Doctor's Grade & Doves...

[Jerry Harlow]

and poor man's Doctor's grade and more doves. While lots of you are hunting those birds with elongated beaks or the big honkers the doves have finally arrived in numbers since more corn has been cut. Got the limit on Friday with three doubles and then another limit Saturday with two doubles. Nothing better than shooting them at daybreak, when every bird has to feed.

[charlie cleveland]

j a thats a fine looking pile of birds and a fine looking scatter gun too...

[Destry L. Hoffard]

Excellent! I can count on one hand the doubles I've shot on doves and I've been hunting them since I was a small boy.

DLH

[Jerry Harlow]

Thanks Destry. I don't have a dog to retrieve so to get a limit I shoot one at a time and never take my eyes off where they fall, walking to the downed bird while I reload without looking, even if a dozen fly over my head. Seldom lose one that way. The doubles I usually shoot are when two birds come right towards me, and I kill the first one that almost falls at my feet and use the second barrel for the now turned bird. Usually one or two doubles in a limit of fifteen, but three doubles are an exception. Been shooting them for nearly fifty years and went home many days as a kid with two empty 20 gauge boxes and no birds.

[Destry L. Hoffard]

I'm the same, I usually shoot them without a dog so make a point to just kill one and walk straight to it as well. That's my story anyway......

DLH

[Angel Cruz]

I'm doing a dove shoot next week. What size choke should I be using?

[charlie cleveland]

if they are flying low i like imp. cly. but if there high i like the full choke and high brass shells...if you got the old double barrel with differant chokes in it this will be the best gun you can carry or and old gun with that old poly choke that you could twist frpm cly to extra full with a twist of the wrist was sure a ugly looking choke devise but handy as a shirt pocket...good luck charlie

[Angel Cruz]

Thanks!!!

[Jerry Harlow]

Angel,

The best dove double guns are I.C. and Improved Modified/Full in my opinion. You'll find lots of vintage doubles that have been opened up to that in the right barrel while leaving the left choked pretty tight. The two guns pictured are Skeet(.005) & I.M.(.025) and the other was Cylinder(.001) and Light Modified(.015). Unless they are flying a mile high you'll kill more birds with an open choke out to 30 yards than with anything else in 12 or 16 gauge. The correct choke makes a hunter a much better shot.