Also read the article by McIntosh and experimented on a pattern plate and found light choke of 3 to 7 thou provided a woodcock and grouse killing pattern out to 40 yards with 7/8 oz. in the 20 and 1 oz. in the 16.
Most places i hunt seeing a bird at 40 yards is not probable. Most shots are from 15 to 30 yards. On a few occasions i have made clean kills at 40 to 45 yards on both grouse and woodcock and found 3 to 6 pellet strikes in the body cavity.
I have come to the conclusion over the years that a shotgun pattern is a random hope you throw in the air and it will do what it will on that attempt and not repeat that again. They are like snowflakes, no 2 alike and if you point it well it will get the job done.
Same gun ,shell ,bird and shot one stone dead the next the chase is on, no accounting for it by any quantifiable means.
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