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#13 | ||||||
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Like Dean and Tom, for ruffed grouse I like smaller shot in the early season, especially in the right barrel, and 7 1/2s in the left. Later, I'll use 7 1/2s in both barrels. If I go after late January Iowa river bluff birds or Appalachian ruffs in February, I may slip a number 7 in the left barrel (and make sure it's copper plated). My go-to grouse 28s have open (right) and tight (left) chokes.
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"Doubtless the good Lord could have made a better game bird than bobwhite, and better country to hunt him in...but equally doubtless, he never did." -- Guy de la Valdene (from A Handful of Feathers ) "'I promise you,' he said, 'on my word of honor, I won't die on the opening of the bird season.'" -- Robert Ruark (from The Old Man and the Boy) |
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The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Garry L Gordon For Your Post: |
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#14 | ||||||
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for grouse put me down as another 8's in the right and 7 1/2 in the left
(8's in both if its a woodcock spot that rarely shows me a grouse) if and when I get a good second barrel shot at this mythical bird, I like the slight extra weight in the shot size because by then the bird is out there. the season is rushing up on us. I just had the pup down in the Finger Lakes running him on a friend's quail - some nice points, still not completely steady to flush but he is not yet 9 month and had a late start with the hot summer. a crash course this next week - season starts a week from tomorrow - and the training grounds are on the way home from several of my covers - so tune ups are likely the leaves are changing fast - told my daughter (aka training assistant) that I might not have to shoot as many of them down this year. just waiting to see if the long dry spell will depopulate many of my woodcock spots - they are going to need diamond bits to get into some of this ground
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"If there is a heaven it must have thinning aspen gold, and flighting woodcock, and a bird dog" GBE |
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The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to Rick Losey For Your Post: |
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#15 | ||||||
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I think the combination of 8's in the right barrel and 7 1/2's in the left is a sound choice for general ruffed grouse shooting, although I use 9's in both barrels. But it really comes down to the thickness of the cover and the average range of the shots. I hunt ruffed grouse in Sasketechawan incidental to my sharptail and hun shooting. The wooded cover surrounding the sharptail fields contains many grouse although you have to walk longer for a shot than you do in my home coverts in NY. They are not concentrated as the NY birds are. The shots are typically longer and I simply use my modified and full guns using my sharptail loads of 1200 fps and 1 1/4 oz. of #6 shot. It works well for me although if I was just hunting the ruffed grouse I would probably use 7 1/2's. It all depends on the cover and average distance the birds are taken.
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The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Tom Flanigan For Your Post: |
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