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#9's for trap ?

5K views 5 replies 4 participants last post by  War Wagon 
#1 ·
I know that they are the #1 size pellet used for Skeet, but woundered if they would work at trap with their minimum energys
at longer shots, past 25 yards.

At the 16 yard, I started of with a lead mod choke and the normal distance of 30 to 35 yards ,the standard breaking distance,was no problem. I then switched over to a Full choke and kept letting the birds go farter and farther out, hoping for misses, to see what the little #9's limit was.

The Lowery data said that 35-40 yards was the limit with .55 to .45 ft lbs energy to be able to break the clay targets. I don't know if it was the elevation of 4,500 feet here in Reno or what, but with a Full choke, I was able to break the clays out at around 49 yards ,or more, just before they hit the ground on their drop !! A plesent surprise but I know that this would not work on game birds that take .55 to .70 ft lbs of energy, for a killing shot.

If you don't reload 9's a #8 at 1145fps will also do the "Oakley" shots at the end of the 16 yard maximum distances ,while a standard 8 @ 1180fps is the "Big Dog" of light trap loads that ,just, crushes the clay birds.

Good shooting.
 
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#2 ·
I shoot #9 shot all the time for trap it crushes targets. I have a briley extended light full tube out of my citori special trap thats all I use from the 16-27. I shoot #8 shot from the 27 and get good breaks if I do my part. My favorite shot though is #8 1/2 shot when I can find it.
 
#3 ·
Obviously #9 will break birds at trap distances and the larger pellet count will potentially fill out a pattern more densely, but I've policed up many many full birds from a trap range that had several #9 holes through them. The old addage was that it takes 7-8 pellets to break a clay target and with that in mind one stands a better chance of a broken bird with something larger than #9 if that bird is at the fringe of the pattern as ther energy transfer is greater with the larger pellets.

Years ago I averaged 1,000 rounds of trap per month and tried many different loads over the course of a couple years. I found I had consistently higher scores with 1-1/8 oz of #7-1/2 than with the same volume of #8 or #9. Matter of fact there was an international caliber shooter in the club that shot nothing but the old blue peters #7-1/2 loads after trying every load imaginable.
 
#4 ·
I agree that a 7 1/2 at 1145fps is all one needs to get good breaks all the way out to 60 yards but I was
surprised that a 9 would break birds at maximum distances at the 16 yard line.

The type of clays and the angle of the bird also plays a big part if it is to be broken.....try a rabbit clay ,that is sideways
and is a "Heavy duty" clay to hold up under hitting the ground vs the standard clays that some times break, just coming out of the thrower...........or clays that have soaked up moisture !!

However, my biggest problem was woundering if the Lowery energy data was close ot being accurate with the energys it list and the distances that the 9's were breaking clay birds. By rights, they should have not broken with only .39 ft lbs of energy, one would think ??

Maybe I can really drop quail,chuckar or waterfowl farther than I thought ? Not that this is a good idea, but makes me wounder?

later...........
 
#5 ·
It probably comes down to the lrger number of hits provided by more pellets in the pattern that was consistently breaking the birds for you...definitely brings up a topic for discussion. After all there are 2 trains of thought on the subject of more/smaller versus fewer/larger shot doing the same job.

Using roundabout figures, 15 hits on a clay bird with .39ft lbs of energy transfers the same energy as 9 hits with .65ft lbs. This "shock" may be enough to consistently break a clay pigeon. Obviously the penetration of the individual smaller shot is much less so this may or may not suit one's needs for wild birds needing something to penetrate to the vitals, but energy is energy and if it breaks clays for you I'd go for it. It might be that the #9 load is THE perfect combination for your gun and throws a virtually perfect pattern...who knows.
 
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