Cartridges for general purpose use

[matgriff]

Hi, my first post on this forum.

 

I've just bought my first shotgun, it's a Winchester 101 light in fantastic condition, came at the right price from someone I know, so I'm sure it'll be fine to get me going.

 

What would be the best cartridges to use for general purpose shooting, pigeons mainly on my land ? I'm not going to get hung up on the fine technicalities, as I'm sure it'll take me a while to get to a level where I'll notice the difference between types. I just want something that's reasonably priced and suitable to start with, so looking for advice mainly about using 28g, 30g, 32g etc and shot size, and perhaps the main difference with cartridges for example if I want to go and do some clay shooting. Similar advice on chokes would also be welcome.

 

 

Thanks

 

 

Mat

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Welcome to PW Mat

 

Find out what your local gunshops/country stores have and pick a cheap shell.

 

A 30 gramme 6 will do all you need, good choice of gun too!

 

Buy a few and get out there to learn.

 

Add your location to your profile.

Edited May 19, 2017 by TIGHTCHOKE

[lksopener]

Hi matt,

 

Nice choice of gun to start out.

 

You will get a million and one replies and different variations to your question but I'll help if I can.

 

 

28 gram, 30 gram or 32 gram in number 6 would be a nice load for pigeons.

 

For clays 28 gram 7 1/2 would be a good place to start.

 

Any of the main manufacturers will be fine, there's not really a bad cartridge these days, so gamebore, lylavale, hull, etc will all have a variant of what you need. You don't need to buy the most expensive cartridges the budget lines will be just as good and some of the high end offerings you paying for marketing.

 

If you just want to buy one type of cartridge for both disciplines your 28 gram 7 1/2 shot will do both perfectly well.

 

Hope you have some nice sport and good luck.

 

Liam

[oldypigeonpopper]

hello, welcome to the forum and as above from tightchoke

[wymberley]

Welcome.

Standby, you're going to get inundated with differing answers

For general shooting to include pigeon, about 1&1/16oz (30g) of No 6. Purely for pigeon, you could drop down to 6&1/2 or 7. Clays 1oz (28g) of No8. For choke, about Imp by 1/2 or 1/4 by 3/4 will cover everything. Just fine tune the above as and when you get the hang of it.

[db135]

I just use 28gram 7 1/2 fiber wads for clays and pidgeons now over decoys all I do is use a tighter choke when using them on pidgeons skeet for sporting clays rhino half for pidgeons

[matgriff]

OK, great... thanks for the replies, that's exactly what I wanted to know.

 

I'll pick up a few boxes of 30g #6 and 28g #8 to get me started,

Edited May 19, 2017 by matgriff

[neutron619]

Nothing in a 12 gauge is marginal.

 

Buy anything having a reasonable quantity of #7-#5 in it.

 

2g or 4g differences in shot quantity in those sizes will make no difference to the end result.

 

Don't use chokes which are too tight to start with - it'll be frustrating. Aim to tighten them up and increase the ranges you're taking birds as you practice and become accomplished.

 

Whatever you buy, keep using them. Slow or fast, heavy or light, red, blue or green brand, you'll get used to them. Consistency is key.

 

The only valid reasons to buy anything other than the cheapest cartridge is that you're getting beaten up by recoil or the load is insufficient. The latter is unlikely to be the case for quite a while, if ever.

Edited May 19, 2017 by neutron619

[matgriff]

Thanks for the info.. regarding the chokes... according to the winchester manual, the chokes are identified by notches machined in the end (so you can see what's fitted) the table gives the "pattern" with lead & steel shot for the different chokes.

 

This ranges from :

 

Full- 1 notch

IMP modified- II notches

Modified-III notches

IMP cylinder- IIII notches

Skeet - IV notches

Cylinder- no notches

 

 

 

Where full seems to be the tightest choke and cylinder the widest

 

 

How does that generally translate to sizes, and which one to use in which barrel ?

 

Sorry if this seems like a stupid question..

 

These are with lead shot.

 

 

Mat

Edited May 19, 2017 by matgriff

[TIGHTCHOKE]

No stupid questions.

 

Have a search, it's all in here!

 

Start with 1/4 in the bottom barrel and 1/2 in the top.

 

Good luck

[neutron619]

Where full seems to be the tightest choke and cylinder the widest

 

 

How does that generally translate to sizes, and which one to use in which barrel ?

 

Sorry if this seems like a stupid question..

 

These are with lead shot.

 

 

Mat

 

The answers to a few questions might help us better advise you.

• How many years shooting experience do you have?
• Are you an excellent clay shot already or are you just starting out in the world of shooting?
• Do you expect to be mostly decoying pigeons or mostly walking the hedgerows with a gun?

If you haven't been shooting for very long, I'd be tempted to start with Cylinder and ¼ choke which is what the Americans call "Improved Cylinder". I'd couple that with a cartridge containing 28 grams of #6 or #7 that you can shoot comfortably and aim to take birds at decoying ranges only (15-35 yards) to start with. This will give you the most wiggle-room as far as getting shots on target goes, whilst making sure you've got enough pellets in the pattern to do the job.

 

If you are already a good clay shot, think about using #6 or #5, particularly if you expect to walk more and decoy less, and slightly tighter chokes - maybe up to ½.

 

Just to address one thing I said above: I was being hypocritical when I said that the only reason to change cartridge is recoil. There are other good reasons for doing it, but since you asked for non-technical advice, the best thing I can say (and repeat) is "consistency" and "confidence". Shooting well (and I often don't, because I'm a tinkerer) is about shooting the same way as much as possible, and having confidence in whatever way you've chosen.

 

Hunting / shooting is a personal thing and it doesn't matter if one chap does it one way and you do it the opposite way. Within reason, if you're both confident in your kit and your abilities, you'll bag the birds. Find what works for you, then stick with it.

Edited May 19, 2017 by neutron619

[matgriff]

OK thanks... it's the translation between the american choke size and English sizes that I need to look up then :-)

 

Basically I've been shooting off/on since forever, air rifles mainly plus occasional outings decoying pigeons with a mate. So I'd describe myself as a complete novice/beginner..with a shotgun, I have two nice air rifles that I use quite a bit.

 

I now have a place (was a farm) with approx 2 acres, surrounded by woods/fields that I have permission from the farmer to use as I like for shooting. I can shoot on my own land, and will probably start out by bagging a few pigeons as they come in to roost late evening... plus a bit of general decoying in the fields when they cut the wheat and stuff down.

 

So for now the advice is just for general learning/starting out.

 

Thx

 

Mat

[neutron619]

Well, on that basis, if I were in your shoes, I think I'd probably put the Skeet and Improved Cylinder chokes in the gun (skeet in the bottom barrel) and plan to leave them there for 6-12 months, clays or game.

TIGHTCHOKE (as his name suggests) and I both prefer tighter chokes, but I've been shooting for about 7 years now and he's been AA class since Edward VII was on the throne (or it feels like that sometimes when I see him shoot). Tighter chokes will give you more range to play with, but the ability to shoot way out there is something that comes with a few years' experience. I started out on a cylinder-choked Beretta A391 shooting very easy clays and progressed from there. I still wish, sometimes, usually after I've missed a complete "sitter", that I was shooting that gun! Most birds do not need a lot of choke, though there are reasons for having it.

I'd couple Skeet / IC with c. 28g of #6. It won't limit you (no "sensible" 12-gauge cartridge will, really) and you should be able to stick with it for a good long while until you've built up the experience to know that you prefer bigger / smaller shot, tighter / looser chokes, etc.

It's probably not the cheapest cartridge, but I've always thought these

https://www.eleyhawkltd.com/products/game-cartridges/hi-flyer

were good. Any of the Hi Flyer loadings will kill pigeons and - happily - they're not "super fast" which will make them more comfortable to shoot and generally, perform better than the depressingly common 1400fps, 1500fps, etc. loads. I won't get more technical than that, unless you ask me.

Either way, there are plenty of options out there.

Good luck.

Edited May 19, 2017 by neutron619

[wymberley]

Well, on that basis, if I were in your shoes, I think I'd probably put the Skeet and Improved Cylinder chokes in the gun (skeet in the bottom barrel) and plan to leave them there for 6-12 months, clays or game.

 

TIGHTCHOKE (as his name suggests) and I both prefer tighter chokes, but I've been shooting for about 7 years now and he's been AA class since Edward VII was on the throne (or it feels like that sometimes when I see him shoot). Tighter chokes will give you more range to play with, but the ability to shoot way out there is something that comes with a few years' experience. I started out on a cylinder-choked Beretta A391 shooting very easy clays and progressed from there. I still wish, sometimes, usually after I've missed a complete "sitter", that I was shooting that gun! Most birds do not need a lot of choke, though there are reasons for having it.

 

I'd couple Skeet / IC with c. 28g of #6. It won't limit you (no "sensible" 12-gauge cartridge will, really) and you should be able to stick with it for a good long while until you've built up the experience to know that you prefer bigger / smaller shot, tighter / looser chokes, etc.

 

It's probably not the cheapest cartridge, but I've always thought these

 

https://www.eleyhawkltd.com/products/game-cartridges/hi-flyer

 

were good. Any of the Hi Flyer loadings will kill pigeons and - happily - they're not "super fast" which will make them more comfortable to shoot and generally, perform better than the depressingly common 1400fps, 1500fps, etc. loads. I won't get more technical than that, unless you ask me.

 

Either way, there are plenty of options out there.

 

Good luck.

Agreed, but the choke will. The combination given - assuming the choke performs as specified - will limit the range at which it is reasonably certain a truly aimed shot on a pigeon will ensure a clean kill is 35 yards. If that range is deemed sufficient for starters, then the OP would be better of using 7s. As ever, pattern kills.

[matgriff]

OK thanks for the advice, that's what I'll start with then :-)

 

Mat

[motty]

For 35 yards, an ounce of no. 8 will easily kill pigeons. Open choke and lots of pellets equals a good combo at that range.

[mossy835]

i have the winchester 101. i use 28 gram 6 shot RC for all my shooting .