Which shells to use???

TargetGuy

TargetGuy

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Hey guys,

First off i wanna apologize if im posting this is the wrong forum.

I have a stevens 350 12 g pump. cylinder bore. 3" chamber.

This is my first shotgun and was purchased as a defence gun on hunts, as well as home security. However me and the boys like to do some squirel hunts,
So my question is this.... Which shell would i use for squirel, im gonna say at 25 yards or less? Now i have no choke, i want something that will
pattern well and have the power to knock them dead. This is all completely new to me, and i have on hand some 7 1/2 shot "target loads" in 2.75",
5 shot 2.75", 00 buck in 2.75. and some rifled slugs.... i realize the 00 and slugs are out for this, but are any of these other loads what im looking for?
if not just gimme your ideas.

Thanks guys.
 
I dont really think 25 yards is super realistic. probably more like 15 probably 20 TOPS. the places we hunt are FULL of trees so i think most shots come up less than 25.
but id like to hear your guys thoughts
 
The 5 shot and 7 1/2 shot should be fine. I usually use whatever I have on hand for gophers or squirrels it's usually not too big of a deal compared to hunting game birds where the load you choose is usually more important. Mind you I have shot small rodents with slugs before for ****s and giggles I don't really recommend it.
 
Haha i could see a slug messing them up pretty good. thanks for the reply.

i just wanna be sure that if i see one in a tree that i can point and shoot and hopefully drop him.
 
Anything 4 and up should be good to go, I usually shoot #4 field loads through my Benelli m4 and I have no problem killing muskrats and other varmint at 20 yards or so, even with my little Supernova Tactical with the 14" barrel.
 
now you say anything 4 and up.... why not lower? 2 or 3 shot? as i said im super new to all this. and thanks for the help
 
#4 shot is bigger than say #6 or #8. Anything bigger than #4 I have found is starting to get into duck and upland game loads which you can use, but is almost cost prohibitive because these beginning to cost more, which is why you see people shooting cheap # 7 1/2 loads through their shotguns instead of say #2 or BB. Google a shotgun load guide and it will explain better than I can all the different pellet sizes and types of shot, eg. buckshot, birdshot, etc.
 
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