Shotguner -- question on 20 ga v 12 ga
Everytime I show up in the field I get a little "guff" about hunting with my 20 ga. I used to hunt with a 12 until I bought a 20 for my wife[:D] Liked her 20 and started using for hunting pheasants. Just felt better. She told me to get my own gun so I bought a 870 Wingmaster in 20 that shoots 2 3/4 and also 3"
So the guff is that their 12 ga will shoot farther than my 20 and therefore they can reach out and touch birds that I can 't with my 20.
My understanding is that the 20 will throw shot just as far as their 12's but not as much of it; so my reach is the same but with less lead shot. Right or wrong?
Right now I use Remington Express "long range" 2 3/4 shells with 2 3/4 dram and 1 oz of shot #5 shot. Like the load especially the #5 shot.
Any recommendations on shot?
I can reload and do ballistics etc on rifles, but just have never paid a lot attention to shot gun shells.
Thank you o wise ones.
So the guff is that their 12 ga will shoot farther than my 20 and therefore they can reach out and touch birds that I can 't with my 20.
My understanding is that the 20 will throw shot just as far as their 12's but not as much of it; so my reach is the same but with less lead shot. Right or wrong?
Right now I use Remington Express "long range" 2 3/4 shells with 2 3/4 dram and 1 oz of shot #5 shot. Like the load especially the #5 shot.
Any recommendations on shot?
I can reload and do ballistics etc on rifles, but just have never paid a lot attention to shot gun shells.
Thank you o wise ones.
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I also mainly use a 20 for upland
and for pheasants I use the same shells
as you,my buds also gave me "guff" till they saw
what that load can do
Thats a great load #5 lots of power
do they make with #6s.Ihavent looked because
I like the 5s
I think they want too much$$ for the 3 inch
but in steel 3 inch is a must0 -
I went one further and went to a 28 ga. I can shoot longer than anybody shooting a 12 ga, and there is almost no differance in the range between the 12 and 28. And the 28 is throwing 3/4 oz of shot.
Your mileage may vary.
"Every time a system is made foolproof - a new class of fool emerges."
Prod Harris
"If you ain't got pictures, I wasn't there."0 -
it doesn't matter if that # 5 shot is from a 12 or a 20 , if they both leave the barrel at the same vel. they will get down range at the same vel. big difference comes in the pattern , shoot a 1 3/8 oz #5 from a 12 ga at 40 yards is going to hold a lot more shot than a 1oz load of #5 from a 20, i think thats one reason why you don't see to many 20's in a duck blind but if yoiu are happy with using a 20 go for it , there sure is nothing wrong with doing so , you just need to be a better shot or know when not to take the shot 0 -
Plains, 2 identical guns....'cept one is 20ga and one is 12ga. Both are shooting 2 3/4" shells, both are shooting 1oz of #5's at 1200fps, and both are choked the same. Same amount of shot, goes the same speed, and the same distance with the same energy. The ONLY difference "maybe" will be,with lead shot, a few flyers on the 20ga because the shot is stacked in a longer pile causing some pellets to deform. I've hunted with a 20ga for years and it kills em just as dead as a 12ga.[;)]
"Aim small, Miss small"0 -
Trapp,
If identical why the fuss over the 20 being light in the loafers? Doesn't the 12 have a larger volume (more lead shot) than the 20 like gskyhawk says?
Plains0 -
You should use what you feel comfortable using. As everyone knows, shot placement is a major factor in all hunting. I killed a 21 pound gobbler this spring with a 20 ga. single shot. All of my buddies have new respect for the old 20. 0 -
Oh I am keeping my 20. It just swings on fast birds much better than any 12 I have ever picked up. Just want to know what I am giving up in horsepower for comfort. 0 -
Plains, Yes the 12ga will take a heavier load of shot, and with a heavier load it can put more pellets on the target at a longer range.Same thing happens with a 7/8oz load against a 1oz load in the 20ga. I was comparing them with everything else the same.
"Aim small, Miss small"0 -
All above is true... AND NOT TRUE!
Load to load, a stationary target at a given distance will take the same number of hits from any gauge (on average w/ similar choke).
Load to load, a moving target won't! This phenomena is the result of a lengthened shot string in smaller bores which actually results in slightly different arrival times from the start of the string to the end.
Two possible results come from a lengthened shot string. The first (and most obvious) is that a target is hit, but not hard enough and not by enough bb's to do fatal damage. The second (and not so obvious) is that what would be a miss with a larger gauge is turned into a hit because of the elongated pattern.
Shotguns are interesting creatures. Each is different and about the only thing similar to their spiral-tubed brethren is the bang. They've intrigued me for as long as I can remember and continue to do so to this day. Enjoy that 20 ga. Shoot it correctly and you'll leave the big bore boys wondering.
Nord0 -
Good info from Nord- remember that the shot string IN FLIGHT is 3 dimensional high, wide, and LONG. Bigger bore USUALLY equals LONGER shot string, increasing number of potential hits. On the other hand, if you are dove hunting, have been beat up by a hard shooting 12, well, MISSING with a 12 gives same results as MISSING with a 20. Its what you shoot best that counts.[;)]
Friends help you move. REAL friends help you move BODIES!0 -
i second the heavier shot hitting harder in 12. and i second the 3 dimensional swarm. though the main swarm may miss as easy with 12 as 20, its the fliers that sometimes wing a shot, making 12's a better choce. correct me if im wrong because im going on memory but 1 1/8oz of #9 lead is 685 pellets, 585 pellets in 1oz, 7/8oz is 525. just use a sliding scale for any shot size and youll see that the more lead, the higher the hit potential.
20's are a fine round intended for a specific use. if it works, dont fix it.
former air operations officer SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2. former navy skeet team, former navy rifle/pistol team member. co-owner skeetmaster tubes inc.. owner/operator professional shooting instruction. NRA certified instructor.0
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