Same amount of lead in the air, so I cannot say that I think there is any advantage to one or the other.

16s are cool -- if you don't have one, you definitely need one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edLXEqnicqk

At the end of the video this guy states a lead load shot string may be as long as 15 to 20 feet. With a string that long, the shorter the shot column (larger gauge) the more pellets arrive at or close to the same time.

He also says that the 8 foot shot string takes 0.0138 seconds from the 1st pellet strike to the last -- that means in the worse case scenario, a 20' long shot string would take 0.0345 seconds from first strike to last. 3 1/2 hundredths of a second is 10 times faster than a blink of an eye. So for all practical purposes, in either case, short or long, all the shot hits the target at virtually the same time.

Theoretically, yes. But, in practice, with a bird or clay flying at normal speeds, it doesn't matter. Also, we often forget that not all loads pattern the same, nor do different loads of identical velocity and payload have the same length shotstring.

After a lifetime of shooting both 12s and 16s on game I can say that I can find no practical difference between identical loads in a 12 or a 16.

SRH

But he also states that a duck flying 35 mph travels about 8 inches in .0138 seconds. That means it travels about 3’ according to your logic. That seems significant to me. BUT, my cyphering may be wrong.

I used 2 1/2 times the 8’ long string to get to 20’ — 2.5 times 8” is 2’ not 3. I’m thinking the diameter of the pattern would cover at least 2 feet. So the bird is in the pattern the entire time from first strike to last

Only the last 10% (arguably) of the pellets will arrive on the last inch or two of that 8 inch distance.





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Anyone who has not done so should get Bristers book and read it through. He was a true pioneer with regards to this issue. I certainly changed my duck shooting after reading his book. I started leading ducks wayyy more than I ever had and it paid off bigtime for me in how many ducks I brought home.

I was going to mention Brister but Richard beat me to it. His book is the one truly creative one I have seen on shotgunning. (and his wife is a brave saint)