Persuade me that I can't use target shells for upland hunting

[brybenn]

Perfectly written. My buddies laugh at my turkey loads. I swap the shot from my 7/8oz skeet loads from #8 shot to Copper plated #6. Haven't had a turkey get up and argue about it not being a magnum load yet. While all my buddies are developing flinches bruising their shoulders and breaking their wallets on the newest latest greatest longest shells they can get I'm sitting back and enjoying my light lightweight guns with their very mild loads and continue to fill my tags be it a 2.5" or 2.75" shell

 

[canvasback]

Artisan gunmakers have been building double-barrelled sporting guns for about 480 years. Wing-shooting has been around since the flint-lock was perfected, about 407 years ago. The use of nice, round chilled shot has been around for 240 years. Percussion primers have been used in one form or another for 217 years, and the modern centre-fire cartridge first appeared 169 years in the past. Modern ‘hammerless’ sporting guns as we know them have been around for 151 years, the venerable boxlock for 147 years. The pump shotgun appeared 140 years ago. The modern over/under is a recent addition to the gun rack, at a mere 122 years – the same age as the semi-auto. And over the past 100-plus years, just about the only thing anyone has actively improved is what, exactly? Screw-in chokes? Plastic stocks? 3 ½” shells?

Perhaps there is a time and place for each of these, but the fundamentals of wing-shooting haven’t changed, and birds haven’t yet evolved armour. This has left the marketing departments of gun companies and ammunition manufacturers frantically scurrying about to sell the latest ‘improvements.’ Yet, as folks in this forum have learned through years of experience, 7/8 to 1 ¼ oz of lead shot travelling at around 1000-1200 fps will kill about anything flying, feathered or clay, as long as the gun is pointed correctly, and within range. It doesn’t matter if the box says ‘field’ or ‘target.’

Ahhh Steve......it's always a pleasure!

 

[Redsoilreaper]

To all the Ruffed Grouse I've killed over the years with a 28 gauge, using my own reloaded target loads( most times #8 but #9 sometimes) my apologies for not buying 28 ga magnum loads but they're scare in my neck of the woods.....

 

[383SB]

They will not work, as soon as they sense a bird and not a clay they will stop midair.

 

[Hunter7]

In my 20 gauge I actually prefer the lighter lead 7/8 oz target loads in 71/2 to the higher velocity 1 oz hunting loads. They tend to pattern better in my gun I guess due to the shorter shot column and lower velocity.

 

[aboynamedsuita]

I’ve been buying some Federal “field & range” with the CT $ I’ve been getting, price for the 100pk is pretty reasonable all things considered and comparable to bulk target packs, specs are similar too.