What would be considered as good deal 12ga shotgun ammo?

lavino

lavino

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I think shotgun ammo has the most complex setup. You got different different guages vs shot size vs birdshot, buckshot, slug vs high brass, low brass etc etc I am new to this and I just bought my first shotgun. Now I will need to plan to buy some ammo but all these combination is really confusing to read at first. I will need to test first to see which one is good for the gun so I will have to try out a few diff brand in small size. The gun can handle 2 3/4 or 3 shell but prefer 2 3/4 since I don't want to have too much kick when I am new to it. So would birdshot and low brass be the cheapest combination? Anyone can give me some example of some affordable ammo to start with? Which would be more affordable slugs? I have shot slugs before but not too much I think I can handle those if not shoot a whole lot in one setting.

Btw this is only a range gun not for hunting. Is there any ammo design for hunting while other more designed for target practice? Some educations sure helps. I do know the basic from the PAL course as well as some youtube vid but that's about it ;) No idea which brand or setup is good or not. Took me a bit to test out my prefer 9mm ammo so I am not surprise it will take a few testings to find the sweet spot.
 
For slugs, Canada Ammo and Ammo Supply both are good places to look. I think I recently saw a sale of some sort through ammosupply.ca on score shells that are made in Canada and perfect for range shooting. On paper any slug will do so the cheaper the better for the most part. Same for bird shot, the cheaper the better as long as it runs in your gun...... What did you buy?
 
I prefer the Challenger target loads in my Maverick 88 if just making holes in paper. I didnt have any issue with the low "brass" Federal or Winchester either though some folks do find the Winchester in particular can have ejection problems. Generally stops when the gun is cleaned and broken in to polish the chamber.

Paco
 
Google is your friend, and with your very limited experience with shotguns I would strive to get as much info as I could before even thinking of ammo!!!
 
lavino said:
Will this work? https://www.reliablegun.com/en/fede...mo-12ga-2-34-3-14de-1oz-8-250rds-case-1290fps

250 shots for $80 to start with some test? #8 bird pellets should be pretty easy on the shoulder I think.... Most gun range (indoor?) should be ok with these right?
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The size of shot will not dictate the amount of recoil. The powder charge and weight of shot charge will. Generally speaking the heavier the shot charge and or higher velocity the more recoil there will be. Most manufacturers print on the box the dram equivalent(eg. dr eq 3) and weight of shot charge (eg 1 1/8 oz) is information to tell you that in this case you have a 1205 fps load. The higher the dram equivalent the more powder there is. When shells were made with black powder the powder was measured in drams and "x" amount combined with a given shot charge meant "x" amount of velocity. Modern smokeless powders are weighed in grains but vary greatly so they use the drams equivalent/weight of charge system as a general reference for the shooter to know what he is buying. For your purpose wanting low recoil to shoot multiple rounds on a range keep your loads to a maximum 1 1/8 oz of shot and under 1245 fps and you'll be good to go. Check with your range as well. They will tell you what they allow and do not allow.
 
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For bird shot: the price has gone up. To buy an individual box for less than 9 dollars is a good deal. The last one I bought was $11 (vomit)
Your best bet is to buy the cases for 80 bucks and you get 250. (10 boxes at $8)

Buckshot: its expensive. I am yet to find cheap buckshot. Last time I bought challenger and it was 19.99

Slugs: There is no such thing as inexpensive slugs. I have looked for awhile. Best price I have found is 1.25 a shot they tend to be $10 for a box of 5
 
I very recently bought a flat of 2 3/4 dram equivalent 12 gauge Federal, 1 1/8 oz., #8 shot for $74 taxes included, and thought that a good deal. I do not believe that I could reload them cheaper with component prices these days.
Shop the sales, buy lots.
 
The hot link you showed for your choice from Reliable indicate 3 1/4 DE, if your worried about to much recoil, you won't like those.
Try some 2 3/4 DE trap loads or low recoil upland bird loads. That should keep the fps at around 1145.
 
Ammo Supply (A supporting business member here) usually has SCORE shot shells in stock, and they usually go on sale fairly often. I've bought a case of 2 3/4" 12g slugs (I bought it half and half, 1oz and 1 1/8oz) for under a dollar per round. For some reason they're not showing any in stock now... Not sure what's with the shortage. If you were to ask Kate, she'd probably fill you in.

The cheapest I've found target loads has always been Cabela's or Bass Pro. Cabela's had their Challenger target loads (1oz, standard velocity, not too much recoil) on sale for $70ish/case of 250 a few weeks ago.

Subscribe to the big box store sale flyer newsletters if you want to catch the deals on ammo. Also, check here often. The smaller companies often post sales here that you'd never hear about otherwise. I just ordered a bunch of .45 ACP from Tenda that I didn't need. But it was cheap! :D
 
The cheapest I've found target loads has always been Cabela's or Bass Pro. Cabela's had their Challenger target loads (1oz, standard velocity, not too much recoil) on sale for $70ish/case of 250 a few weeks ago.
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It was $65 a flat and I had to buy 2 flats to qualify for free shipping (with a promo code). Both were back-ordered by the time I got in on it and so far they have only shipped me one flat.
 
gwilder said:
It was $65 a flat and I had to buy 2 flats to qualify for free shipping (with a promo code). Both were back-ordered by the time I got in on it and so far they have only shipped me one flat.
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Right. $6.50/box of 25 is an awfully good deal. It helps living close to a location I suppose. I went in a bought a couple of cases, but they had about 6 pallets out on the floor at the time. Wish they were 1 1/8oz, but I wasn't complaining at that price :)
 
Sorry you said indoor range??? Most indoor will only allow slugs a few allow 00buck but very few allow birdshot... I would look into this first.

00 buck federal estate is the cheapest at about .75 a shot
Slugs 1$ a shot score, challenger or federal
Bird cabelas chalanger cases are the cheapest I've seen.
 
lavino said:
Will this work? https://www.reliablegun.com/en/fede...mo-12ga-2-34-3-14de-1oz-8-250rds-case-1290fps

250 shots for $80 to start with some test? #8 bird pellets should be pretty easy on the shoulder I think.... Most gun range (indoor?) should be ok with these right?
Click to expand...

That is a very good price for quality ammo.

However, you will have a steep learning curve.

For starters, price and kick.

To a degree you get what you pay for. For hunting you want real quality ammo, and I would suggest Federal products and I would avoid Winchester.

For plinking, you want good price and reliability. I buy Challenger.

For kick (recoil) you want a mild load. Shot size has nothing to do with it. You can buy #8 shot size loads that will dislocate your shoulder.

Kick is determined by how heavy a load of shot is in the shell and by how much power is in the shell. You want the minimum of both shot and powder.

For the shot load, 1 ounce and 7/8 ounce are the mild loads, with 7/8 being the mildest.

For powder, the box will indicate the "Dram equivalent". 3 dram and 2 3/4 dram are the mild loads.

So if you buy a box of shells with 7/8 ounce of shot and 2 3/4 dram equiv of powder, you should find it very pleasant to shoot.

If you gun is a semi-auto, you might have to move up to more powder or more shot to get it to cycle well.

Don't buy a case until you have found what works.

My semi runs just fine with the Challenger light loads.
 
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These are the 2 I bought for testing. These are like the lowest kick I can ever find so far.

1) Challenger Target Loads Shotgun Ammo - Light Load, 12Ga, 2-3/4", 2-3/4 DE, 1-1/8oz, #8, 25rds Box, 1150fps

2) Remington Target Loads, Gun Club Target Loads Shotgun Ammo - 12Ga, 2-3/4", 3 DE, 1-1/8oz, #8, 25rds Box, 1200fps

I see Reliable also sells these slugs:

Remington Slugs, Slugger Managed-Recoil Rifled Slugs Shotgun Ammo - 12Ga, 2-3/4", 3 DE, 1oz, RS, 5rds Box, 1200fps $7.99 for 5 shots.

It is like the lowest kick slug I can find. I will probably start with these. Btw, DVC replied saying target loads are fine with them so I am good to go as soon as pick them up.
 
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