shooting skeet for bird practice. what choke?

rem74283

rem74283

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I'm told that if I want to start shooting skeet I should buy skeet chokes and a full choke for trap etc.

Meanwhile the guy that first introduced me to skeet shot with me both using mod choke figuring that is what we would be hunting with so it was good practice. My first round ever was with a 20g and I hit 1 bird. (newer shooter) and my second round was with a 12g and I hit 8. Both rounds were with mod choke.

Should I say f**k it and keep going with the mod choke I already have or should I get a choke set and open up my pattern to hit more clays.

Any thoughts?
 
Most folks don't go any tighter than an improved modified for skeet.

I'd start with something a little more open, you can go tighter as you get better if you choose to do so.
 
Beretta-Skeet said:
Most folks don't go any tighter than an improved modified for skeet.

I'd start with something a little more open, you can go tighter as you get better if you choose to do so.
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BattleRife said:
If your goal in shooting skeet is to get the best score, open it up.

If your goal is to become a better shot, stick with the choke you have.
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There is good advice here. I started out with a full choke and pretty much have stayed with the mentality that the better you are with a tighter choke the better you will be out in the field.
 
rem74283 said:
I'm told that if I want to start shooting skeet I should buy skeet chokes and a full choke for trap etc.

Meanwhile the guy that first introduced me to skeet shot with me both using mod choke figuring that is what we would be hunting with so it was good practice. My first round ever was with a 20g and I hit 1 bird. (newer shooter) and my second round was with a 12g and I hit 8. Both rounds were with mod choke.

Should I say f**k it and keep going with the mod choke I already have or should I get a choke set and open up my pattern to hit more clays.

Any thoughts?
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Not many run the 100's here from what I have seen in some responses so far.
Why put yourself at such a disadvantage?? for the sake of the cost of a set of tubes
Your mind is probally your worst enemy when shooting clay targets and building up your confidence is huge to become a good shot which you are not going to do that shooting rounds of 1 and 8
Buy the right tubes focus on the target forget the score and have fun
With practise before you know it you will be into the 20's every round and a deadly upland shot when hunting with your mod choke
Best score will be best shot regardless if hunting or skeet shooting
Don't believe that go hunting with a top clay target shooter
It is one thing for someone shooting years and years averaging 23/25 to pick up a gun with even a full choke and smoke them but a real rough road for a new shooter who will normally get frustrated and quit long before they see any real improvement in their shooting.

Also pattern the gun with the new tubes to make sure they are acceptable for you
Cheers
 
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Generally skeet shooting is done with open chokes; IC to IM
Trap on the other hand is done with MOD to FULL

I have found that for most small game hunting in wooded areas a SKEET choke and a fast (1200+) #7 or 7 1/2 shot work well.

For mixed and open feilds a MOD choke works well as game tends to flush a bit further out.

I use a MOD choke for fast moving wood ducks, teals, and diver ducks and 3" #3 1550+fps 12ga

For geese I move to a FULL choke and 3" BB also at 1550+FPS because less pellets means a tighter pattern is neccesary to reach out there and have good density, pluss geese tend to move slower so its a little easier to aim.
 
3macs1 said:
Not many run the 100's here from what I have seen in some responses so far.
Why put yourself at such a disadvantage?? for the sake of the cost of a set of tubes
Your mind is probally your worst enemy when shooting clay targets and building up your confidence is huge to become a good shot which you are not going to do that shooting rounds of 1 and 8
Buy the right tubes focus on the target forget the score and have fun
With practise before you know it you will be into the 20's every round and a deadly upland shot when hunting with your mod choke
Best score will be best shot regardless if hunting or skeet shooting
Don't believe that go hunting with a top clay target shooter
It is one thing for someone shooting years and years averaging 23/25 to pick up a gun with even a full choke and smoke them but a real rough road for a new shooter who will normally get frustrated and quit long before they see any real improvement in their shooting.

Also pattern the gun with the new tubes to make sure they are acceptable for you
Cheers
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Well put! Start with an IC or skeet choke, and if you get to the point where it becomes too easy to shoot clean rounds, either tighten up the choke, or move down to a much smaller gauge. If that gets too easy, shoot doubles at every station, with a small gauge. If you are shooting clean rounds at skeet, you will also do very well at killing birds in the field.
 
ciphery said:
Generally skeet shooting is done with open chokes; IC to IM
Trap on the other hand is done with MOD to FULL
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Er, IM stands for improved modified which means it is tighter than Mod.

IMO, the OP should shoot with cylinder or skeet chokes and nothing tighter. You don't learn much when you miss. Once he starts hitting more targets then he can move to the modified choke if he wishes.
 
Practice with the choke and ammo you intend using. You will find that Sporting Clays is more practical shotgunning practice than either skeet or trap though. Don't compare a 12 ga to a 20 either. It's an apples and oranges thing.
 
sunray said:
Practice with the choke and ammo you intend using. You will find that Sporting Clays is more practical shotgunning practice than either skeet or trap though. Don't compare a 12 ga to a 20 either. It's an apples and oranges thing.
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how does sporting clays work? Is it something you would find at a club or is it just someone throwing them for you.
Also I wasn't really trying to compare my 12 to my 20. They are just the two gauges of shotgun I own and would be hunting with.
 
rem74283 said:
how does sporting clays work? Is it something you would find at a club or is it just someone throwing them for you.
Also I wasn't really trying to compare my 12 to my 20. They are just the two gauges of shotgun I own and would be hunting with.
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Skeet,trap and sporting clays are different games where a person shoots clay targets. All are quite different than throwing random targets with a hand thrower, or portable thrower. If you are just out throwing random targets in a field, you aren't shooting skeet.
 
Don't compare a 12 ga to a 20 either. It's an apples and oranges thing.[/QUOTE]

Bit confused with that one?? If a guy shoots a 12ga well he normally shoots the 20ga the same, some better if recoil is an issue with the 12ga. May not see as many ink spots with the 20ga but broken target in two pieces or 1000 is still good
Not until the old 410 kicks in for many to see a difference and lost clays

I'm talking clay shooting not hunting geese etc
 
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stubblejumper said:
Skeet,trap and sporting clays are different games where a person shoots clay targets. All are quite different than throwing random targets with a hand thrower, or portable thrower. If you are just out throwing random targets in a field, you aren't shooting skeet.
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I never meant that skeet was just throwing clays but educate me here. The half circle layout with the high and low house is skeet correct?
Then there is the one that launches away from you from a single hut and the shooters are lined up in a row side by side taking turns. Trap or 5 stand?

Can someone tell me what shooting clays is?
 
Skeet: half circle(ish), 8 shooting positions, 2 targets (high house, and low house), targets always cross over the same point at the centre of the field. Skeet is skeet anywhere you go.

Trap: 5 position "fan", targets always travel "generally" away from you launched from a central house. Trap is trap anywhere you go.

Sporting Clays: "typically" 10-15 shooting stations with 2 different targets per station, with no specific rhyme or reason to the presentations. Every Sporting clays course is different

5-Stand: "mini" sporting clays, 5 shooting stations all spaced 5 yards apart, 5-8 machines per course, and you shoot a different combination of targets at each stand. Again, each course is different, and the targets look different from each station.

Super Sporting: similar to sporting clays except that there are 3 machines at each station. You shoot 3 single targets and can take 2 shots at each, then a report pair, then a true pair; you are NOT allowed to view the pairs before shooting.

FITASC (old): similar to shooting 4 rounds of 5-Stand on 4 different courses all back to back. There are 4 parcours, each with 3 pegs. Each parcour has 5-6 machines; and at each peg you shoot a different combination of the targets. FITASC also has different rules for mounting the gun and restricts ammo to 1oz loads. Requires fewer machines than new-style, but much slower to get shooters through.

FITASC (new): similar to super sporting, each peg has 3-4 machines, still 3 pegs per parcour. Same mounting rules (much shoot gun down) and ammo restrictions.

In a nut shell.

Also: anyone that says a 20 can't or doesn't break clays just as well as a 12 needs to do more shooting and take a math lesson: 7/8oz of shot is more than enough to break anything, regardless of if it comes from a 12 or a 20.
 
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