Chokes?

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Patrickshot

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So I got this express about a month ago.(http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=292961&highlight=870+barrel) It has a riffled slug barrel and an 18 inch barrel. I like to go shoot trap with my friends up the mountain and I was wondering what you guys what suggest for chokes for the 18 inch barrel or if I should buy a new barrel for it. Also what kind of choke is used mostly for skeet and trap?How can I tell if the 18 inch barrel has a choke on it?

Also when I first shot the gun I had 5 jams with the cheap Universal ammo from Wal Mart. It would just not eject the shell.Had to use both hands on the pump to eject the shell. The last time I went (2nd time going) I only had 1 jam with the same stuff. It seems to cycle the Federal loads perfectly(Top Gun) so I have a feeling it is just the Universal ammo and my shotgun will be fine. Thanks.

Patrick,
 
If you can't tell whether the 18" barrel is choked or not, it obviously doesn't have screw-in chokes. Since it came with a rifled barrel for slugs, it's reasonable to assume that the smooth barrel is choked. So the only question is: How is it choked?

The highest likelihood is that it's choked either "full" or "modified". You can find out for certain by taking it to a gunsmith and having it measured. A cheaper and more fun approach might be to take it to a patterning board. Usually your local range will have something set up or, you can make your own.

Stand back 25 yards from the target and fire a shot at the center of the paper. If, at 25 yards, there are no gaps in the pellet pattern more than 3" in diameter, it's probably full choked. If there are several 3" gaps and perhaps some larger ones, it's closer to modified. And, if there are large gaps, it's probably cylinder.

More importantly than putting a name to the choke setting, you'll see the actual performance. Make sure you bring the kind of ammo you'll be using for hunting. Bring some other brands and a variety of loads, if possible. The real value of patterning is that you'll know what sort of shot distribution you're getting with specific shells at varying distances. Armed with this knowledge, you can decide what shells to use and what your effective kill distances should be. If you find the existing choke to be unsuitable, you can decide whether to open it up or have the barrel threaded for tubes.

Even if someone on this forum could tell you exactly how that barrel is choked, that information would be useless compared to what you'll learn in a 1/2 hour at the patterning board.

EDITED TO ADD: Oops, re-read the original post and I see you're talking trap & skeet, not hunting. Trap chokes tend to be tight (towards the full choke end of the spectrum), skeet chokes are more open (cylinder to improved-modified range). It's unlikely you'll have one choke that's ideal for both. You may need to get that barrel threaded, if you want that much flexibility.
 
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Great thanks a lot, looks like I need to head to the range. What do you think would be the best choke for the type of skeet we play? All we do is get a box of clay pigeons and throw them with a plastic thrower.....
 
I have another question. My express holds 4 in the mag and 1 in the chamber. Is there a wood stick in there stopping it from holding any more shells that I could take out and get a lager magazine capacity?
 
my express holds 4 in the mag - a "plug" would restrict it to 2 in the mag giving the gun a total capacity of 3 shells (legal capacity for hunting). Try laying the shells on the floor beside the mag on the gun - should give you an idea of how long it is.

kf
 
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Patrickshot said:
I have another question. My express holds 4 in the mag and 1 in the chamber. Is there a wood stick in there stopping it from holding any more shells that I could take out and get a lager magazine capacity?
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I would guess that there is no wood or plastic plug in the mag or you would not be able to put that many shells in the magazine. The only way to put more in would be to get a magazine extention.

If your 18 inch barrel does not have tubes it is probably cylinder or improved cylinder. You may need another barrel if you are going to shoot regulation trap. Follow straightshooter's advice and pattern your barrel.
 
Patrickshot said:
Great thanks a lot, looks like I need to head to the range. What do you think would be the best choke for the type of skeet we play? All we do is get a box of clay pigeons and throw them with a plastic thrower.....
Click to expand...

If the thrower is beside you or behind you as he/she should be for safety reasons, cylinder choke or no choke will work fine unless you have the incredible hulk swinging that plastic.
 
Patrickshot said:
Sometimes the disk gets out pretty far from the plastic thrower. I was thinking a modified choke might be a little better.
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If you are using a plastic hand thrower, don't worry about that 18" barrel, it will be just fine.
You cannot throw a clay far enough with one of those to need a modified choke !:)
Cat
 
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