The real truth about buckshot for hunting....

W

Why not?

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Okay, I have heard a lot of different stories and ideas about using buckshot on deer and bear, everything from "worthless" :p to "like lightning" :rockOn:, including one report from a warden who used 00 or 000 buck on a problem bear.

From those who have actually used it for hunting, what has been your personal experience observing the performance of heavy buckshot on game.

Thanks,
Ted
 
Whitetail buck, 15 yards, 2 3/4" 00, tipped over at the shot. I wouldn't call it a bang-flop, he toppled over like a tree.

The 22-250 drops them like they were hit by lightning.
 
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I've used it on several deer. Under 30 yards its quite lethal. Passed 40 yards it starts losing energy and penetration quickly and tracking is involved
From my results I wouldn't use it on bears unless it was to be used under 20 yards

I much prefer slugs

An easy test is to set up 4 4L water jugs at distances you wish to shoot. Check how many pellets hit and penetration of each. The jugs are about as wide as a big deer and they are about the size of the lungs. Slightly larger

It's amazing how many ppl are against pistol caliber carbines for deer hunting but have no issues blasting away with buckshot at deer 50-60 yards away
Up close buck shot is very effective but must still be aimed
 
I have used it for over 20 years dogging deer in the gully and cedar swamps. Any deer within 30 yards goes home with me
 
I've used it a few times, all on problem bears in the fall when they are getting ballsy and want to pack on the pounds for hibernation. Using a cylinder bore shotty like many carry for defense, I found the key is being close and preferably hitting them in the head. Like...close. Body shots seemed less than effective even at about 20 yards. The bears would invariably get up again until hit 3-4 times. In contrast, head shots killed them fast, and close range body shots (closest for me was a couple of paces from the muzzle) worked well.

Of course, the best thing to do is to check your pattern with different chokes at different ranges if possible, and the tighter pattern the better. For me, the only reason to pick buckshot over a single projectile would be to limit penetration for errant rounds or if hunting in a shot only area.
 
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I live in a shot or pointy sticks only zone. My conundrum is a single shell of buck shot cost is $1.50 versus a $20 bolt (hopefully retrieved). Hits with 00 buck typically wreck one shoulder but yes it stops them in there tracks....well last year character managed to go 10 yards and I had to pull is sorry azz out of the seasonal creek.
 
Thats a huge can of worms your opening up there why not.
Brobee and his daughter had some footage of shooting a doe in his yard on the farm posted here someplace.
That appeared to put a lot of meat on the table compared to the keyboard speculators.
Just my .05 worth of opinion.
Rob
 
Shot one deer with buckshot, broke both front legs & had other hits in the chest. Had to finish the deer @ point blank range. Haven't used it since.

I think I over choked & the range was a little far.

Cheers
Jay
 
Jay said:
Shot one deer with buckshot, broke both front legs & had other hits in the chest. Had to finish the deer @ point blank range. Haven't used it since.

I think I over choked & the range was a little far.

Cheers
Jay
Click to expand...

Yeah - I'm not happy with the performance either though it does splatter raccoons. I wondered if there was a better option in a shot only zone last year but the hunting regs got in the way.
 
Brobees videos are an excellent representation of buckshot capabilities and range. He's done his due diligence, however, to ensure and ethical kill.
 
I'm not a big fan of the many deer I have found suffering from buckshot wounds over the years. Found pellets healed over from past years. Calls from farmers to finish off deer they've found suffering from misplaced or over-range shot. I've shot deer with slugs and found buckshot under the hide. If hunters would limit buckshot use to 30 yards I know it is effective, but many don't. It's an especially bad choice for novice hunters.
 
12ga 00 buck and 12ga #4 buck:



This year I'm going to try to do 12ga managed recoil 00 buck and 20ga #3 buck. My recommendation for anyone using buckshot would be to keep the range under 30 yards and to practice, practice, practice.

Cheers,

Jason
 
I've used it extensively destroying injured wildlife hit by cars. Usually you're dealing with a deer with broken legs that is trying to escape. I always found that buckshot was a poor choice to anchor deer in this situation as they were invariably very scared and desperately trying to flee. My go to solution in these instances was to anchor the deer with a slug and then head shoot them with buckshot at close range. I couldn't begin to guess at the number that I've shot over the years and I've found that, under 10 yards, buckshot is devastating. But if you have to take a shot at 25 yards it's garbage. Granted, this is all through a cylinder bore and perhaps with a full choke it would work better. But I'm not that interested in finding out.
 
I've only ever shot one deer with buckshot, and can report that at 15 feet, it's devastating. But, Like others, I've seen too many wounded animals from using it, and haven't hunted with it for many years.
 
I've had the misfortune of trailing three deer wounded with buckshot... once for an adjacent group and the other two for the same douche that liked to do snap shooting when dogging, one buck was never found, two were long sparse complicated trails before recovery, and nasty drags out of the swamp. I'm not a fan of buckshot...
 
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