While either 6's or 7.5's are my preference, I have been known to stop a duck hunt and throw on my orange and chase them with steel shot as large as number 2's if that was the smallest I had with me. So I don't see an issue with using 5's if that is what you have on hand, but is setting out to buy loads for grouse I would look for slightly smaller.
Ruffed Grouse, shot size?
- Thread starter fivehundredlimited
- Start date
the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
Absolutely they will be fine. I wouldn't shoot any larger though....it's just not needed for grouse. I cannot imagine using #4 lead shot on grouse. They are such a thin skinned light feathered bird. Any I have seen shot with it by guys accompanying me it seemed to make an awful mess of them. My personal favorite is a light load of #6 followed by #7.5.
Brutus
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Myself I don't get too excited about specific chokes for wing shooting. At my typical distances using 6 or 7 1/2 seem to work just fine for me in the 20. At a guess I would say the 7 1/2s tend to slay a little better on the wing.
The only bird shot load I get careful about is Prairie Storm as it tends to throw a dense and tighter pattern then most other upland game loads.
Same stuff I use for shooting clays. 7 or 7 1/2 both work well for a bird on the ground (head) or on the wing. That being said, best moment hunting I had a bird flush and I pulled up on it, would have been a perfect shot had the tree not gotten between the shot and the bird. I wonder if that bird knew how lucky it was...
Brutus
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Regardless of choke, I always tend to bring something home, when I pull the trigger on something.
badgreenbird
Regular
- Location
- Dawson Creek, BC
ya - 7.5 is my go-to shot size for grouse, but I also use #6 and #8
#5 will work if you have them on hand, but it's kind of overkill. And the pattern thins out significantly if you're wing-shooting.
Book a pheasant hunting trip and use 'em up!
#5 will work if you have them on hand, but it's kind of overkill. And the pattern thins out significantly if you're wing-shooting.
Book a pheasant hunting trip and use 'em up!
Regardless of choke, I always tend to bring something home, when I pull the trigger on something.
Ahhhh, yes... but how often do you pull the trigger? JK... I'm sure you get your birds... I swap out chokes when required... and manage to shoot a few also...
- Location
- Saskatchewan
It's a completely different game shooting grouse on the wing vs grouse in the "pre-flight condition" LOL!
I personally prefer to only shoot grouse on the wing, and then only grouse properly handled by a pointing dog. All the rest is gathering meat. No shame in that, but for shooting sitting grouse almost anything works, and "Aiming at he head" is the preferred method with a shotgun, but a .22 works as well. I do so when i need a feed of grouse and I'm in a hurry.
For wingshooting, the ideal is a lively gun between 12 and 28 gauge that fits you as an extension of thought, throwing no more than an ounce of shot, no tighter choked than improved cylinder, and no bigger than 6 shot and no smaller than 8. Have fun!
I personally prefer to only shoot grouse on the wing, and then only grouse properly handled by a pointing dog. All the rest is gathering meat. No shame in that, but for shooting sitting grouse almost anything works, and "Aiming at he head" is the preferred method with a shotgun, but a .22 works as well. I do so when i need a feed of grouse and I'm in a hurry.
For wingshooting, the ideal is a lively gun between 12 and 28 gauge that fits you as an extension of thought, throwing no more than an ounce of shot, no tighter choked than improved cylinder, and no bigger than 6 shot and no smaller than 8. Have fun!
Maritime Storm
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Riverview, NB
A handload 1Oz #6 or #5 moving at 1220 FPS through a SXS is my prefered method.
In my 20 gauge I have used 6, 7 1/2 and 8 with decent results - as stated, head shots are the way to go.
Just don't "accidentally" stuff a #2 magnum steel down the tube by mistake and shoot close - after following the 20 yards of feathers there isn't much left at the other end
Or a 1oz slug like i did last year.....
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
Ive shot most with 7.5 bit have used everything from 2 through 9.
Steamwhistle
Regular
- Location
- North 'Berta
I use 6 or 7.5, once I brought the wrong box and ended up hunting with #4, I missed two close-mid range shots that I usually make all day . . . but the extra range was nice later on.
