Best Choke tube for hunting?
- Thread starter caster456
- Start date
- Location
- Ft. Mac. Alberta
I have done some pretty extensive testing , checking chokes against shot:kill ratios, and patterning, as well as reading everything I can get my hands on as far as choking for ducks and geese goes.
What I have come up with is (for steel ) IC works better for most guns than mod chokes, but this is not a hard and fast rule.
However, some brands of chokes are tighter than others, so in some instances a mod choke from brand A would kill better than a IC Brand X choke, - the pattern board is more of a guide line as well , BTW.
I have some guns and loads that do not look so good on the pattern board, but kill far better than one would expect.
The bottom line is the rule of thumb "open chokes for steel".
This is because lead compresses and the graphite in it adds "lubricity", whereas steel does not, so tends to bridge , the pellets tend to bounce off one another when compressed in the choke - this in turn makes them spread out faster in a tighter choke than a open choke.
Remember however, I stated that this is NOT a hard and fast rule, some chokes designated as modified will kill better than IC chokes, for the most part I have seen better and more consistent kills with IC chokes when using steel.
Cat
What I have come up with is (for steel ) IC works better for most guns than mod chokes, but this is not a hard and fast rule.
However, some brands of chokes are tighter than others, so in some instances a mod choke from brand A would kill better than a IC Brand X choke, - the pattern board is more of a guide line as well , BTW.
I have some guns and loads that do not look so good on the pattern board, but kill far better than one would expect.
The bottom line is the rule of thumb "open chokes for steel".
This is because lead compresses and the graphite in it adds "lubricity", whereas steel does not, so tends to bridge , the pellets tend to bounce off one another when compressed in the choke - this in turn makes them spread out faster in a tighter choke than a open choke.
Remember however, I stated that this is NOT a hard and fast rule, some chokes designated as modified will kill better than IC chokes, for the most part I have seen better and more consistent kills with IC chokes when using steel.
Cat
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Further to Cat's excellent post, the results you observe with brand "A" ammunition might not apply to brand "B" with the same choke from the same barrel. Change the shotsize, with the same brand of ammo and you'll probably get a different pattern as well. Under some circumstances patterns might not be round either, you can get donut patterns and linear patterns. Neither of these conditions are optimal, so the bottom line is that you should use a pattern board to see what works best, or at least what you can expect at various ranges with your particular gun/choke/ammo combination.
Very good advice from above. Nothing more to add. I've used 12 ga. 2-3/4" with IC, and OC, with great success at decoy ranges.
One in the mouth, and another still in the water. She's thinking about bring back both.
Love the pic Grouse Man
