I picked up a 00 buckshot mold, and after casting about 20 lbs of 00, I am starting to experiment. So far it seems that the lighter charges of medium burning powders pattern better, such as Unique, 540, etc, in the 1150 to 1200 fps range. I have tried 8, 10 and 12 pellet loadings so far, using various shotcups. Most patterns are 10-12 inches at 25 yards, from a modified choke tube. I always seem to have one or two fliers in the pattern, that open the size up. Maybe they are sticking to the bottom of the shotcup. I tried with and without buffering, and the buffered loads patterned significantly better. What is a realistic expectation of pattern size with buckshot loads, and does anyone have any tips on loading buckshot, to save me from having to reinvent the wheel?