Favorite steel

s.davis said:
I'm hoping the Hi-Bird bismuth (w/ fiber wad) they announced at shot show hits the market at some point.
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Yup I agree. There's so many bismuth shells coming out lately its hard to keep track. I really wonder about the shells under the vista(or whoever owns it now)banner. You've got hevi-bismuth under the hevi-shot brand, remington bismuth coming out, federal hevi bismuth under the federal premium badge, and now hi bird bismuth. Then there was the old meateater federal overpriced stuff. Hopefully if any members on here disect these shells or pattern them they'll post results.
 
BrownDogsCan2 said:
Ok all the bismuth aficionados. I came across some Kent 2 3/4” 1 1/4 #4’s at 380 a case . With tax free shipping and a 10 dollar discount code it come out to 401.xx.
Is that a good deal,? bad deal? Is Kent a poor shell?
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That's definitely the cheapest you can find for commercial bismuth. I like kent's steel and Joes dissection looks okay for the Kent bismuth so I say go for it.
 
BrownDogsCan2 said:
Ok all the bismuth aficionados. I came across some Kent 2 3/4” 1 1/4 #4’s at 380 a case . With tax free shipping and a 10 dollar discount code it come out to 401.xx.
Is that a good deal,? bad deal? Is Kent a poor shell?
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Great deal. I've shot LOTS of Kent Bismuth. Good stuff.
 
BrownDogsCan2 said:
Is Kent a poor shell?
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12 GA 2 3/4” Kent Waterfowl Bismuth No. 4 load
I purchased a box of the Kent Bismuth Waterfowl 12-gauge 2 ¾-inch 1 ¼-ounce No. 4 bismuth load (25 round/box @ $50.99/box + $4.23 tax = $55.22) at a local sporting goods store. I then cut open five shells, from the same box as the shells to be patterned, and the components (powder and shot) were weighed, counted, and measured for consistency. Here are my findings from those dissections.

12 GA 2 3/4" Kent Waterfowl Bismuth load
1 1/4 oz #4 Bi (212 pellets) @ 1350 fps
PELLET COUNT / WEIGHT (grains) (1 ¼ ounce = 546.9 gr)
219 / 518.2 gr
217 / 520.1 gr
209 / 513.1 gr
209 / 507.1 gr
208 / 511.5 gr
Aver. 212.4 / 514.0 gr

PELLET SIZE (25 pellets, 5 pellets/shell, #4 pellet dia. = .130”)
.134”, .135”, .133”, .133”, .132”, .132”, .131”, .131”, .131”, .131”, .129”, .128”, .128”, .127”, .125”, .123”, .121”, .117”, .116”, .112”, .112”, .111”, .108”, .107”, .104”
Aver. .12364” dia.

POWDER / SHELL (grains)
30.3 gr
30.1 gr
30.0 gr
29.5 gr
29.5 gr
Aver. 29.88 gr

PATTERN RESULTS
The patterns were shot at 40 yards with a Remington 870 Special Purpose 12-gauge using a 28-inch Rem-choke barrel and factory flush Modified Rem-choke, .018-inch constriction from a bore gauge. The 40-yard (muzzle to target) pattern data is the result of pellet hits registered in a 30-inch post-shot inscribed circle from five separate pattern shots.

Kent Waterfowl Bismuth load
12ga 2 ¾” 1 ¼ oz #4 Bi (212 pellets)
40 Yards / Modified Rem-choke
Patterns 137, 133, 124, 121, 115
Aver. 126.0 (59.32%)

So, how did this Kent Waterfowl Bismuth load perform? Well, here are a few more of my pattern numbers from some other bismuth, bismuth/steel duplex, and steel loads using the same gun/choke as above for comparison.

PATTERNS / 40 YARDS / Modified Rem-Choke (.018” constriction)
Boss Unmuzzled Bismuth 2 ¾” 1 ¼ oz #4 Bi (192 pellets) / pattern 126 (66%)
Boss Unmuzzled Bismuth 3” 1 3/8 oz #5 Bi (267 pellets) / pattern 143 (54%)
Boss Unmuzzled Bismuth 3” 1 ½ oz #3/#5 Bi duplex (226 pellets) / pattern 121 (54%)

Kent Upland Bismuth 2 ¾” 1 ¼ oz #5 Bi (197 pellets) / pattern 119 (60%)
Kent Waterfowl Bismuth 2 ¾” 1 ¼ oz #4 Bi (212 pellets) / pattern 126 (59%)

HEVI-Bismuth 2 ¾” 1 ¼ oz #5 Bi (228 pellets) / pattern 85 (37%)
HEVI-Hammer Upland 3” 1 3/8 oz #3 Bi/#3 Steel duplex (181 pellets) / pattern 101 (56%)

Fed. Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (186 pellets) / pattern 128 (69%)
Rem. Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (193 pellets) / pattern 146 (76%)
Win. Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #3 steel (195 pellets) / pattern 131 (67%)

Fed. Speed-Shok 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (154 pellets) / pattern 115 (75%)
Rem. Sportsman 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (152 pellets) / pattern 110 (72%)
Win. Xpert 3" 1 1/4 oz #2 steel (146 pellets) / pattern 106 (73%)
 
I bought a flat of these too. I should be good for two years now. But, I'm gonna try to get out hunting more and maybe I can burn through the entire flat next fall🤞.

Thanks BrownDog!
 
Bob Peters said:
Yeah, there's no need for tungsten in turkey guns if you're shooting a 12 gauge. That Longbeard XR by winchester is a great shell.
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I would agree, those XR’s patterned awesome at 50 yards and in for me.
On the topic of estimating range, Ive chuckled the couple years ive been on here seeing how many guy “never shoot beyond 35-40 yards”.
The first thing I do when my butt hits the ground turkey hunting is bust out the rangefinder. The same distance can look very different depending on the lay of the land. I remember one spot we set up because a bird was fired up a little ways away. I picked one tree to be 40. It was about 60. Bird wouldnt come in. After we gave up, i even stepped off that tree. Yep, it was 60. No matter how much I looked at it, it seemed way closer than it was. Now, factor in moving target, moving hunter, hills, happens fast, the bird is adding distance horizontally AND vertically-those super ethical 40 or in guys have probably sent bb’s flying at birds in the 50’s and 60’s more times than they can count.
 
12ga 3” #5 Winchester Long Beard vs Supreme vs Super-X load
Pattering results are from a 12-gauge 3-inch Remington 870 Special Purpose with a 26-inch barrel and a Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.063” constriction from bore gauge).

Pattern testing was done on 48-inch x 48-inch pattern sheets with a turkey head-and-neck target centered on each sheet. This turkey head-and-neck target provided an aim point and allowed for Skull/Cervical Vertebra (S/CV) hit data for each pattern shot. The distance from muzzle to pattern was measured with a tape and then one pattern shot was fired at each of five pattern sheets.

Following the pattern shots, 30-inch and 10-inch diameter pattern circles were centered over the densest portion of each pattern and the pellet strikes were counted. The five-shot averages for the 30-inch pattern counts (pattern percentages), 10-inch pattern counts, and S/CV hits are shown in the figures below. Additionally, the in-shell pellet counts are the average from five shells that were opened and counted.

12 GA 3" WINCHESTER LONG BEARD LEAD TURKEY LOAD
1 3/4 oz #5 lead (305 pellets, resin encased, copper coated) 1200 fps
Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.063” constriction)

Distance 30” / 10” / S/CV Hits
40 YARDS 295 (97%) / 118 / 11.8
50 YARDS 275 (90%) / 89 / 7.4

12 GA 3” WINCHESTER SUPREME HIGH-VELOCITY LEAD TURKEY LOAD
1 3/4 oz #5 lead (293 pellets, buffered, copper coated) 1300 fps
Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.063” constriction)

Distance 30” / 10" / S/CV Hits
40 YARDS 257 (88%) / na / 5.8
50 YARDS 170 (58%) / 27 / 2.0

12 GA 3” WINCHESTER SUPER-X LEAD TURKEY LOAD
1 7/8 oz #5 lead (317 pellets, buffered, copper coated) 1210 fps
Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.063” constriction)

Distance 30” / 10" / S/CV Hits
40 YARDS 276 (87%) / na / 3.4
50 YARDS 162 (51%) / 28 / 1.8

Now you can be the judge!
 
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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I've shot steel exclusively for over a decade.

I like relatively light loads for roosters and waterfowl. In 12-gauge 1 1/8 oz Steel 3s,
in 20 gauge 1 oz Steel 4s.

Early season hun hunts when that is all that is legal in western MT,
I shoot 20 gauge 1oz steel 6s.
Dec31_MT_Hun.JPG
 
I cut one of these open , Shot weight in it was 33 grams-or 510 grains. With a total of 184 pellets. I plan to check a couple of others and put it to paper at some point in the future.
 
BrownDogsCan2 said:
It dropped the tax so ended up being 370. You can’t beat that. Should be a little better in the wind. And the recoil should be better not pushing 1450 out of a 6.25 lb gun.
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I owe you one buddy! If I lived in Kansas with you and Dorothy I'd buy you a beer. And if you don't drink beer 🍻 I'd buy you an old fashioned. And if you don't drink those I'd buy you a sweet tea and a couple marrow bones for the brown dogs. 20240329_214613.jpg
 
Bob Peters said:
Yeah, there's no need for tungsten in turkey guns if you're shooting a 12 gauge. That Longbeard XR by winchester is a great shell.
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Following up on this. I had bought a box of 5 shells last spring of TSS turkey loads in a pinch because that was all they had. I used one round last spring at 30 yards to tag a tom. But I am pretty sure just about any turkey ammo works at that range.

So I went to a makeshift range before my turkey season in late April and shot another 2 rounds at different ranges, mostly to determine what the maximum distance might be. I took one shot at 40 yards and another at 50. I felt there was enough BB's on target at 50 yards to take a shot this spring.

I shot a tom on April 24 at 25 yards, so range was not an issue. I have 1 round of this TSS remaining that I can hopefully use next spring. My previous range with Winchester Longbeard XR was out to 60 yards, comfortably. Although I'm 2 for 2 with this TSS turkey ammo, its very expensive and both toms I've tagged were well within range for any ammo. I'll be going back to Longbeard XR after this last round of TSS.
 
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