New shotgun on the way

[Alan]

Well, I have a new one on the way:
32", 8-bore single muzzle-loading trap gun, choked full. 8):holysheep

It's a new gun built with an old barrel, and it has been shot extensively with a full service load (2 oz of shot).

The wood is exquisite, and the price was right. If I can figger out how these pitcher thingys work, I'll give y'all a peep when it gets here sometime next week. :popcorn:

[DIRT Farmer]

That thig might bite in a 100 bird match, hang on and break them all. I have had good luck shooting lighter loads in my 10s, cylinder bore shoots a good patern down to 7/8 oz, and breaks skeet targets with athority. I normaly load all the way up to 1 1/8 oz for trap.
Have fun, big guns seem to shoot great.

[daddywpb]

Very nice! Sounds like a turkey getter. Hope to see some pictures of it!

[Shooter]

Very nice! Sounds like a turkey getter. Hope to see some pictures of it!

I don't think you can use it for turkey, or any hunting.
Didn't the Pittman Robertson act limit shotguns to 10Ga. ?

[Alan]

Pittman-Robertson was about migratory water fowl. Individual state laws govern other hunting.

The previous owner used the 2 oz. charges for Protection trap shoots at Friendship. He won 2 matches against all comers with it. There aren't many ML's out there that pattern well enough to consistently break clay birds at 60 yards. (and even fewer shooters can)

Most of my intended shooting will be along the lines of 1 to 1 1/4 oz loads I imagine. I have an H&R 10 ga. I really don't think I would like to shoot 100 birds with it, much less a BP gun.:shock:

[northmn]

Knew a very good shot that used a double 8 on trap. They had a doubles match and guess what? He got one bird at least. But he was a large individual and seemed to like pain as he used pretty hefty charges. He did stay on his feet. ML's are a different game than smokeless cartridge guns. For smooth bore I like the larger bores myself as they handle shot much better. An 8 with 1 1/8 ounce of shot would have almost no shot string which may or may not be a benefit. With round ball it would be artillery. As stated a good turkey gun.

DP

[SPRINGFIELDM141972]

With round ball it would be artillery.

Now there's a truth. [smilie=l:

Regards,
Everett

[Alan]

Trying to get a pic uploaded:

This is from the seller's page.

[Newtire]

That thig might bite in a 100 bird match, hang on and break them all. I have had good luck shooting lighter loads in my 10s, cylinder bore shoots a good patern down to 7/8 oz, and breaks skeet targets with athority. I normaly load all the way up to 1 1/8 oz for trap.
Have fun, big guns seem to shoot great.

Hi Dirtfarmer,

Excuse me, not trying ot steal the thread but just wanting to ask a question.

That's some pretty looking shotgun! An 8-bore yet! Let me know if you ever get tired of it!

I have a couple of old 10 bores that I want to shoot and wondered about the powder charge you use with the 1 oz and 1-1/8oz loads. Also, being a Newbie to this M/L shotgun thing, was wondering about the thickness of the barrels. Right up near the muzzles, they are alot thinner than any modern shotgun I have seen.

I plan on doing the safe thing and using an old tire to fire it off in with a string and a tree between me and the shotgun.

I have a 16 gauge that is fun to use on clay pigeons up close with marginal success. I was hoping the 10 would give me just a tad more shot and a little better chance of hitting them!

[DIRT Farmer]

Playing with a M/L shotgun is a lot like trying to find the perfict load with a casting. It takes some fiddleing around.
Two of my origionals have the paper thin muzzles, one of them made up for it in the breach. That old gal has some hips. Both of them are good shooters.

I start building a load using the classic "square" load. take a shot dipper set it to the bore load (1 oz ) for a 16, 1 1/8 for a 12, 1 1/4 for a 10. Dip that volume of powder, more than likely ffg, (some of the big bores will run better with fg ) use an over powder card, Split a fiber wad in half (most are 1/2 in thick) add shot and use an over shot wad.
Both of my Pedersoli 10s run very well with 1 oz loads, my load is to use a shot dipper set on 7/8 oz for powder, card and fiber as above and 1 oz of shot. This is my skeet and trap load.
Origional guns will take some playing. In one of my 9 ga, It shoots best with a shot dipper set on 1 1/4 two card wads, no fiber wad and 1 1/2 oz of shot. anything else donuts. As a general rule, use a little less powder per volume than shot to tighten the pattern. To prove that every gun is different, Dads Baretta 12 O/U will only shoot with 8.5s or 9s 1 oz of shot over 1 card wad and 1/2 fiber wad, and a 7/8 volume of fffg. with this load skeet targets break well.
The Brown bess and 28 ga trade guns load weird but will break every target if you hold on them.

[Newtire]

Playing with a M/L shotgun is a lot like trying to find the perfict load with a casting. It takes some fiddleing around.
Two of my origionals have the paper thin muzzles, one of them made up for it in the breach. That old gal has some hips. Both of them are good shooters.

I start building a load using the classic "square" load. take a shot dipper set it to the bore load (1 oz ) for a 16, 1 1/8 for a 12, 1 1/4 for a 10. Dip that volume of powder, more than likely ffg, (some of the big bores will run better with fg ) use an over powder card, Split a fiber wad in half (most are 1/2 in thick) add shot and use an over shot wad.
Both of my Pedersoli 10s run very well with 1 oz loads, my load is to use a shot dipper set on 7/8 oz for powder, card and fiber as above and 1 oz of shot. This is my skeet and trap load.
Origional guns will take some playing. In one of my 9 ga, It shoots best with a shot dipper set on 1 1/4 two card wads, no fiber wad and 1 1/2 oz of shot. anything else donuts. As a general rule, use a little less powder per volume than shot to tighten the pattern. To prove that every gun is different, Dads Baretta 12 O/U will only shoot with 8.5s or 9s 1 oz of shot over 1 card wad and 1/2 fiber wad, and a 7/8 volume of fffg. with this load skeet targets break well.
The Brown bess and 28 ga trade guns load weird but will break every target if you hold on them.

Thanks for all the good info Dirtfarmer!

[DIRT Farmer]

It's a good thing the kids liked pizza, I went through a lot of boxes when they were small. I started with the loads "the guy at the range told me" style and found after patterning they work sometimes. An intersting finding, beef jerky gives decent patterns an does a decent job of controlling fouling. And I killed a few ducks that day. Losing the wads on the way into the blind is not a reason to not hunt.

[x101airborne]

An intersting finding, beef jerky gives decent patterns an does a decent job of controlling fouling. And I killed a few ducks that day. Losing the wads on the way into the blind is not a reason to not hunt.

And with what i walked through the last time I hunted the gulf coast for ducks, be damned if i came all this way to go home empty.

[DIRT Farmer]

And with what i walked through the last time I hunted the gulf coast for ducks, be damned if i came all this way to go home empty.

Yep, And the mud to.

[DIRT Farmer]

Alan I keep looking at that gun I think I know it. It may drag you to Friendship, even if you didn't want to go.

Alan

[Alan]

Believe me, nothing is going to have to drag me to Friendship. Work schedules permitting, I will try to make it there in the next year or so.[smilie=l:

If it patterns as tightly as I was told, it will take a lot of shooting just to learn to hit stuff with it. I have an old H&R 12 ga. single that is the same way. It's hard to get too far away to hit, but easy to get too close. :-D

[northmn]

It will likely shoot most loads as it is choked. It is the cylinder bores that tend to give the most problems. The skeet choke (Skeet 1) does not reeally give any pattern advantage over a cylinder bore except that it was developed to slow down the wads enough to eliminate the donuting. This was even in modern guns. Interesting gun.

DP

[DIRT Farmer]

[smilie=l::bigsmyl2:I hope in the next year or two to become a retired to shooting member. I have two many guns that have to stay home while I work there. Some body has to do it but it dosen't have to be me much longer.

[Alan]

It's here! :mrgreen:

Seems awfully light for heavy loads, around 7 lbs or so. It is every bit as gorgeous as the pics indicated. Weather is going to be dicey this weekend, so it may be week after next before I get to shoot it.

[DIRT Farmer]

Let us know how you do with it.

[Alan]

Preliminary results: Limited time, bad light, and this thing is a death ray. Now for warmer weather and more time to play with it at the pattern board. Just using 20ga/16ga balanced loads so far, and it shoots like a rifle.

Alan