Buckshot PERFECTION!

[Hogtamer]

So rarely do we get to use the word, "perfection," but this is it as far as I am able to determine with a buckshot load. Here is the result first: 50 measured yds shot off sled out of Rem 870 w/full screw in Remchoke, 28" barrel, front bead only.
Load data: new fed. 2 3/4" clear hull w/fed209a primer. 27 gr Alliant Steel powder. 1 PT 1265 multimetal wad from Bpi and 1-28 ga 1/8" card in bottom of wad. 12 #1 hard cast pellets out of Track of the wolf 6 cavity mold, 6 stacks of two. (44 gr each for 1.2 oz payload, .310 diameter) BPI buffer filled and shaken to top of pellets in shell. 1 frangible plastic clear OS card from BPI, perfect 6 pt crimp with lee loadall.
That's 11 pellets you see on the target, 8 of which are within the 8" green shaded area. That's 75% in an 8" circle at 50 yds, no special gun, choke, exotic proprietary components or unobtainium powder. Also, moving ~ 1300+ fps.
Here's the recovered wad, could load again.
http://www.ballisticproducts.com/PT1...nfo/222PT1265/

I can't imagine better, so I'm calling it Perfect!
62 yds, far back as I could get. Didn't do my part and pulled right but blue marked hits, accounting for 9 of 12 pellets, had I not pulled looks like 6 of them would be in the 8" circle.

[jmort]

I agree. That is exactly what you would want in terms a pattern at 50 yards. Even the 4 that missed are in the ball park and would probably add to the terminal effect. Great stuff that there.

[Huntsman]

Looks like its working out for ya, good job!
I'm in the process of loading 000 Buck from my Lee mold. My brother is loading 00 (or equivalents from his .32 round ball mold)
and getting "donut" patterns. I'm not sure what the problem is other than choice of wad?
For the first time in years I harvested a nice whitetail buck last year with a factory Federal 00 3" buckshot load.

[Blood Trail]

HT,

You really did one hellva job. That will hunt all day long. Great job, brother!

[Rattlesnake Charlie]

Hogtamer, what alloy did you use? Did you water drop?

[Hogtamer]

7.5% antimony.

[OnHoPr]

Hope you boys don't get to dissy about a longish post and questionnaire. First of all, good group(s) there HT. Now for the run on post. There is a few mentalities out there concerning buckshot. Here in the north a number of people use it. There are a few types though, there are the suburb types that have hunted for 20 years and only tagged maybe one or two deer and we have hunters as well. The suburb type hardly ever pattern their weapons, there is really no place to. They just pick up a couple of boxes and go hunting. A lot of them couldn't tell the difference between 34 yd and 68 yd when a deer is in sight. Henceforth, there is a big faction that is against buckshot because mainly of its unexperienced use. This also comes with inexperienced tracking skills, (oh and no dogs). Yada yada yada I've lived in a shotty zone most of my life, but 90% of the time hunted the rifle zone until a hand full of years ago when my ponderance of hunting techniques have brought on inquiries.

In the rifle zone you take an 06 and load it to 3000 fps and you have all ranges covered effectively out to 1/4 mile. In the shotgun zone regardless if you use pistol, shotty, or mzldr your range is only out to about 250 at semi pro best and tested. In this shotgun zone ranges are divided differently for effectiveness. You have the 50 yd and under brush blind. Then you have the thick woods blind where you can get decent clear shots out to a hundred yards in a few alleys. Then you have the hardwood hills blind where a lot of shots are in the 100 yd range, but you can shoot down the gully or on top the next ridge 150 yd. Lastly, you have cut fields and such where you are only limited by weapon. All these different range scenarios would at best require different weaponry and loads for optimum performance. So, I decided to learn more and get my 835 setup for all these ranges and being optimum in their individual environments.

My slug reloading has been put on pause, but I have with factory sabot basically tuned the 835 for the longer ranges. This leaves the shorter ranges to be tinkered with. Buckshot and being optimum, now a lot of you dixie boys like buckshot and have used it your whole lives and are still trying to up the standards. I watch on youtube channels like Bubba Roundtree Outdoors and a few of those dog running vids. It looks like that buckshot can be very effective pass the "Oh, 40 yards, Buckshot" range and the 25 yd tree stand feed pile shot.

I finally made a "huntable" load with buckshot from a single cavity Lee .311, whoa to much casting for a 3.5" gun. lol This required a bit of testing and using a number of components, but not real extensive as 40 to 50 max was my only basic concern. This does leave those 50, 60, and 70 yard alleys that you clean out after sitting in a stand a few days for betterment of your buckshot load. Now, in the north even that we do drives we mostly stand hunt. With higher populations and less PL to hunt on the first few days and weekends is like a big unplanned drive a lot of times so to speak. This means that deer could be moving in almost any mode from really sneaking to moseying to fast stop & go walks/trots to hauling but.

While I was doing my buckshot load development I was doing more extensive turkey load development. While both developments were in progress I noticed something. Different loads and different components created different POI (points of impact) to POA (points of aim) something like slug development if you were to look at the centers of the pattern as being slug hits on paper or groups. So, Hogtamer it might not have been you not doing your part on the 2nd 62 yd target, it might have been the actual loads POI from POA even though the six hits are outstanding.

Inquiry, reading and actual experience are two different things. Given the actual style of stand hunting in the buckshot brush and deer movement as described above buckshot size has been deliberated upon. Still patterns are patterns. I have read a bunch of the web/book type data on pellet energy and phone book penetration test & yada yada yada. Would you buckshot hunters use the No 1 buckshot at 60 yd on a head on facing you 250 buck where just the shoulders, neck, and brisket is you target or would you like to use something bigger? When you go bigger you lose pellet count, but gain penetration, though penetration of 4 hits into the head on shoulders and side neck with maybe only one making through the brisket into the boiler room could be miserable tracking. My concern is not really broadside shots. I have seen 00 buck do complete pass through of ribs at 75 yd. My concern is the harder head, tail on and raking shots.

[Hogtamer]

Good common sense there, head on is a crappy shot with anything! (except a gangsta) And 6 pellets in "the pudding", broadside behind the shoulder, is certain death to any thin skinned animal like a deer. Just never expect an animal to drop right there with buckshot unless a pellet clips the spinal cord. Like bowhunting, make sure you give it a little time before you track. A deer can explode 100 yds with his heart shot out with a .308 in 4 seconds, and that can seem like a loooong way in thick woods. And don't expect a painted blood trail either. I've called this load perfect because I've loaded and patterned so many combos of of pellets, components and shot that I've lost count. Factory loads as well. This one puts the highest percentage of payload on target than any I've used, including the flight control wads. What this amounts to in the end is torching off 12 fairly high velocity .22 rounds at once, any of which can be lethal with good placement. None of which are likely to be lethal head or butt on. Broadside or slight quartering away is always the ticket to meat.

[Blood Trail]

If done right, Buck is a very effective load at long ranges. I would love to get a hole of those flight control wads.

BTW, Wade Rush from Bubba Realtree Outdoors is a dear friend of mine who, like many in this site, has helped me beyond all measure in my shotgun casting/reloading endeavors.


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[6pt-sika]

BTW, Wade Rush from Bubba Realtree Outdoors

I thought that guys Youtube name was "Bubba Roundtree Outdoors" .

Glad he's your friend , but he's a little to robust for my taste .

[Blood Trail]

Sorry, It's roundtree. When we first met, I put him in phone as "Realtree". He's a good ol southern Baptist hunter with loads of casting for shotgun experience.

[6pt-sika]

Sorry, It's roundtree. When we first met, I put him in phone as "Realtree". He's a good ol southern Baptist hunter with loads of casting for shotgun experience.

If I'm not mistaken he's a minister .

[Blood Trail]

He is.


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[izzyjoe]

I'm not sure what robust means, but he seems like he would be interesting to hang out with, and learn some things bout shotgun loading techniques. I'm fairly new to shotgun reloading myself, but I'm learning!

[Rattlesnake Charlie]

Head shots with buckshot? Never tried it. I do know that a .22 short will drop a full blown cow or large hog right now when shot between the eyes. I'll clarify that is at point blank range. #1 buck is about the same weight as a .22 short, but won't have the same penetrating power due to it being a larger diameter.

I'd like to hear if anyone has successfully drop a deer with a head on shot with buckshot. Please list the size, brand, range, etc. I suspect it will, even out to maybe 30 yards.

[6pt-sika]

I'm not sure what robust means, but he seems like he would be interesting to hang out with, and learn some things bout shotgun loading techniques. I'm fairly new to shotgun reloading myself, but I'm learning!

Robust in the context I used it was meant to mean a bit to "loud" for my taste .

[45workhorse]

Well done!!!!

[Hogtamer]

pellets are .310" 44 gr each MV about 1325. Actually a 1 1/2 buck by the book, but bigger than 0 buck nickel plated I have bought in the past. Head shot...no, I said. But at 20 yd would destroy a deer neck at any angle, DRT. 50 yd broadside would be quick work too. Think 6 pellets in this ipad screen I'm typing on. I don't think westerners get the whole buckshot thing. In typical southern woods buckshot have proved themselves for 150 years. The first coyote I killed was on a dead run broadside @ 75 yds with #3 buck out of a 20 ga. DRT. The first deer I pulled a trigger on was 30 yds with an LC Smith twice barrel 16 ga. #1 buck. DRT. All told I hunted with the same thing my sons did - a 20 ga. 2 3/4 pump and #3 buck for six years. They were 3 yrs apart and started
at age 10. We killed 20 something in those six years, never lost one. Grandson has killed 5 in 3 years with same. And those loads were no where near as efficient as the load posted here. I ain't after plains game or across-the-valley mule deer. Buckshot is for medium size whitetails in the woods, the occasional varmint or wild dog, feral hogs in palmetto swamps, or 2 leg bandits and thugs that might invade my property and threaten my family.

[Blood Trail]

I'm not sure what robust means, but he seems like he would be interesting to hang out with, and learn some things bout shotgun loading techniques. I'm fairly new to shotgun reloading myself, but I'm learning!

Check out his channel: Bubba roundtree outdoors


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[izzyjoe]

I've watched several of his videos on YouTube, I actually found him a few years back when the wife and me was out of town for thanksgiving. Academy had yildiz semiauto 12 or 20ga shotguns on sale for $299, and he had a video about them. I passed on the yildiz, cause I'd never heard of them, and didn't want to take a chance.