More shotgun myths (and truths) exposed

[welsh]

In the spirit of that recent thread referring to a Field & Stream piece on shotgun ballistics, here's a new thing from F&S on shotgun myths (and truths):
http://www.fieldandstream.com/articl...src=SOC&dom=tw

Enjoy.

[Pijetro]

They also have a rifle myths and truths write up.
Since I've gotten into shotgunning lately, I've found this article correctly ties up many of the things I've learned recently.

[bardern]

the only section I question is the length of barrel verses pattern density. Unless I missed the point they make no mention of the choke used in the test. a shotgun set up for turkey with a 24" barrel and a dedicated turkey choke certainly puts more pellets in the target then shown in their testing. To me at least choke has more bearing on shot pattern than barrel lenght.

[Fox]

Longer barrels give you a better sight line, with beads the longer the barrel the better the chance of making a hit. Think about shooting a handgun vs a long gun, if you are using sights it is a lot tougher to be on target with a short sight plane. Makes sense on the barrel length.

They most likely used a modified choke, just 2 barrel lengths. The one thing that they did not say is what the length of barrel the shooter was used to. If someone has used a 30in barrel for 10 years they will probably swing it more consistently, if someone has used a 20in barrel for 10 years they are probably better with that.

My assumption is that they all are 28in barrel people, when they move to a 21in barrel the balance point is different and they can no longer hit anything.

I have an 870 Super Magnum, I only used a 23in turkey barrel for everything, I had no trouble hitting game. That being said I picked up a 28in barrel, not for better accuracy but rather I wanted to leave my sights on the vent rib all year rather then take them off and put them on with season changes.

[bardern]

I take it to mean shot sensity. you can take a 28" barrel screw in a mod choke and do the same with a 24" with the same choke you will see little if any differance all things being equal. now if you are talking that some shooters have a better shot plane with a longer barrel on that I will agree but you can also argue that if the gun fits properly you should only notice the target and the barrel will find its own sweet spot automatically without thought on the shooters part.

[Fox]

I take it to mean shot sensity. you can take a 28" barrel screw in a mod choke and do the same with a 24" with the same choke you will see little if any differance all things being equal. now if you are talking that some shooters have a better shot plane with a longer barrel on that I will agree but you can also argue that if the gun fits properly you should only notice the target and the barrel will find its own sweet spot automatically without thought on the shooters part.

I agree 100%, a 23" barrel has only 5" less range then a 28" barrel all other variables remaining consistent. The length of the barrel on longer shots makes sense due to a longer sighting plane and therefore a better chance of being accurate with your pattern placement at longer ranges. If all of these guys have been shooting 28in barrels for 10 years, when they pop up for a quick shot the weight and balance of the gun will be different and therefore change how the gun settles and how the pattern reaches the target.

I think the main reason people do better with X barrel length, is because that is what they shoot. Shooting your gun often, shotguns especially, make you a better shot. If you shoot your gun often then switch to a different one for a hunt, I bet you miss more.

[welsh]

The barrel length one is interesting, as there seem to be a lot of misconceptions about that. Conventional wisdom is longer barrels in the duck blind and shorter barrels in the woods, because the longer ones "swing better" and the shorter ones are "quicker handling."

I've run into one shotgun instructor (name forgotten) who argues convincingly that this is bunk: how well a shotgun of a given barrel length swings is a function of the shooter's physical stature. Taller shooters do better with longer barrels. He also argues you should use the same barrel length in the upland woods as in the duck blind, so you are using a gun with consistent balance and handling in all situations.

I don't think sight radius is relevant here. In wingshooting, you shouldn't be conscious of the rib anyway. The likely reason the short barrel performed poorly was the point of balance being moved back.

The interesting thing, to me, is that an 870 with a 21 inch barrel is roughly the overall length as a SxS or OU with 26 inch barrels, thanks to a 6-inch receiver; an 870 with a 28-inch barrel is about the same as a 34-inch barrel on an OU. The balance point will differ, of course, which may come into play, but it's interesting that where accuracy counts -- on the range, with dedicated trap guns -- we see longer barrels than the little 26-inch SxS I use in the woods.

[CocoZoo]

Fit is huge. I think all shotgunners would benefit from testing their guns POA and POI. I set my guns so my muzzle insert point on a proper gun mount is just under the circle (floating the target) and my point of impact is the centre of the circle. This provides a few advantages. One being, if a bird drops on you, you will see it and be able to track it without raising your head off the stock to find the bird. On rising targets, you don't have to bury the bird in order to shoot the lead above the bird.

Also, I require an adjustable butt plate so I can drop the butt pad down. I want my right and left eyes level when shooting. I see a lot of shooters that tilt thier head to the side or crane their neck way forward when mounting the gun. The former are normally one eyed squinty shooters, and the latter are going to be looking at the targets with their eyeballs strained upwards.

Hope that makes sense.

[Fox]

Coco, there are so few of us that have any gun fit properly, what you say is most likely dead on.