Browning A5 Sweet 16 Choke Tube

COPPERDOG

COPPERDOG

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Has anyone experimented with aftermarket choke tubes in the Browning new A5 Sweet 16?
 
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I got a new sweet 16 two years ago. I ordered two extra Browning DS chokes, improved mod and light full. I've used the factory mod choke the most, and I've been happy with it. Late in the season last year I ordered a Trulock extended light mod/skeet 2 choke. Shot a couple of roosters in Kansas with it and that's the one I plan to use the most this season.
I've never done any pattern testing at all, but I'm planning to do some tomorrow after hunting dove in the morning. Gonna shoot 6 or 8 different loads, mostly pheasant loads. I'll post results here in a day or two.
 
Thanks for the replies.
The reason I ask is I plan to pick up an A5 Sweet 16 in the near future.
I currently have a Browning A5 12ga with 3" chamber and 26" barrel that I use for ducks, doves, pheasants, etc...
I have a Carlson Black Cloud midrange .720 choke as well as Trulock IM .715, M .720 and SK2 .725.
For some reason I always go back to the Carlson choke tube. I seem to have better results with that tube over the Trulock.
I to not find many offerings in extended choke tubes available besides Trulock for the new A5 Sweet 16.
 
I shot a few test patterns a couple of days ago.
I decided on a distance of 35 yards. That seems to be about the average 1st shot when I’m hunting wild birds in SD.

I shot 7 different pheasant loads through my "new-style" sweet 16.
I had the Trulock Precision Hunter Light Modified extended choke tube in. I also shot one load through my 70’s Remington 1100 with a fixed mod choke. Only one shot per load, I just wanted to get a general idea, not looking to come up with definitive patterning data. I used a rest for all the shots, none were offhand.

Here’s what I came up with-

Fiocchi Golden Pheasant- 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1310 fps
126 out of 191 pellets in 30” circle- 66%

Fiocchi High Velocity – 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1300 fps
136 out of 191 – 71%

Herter’s Pheasant load- 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1280 fps
115 out of 191 – 60%

Federal PF Wing-shok – 1 & 1/8 of 5’s @ 1425 fps
133 out of 191 – 70% (1100 w/fixed mod choke)

Kent Bismuth – 1 oz of 5’s @ 1300 fps
139 out of 188 – 74%

Hevi-Bismuth- 1 & 1/8 oz of 4’s @ 1350 fps
133 out of 172 – 77%

Browning BXD Upland- 1 & 1/8 oz of 6’s @ 1295 fps
163 out of 253 – 64%

Federal Hi-Brass – 1 & 1/8 oz of 6’s @ 1295 fps
158 out of 253 – 62%


I also tested 1 oz of 7.5’s Remington game load through three different chokes, and the results were surprising to say the least-

Trulock Precision Hunter extended- Light Mod- 281 out of 350 – 80%
Browning Invector DS factory modified choke – 197 out of 350 – 56%
Trulock Precision Hunter extended- Improved Mod- 273 out of 350 – 78%

Not quite sure what to make of the factory mod choke performing so poorly with the dove load.
Before I bought my new sweet 16 two years ago, I had read somewhere online that the factory chokes throw more open patterns than they’re marked, and that does seem to be the case.
 
Glad you're shooting a few patterns with your gun/choke/loads you want to use, so you can confirm performance. You acknowledge you were just trying to get a "general" idea of performance, but beware that one shot can also give you misleading info since there can be up to 10% of variation in patterns. It also looks like you used a chart to establish in-shell pellet count and calculated the pattern percentages from that. Using chart pellet numbers can also be misleading since true in-shell pellet counts can also vary by +/- 10% per SAAMI voluntary standards.

As far as your results go, I doubt a pheasant could tell the difference in the pheasant loads you shot, IF you put the pattern on their front end!

Good luck!
 
Joe Hunter said:
Glad you're shooting a few patterns with your gun/choke/loads you want to use, so you can confirm performance. You acknowledge you were just trying to get a "general" idea of performance, but beware that one shot can also give you misleading info since there can be up to 10% of variation in patterns. It also looks like you used a chart to establish in-shell pellet count and calculated the pattern percentages from that. Using chart pellet numbers can also be misleading since true in-shell pellet counts can also vary by +/- 10% per SAAMI voluntary standards.

As far as your results go, I doubt a pheasant could tell the difference in the pheasant loads you shot, IF you put the pattern on their front end!

Good luck!
Click to expand...

Some of the shells I went with a chart for the pellet count, and some I opened up and counted. (both bismuth loads and the Federal Hi-Brass 6's)
Yeah, after shooting a few test patterns it becomes pretty clear that they'll all kill birds, what really matters is centering the bird in the pattern.

The Herters pheasant load pattern was kinda terrible compared to the others....but I killed several roosters on a late-season hunt last year with them and they seemed to work just fine.
 
roadscholar said:
I shot a few test patterns a couple of days ago.
I decided on a distance of 35 yards. That seems to be about the average 1st shot when I’m hunting wild birds in SD.

I shot 7 different pheasant loads through my "new-style" sweet 16.
I had the Trulock Precision Hunter Light Modified extended choke tube in. I also shot one load through my 70’s Remington 1100 with a fixed mod choke. Only one shot per load, I just wanted to get a general idea, not looking to come up with definitive patterning data. I used a rest for all the shots, none were offhand.

Here’s what I came up with-

Fiocchi Golden Pheasant- 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1310 fps
126 out of 191 pellets in 30” circle- 66%

Fiocchi High Velocity – 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1300 fps
136 out of 191 – 71%

Herter’s Pheasant load- 1 & 1/8 oz of 5’s @ 1280 fps
115 out of 191 – 60%

Federal PF Wing-shok – 1 & 1/8 of 5’s @ 1425 fps
133 out of 191 – 70% (1100 w/fixed mod choke)

Kent Bismuth – 1 oz of 5’s @ 1300 fps
139 out of 188 – 74%

Hevi-Bismuth- 1 & 1/8 oz of 4’s @ 1350 fps
133 out of 172 – 77%

Browning BXD Upland- 1 & 1/8 oz of 6’s @ 1295 fps
163 out of 253 – 64%

Federal Hi-Brass – 1 & 1/8 oz of 6’s @ 1295 fps
158 out of 253 – 62%


I also tested 1 oz of 7.5’s Remington game load through three different chokes, and the results were surprising to say the least-

Trulock Precision Hunter extended- Light Mod- 281 out of 350 – 80%
Browning Invector DS factory modified choke – 197 out of 350 – 56%
Trulock Precision Hunter extended- Improved Mod- 273 out of 350 – 78%

Not quite sure what to make of the factory mod choke performing so poorly with the dove load.
Before I bought my new sweet 16 two years ago, I had read somewhere online that the factory chokes throw more open patterns than they’re marked, and that does seem to be the case.
Click to expand...
Great info, out of any of the shells you shot did you have any of the ejections jam??? I recently shot RIO 7 1/2's on a skeet course and even after a great cleaning job to my action the gun jammed 3 times on a 14 station course. Bought the RIO's as they were very cheap
 
Thanks for the replies guys and thanks for the pattern results roadscholar.
I have a Browning new A5 12ga 3" chamber and the only shells I have had so far that didn't want to cycle consistently were Hevi-Shot Hevi-Dove 2.75" shells.
This past weekend I was shooting a sporting clay course and with light trap loads they all cycled but after the last shell the bold wouldn't stay open. It would eject the last shell but still close.
 
ditch-chicken said:
Great info, out of any of the shells you shot did you have any of the ejections jam??? I recently shot RIO 7 1/2's on a skeet course and even after a great cleaning job to my action the gun jammed 3 times on a 14 station course. Bought the RIO's as they were very cheap
Click to expand...

The only shells that I've had a problem with in my new Sweet 16 are the Herter's dove & quail loads, 1 oz @ 1165 fps. (the old ones that have been discontinued...there's a new line of Herter's at Cabela's now, I haven't tried those)

I've had it happen maybe 3 or 4 times while shooting clays, out of maybe 150-200 shells. (those same shells have jammed in my Rem 1100 16ga once or twice too)
 
After reading these results between the Trulock LM & IM, wondering if there would be much difference with a Trulock Precision Hunter Mod choke.
 
COPPERDOG said:
After reading these results between the Trulock LM & IM, wondering if there would be much difference with a Trulock Precision Hunter Mod choke.
Click to expand...

That's a good question. Hard to see how there could be much difference when there wasn't really any different between light mod and imp mod. I'm puzzled by that for sure.

The next thing I'd like to try is comparing those two Trulock chokes while shooting pheasant loads, to see if the results would be similar to the dove loads.

I'm pretty sure that from this point on I'll be using the Trulock Light Mod choke 90% of the time. I guess if I was gonna hunt quail with the sweet 16 I'd go with the factory IC choke, but I mostly use one of my 28 gauges when quail hunting.
 
I have always heard ported choke tubes reduce recoil & muzzle jump but supposedly make the gun louder.
All the extended choke tubes I have used are non-ported so I have no first hand experience.
 
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