Can chokes be opened by shooting over many years?

[Dean Romig]

A dial indicator or digital bore micrometer is the only way to go. It may read 'cylinder' at the muzzle with a graduated drop-in gauge but the bore could widen several thousandths behind the muzzles for a few inches.

Counting pellet holes and doing the math to get percentages is tedious.

The only times I shoot at paper is to find POI and to determine what shot size gives the best patterns with a particular gun.



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[J.B. Books]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

A dial indicator or digital bore micrometer is the only way to go. It may read 'cylinder' at the muzzle with a graduated drop-in gauge but the bore could widen several thousandths behind the muzzles for a few inches.

Counting pellet holes and doing the math to get percentages is tedious.

The only times I shoot at paper is to find POI and to determine what shot size gives the best patterns with a particular gun.

Sometimes you can learn some interesting things beyond that. For instance I have a straight grip VH 12ga 28" with .013 constriction in the right barrel, it patterned 48% at 40 yards with 1 ounce of lead 6. I have a Remington 1900 12ga with 30" bbls and .014 constriction in the right barrel and it patterned 72%. One point of choke difference between them and one gun shoots Skeet/IC and the other Full. That is something very good to know whether you are hunting or shooting clays.

[Tom Flanigan]

Originally Posted by Pete Lester

Sometimes you can learn some interesting things beyond that. For instance I have a straight grip VH 12ga 28" with .013 constriction in the right barrel, it patterned 48% at 40 yards with 1 ounce of lead 6. I have a Remington 1900 12ga with 30" bbls and .014 constriction in the right barrel and it patterned 72%. One point of choke difference between them and one gun shoots Skeet/IC and the other Full. That is something very good to know whether you are hunting or shooting clays.

That's very interesting and it highlights that fact that the only way to determine how a barrel shoots is to pattern it. There are so many variables. The degree of restriction doesn't tell the whole story. Thanks for sharing that.