shotgun printing low

[Hollow Point]

I've got a yildiz tk-36 single shot 410 and it is printing way too low. with every grouse i've shot with it, i line the bead up on the head any where from 6 to 12 meters and all the shot goes into legs and abdomen/guts. how do i corect this? higher bead? lower bead? currently shooting federal 2.5 inch #6, because that's all i could find locally.

 

[bdft]

You need to raise the comb. That will raise your POI. You would have to raise it a lot for 6" or so at 12 yards.

 

[bunny]

It used to be common to bend the barrel to change POI.

 

[dand883]

You need to raise the comb. That will raise your POI. You would have to raise it a lot for 6" or so at 12 yards.

Like BD said, you need to raise your head up, whether you shim the stock, add a cheek riser, etc. You can try taping on some foam with masking to do the trial and error part to see what height you need to make it line up before you make any permanent changes.

 

[Butcherbill]

Aim higher.

 

[guntech]

It used to be common to bend the barrel to change POI.

This is your answer... a gentle upwards bend best done by some one with experience.

 

[Grouse Man]

This is your answer... a gentle upwards bend best done by some one with experience.

A skeet shooter told me they would support the barrel at both ends, and then use a shot bag dropped from progressively higher heights until it was hitting right.

 

[Falconflyer]

A skeet shooter told me they would support the barrel at both ends, and then use a shot bag dropped from progressively higher heights until it was hitting right.

I know that sort of thing has been done a lot but I think that if a bag of shot bends a 12 g barrel then it might take a bit less for a 410 barrel. Think I'd take a more controlled approach like with a hydraulic press that will go slow....just sayin'

 

[Westward1]

A skeet shooter told me they would support the barrel at both ends, and then use a shot bag dropped from progressively higher heights until it was hitting right.

Sounds like something a Skeet shooter would say.

Adjusting comb height is a simple process.

 

[guntech]

A champion trap shooter once bent his barrel slightly in the crook of a forked tree and went on to run the rest of the birds and win...

Shotgun barrels for the most part bend quite easily.

 

[bdft]

I would try raising the comb before you started banging your shotgun against a tree. If you bend the barrel to raise the POI you have to bend it at exactly 90 degrees to the gun's axis. If you are off just a bit the gun will shoot to the left or right and probably too high. The tall tales of the old boys bending their gun barrels in the crook of a tree and going on to kill all the ducks and break all the clays are just that, tall tales.

 

[cosmic]

Well - sounds like you are aiming the gun at stationary birds. A properly fitting shotgun will display some rib in front of the sight. In your case, there is likely no rib, so you should see some of the barrel. Since you are aiming, just adjust your cheek position on the stock to get the desired sight plane.
Bear in mind that this approach wouldnt work well on wing shots, as you would not have time to adjust your cheek weld. In this case, you could build up your comb to get a natural fit.

 

[madtrapper143]

I have adjusted a few over a bag of lead shot folded over a tailgate. It works best with a plain barreled gun. Hold the breech end and give the underside of the muzzle end a good smack on the bag off shot. Shoot to see if any change occurred. Remember adequate adjustment is usually made without and visual effect to the gun. Sometimes there is some spring back, but I have never experienced any of that. Would I try this with a Holland and Holland? not likely but for working guns it works well.

Darryl

 

[guntech]

The tall tales of the old boys bending their gun barrels in the crook of a tree and going on to kill all the ducks and break all the clays are just that, tall tales.

That's bs - not all of them are tall tales ...

Have you ever bent/straightened a shotgun barrel? Or any barrel for that matter?

 

[rembolt]

It may be as simple as changing the way you mount the gun . Try to bring the gun to your eye and cheek first then to your should . The majority of shooters will tend to do the exact opposite. Shoulder the gun then try to achieve proper eye cheek alinement .

 

[bdft]

That's bs - not all of them are tall tales ...

Have you ever bent/straightened a shotgun barrel? Or any barrel for that matter?

No I haven't, nor would I attempt to. You may be skilled enough to do so but you shouldn't advocate barrel bending before making a few basic stock adjustments. There are many ways to make a shotgun fit before you start bending things.