[Joe Hunter]

You are good to go with what you have. For shots out to 40 yards (decoy shooting) your IC with that load of #2 steel is just fine for big ducks and even geese. For smaller ducks over decoys, you might want to shoot smaller #4 steel to up the pattern density.

Here are a few of my pattern numbers to give you an idea of the differences you might get with different loads.

Patterning results from a 12-gauge 3-inch Remington 870 Special Purpose with a 28-inch barrel and factory flush Rem-chokes (pattern average of five, 30-inch post-shot scribed circle, yardage taped muzzle to target, in-shell pellet count average of five, and true choke constriction from bore gauge).

40 YARDS Mod. (.018” const.)
Remington Sportsman 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #4 steel (218 pellets) pattern 164 (75%)

Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (186 pellets) pattern 128 (69%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (193 pellets) pattern 146 (76%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (195 pellets) pattern 131 (67%)

Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (154 pellets) pattern 115 (75%)
Federal Ultra-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (147 pellets) pattern 109 (74%)
Federal Black Cloud 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (144 pellets) pattern 92 (64%)
Fiocchi Golden 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (156 pellets) pattern 115 (74%)
Hevi-Metal 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 / #5 (164 pellets) pattern 93 (58%)
HEVI-STEEL 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (148 pellets) pattern 100 (68%)
Kent Fasteel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (155 pellets) pattern 103 (66%)
Kent Silver Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (153 pellets) pattern 112 (73%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (152 pellets) pattern 110 (72%)
Remington Nitro 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (151 pellets) pattern 117 (77%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (146 pellets) pattern 106 (73%)
Winchester Drylok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (162 pellets) pattern 121 (75%)
Winchester Blind Side 3" 1 3/8 oz #2 steel (176 pellets) pattern 104 (59%)

Good luck!

 

[Joe Hunter]

Thanks Joe Hunter! This week I'm going to put the Modified choke tube in and see what I get at 30 and 40 yds

The Mod. choke should be pretty tight at 30 yards and better for 40- to 45-yard shots as my pattern numbers indicate. That IC is just what you want for inside of 40-yard ducks!

Glad to see you are shooting some patterns to learn what your barrel/choke/load combo is really doing at the distance you shoot.

Here's some info I've put together on patterning that many be helpful to you.

Steps for shotgun patterning:
1) Set up a pattern board (4' x 4') frame with a backing material like cardboard or particle board to attach the pattern sheets.

2) Get some large (40" x 40" minimum) pattern sheets of paper or cardboard. Many prefer to use 48” x 48” sheets of white paper. These large sheets will capture the majority of the pattern strikes and make identification of the densest 30-inch portion much easier. This is particularly true if you are going to be patterning at distances beyond 40 yards.

3) Measure off your shooting distance from muzzle to target. Yes, 40 yards is the industry standard for evaluating choke performance, and a good distance to pattern some loads, but you’ll want to pattern your loads/chokes at the distances you’ll be shooting your birds/targets. As an example, if you need a good 30-yard load/choke combo then pattern at that distance, and if you need a good 50-yard load/choke combo then you’ll want to shoot your patterns at 50 yards.

4) Now that you have a pattern board and some pattern sheets, attach a blank pattern sheet to the pattern board and fire one shot at the center of the sheet. This can be an offhand shot or shot from a bench, it doesn't really matter, since you are just trying to get the pattern reasonably centered on the paper. You can put an aim point in the center of the paper if you need it, but you don't have to, and it is only to give you an aim point. This aim point should not influence you when drawing the 30-inch pattern circle around the densest portion of the pattern, more on this later. As a side note, you may get some indications of POA/POI issues during this pattern testing, but that is not what we are concentrating on now. You may need to address it later though.

5) Remove the sheet from the pattern board and repeat the process. Remember, you must shoot a minimum of three patterns for an average and five or even 10 is better. Shotguns are not exacting instruments and variation between pattern numbers is the norm, so averaging is a must. And, shooting one pattern to get an idea of what it is going on with a load/choke can be misleading!

6) Now that you have shot your patterns, draw a post-shot 30-inch diameter circle around the densest portion of the pattern. Yes, do this after the shot not before. Why after the shot? Because, you are trying to evaluate the load/choke combo’s performance, not your ability to center a shot in a pre-drawn 30-inch circle!

7) Count the pellet strikes in the 30-inch circle and average your pattern numbers. You can then calculate a pattern percentage by dividing the average pattern count by the in-shell pellet count if you like. To get a true pattern percentage you will need to cut open and count the pellets in several unfired shells so you will have the true average in-shell pellet count. Remember, pattern percentages tell you about load/choke “efficiency” and if your load/choke combo is performing to factory standards, not necessarily how “effective” the load/choke will be at killing birds or breaking targets.

Important points to consider:
1) How many pellets did your load/choke combo put in the 30-inch circle? Birds of different sizes/types require different pattern densities to reliably hit the vital areas.

2) What size/type of shot were you using? Birds of different types/sizes require different amounts of pellet energy to penetrate the vital areas.

3) What yardage do you normally shoot your birds? Birds shot at longer distances will usually require larger pellets to maintain enough pellet energy to penetrate the vital areas.

4) What yardage was your load/choke capable of maintaining killing pattern densities? Longer distances usually require tighter chokes to maintain the minimum pattern density for the birds you are after. However, larger pellet sizes (BB and larger), particularly in the hard shot types like steel, do generally tend to pattern better from chokes with less than full choke constrictions.

5) Common sense should also tell you to pick the load/choke combo that gives the most consistent patterns and the one that has fairly good pellet distributed. Remember however, patterns are random events so there will always be some variation between patterns, areas void of shot, and some clumping of shot.

Effective patterns include:
1) Sufficient Pattern Density -- Enough pellet strikes in the 30-inch pattern to reliably hit the vital areas (brain, spinal cord, heart or lungs) at the distance shot.

2) Adequate Pellet Energy -- Correct pellet size and mass to retain enough per-pellet energy to penetrate the vital areas at the distance shot.

3) Proper Choke -- Enough choke to maintain adequate pattern density for the bird size/type at the distance shot.

Good luck!

 

[Joe Hunter]

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pevtsovy -- This is why you pattern. Now you know how your barrel/choke(s)/load combo(s) are performing.

The "why" is more difficult to identify. The first place I would start in an attempt to answer the "why" would be to find out what the true constriction of your chokes are.

Those #2 steel patterns have plenty of pellet strikes to kill mallards. But as I said earlier, for decoying birds I'd be shooting the IC with that load. If you want more pellets in the pattern, a 1 1/4-ounce load of #3 steel or a 1 1/8-ounce of #4 steel (if you can find either of them) will probably help with that. See my above pattern numbers.

Good luck!