allot faster than they look Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted January 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 Im going to have another crack at them tomorrow afternoon if all goes well, and i will see how i get on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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