Hunting with a 12.5" barreled 12g?

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Hey guys, I'm thinking about taking my 12.5" Dlask barreled 870 turkey hunting so I was wondering if any of you guys are taking your shorties hunting. Mine is threaded for remchoke so that should help at least a bit.
What are you guys using for chokes and ammo?
Feel free to share your trophies, and please refrain from telling me to get a longer barrel...
 
All I can say is keep your shots within 20 yards with a full choke. The short barrel makes it hard to point and aim so like I said keep em short. And don't go trying to shoot a bird until you have patterned 4,5,6 shot out of a full choke in your mall ninja gun.

If you put a xful in that short barrel you ate quite likely to miss.
 
I'd buy a few loads of Kent Turkey and Remmington Nitro Turkey in #6 and see how they pattern out of your choke. They come in 10 round boxes and are under $10 a box at Bass Pro.

I know you are in Quebec, but the Vaughn Bass Pro they had Undertaker chokes for $4.88 - $12.99, so if they have a Bass Pro near you, I'd take a look at those. If not, just use a full choke and get closer. You could also give IM or Mod a try.

Once you get all that stuff, take your gun someplace safe to shoot. Grab some large pieces of cardboard or bristol board and draw a 2" dot in the center. Shoot at that dot, and see how the pattern goes. Don't worry about if you aren't centered on the dot, what we want is to see the effective pattern. Start at 40 yards and work backwards to see what load/choke combination gives the best pattern and at what range that occurs.

Anyways, so it seems like for under $30 you can see if you can actually shoot a bird with that thing. Please report back as I am curious on how this will go.
 
Cintax said:
I'd buy a few loads of Kent Turkey and Remmington Nitro Turkey in #6 and see how they pattern out of your choke. They come in 10 round boxes and are under $10 a box at Bass Pro.

I know you are in Quebec, but the Vaughn Bass Pro they had Undertaker chokes for $4.88 - $12.99, so if they have a Bass Pro near you, I'd take a look at those. If not, just use a full choke and get closer. You could also give IM or Mod a try.

Once you get all that stuff, take your gun someplace safe to shoot. Grab some large pieces of cardboard or bristol board and draw a 2" dot in the center. Shoot at that dot, and see how the pattern goes. Don't worry about if you aren't centered on the dot, what we want is to see the effective pattern. Start at 40 yards and work backwards to see what load/choke combination gives the best pattern and at what range that occurs.

Anyways, so it seems like for under $30 you can see if you can actually shoot a bird with that thing. Please report back as I am curious on how this will go.
Click to expand...

^This...or get a longer barrel~whichever your prefer. Not trying to be a smarta**, but you have lots of inexpensive (better) barrel options out there for your 870. Follow Cintax's advice to see if your 12.5" holds any potential, but consider the options. I had a 12.5" Grizzly shotgun with interchangeable chokes and while it patterned OK with FULL, I found it really didn't point well...no matter how much I practiced with it. I had 1/2-hoped it would be a decent choice for knocking grouse of tree branches :) and I didn't even have any confidence in it doing THAT well. Sold it, and bought a 20ga. Wingmaster.
 
I've hunted pretty extensively for game birds, rabbits and other small game with a 12 guage over the last 25 years.

I've found that even the classic 18.5" barrels only reliably reach to 20 - 25 yards (maximum) before you start wounding animals instead of killing them. Using heavy loads (duck loads) will add a very few yards, but that's it.

After years of experience, my choice now is 22" barrels, using field loads, for grouse and rabbits.

12.5 inch barrels are a speciality item specifically designed for close range defense, either from animal or human threats. They are fine for 10 yard defensive situations, but pretty much just noisemakers beyond that, and there is really little to be done about it.
 
I've fired 12.5" barrels on the skeet field and have done well. I've also folded a turkey at 35 paces with a 18.5" cyl barrel and an oz of #6 shot. Pattern your gun and if it fits well you will put shot where it counts. A longer barrel has its pluses but don't let ppl tell u it can't be done with short barrels. Not everyone try for a 50 yard shot. Most of my birds are taken at 20 or less yards. Good bushcraft and calling will get u more birds then a longer barrel
 
Pattern your intended load through your tightest choke, at a reasonable range - 20 yards to start. And see what it looks like at 30 & 40.
 
brybenn said:
I've fired 12.5" barrels on the skeet field and have done well. I've also folded a turkey at 35 paces with a 18.5" cyl barrel and an oz of #6 shot. Pattern your gun and if it fits well you will put shot where it counts. A longer barrel has its pluses but don't let ppl tell u it can't be done with short barrels. Not everyone try for a 50 yard shot. Most of my birds are taken at 20 or less yards. Good bushcraft and calling will get u more birds then a longer barrel
Click to expand...

Good advice. If we always listened to people saying. "It can't be done" where would be? Remember when 18" was taboo on a long range rifle?
 
I used a 12.5 DA(no choice) on ducks a few years ago. Worked great at 20yds over dekes. Four Mallards for eight shots so I was happy. Just keep the shots close.

DF
 
I like short barrels and have several fun guns wearing barrels between 8 and 14 inches. I have taken a turkey with a 14-inch barreled Fabarms Martial pump gun, equipped with Fabarms' full choke tube, which unfortunately extends a couple of inches from the end of the muzzle. I even had an 8-inch Dominion Arms barrel threaded for chokes...total waste of money, but a learning experience. After trying a bunch of these barrels with a bunch of different OEM and aftermarket choke tubes, I'm forced to admit that they just don't cut it as serious turkey guns. It can be done, but you will find that they just don't seem to pattern well enough for anything beyond 25 yards or so. Putting the same choke tubes into a 24-inch barrel easily turns it into a 35- or 40-yard gun. The shorties are fun, and if you ever use a blind they are extremely handy and maneuverable, but they're just a novelty and you must be willing to learn and live with their limitations if you want to hunt with them. That means a lot of (usually frustrating) time spent patterning loads, without ever actually achieving your goal.
 
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