Live and learn

Stan Hillis · 12-25-2021, 11:06 AM

Shot doves a couple days ago over a sunflower field with my Parker DHE, having just gotten it back after having the triggers tuned to 3 1/2 (R) and 4 (L) lb. I was anxious to give her a try on birds. I decided to go with the 20 ga. set of barrels (32") because I wanted to try some "newly" acquired RST 20 ga. LITE loads. I was a bit skeptical of the light 3/4 oz. shot load on late season doves, but having done well on doves with 3/4 oz. in my .410s in previous years I had some confidence in them. The barrels on the 20 ga. set of barrels are choked X Full.

I got positioned on my stand about 3 pm and before long a "gent" drove up and set up directly in front of me, just far enough away for safety, but close enough to turn the doves away from me before they could get within range. I knew it was going to be a problem, and secretly was wishing I had brought a gun with a little more punch for longer distances. First dove I killed was at about 25 yards and I saw how hard the shot hit it before it fell. When I picked it up I was amazed at how hard it had been hit. It went on like that all afternoon with the little 3/4 oz. payload of 8s hammering doves down at ranges out to 45 yards.

It was proof positive to me of two things. One, that a light payload is greatly multiplied in killing ability by a tight choke and, two, that there can be a big difference in the same payload when going from a smaller bore to a larger one.

Ended the afternoon with 10, five short of a limit, but given the poor stand I ended up with I was happy. No pics yet, but soon. Got to get this jpgbox problem sorted out first.

Dean Romig · 12-25-2021, 11:50 AM

How did the other guy do? It seems his chosen position didn’t have much of an effect on your presentations.

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Double Lab · 12-25-2021, 12:28 PM

That's been my go to load in the 20 for years. Using a full choke it just hammers birds and crushes targets. I handload a low pressure load of 7.5's for the metal and light payloads for me and the wood. Now with the scarcity of components I always knew that less is really more.

I've been short stopped on the dove field many times. Just makes me bear down even more. Some people just have no field etiquette.

PS: Try a 3/4oz load in one of your 12's using tight chokes. You'll thank me one day.

Woodcock survey · 12-25-2021, 12:44 PM

Went to 3/4 oz. 12 for skeet as a lark 25 years ago and by paying more attention to how the load was acting i wound up at low 8 with 2 shells in my pocket. Two lessons learned, 3/4 is enough and your head is your biggest enemy in shooting. A 7/8 12 or a 3/4 20 patterns very evenly with few fliers and seems tighter than heavier loads out of the same choke.
I do not advocate light charges for hunting the tougher game such as pheasant and range must be considered. And yes that was my first straight.
I know i will not make any converts to light loads in that 20 years of trying there has only been one.

Stan Hillis · 12-25-2021, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

How did the other guy do? It seems his chosen position didn’t have much of an effect on your presentations.

.

Actually, it had a huge effect on my presentations. I just had to adapt to it. But, that's hunting. He got the limit handily, but his presence made the difference in me getting incomers that would have been flying into the sun, making it harder for them to spot me, and in getting shots behind me, causing me to be looking into the sun trying to shoot. No problem, I had fun and it reinforced some things I knew, but had never seen so dramatically.

One thing's for sure, the DE is a lean, mean dove killing machine. After maybe another shoot with the 20 ga. barrels I'll be swapping the 32" 16 ga. set on to it.

mobirdhunter · 12-25-2021, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stan Hillis

It was proof positive to me of two things. One, that a light payload is greatly multiplied in killing ability by a tight choke and, two, that there can be a big difference in the same payload when going from a smaller bore to a larger one.

Stan, I'd add a #3: it helps to be a good shot, which you obviously are.

ArtS · 12-30-2021, 12:10 AM

My favorite quail gun is a 28 ga double with 30" barrels choked .002 and .005.It was OK until I tried a double load of Polywads. I used the Polywad Spreadr with 8 shot for the covie rise, and the Polywad Gram Crackr with 6 shot for the going away birds at a distance. The Gram Crackr is a 5/8 oz load of nickle plated shot in a shot cup with a powdered buffer material. It seems to kill at 25 yards and 45 yards. Choke seems to make little difference. They shoot tight at almost any distance.

I'm not sure if Polywad is still in business. No web activity, no listed inventory and can't get through on the phone. They would be a real loss. Without Polywad and RST, it will be tough with 100 year old shotguns.

Stan Hillis · 12-30-2021, 09:56 PM

Its a shame Jay Menefee sold the business (Polywad). He was a great guy to talk with, and do business with.

Mike Poindexter · 12-31-2021, 02:35 PM

A few years ago I patterned an Eibar sidelock 12 ga left to me by a friend, after I had the XF chokes (which had been ring bulged by steel shot use) opened up to .009 in each barrel. Nothing to lose and it was in rather poor shape. I patterned it with Remington Game Load 1 oz 6's (225 pellets per shell), and with RST 24 gram 2 1/2" 6's(190 pellets per shell). Both loads put on average about 180 pellets in a 30 inch circle at 30 yards (I usually pattern at 30 and extrapolate to 40 per Oberfell & Thompson's data). The RGL's however, had a nice even distribution across the 30" circle, but the RST's put most of their pellets in the inner 20" circle with only a small number in the outside ring, more like a full choke often does. I concluded that, for my use on pheasants and chukars, the RGL's were the better hunting load inside 40 yards. Anybody ever try a similar comparison?

Stan Hillis · 01-01-2022, 07:08 AM

Though I pattern a good bit (enough that I built my own 4' X 4' steel patterning plate) I've never done tests to compare the RSTs to another make. Your findings, however, do not surprise me, Mike. I had a couple doves that were killed at 20-25 yards that were hit with so much shot they were close to being inedible. Evidently centered in the pattern. Amazing.