Hello All,
I don't know what discussion this will bring up, but this is the thinking that goes into me selecting a choke tube for the various types of shooting I do.
I shoot trap once a week with a group of local guys. We get together at the sportsman's club and shoot a few rounds every Thursday night. I shoot 1-1/8 ounce 7 1/2 lead shot loads in a 12 gauge. I generally go for the full choke tube in this game. I don't select the choke because it increases my hit percentage, I go for a full choke as a training aid. If I'm dusting the targets with a full choke, I have to concentrate more and I know better when I am doing things wrong. I can get away with a tiny bit more with a Modified choke, but I'm there to learn and improve, not just to break more birds with a more open choke.
After the trap season has ended I will hunt ruffled grouse. The grouse hunting I do is usually in balsam thickets and swamps. I use the same loads as I do for trap, but I switch to an improved cylinder choke. I used to use a single shot 12 with a full choke. When I connected with a partridge there would be a lot of ruined meat, so now I use a cylinder choke in my pump 12.
I just started duck hunting last season. I mostly stalk and jump local ducks on small bodies of water early in the season. At first I used a full choke tube and steel No2's. I am going to switch to a modified tube this year. I have heard that because steel shot doesn't deform as much as lead you don't need as much choke. I might even get a box of steel No6's and try for some shorebirds this year with a cylinder choke. I'm going to give No 4's a try this year for the regular season as well.
Next, I used to hunt deer exclusively with my old single shot. Now I use my pump 12, or more often my 30-30 rifle. I would always use buckshot before, which doesn't shoot very well for me from a full choke. I will use improved cylinder with buckshot now. I don't really shotgun for deer much any more though, so I really just keep a few buckshot on hand in case of an emergency.
For slugs, when I have a reason to shoot them, I use a full choke. I shoot punkin ball home loaded slugs. The round balls are .690, much smaller than bore diameter. I use my full choke because this is the closest to actual slug diameter. I can drop a roundball through the choke anyways, so it is still plenty loose. I load my round balls with the same data I use for 1 1/8 ounce birdshot loads. I de-petal a wad to accomidate the diameter of the round ball. The ball weighs slightly less than 1-1/16 ounce, with the alloy I use, so the 1-1/8 birdshot data is safe. Also, a slug doesn't press against the sides of the barrel like a colum of birdshot does, so the pressure is much lower. These slugs shoot minute-of-paper-plate at 50 yards. I have never had to hunt with these, but I have shot them for fun at the range. They are nice to have out at the hunting shack though, in case something should happen to my rifle.
For late season rabbits I hunt the swamps with my dad. We don't own a hunting dog. We walk paralel, stopping often to watch for rabbits to flush. I use lead No 4's and an improved cylinder choke on rabbits, or a .22 rifle. The open choke and big shot makes for a clean kill at close ranges and little shot up meat. You can't see 30 yards through the swamp any ways, so an improved cylinder isn't a handicap. I will choose the shogtun or .22 depending on which suits my fancy that day. It isn't really a matter of practicality but of my mood.
So there you have it. That is how I select chokes for diferent shooting situations with my 12 gauge.
