Favorite steel

Joe Hunter said:
If you want to see a comparison of various 12ga #3 and #2 steel loads, here are a few of my pattern numbers for your consideration.

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 – IC REM-CHOKE (.009" const.)
Winchester Xpert 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #3 steel (162 pellets) pattern 87 (54%)
Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (186 pellets) pattern 112 (60%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (193 pellets) pattern 113 (59%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (195 pellets) pattern 109 (56%)
Remington Sportsman 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (139 pellets) pattern 85 (61%)
Remington Hyper-Sonic 3" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (141 pellets) pattern 63 (45%)
Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (154 pellets) pattern 92 (60%)
Federal Ultra-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (147 pellets) pattern 82 (56%)
Federal Black Cloud 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (144 pellets) pattern 88 (61%)
Fiocchi Golden 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (156 pellets) pattern 86 (55%)
Hevi-Metal 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 / #5 (164 pellets) pattern 70 (43%)
Hevi-Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (148 pellets) pattern 63 (43%)
Kent Fasteel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (155 pellets) pattern 88 (57%)
Kent Silver Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (153 pellets) pattern 74 (48%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (152 pellets) pattern 76 (50%)
Remington Nitro Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (151 pellets) pattern 90 (60%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (146 pellets) pattern 76 (52%)
Winchester Drylok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (162 pellets) pattern 94 (58%)
Winchester Blind Side 3" 1 3/8 oz #2 steel (176 pellets) pattern 85 (48%)

40 YARDS – MOD REM-CHOKE (.018" const.)
Winchester Xpert 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #3 steel (162 pellets) pattern 111 (69%)
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%)
Remington Sportsman 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (139 pellets) pattern 116 (83%)
Remington Hyper-Sonic 3" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (141 pellets) pattern 78 (55%)
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 Steel 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%)

40 YARDS – FULL REM-CHOKE (.037" const.)
Winchester Xpert 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #3 steel (162 pellets) pattern 118 (73%)
Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (186 pellets) pattern 141 (76%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (193 pellets) pattern 150 (78%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (195 pellets) pattern 154 (79%)
Remington Sportsman 2 3/4" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (139 pellets) pattern 118 (85%)
Remington Hyper-Sonic 3" 1 1/8 oz #2 steel (141 pellets) pattern 100 (71%)
Federal Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (154 pellets) pattern 118 (77%)
Federal Ultra-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (147 pellets) pattern 119 (81%)
Federal Black Cloud 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (144 pellets) pattern 113 (78%)
Fiocchi Golden 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (156 pellets) pattern 123 (79%)
Hevi-Metal 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 / #5 (164 pellets) pattern 116 (71%)
Hevi-Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (148 pellets) pattern 119 (80%)
Kent Fasteel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (155 pellets) pattern 116 (75%)
Kent Silver Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (153 pellets) pattern 122 (80%)
Remington Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (152 pellets) pattern 117 (77%)
Remington Nitro Steel 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (151 pellets) pattern 115 (76%)
Winchester Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (146 pellets) pattern 118 (81%)
Winchester Drylok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (162 pellets) pattern 133 (82%)
Winchester Blind Side 3" 1 3/8 oz #2 steel (176 pellets) pattern 109 (62%)
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What is all this? Jesus!
 
On today's market, my favorite brand of steel is Boss. In other words, I don't/won't buy steel.

I haven't shot steel at pheasants in about 25 years (opting instead for bismuth & Tungsten Matrix when I started shooting a 16 ga. exclusively). But back when I did, they were all hand loads using mostly Reloading Specialties steel data.
 
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Back when I used to hunt waterfowl (about 4 years ago was my most recent season), I used Black Cloud. It was essentially Federal's steel version of Prairie Storm.
 
Every now and then I find a good price on ammo and I try to buy several boxes. Right now, in 12 gauge steel shot I have I have some #2 Winchester Blind Side, #2 Federal Speed Shok, #2 Hevi Metal and #3 Kent Faststeel. I try to keep my choke system simple and normally use either a Carlson Light Mod or an Improved Mod depending but I might experiment this year with a tighter choke for late season. I haven't patterned any of it but I need to before next fall. I just normally put a bunch of shells in my vest and go hunt.

I am planning on using more Bismuth for pheasant going forward and I keep hearing about upcoming price increases, so I just bought a case of #4 Winchester Bismuth and #5 Kent Bismuth. If and when I miss, it isn't the ammo. I just need to spend more time shooting this year and probably focus more on what choke I'm using in early vs late season......at least that's my plan.
 
Bob Peters said:
I know all the basic load requirements, but wondering what your favorite brand of steel shell is for a pheasant? The only ones I really stay away from are those Winchester x ones from wal mart, a buddy who duck hunts more than you can shake a stick at told me they're junk. I cut one open and sure enough they are.
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That's funny. I absolutely loathe the Winchester X steel shells.

Back when I was shooting steel all the time, I liked Federal. Either their Speed Shok or Black Cloud. 3" - #2 - 1 1/4 oz was my go to. I shot plenty of 1 1/8 oz, but prefer the 1 1/4 oz.
 
when i use my pump, i usually used Federal Speed Shok or Xperts

Kind of off topic, but has anyone else noticed some 3" shells are indeed 3 1/8", such as Remington Hypersonic, I believe Kents are similar. Only noticed this when my gun would jam on those shells, then we lined them up next to Federal or Winchester shells and sure enough, they are a hair bit longer. Maybe newer shotguns with 3" chambers have a bit more leeway
 
jmnhunter said:
when i use my pump, i usually used Federal Speed Shok or Xperts

Kind of off topic, but has anyone else noticed some 3" shells are indeed 3 1/8", such as Remington Hypersonic, I believe Kents are similar. Only noticed this when my gun would jam on those shells, then we lined them up next to Federal or Winchester shells and sure enough, they are a hair bit longer. Maybe newer shotguns with 3" chambers have a bit more leeway
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Are they 3 1/8”, or, are the others 2 7/8”?
 
I'll never shoot a hypersonic, I don't want any teeth rattled out of my jaw when I pull the trigger. But yes, I have noticed slight variations on shell length based on manufacturer.
 
First time I shot a hypersonic load was prairie chicken hunting. I fired 3 shots at a crosser and felt like I nearly broke my shoulder haha
 
jmnhunter said:
when i use my pump, i usually used Federal Speed Shok or Xperts

Kind of off topic, but has anyone else noticed some 3" shells are indeed 3 1/8", such as Remington Hypersonic, I believe Kents are similar. Only noticed this when my gun would jam on those shells, then we lined them up next to Federal or Winchester shells and sure enough, they are a hair bit longer. Maybe newer shotguns with 3" chambers have a bit more leeway
Click to expand...

The fired case length was 0.125" long? Not seen that before, but there are SAAMI shell length specs that most companies follow.
 
Yesterday at a preserve i found several fresh empty hulls from the guys before us. 3" 1 1/4 and 3.5" 1 1/2 steel 2s. Mostly xpert. My dog found 3 dead pheasants that they lost and we had a crippled rooster running around ahead of us. The manager said the group got 11 birds, so they crippled/lost at least 30% of their birds.
 
KEOutdoors said:
Yesterday at a preserve i found several fresh empty hulls from the guys before us. 3" 1 1/4 and 3.5" 1 1/2 steel 2s. Mostly xpert. My dog found 3 dead pheasants that they lost and we had a crippled rooster running around ahead of us. The manager said the group got 11 birds, so they crippled/lost at least 30% of their birds.
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Wasn’t me…😆 lots of guys aren’t very thoughtful…
 
jmnhunter said:
sorry, I meant a live round, before shooting, so federal speed shok being 2 19/32" and hypersonic or kent being around 2 21/32" to 22/32"
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That is because federal hulls are shorter than cheddites (kent), not that cheddites are long. Cheddites (kent) and fiocchi will be of "standard" length, with american being shorter. Dont know why rems would be longer than federal, they might have used a special hull for that load though.

Saami specs say
Unfired crimped 12ga 3" can be 2.655 max
Unfired roll crimped 12ga 3" can be 2.760 max
Fired OAL 12ga 3" can be 3.100 max

If a gun is hanging up on shells within the spec of roll crimped shells and fired hulls, its a gun issue.
 
I like Remington Nitro Steel and Speed Shoks. I've had good luck with Rios. Xperts were fairly effective, but, jeez, you cut one open and find the full spectrum of shot sizes and shapes. #1 through #6, and most not very round. I've taken quite a few birds with them though, but it's hard to un-see those pellets.
 
I just got an email from Boss touting their new copperplated steel shotshell. They are emphasizing that the range is 30 yards. 1 1/8 or 1 3/8 traveling 1500FPS. Interested to hear how they perform...
 
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