Cutts Compensator

[CraigThompson]

Over the years I've messed with Cutts and Kolar Comps a bit but always with birdshot .

At the moment I have a nice old Remington Model 48 16 gauge vent rib that has a Cutts on it with the "spreader" choke . As well as I can remmember the spreader choke was considered the same as say skeet or improved cylinder .

Tommorrow I will try some factory Federal #1 Buck loads in it for pattern at 25 yards . But I also wanted to try Winchester , Remington and Federal "Foster " slugs in it for POI at 25 and possibly 50 yards .

So my question is this , has anyone heard of any reason one shouldn't shoot slugs thru a Cutts ?
I could understand someone saying don't do it with the long full and fullerer chokes .

[CraigThompson]

I plan to give my Kerner side by side a try with factory buck and Foster slugs at 25 yards as well tommorrow .

[John Dallas]

My understanding is that conventional slugs perform best out of loose chokes - say I.C.

[CraigThompson]

My understanding is that conventional slugs perform best out of loose chokes - say I.C.

This is true I had a pair of older Remington 870 and 1100 Brushmaster slug guns and both were IC by measuring . And both would shoot nice groups at 50 yards from the bench with iron sights .

I was more worried about the slug possibly tipping or whatever inside the Cutts chamber .

[CraigThompson]

I shot a bunch of Federal 10 gauge factory slugs in a pair of Ithaca MAG-10's I had and a Browning BPS . The BPS did nicely with the IC screw in choke at 50 yards . And as one would expect the pair of Ithaca's with the 32" full choke pipes not so good .

All three did okay with buckshot at 25 and 50 yards .

[Scott Janowski]

I think it is a good test to see if it was attached properly!

[David Noble]

I would think that it would be safer and perhaps more accurate to remove the choke tube from the Cutts body when shooting slugs. If you do use the choke tube, I would not use a sabot type slug. Over the years I have seen too many blown Cutts. Most were blown by plastic shot cup wads. The wads would get stuck between the muzzle and choke tube. The next shot would blow the end off the Cutts body. These type chokes fell from favor after the advent of fingered shot cup wads. The Poly Choke system prospered in this era until the screw in chokes appeared.
I have seen a few blown Poly's, but I believe most were blown by slugs or large buckshot being fired with the Poly cranked down to extra full.

[CraigThompson]

I would think that it would be safer and perhaps more accurate to remove the choke tube from the Cutts body when shooting slugs. If you do use the choke tube, I would not use a sabot type slug. Over the years I have seen too many blown Cutts. Most were blown by plastic shot cup wads. The wads would get stuck between the muzzle and choke tube. The next shot would blow the end off the Cutts body. These type chokes fell from favor after the advent of fingered shot cup wads. The Poly Choke system prospered in this era until the screw in chokes appeared.
I have seen a few blown Poly's, but I believe most were blown by slugs or large buckshot being fired with the Poly cranked down to extra full.

I already have guns for sabot slugs .

I had a Model 12 that was made in the mid 50's . It's what was refferred to as a DeLuxe Field . Little better wood , checkering . Anyway when I got it the gun had a poly . I shot quite a few loads of Remington factory Hevi Shot 00 Buck using the full choke setting with no ill effects and very nice patterns out to about 40 yards .

To be honest I'd shoot this Remington 48 alot more except for the fact that it's an autoloader and 16 gauge hulls are kinda hard to come by . And it is a PITA to bend over and pick up hulls on the skeet and trap field !

[CraigThompson]

I think it is a good test to see if it was attached properly!

If I had to make a guess I'd say this Cutts has been on my 48 for well over 40 years . I would also be willing to bet the guys that put them on back then "probably" did a better job then a gunsmith now . And thats just based on the fact that they were fairly common back then but one rarely see's one now unless it's a Kolar derivative . So a gunsmith then should have had a heck of alot more practice then a guy now .

[charlie cleveland]

i have a model 12 winchester with a cutts full choke on it..it does pattern really good with bird shot but ive never shot slugs or buck shot in it...you will have to tell us how youre gun does with the slugs i bet it shoots ok...it should do ok out to 50 yards or better in my opinion.. charlie

[Bill Murphy]

My more than 50 year experience with Cutts Compensators sure differs from Dave's. I still own about twenty Cutts guns and shoot them regularly. I have not seen or heard of a damaged Cutts in all that time. I have also never seen any evidence that a wad or a slug had ever gone sideways in a
Cutts body. I've also never seen one of those damaged Poly Chokes that he describes. Of course, that's just me.

[Scott Janowski]

I have shot a Cutts for 30 years and never had a problem.

[Bill Murphy]

One of my Cutts guns is a Parker, problem free since it was made.

[Scott Janowski]

Wow Bill! You have s SBT with a Cutts?!? That must be something to see!

[CraigThompson]

i have a model 12 winchester with a cutts full choke on it..it does pattern really good with bird shot but ive never shot slugs or buck shot in it...you will have to tell us how youre gun does with the slugs i bet it shoots ok...it should do ok out to 50 yards or better in my opinion.. charlie

The Federal factory loaded #1 Buck did okay at 25 yards . POI of the Winchester and Federal factory slugs was okay also . The Remington slug was a good deal low with the same hold point .

My Kerner double thats full and fuller shot the right barrel okay with buck but the left barrel was shyte . With the slugs the Win and Fed printed fairly decent right/left groups at 25 yards and again the Rem not so great .

And as to the Cutts , no problem what so ever !

My old shooting buddy that passed a few months ago had Model 12's in each gauge as well as a couple Model 42's all Cutts Compensated . Had a couple Browning A-5's and Remington 870's with Cutts as well .

He liked Polychokes as well although I'm not sure why . Matter of fact I sold him the Model 12 Deluxe Field I had with the Poly on the end .

[Scott Janowski]

The last gun I will own will be an 1100 with a vent rib and a ventilated poly choke.

[David Noble]

My more than 50 year experience with Cutts Compensators sure differs from Dave's. I still own about twenty Cutts guns and shoot them regularly. I have not seen or heard of a damaged Cutts in all that time. I have also never seen any evidence that a wad or a slug had ever gone sideways in a
Cutts body. I've also never seen one of those damaged Poly Chokes that he describes. Of course, that's just me.

Bill, believe me, after 35 years as a gun store owner that offered gunsmithing, I have seen about every bad thing that can happen to a shotgun, rifle or handgun.
I certainly wasn't criticizing the Cutts style chokes, I think they are cool in a nostalgic way. I was just answering a question that was asked, based on my personal observation. I should clarify that I was refering to the old large diameter compensators that required the shot column and wad to jump a relatively long open gap between the muzzle and the choke tube. Poly Choke solved that problem by putting their compensator after the choke mechanism. And yes, Poly's can be damaged also, though usually from incorrect use by the shooter. The "fingers" of these collet style chokes can get bent when cleaning or when not cleaned often enough. And I will mention again, nimrods shooting slugs through them when they're screwed down to extra full. I have seen many with missing "fingers", and once one is gone your shot pattern or accuracy with a slug is gone also.

[CraigThompson]

And I will mention again, nimrods shooting slugs through them when they're screwed down to extra full.

Well since I "assume" you just called me a "nimrod" I will assume you're calling me an idiot as well !
Although I wasn't using a Poly in this instance .And for the life of me I reread everything I posted and I NEVER asked an opinion on a Poly Choke !

[David Noble]

Well since I "assume" you just called me a "nimrod" I will assume you're calling me an idiot as well !
Although I wasn't using a Poly in this instance .And for the life of me I reread everything I posted and I NEVER asked an opinion on a Poly Choke !

Craig, your name was not mentioned in the quoted post or any other that I have posted until this one, so your assumptions are incorrect. I used the word "nimrod" (hunter) not "dim wit" (idiot).
In your previous posts you voiced some concern of shooting a slug thru your Cutts. In my first response I was merely saying that your concerns were not unfounded. I then went on to say that I had also seen Poly Chokes damaged by shooting slugs. If my attempts to add some personal observations made over many years of experience offended you or Bill, then I humbly appolgize.
I will politely exit this conversation now.:bigbye:

[CraigThompson]

Shot two rounds of skeet yesterday with my old Remington 48 16 gauge with the Cutts !

Had some old Remington and Winchester high brass 1 1/8 ounce factory loads of #5's I wanted to use up so I had the hulls . That old 48 takes the thump outta those high brass shells !

And I gotta say #5's roll up clay targets , well all except the two I missed !

Shot a round with my LC Smith Quality 2 10 gauge also !
I got 24 outta 25 with that one and didn't miss , the one that wasn't hit can be attributed to a bad shell !

[Bill Murphy]

My CH Bernard Steel two barrel set has a set of 32" barrels that were ordered "to shoot buckshot" without any other notation. It is my reunited "Charleston Gun" that spent its early life on a large plantation, supposedly shooting deer with buckshot with the 32" barrels in place. The bores are a shiny .730 and the chokes are a fairly short 2 1/2" to 2 3/4" length, one .028 and the other .030. There you go, a factory bored Parker buckshot gun, measured out at about improved modified. The second set of barrels, 28" Bernard Steel, was ordered cylinder and cylinder, .730 from front to back, a true South Carolina quail gun.

[charlie cleveland]

bill i like the way they ordered this gun to shoot buckshot....but what surprises me is the modified choke ...i would have figured that the choke for buckshot would have been full choke...but them parker barrel men knew there stuff... charlie

[Bill Murphy]

I want to shoot the gun on paper with buckshot, bought a nice box of WW paper #0 buck at Ward's last auction. By the time they got to Maryland, they cost me $51, so I won't be shooting them. I'll be looking for a $10 box at the next decent gun show I go to.

[charlie cleveland]

let us know how it patterns bill...i m very interested to know how a parker that is bored from the factory shoots..charlie