Choke Patterning

I bought this choke out of a bargain bin used. It is obviously good to 25. I was a little low on my 35 yard shot. It that pattern still good or should I try a different choke?

What # shot are you using and what is the diameter of the choke. I would not be happy with that pattern.

Im shooting 3.5 inch Winchester #4’s. I will have to look at the choke but it is well used.
DT

It doesn’t give the diameter in .000’s, just that it is extra full.
DT

I don’t like that 40 yard pattern, the 25 yards is good, but I wouldn’t be happy with the 40 yard one. I’d try a different choke or that choke in a different gun.

With #4’s I would go with a little more open choke, or switch to a #5 shot.

You can also try different manufactures rounds. I’ve found my gun/Carlson choke love the Hevi Shot mix.

It would be nice to have a comparison with a 40 yard shot through a standard full choke.

Grouse

Over the years, I’ve become a fan of any of the hevi-shot type shells. Flat out, they pattern better and hit harder. In the last patterning session, in the same choke, same gun, standard lead vs. Hevi Shot Mag blend, the mag blend did 2X better….or 2X the amount of pellets in a 10″ circle at 40 yards in comparison to lead.

Whether its the Federal Heavyweight, Hevi Shot, Win. XR….doesn’t seem to matter. If you’re looking for cheaper rounds, the Winchester Long Beard stuff is brand new. I’ve never patterned it, but have a few friends that have with great results. It’s copper plated lead that’s been fused with a resin so the shot string doesn’t blow out as easily.

All else being equal, I like smaller pellets to deliver more hits on target and fill any potential holes. #6’s have more than enough power, especially the hevi-type shells at range to kill a turkey. I look for around 100 or more pellets in a 10″ circle at 40 yards. Using that benchmark, I’ve been able to reliably kill at that range and beyond, depending on how high my pellet counts were.

Joel