Any Suggestions For Sporting Clays Improvement?

[kend]

I shot my first clays match this weekend and I sucked! I'm using a 20 ga. Red Label with sk/sk fixed chokes, 7/8 oz./2 1/2 dr. factory loads. I don't know if I need a lot of practice or more gun. I can hit skeet thrown from a manual thrower with this combo, I know they're not as fast and as far away at times but it seems I was the only one there with a 20. Any suggestions? If a new shotgun were in order I'd like to keep it under $1000 and I'd prefer an o/u as I really like the Red Label.

[Questor]

I think your choke is too open. Try IC/Mod instead.  Most of the shots you get in sporting clays are beyond 25 yards, and a skeet pattern is going to have big holes in it at those distances.  If your gun has fixed chokes, it can be modified to use screw-in chokes.

[kend]

I had an idea the chokes might be a little loose but the barrels are too thin to install screw-in chokes.

[the rifleman]

Take your gun to a competent gunsmith, perhaps he could make some adjustments to your barrels to tighten the choke up a bit. I don't profess to know how they would do it, perhaps by adding some material, to the bore end and then reboring? Maybe they could cut the barrel's and add a new barrel end with a tighter choke. Its quite amazing what can be done by the right persson, for the right price.

[Ka6otm]

If you really like the shotgun you already have, then you might want to find a Gunsmith who can jug choke the one you already have.

I had this done on a SxS about 30 years ago and it worked great although you almost never hear about it these days.

Ka6otm

[savageT]

If you really like the shotgun you already have, then you might want to find a Gunsmith who can jug choke the one you already have.

I had this done on a SxS about 30 years ago and it worked great although you almost never hear about it these days.

Ka6otm

Ka6otm,
Can you explain what jug choking means?  I've heard there are techniques to backbore the forcing cone that will change/improve a fixed choke.  Is there anything short of replacing barrels that will drastically improve a choke?


Jim

[Ka6otm]

savageT,

Jug choking is cutting a jug an inch or so into the barrels.  Kind of hard to describe but I'll try it.

Picture a brake cylinder reamer.  It's about 1-1/2" long and has 3 stones on it that are spring loaded to go out.  You stick it in a brake cylinder and turn it with a drill to clean out the crud.

If you do the same thing in a barrel and ream out an area that is larger than the inside diameter of the barrel at the end that's about 1" from the end of the barrel, it has a choking effect.  The amount of effect is proportional to how deep you cut the jug.  They say you make the uniform cut about 1-1/2" long and taper it on both ends.


In this case I had a SxS that had 4" removed from the barrels, making it a cylinder choke.  Then it was jug choked to about IC in the left barrel and about modified in the right.

Ka6otm

[Clif4570]

Kend,
I will put my 2 cents worth in too. If you look around at the most succesful Sporting Clays shooters, they will most likely be shooting an O/U in 12 guage along with several constrictions of screw in chokes. Many will also carry 2 and sometimes 3 different shell loadings with 7's up to 9's and many times different power levels for long shots vs close in.   Sporting Clays is a real fun game, and can be quite humbling,but if you really enjoy it you might as well get a gun that will HELP you succeed in your effort. Clays certainly can be shot with a 20, I have even used my 28 and 410. Haven't done too well with the 410 because it obviously just dosen't have the reach or shot load to break the far ones. I have shot pretty respectable score with the 28 though. But when I am serious about it or at compitition, I always  reach for the 12.
Good shooting