Why full choke?

Rogue Hunter

Active member
From the beginning of the twentieth to only 10-15 years ago-choke tubes and steel shot probably started the conversation-full choke seems to have been the standard for 99% of single barreled shotguns. Why did gun companies produce/offer mostly full choke guns?
 
I hypothesize that there are several factors leading to more open chokes in recent years and explaining the tighter full chokes in the past.

First, shotshell technology has improved. One piece plastic wads allow for tighter and more uniform patterns than fiber wads with no shot protector.

Second, all waterfowl hunting is done with nontoxic shot in this country. Steel shot tends to perform poorly and can damage full chokes.

So, years ago, manufacturers produced and sold fixed full choke guns. If your gun had only one choke, you may want the one giving you the greatest effect range.
 
Reaming chokes out to something more open is quick & easy. In the late 80's I had it done to an 870 of mine for $20, so I can imagine at one time it might've only cost a dollar or 2 to have a good gunsmith do it. Lot easier & cheaper than any alternatives. So maybe they thought, "Let's make them full & let the buyer decide if he wants to tweak it." ???
 
As an ignorant youth in the mountains North Carolina and using a shotgun to shoot squirrels, all my buds would brag about how far they could kill a squirrel. We also tried with little success to hit grouse flying .I agree that shot shells have changed a lot of factors involved with chokes however as Ron White states," you cant fix stupid"
 
Ron White is a comedian who works with Jeff Foxworthy. His phrase of choice when describing idiotic things that people do is "You cant fix stupid" Perhaps we were not stupid so much as ignorant because of the culture we grew up in back in the 50s. To test a" good shotgun" we would see whose gun would put the most pellets in a beer can at so many steps.
 
When you think about it, prior to the late 60s or so, choke and magnum loads were the only technologies available to extend the range of shotguns.

Look at how many people post questions on this and other hunting forums asking about what is the best choke for a particular gun.

As the season approaches watch the threads appear asking about the best shot size.

Manufacturers have marketed to the perception that you need to shoot pheasants and ducks at maximum range.

BTW: Why anyone needs to shoot at flushed pheasants at ranges beyond 40 yards is something that I do not understand.

Many shot shell manufacturers have lines of "boutique" shotshells with exotic wads and shot. Think Black Cloud, Hypersonic, and Blind Side...

Way back when, the way one marketed long range performance was a fixed full choke.
 
BTW: Why anyone needs to shoot at flushed pheasants at ranges beyond 40 yards is something that I do not understand.
It doesn't happen often, but there are days when 1 or 2 long shots might be the best opportunities I get, & I owe it to my dog to be able to take a reasonable shot out to 50 yards. 50 yd straight-away.....no. But once in a while a bird does something that'll give me a 40-50 yard crosser. I can commonly make that shot & the recoveries, of course, are routine for a good springer. So I shoot a gun/load/choke combination that'll do it. And it's nothing insane. 16 ga. Modified choke (full if shooting my Model 12), 1 oz bismuth 5's or 4's, 1-1/8 or 1-1/4 oz lead 5's or 4's, 1250-1350 fps. A pheasant gun & a pheasant load to appease a pheasant dog. Appropriate at 25 yds or 45 yds.
 
I should have defined my inquiry a little more. I'm curious as to whether it was the choice of the hunter, the retailer, or the gun mfg., or perhaps, the ballistics of the ammo, as to why full choke guns were so widely sold/used?
 
I should have defined my inquiry a little more. I'm curious as to whether it was the choice of the hunter, the retailer, or the gun mfg., or perhaps, the ballistics of the ammo, as to why full choke guns were so widely sold/used?
What I'm getting from these responses is that nobody knows for sure, but it's a good bet it was a combination of the things you listed. People thought (partially because "long range" was marketed as critical) they needed to really reach out & touch something. Ammo being as it was (soft lead, no shot cups), full choke seemed appropriate to achieve maximum range. Older ammo reacted more predictably to changes in choke (unlike steel, tungsten & other modern non-tox options), partially because velocities weren't screaming either. A full choke gun could still deliver oomph at 25 yards (although a bit less forgiving), whereas an open-choked gun began to loose sufficient pattern density at, say, 35 yards. So tighter could've been seen as being more versatile. Also, it was easy to start tight & ream it if so desired. Starting loose & tightening a choke was not an option.
 
Another factor leading to a preponderance of fixed full choke shotguns of the past was the clay target games. Clay target games are major factors in the shotgun and shotshell market.

The most common clay target game is likely trap. In many locales, it was the only clay target game. Skeet did exist but was much less common than trap. Trap is better shot with tighter than more open chokes, especially with ammunition that does not have a shot cup.

Now we have sporting clays and other games that are better shot with open chokes.
 
I should have defined my inquiry a little more. I'm curious as to whether it was the choice of the hunter, the retailer, or the gun mfg., or perhaps, the ballistics of the ammo, as to why full choke guns were so widely sold/used?

I started hunting in 1956 and I don't think anyone had anything but a full choke gun back then. Pretty much everyone hunted both waterfowl and upland game with the same gun. Waterfowl requiring tighter patterns to be effective at longer ranges. And as stated above, the shells back then were paper hulls with fiber wads and not shot cups so they did not hold as tight of a pattern. At least that was the case here in the mid-west. I suppose in other parts of the country where the game was ruffed grouse, quail, etc. more open chokes were the norm. And all shot was lead, no steel or non-tox at that time. Back in the 50's and 60's and maybe beyond the only clay target game was trap so like singer said, tighter chokes were needed.

I think I was ahead of the curve when it came to using more open chokes for pheasants. In the mid-70's I had a Remington 870 with a 28" full choke. I bought an extra barrel that was 26" and choked IC. I've been using IC for pheasants ever since in both 12 ga. and 16 ga.
 
I should have defined my inquiry a little more. I'm curious as to whether it was the choice of the hunter, the retailer, or the gun mfg., or perhaps, the ballistics of the ammo, as to why full choke guns were so widely sold/used?
My guess easy to make with maximum usable range for a 12 ga shotgun. With the ammo available 50 plus years ago a fixed full choke back then may only have performed like a current LM or possibly a Mod. In fact I think plastic wads have only been around since the 60's. Using modern ammo, choke tubes and the advent of advanced wad columns and hard shot that we see today, our guns have now become much more usable for a wider variety of uses. That being said: There's no substitute for hard round (spherical) shot IMO, it will do more for pattern quality than most anything else.
 
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Another factor for full chokes may be history and tradition: what they used in Great Britain from whence our shot gunning heritage comes. Guns were designed for driven hunts in GB where the birds were flying at full speed from over a near horizon and often high up. The guns for such hunts were choked full and fuller to deal with the high speed of the birds, their altitude, and the brief window of shooting opportunity presented as they passed by.
 
Thanks for starting this discussion. Its brought back some really good memories that are somewhat on subject - shotgun chokes. When I started hunting rabbits and squirrels about age 12, my Uncle had a SXS I used but was only allowed to put in one shell. Don't know if I even understood then there was a choke. Couple of years later I felt I was big enough to have my own shotgun so I harassed my Dad until he relented and I bought a12ga, bolt action Mossberg with an adjustable choke - Select Choke I think, probably 1964. With a twist supposedly you could go from full to modified to IC. Fast forward 8 or 10 years and I had to have an automatic, so the Mossberg was replaced by a Remington 1100. That Mossberg is the only gun I've ever gotten rid of and I still regret it. Anyone know where one is for sale, I might be interested.
 
My first gun was the Mossberg 190K. Same as yours, only in 16ga. I still have it, though haven't shot it in 10yrs. No point to sell it as they aren't worth much beyond sentimental value. Payed $13.50 for it.
 
And the memories start to roll in...my first purchased shotgun was (and is) a $40 30in full choke Winchester 97 in 1963. It was about as long as I was tall.

Great gun.
 
Back in the day, most people were not wing shooters. They used a shotgun like a rifle that was easier to hit with. They used it for everything including deer hunting. Full choke was considered a better buy because they "Shot Harder". If you went down to the local Hardware Store and bought a new Winchester 1897 pump it was going to be a full choke. They were all full chokes unless you special ordered something different. Also the old paper shells needed some help unless you were shooting close. When I was young, I saw all this from the old farmers.

Lock and Load!
 
My chokes vary depending on the birds and conditions. I use either a mid range or extended range choke from Hevishot that patterns
my Hevi Bismuth flawlessly. If the birds are holding tight then it's the mid range and of course if they are flushing further out it's the
extended range.
 
I've got a a-5 made in the 20s.It has a full choke of course, and it has great range. It is heavy, 30 inch full, magnum.It still works flawlessly, and john browning would be proud.
 
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