Buckshot for deer.

[swamper]

Hey guys, I am going out tomorrow hunting deer and thinking about taking my shotgun with 00 buck. What choke would you recommend? This is a new attempt for me as I have only hunted deer with rifle and bow in the past.

[walks with deer]

Pattern your gun first cylinder bore or modified 35yards max.
I use slugs to 60 on the coast pretty mean hit.

[d6dan]

My Browning BPS 12 uses a modified choke or my Carlson's coyote choke tube. Both are great with 00 and 000 buckshot. You can't shoot slugs through the Coyote tube.

[swamper]

Thanks guys. I will leave my Mod choke in and see what happens. Most likely the deer will walk, like usual.

[walks with deer]

Pattern first please....

[Gateholio]

Get close....

[elkhunter1]

They go down fast at 50 meters with 00buck on Saturna island

[brian]

If you don't know what choke to use then you have no idea what the shot is doing out of your shotgun. This is like hunting without sighting in your rifle or tuning your bow. You are not ready to use buckshot on deer! Go pattern it and learn what your effective range is and what choke you should be using!

[Razor84]

Pattern first please....

do you realize how expensive buckshot is? I wouldn't reccomend waste any shooting at target. Lots of power 00 buck right out to 75 yards!

[AllSmiles]

do you realize how expensive buckshot is? I wouldn't reccomend waste any shooting at target. Lots of power 00 buck right out to 75 yards!
Is this a troll?

[r106]

do you realize how expensive buckshot is? I wouldn't reccomend waste any shooting at target. Lots of power 00 buck right out to 75 yards!


What a dumb post. To not pattern the gun if your shooting at 20 yards is one thing but to suggest not bothering with it and taking shots @ 70 yards is not good advice. Especially for the reason you suggested. Have some respect for the animals your trying to harvest. Thats like saying I should only sight in my rifle if I'm using powershock or federal blue box ammo and don't bother with premium ammo because it's too expensive??

[rifleman]

What a dumb post. To not pattern the gun if your shooting at 20 yards is one thing but to suggest not bothering with it and taking shots @ 70 yards is not good advice. Especially for the reason you suggested. Have some respect for the animals your trying to harvest. Thats like saying I should only sight in my rifle if I'm using powershock or federal blue box ammo and don't bother with premium ammo because it's too expensive??

exactly ,,, well said r106

[vortex hunter]

I am using win magnum 00 buck shot in 2 3/4 its okay to 25 yrds but opens up the pattern after that , whats peoples thought on 000 buck instead of 00 what is the actual differance just more pellets ?

[MichelD]

One of the best shotgunners I know was shocked at the poor patterns he got at 25 yards with his best gun and the buck shot he brought that day. I can't remember what he did, but I think he had to try again another day with different ammo and maybe a different choke too.

[walks with deer]

Razor84

Hope your joking that's disgusting.

Swamper bring your chokes and a few different loads than see what kind of distance you can get a pattern.

Buckshot looses energy quickly and different brands are worth playing with.

[180grainer]

I'd use full choke, (cause I want as many pellets on target as possible) and no more than 25 yards, (cause I want as many pellets on target as possible). Penetration and pattern formation drop markedly after that point. Look for an ammunition manufacturer that has a product with a longer wad than normal. Those tend to hold the pellets together for tighter groups at longer distances. Federal makes one with copper coated lead pellets. Expensive though. Hope you have good follow up tracking skills.

[Murder]

Pattern first with different loads. Federal makes an interesting load with "flite control wad" where it is supposed to stay with the pellets longer giving you a tighter pattern than normal. They didn't hold up to that in my 870 with a modified choke. The best load I could find was hornady 00 z shot. Remington green box was second best and i successfully toom a couple deer with that load in 000. Get out and shoot so you know what it is doing. I found some loads shot In a circle with a big hole of nothing in the middle. Cheers

[brian]

do you realize how expensive buckshot is? I wouldn't reccomend waste any shooting at target. Lots of power 00 buck right out to 75 yards!

Those two sentences are about the worst advice I have ever read on this forum.

Federal premium vitalshok with the flitecontrol wad $5.99 for a box of 5 (just over a buck a shot). Couple boxes and you have enough to pattern it and to hunt. Patterns to a 50 yard max under ideal conditions... more comfortable at 40 yards. I would never dream of shooting it to 70 too high probability of wounded, crippled, and lost animals. Of course I know this because I patterned it.

[HuntNmemories]

I used to use 2 3/4 in, but was looking for more knock down power, so I moved to a Browning 3 in. I generally use Federal Brand, this year its a Power Shok load 00 Buck. I have found 25- 30 yds is max distance I feel comfortable shooting. This is based on target practicing and I found pellets were never in symmetrical pattern or the same pattern everytime. But the spread is generally consistent in the same given distance. Shooting out to max distance of 25-30 yds, I generally aim low to allow for the spread of pellets to hit the vital area.

[Ranger95]

always pattern your shotgun first - this will tell you what your shot will be doing at various distances - if you are not happy with the results you are getting try different shot and different chokes.

[hoochie]

I am using win magnum 00 buck shot in 2 3/4 its okay to 25 yrds but opens up the pattern after that , whats peoples thought on 000 buck instead of 00 what is the actual differance just more pellets ?

000 has less pellets.
I reload my 000 and 00 as well as #4buck.
give it a try, cheap and keeps me out of trouble ;)

[Steelpulse]

Worked for my brother, got a stand by side of road white tail with some 00 I think, while we left duck hunting one morning, killed the deer on the spot, 20 yards spread from head to tail was no way accurate past 30 but works close range

[180grainer]

Those two sentences are about the worst advice I have ever read on this forum.

Federal premium vitalshok with the flitecontrol wad $5.99 for a box of 5 (just over a buck a shot). Couple boxes and you have enough to pattern it and to hunt. Patterns to a 50 yard max under ideal conditions... more comfortable at 40 yards. I would never dream of shooting it to 70 too high probability of wounded, crippled, and lost animals. Of course I know this because I patterned it.

I saw that stuff at Crappy Tire and it was $16.00 for a box of five.

[hoochie]

I just remembered.. that Dominion stuff. Box of 25 was like $16? or something there abouts. No idea how it shoots but might be an option if you are going to be shooting a few of um

[brian]

I saw that stuff at Crappy Tire and it was $16.00 for a box of five.

Wow, I got mine up at Cabelas Nainamo $5.99 per box. Never seen it at crappy tire.

[hoochie]

^^ buck shot should be about $1 per round. $16 for 5 is way too much

[aggiehunter]

My only comment is to prepare yourself to do some form of tracking if the shot is over 30 yards or so....the expansion of buckshot does not appear (for me anyway) to create a lot of blood loss...the little round lead ball merely makes a small wound track and theres not a lot of shock....

[walks with deer]

Imagine you are using a round ball 22for every hit at prescribed range.
Add bone and elasticity of hide.
Broad side heart lung or head depending on pattern verses range.

Razor84 thinking is why shotguns are not allowed for bigger range.
I would argue a slug is effecient for all game.
When accurate.
Buckshot is finess and tuning stay within your range.
Bow hunting with spray.
I know a guy who eat up 5rounds of buckshot at a buck and missed it clean all 5 times while duckhunting.
He inserted a steel bb duck round that was patterend and nushed the deers head.
Pattern then hunt.enjoy the challenge ethicaly.

[unstableryan]

The Remington Express Magnum 3 1/2" 18 pellet OO buck pattern fairly well out of my 26" mod choked 870 super mag. If the deer was at 35 yards it would be Swiss cheese. I had 10 of the 18 in a 12 inch circle. I haven't patterned farther.

[unstableryan]

I don't think of 9 pellet buckshot as camp bear defense at all, but I think the 18 pellet would be persuasive, and I'm a fan of big chunks of lead. My normal hunting/camp load is a 480 gr hard cast flat point at 1700. I've only killed deer and coyotes with it so far though and ... Well how do think it worked ?