Which Chokes

[Jellyben]

Hi

 

Have just recently got into Clay Shooting and have just purchased a second hand Beretta 686, which chokes should i use for a general all round shoot? Also which loads would you recommend?

 

Cheers

[sussex lad]

1/4 and 1/2 then throw the rest away before you start wondering what if?

 

I use a semi so its 1/2 all the way for me!!!

[dunganick]

agreed

 

there are a 'few' topics in this section to do with chokes, might be worth a read. Then again.... it will only start you woundering which is the road to ruin.

 

Us mortals need no more than 1/2 for 99% of shooting

[Catamong]

I believe 1/2 is a tad too tight for most Sporting clays.

 

If I had to chose only 2 chokes it would be 1/4 / 1/4, as I believe the majority of shooters use too much choke.

 

"Aha", I hear you say, "Faulds and Digweed shoot Full & Full, so you're wrong again Cat", but don't forget that these Guys shoot for a living, and both do pretty well at it.

 

For us other mortals, 1/4 / 1/4 is plenty.

 

Cat

[dunganick]

fair enough cat, my dad has been shooting briley open and open for 3 years and ive never seen a target he cant hit because of choke.

 

Out of intrest what do you shoot in competition?

[mag-man]

I got a LM choke for my DT 10, it's a yank choke (3/8) between 1/4 and 1/2, and really am happy with it, best choke I ever used.......

[Whitebridges]

I believe 1/2 is a tad too tight for most Sporting clays.

 

If I had to chose only 2 chokes it would be 1/4 / 1/4, as I believe the majority of shooters use too much choke.

 

"Aha", I hear you say, "Faulds and Digweed shoot Full & Full, so you're wrong again Cat", but don't forget that these Guys shoot for a living, and both do pretty well at it.

 

For us other mortals, 1/4 / 1/4 is plenty.

 

Cat

 

..and another perspective for really **** shots like me use cylinder and a quarter. Although I use a multichoke I only very farely change choke, just use different shells. If plastic wads are allowed this tightens patterns a fair bit. Me, I chuffed to just break 'em. The likes of Faulds, Digger get upset if they don't smoke 'em, hence the super tight chokes.

[BOTCH]

Hi

 

Have just recently got into Clay Shooting and have just purchased a second hand Beretta 686, which chokes should i use for a general all round shoot? Also which loads would you recommend?

 

Cheers

 

 

I`d go with jellybean put 3/4 + 1/2 then THROW THE REST AWAY remember it`s all about getting used to your gun and knowing what it dose .One more tip make sure you shoot at a pattern plate ITS AMAZING the info you will get.

 

Cheer`s

 

Botch.

[Shotgun-Sean]

1/4 and 1/2 then throw the rest away before you start wondering what if?

 

I use a semi so its 1/2 all the way for me!!!

 

 

got to agree totally with yer man here

 

cheers sean

[the last engineer]

Hi

 

Have just recently got into Clay Shooting and have just purchased a second hand Beretta 686, which chokes should i use for a general all round shoot? Also which loads would you recommend?

 

Cheers

 

 

I`d go with jellybean put 3/4 + 1/2 then THROW THE REST AWAY remember it`s all about getting used to your gun and knowing what it dose .One more tip make sure you shoot at a pattern plate ITS AMAZING the info you will get.

 

Cheer`s

 

Botch.

 

why shoot at a pattern plate if your throwing the other tubes away

 

why do a lot of guys buy a multi choke and only use 2 , dont tell me resale value, thats an excuse .

[tosspot]

as you have probably gathered an emmotive subject Jellyben

 

touched on repeatedly with never a definative answer

 

i think the upshot is do what suits you best and experience will tell you that

 

so keep plugging away and in six months time when a similar question is posted

 

you can add your opinion to help cloud the issue further

 

[BOTCH]

Hi

 

Have just recently got into Clay Shooting and have just purchased a second hand Beretta 686, which chokes should i use for a general all round shoot? Also which loads would you recommend?

 

Cheers

 

 

I`d go with jellybean put 3/4 + 1/2 then THROW THE REST AWAY remember it`s all about getting used to your gun and knowing what it dose :o .One more tip make sure you shoot at a pattern plate ITS AMAZING the info you will get.

 

Cheer`s

 

Botch.

 

why shoot at a pattern plate if your throwing the other tubes away

 

why do a lot of guys buy a multi choke and only use 2 , dont tell me resale value, thats an excuse .

 

 

Hi

 

Have just recently got into Clay Shooting and have just purchased a second hand Beretta 686, which chokes should i use for a general all round shoot? Also which loads would you recommend?

 

Cheers

 

 

I`d go with jellybean put 3/4 + 1/2 then THROW THE REST AWAY remember it`s all about getting used to your gun and knowing what it dose :o .One more tip make sure you shoot at a pattern plate ITS AMAZING the info you will get.

 

Cheer`s

 

Botch.

 

why shoot at a pattern plate if your throwing the other tubes away ???

 

why do a lot of guys buy a multi choke and only use 2 , dont tell me resale value, thats an excuse .

 

 

engineer man if you havent shot a pattern plate how do you now where your shot is going in relation to your sight picture/bead??? for example my gun when shot at a pattern plate shows about 70% of the shot above the horizontal :o and a freind shooting the same was more below thats why you should shoot a patttern plate

[dunganick]

engineer man if you havent shot a pattern plate how do you now where your shot is going in relation to your sight picture/bead??? for example my gun when shot at a pattern plate shows about 70% of the shot above the horizontal and a freind shooting the same was more below thats why you should shoot a patttern plate

 

 

i would imagine TLE has shot one or two pattern plates over the years If he hasnt then he obviously just got lucky with some of those results..... (i knew it!)

[Catamong]

fair enough cat, my dad has been shooting briley open and open for 3 years and ive never seen a target he cant hit because of choke.

 

Out of intrest what do you shoot in competition?

 

Nick,

 

For an avarage Sporting layout I will use the following:

 

Skeet - 30% of targets

Imp Cyl (1/4) - 60% of targets

Light Mod (3/8) - 10% of targets.

 

The chokes I use in my Beretta 682 are ported extended Rhino chokes, which probably throw a tad tighter pattern than a standard Beretta Mobilchoke.

 

I carry a 3/4 choke tube, but have probably used it a couple of times only this year.

 

I now use Express Super Comps, 8's & 9's, with Express Supreme 7.5's for the longest targets.

 

I switched back to Express from Gamebore earlier in the year and my scores have definitely improved, I finished 9th out of 950 entries in the English Open this year using this combination, so all I can say is, it works for me..!!

 

I don't bother using the pattern plate anymore. I used to spend hours banging all sorts of shells through all sorts of chokes at all sorts of distances, and all I can say is, I didn't learn much from it.

 

The only major benefit of using a pattern plate is to check that your gun shoots to point of aim, 'cos plenty don't...!!

 

Cat

[chrisv]

Jellyben,

The best thing I ever did regarding choke selection was buy a second Optima 1/4 choke for my 682. Now I use 1/4 and 1/4 for everything. It'll break most targets if you use a decent cartridge.

This means that when I go into the cage I'm not thinking about chokes or switching barrel selector (I usually forgot to switch back anyway!), I'm just watching the clay.

If I was a better shot I might use 1/2 and 1/2, but I'm only an average shot so I'll stick to what I've got.

 

Catamong's choice of 3/8 is a good compromise, I've had good results from one of those in the past.

Chris

[Lord Geordie]

Start with cylinder and perhaps 1/4 till you start nailing them with consistent accuracy then change them to 1/4 and 1/2 and again when you get spot on with those work up again to 1/2 and 3/4 (i am on this now)

 

I have a friend who uses full and 3/4 and he hits a good average of 47 for 50 first barrels on DTL.

 

I use 1/2 and 3/4 on DTL Skeet and ABT and do rather well.

 

As i say start with open and work your way up. If you can smack em with full and 3/4 consistently then you should have no probs if you enter a comp with cylinder to 3/4 for Skeet through to ABT

 

Best of luck

 

LG

[the last engineer]

 

 

 

why shoot at a pattern plate if your throwing the other tubes away ???

 

why do a lot of guys buy a multi choke and only use 2 , dont tell me resale value, thats an excuse .

 

 

engineer man if you havent shot a pattern plate how do you now where your shot is going in relation to your sight picture/bead??? for example my gun when shot at a pattern plate shows about 70% of the shot above the horizontal :o and a freind shooting the same was more below thats why you should shoot a patttern plate

 

 

Botch man read the post, twas a jest the "throwing tubes away" thing.

 

and to answer your question, yes i have, as Nick imagined correctly, shot the odd pattern plate, or two B) , with probably more tubes,gun,shell combo than a lot of guys have, its not just the "tubes" or "fit" we look at, we assess the barrels as well, just having two steel tubes pointing down range dosent mean their tied in right, you need to know where they both point and crossover, finding the best combination of barrel tube and shell can be a great asset to a shooter new and or old, takes a lot of guess work out.

 

now having said all of the above dont forget most of our shots are taken on the wing, you will react very differently swinging and shooting than pointing at a board 15 or so yds away in a staitionary manner all comfortable in your cotton socks , most guys aim at a point on the board right,,,, so then you have to ask yourself "whats all this aim stuff about " eh .

 

this topic is an age old and will probably never get put to bed, "good" , i like the fact its discussed in depth by people who understand the value of good information , a lot of new shooters can read what the results of a well fitting and tuned gun can do for your score card.

 

Martin

[alison391]

Hi i hate to put a mocker on things lads but i have been shooting 1/4 choke in my beretta tenkys for 18 months and been doing ok with it, my husband changed it for 1/2 without me knowing and i havent noticed a bit of difference, my hubby has been shooting a long time and has always used 1/4 and 1/2 but at most of the clay shoots we all shoot i dont think that it makes that much difference its only when you get any real distance on a clay that choke will play much of a part. but i will say that most of the lads on here have a point, once you find your chosen choke stay with it, it will only make you critisise your shooting, your gun and the clays it you keep changing.

[the last engineer]

Hi i hate to put a mocker on things lads but i have been shooting 1/4 choke in my beretta tenkys for 18 months and been doing ok with it, my husband changed it for 1/2 without me knowing and i havent noticed a bit of difference, my hubby has been shooting a long time and has always used 1/4 and 1/2 but at most of the clay shoots we all shoot i dont think that it makes that much difference its only when you get any real distance on a clay that choke will play much of a part. but i will say that most of the lads on here have a point, once you find your chosen choke stay with it, it will only make you critisise your shooting, your gun and the clays it you keep changing.

 

power to you girl, your spot on had he told you you could have found something else to think about.

 

the teknys is a good gun all round, my better half shoots my 12g and her urika 20g I/C all the time, my friends wife who competes with us runs this policy, an I/C choke all time with two shell combos, she runs 1oz load of 8's for innees 1200 fps, and a 1 oz load of 7-1/2's for outees 1330 fps something simple that works for her .

 

Martin

[webber]

jellyben

 

Genral allround shooting is a bit vague, thats probably why you are getting such varied answers.

 

I shoot sporting, and pigeon with a Beretta 687 with 1/4 & 1/2. If I were to shoot skeet, I would fit skeet choke to both barells, or skeet & 1/4. I rarley shoot down the line, but fit either 3/4 & full, or full & full, dependant on wether or not I have taken my extra chokes.

 

I also have a Beretta semi auto, used mainly for pigeon, fitted with 1/4. I recently missed a 3/8 choke on ebay which I wanted for the semi.

 

Please dont do as some have suggested and throw the remaining chokes away. PM me with your adress and I will send you a postage paid Jiffy bag

[webber]

jellyben

 

Genral allround shooting is a bit vague, thats probably why you are getting such varied answers.

 

I shoot sporting, and pigeon with a Beretta 687 with 1/4 & 1/2. If I were to shoot skeet, I would fit skeet choke to both barells, or skeet & 1/4. I rarley shoot down the line, but fit either 3/4 & full, or full & full, dependant on wether or not I have taken my extra chokes.

 

I also have a Beretta semi auto, used mainly for pigeon, fitted with 1/4. I recently missed a 3/8 choke on ebay which I wanted for the semi.

 

Please dont do as some have suggested and throw the remaining chokes away. PM me with your adress and I will send you a postage paid Jiffy bag.

 

Over the years I have aquired various spare chokes which allows me great flexibility if required, but avoid becoming a tackle tart or choke charlie. The great majority of clays on a sporting layout will be hit with 1/4 & 1/2, any decent instructor will confirm this.

 

When shooting sporting clays I use 7.1/2 x 28 gm, for close sporting and skeet, 9s x 28 gm. I only ever buy fibre wad cartridges, this ensures that you can shoot with cartridges of your choice wherever you go to shoot. For pigeon shooting I use Eley Hawk 6.1/2 x 32 gm.

 

webber

[nighthawk]

the age old debate on chokes, i would agree on useing a pattern plate, when useing shoot it first with a fibre wad then shoot it with a plastic wad through the same choke, the plastic wad will pattern tighter than the fibre, although this gives you an idea of the pattern thrown by a stationery gun and shows you the point of aim but not the true pattern that you are useing to break the target, if you could use a pattern plate of about fourty foot in length and shoot it with a moveing gun this would show you the true pattern you are trying to break the target with and also give you an idea of the shot string acheived by that choke as the tighter the choke the longer the shot string, personally i use 1/4 1/4 on grounds that allow plastic wads and 1/2 1/2 on grounds that are fibre only and find that i acheive the same pattern, i also only use 24g cartridges as the lower pressure gives less distorted shot therefor holds a better pattern, although many people worry about there choice of choke i think that the most important thing is to read the target correctly as if you havent read the target correctly it does really matter what choke you are useing

[EvoCars]

just got my first shotty a few days ago, escort, still not sure what choke to keep in that, does anyone know roughly what the escort chokes relate to, as in 1/4, 1/2 ect, their listed as skeet, imporoved cylinder, modified, improved modified and full

[the last engineer]

Table of shotgun chokes

for a 12 gauge shotgun using lead shot Constriction

(inches) Constriction

 

0.000 Cylinder

0.005 Skeet

0.010 Improved Cylinder

0.015 Light Modified

0.020 Modified

0.025 Improved Modified

0.030 Light Full

0.035 Full 70

0.045 Extra Full

0.050 Super Full

[chrisv]

Evocars,

If you haven't sussed it already, this means that,

1/4 is improved cyl

1/2 is mod

3/4 is imp mod

and full is, you guessed it, full!

 

I think this is the conventional system anyway