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side x side shotgun?
- Thread starter Wildone39
- Start date
Years ago it was determined that lead shot was poisoning waterfowl. It was banned in most jurisdictions for that application. Steel shot was one of the first non-toxic substitutes but now there are many others. Some of the other lead-free waterfowl shots may be compatible with a full choke in your gun but you should definitely ask the manufacturer first. Many of the other lead-free shots are heavier than steel and are lethal at longer distances.
DancesWithKnives
DancesWithKnives
Hi,
Congratulations on your purchase! I hope you get many years of enjoyment from it.
Non-toxic shot has been federally mandated since the early '70s for use for waterfowl hunting and even general use on waterfowl production areas. Even some trap and skeet ranges are now non-toxic shot too.
Steel shot was the first approved non-tox and all there was for many years. It remains the cheapest of the non-tox shot. Other non-tox shot types are a lot more expensive. They are often heavier than lead, (like Heavi-Shot), and harder than steel. Any gun manufactured since the mid-70s will shoot steel or other non-tox shot just fine.
The reason Stoeger cautions against using a full choke with these harder shot types is because they cannot make the barrels thick enough to withstand a phenomenon called "bridging." This tends to occur as the shot column is constricted by the choke. Think of what would happen if some of the pellets where all aligned as they are being squeezed down from .725", (12ga), column diameter to .710" column diameter. With soft lead, the pellets would give and deform. With hard non-tox shot there is little give and no deformation. This can cause the barrel to bulge outward. On single barreled guns like a pump or auto, this most likely won't cause great harm. Just an unsightly bulge. And those guns generally have thicker barrels to better withstand this. With a double, the bulge will almost assuredly break the bond between the barrel and the ribs. Rendering the gun pretty much un-repairable and a fence post.
The more open chokes, like the Improved Cylinder and Modified are far, far less likely to have this happen. Since the constriction is less and more gradual. This is why Stoeger tells you to only shoot the more open chokes with the harder non-tox shot.
dalee
Congratulations on your purchase! I hope you get many years of enjoyment from it.
Non-toxic shot has been federally mandated since the early '70s for use for waterfowl hunting and even general use on waterfowl production areas. Even some trap and skeet ranges are now non-toxic shot too.
Steel shot was the first approved non-tox and all there was for many years. It remains the cheapest of the non-tox shot. Other non-tox shot types are a lot more expensive. They are often heavier than lead, (like Heavi-Shot), and harder than steel. Any gun manufactured since the mid-70s will shoot steel or other non-tox shot just fine.
The reason Stoeger cautions against using a full choke with these harder shot types is because they cannot make the barrels thick enough to withstand a phenomenon called "bridging." This tends to occur as the shot column is constricted by the choke. Think of what would happen if some of the pellets where all aligned as they are being squeezed down from .725", (12ga), column diameter to .710" column diameter. With soft lead, the pellets would give and deform. With hard non-tox shot there is little give and no deformation. This can cause the barrel to bulge outward. On single barreled guns like a pump or auto, this most likely won't cause great harm. Just an unsightly bulge. And those guns generally have thicker barrels to better withstand this. With a double, the bulge will almost assuredly break the bond between the barrel and the ribs. Rendering the gun pretty much un-repairable and a fence post.
The more open chokes, like the Improved Cylinder and Modified are far, far less likely to have this happen. Since the constriction is less and more gradual. This is why Stoeger tells you to only shoot the more open chokes with the harder non-tox shot.
dalee
- Joined
- May 5, 2003
- Messages
- 2,494
That is one of the saddest truths in the gun world.
(Although lots of guys would say the Ugartachea guns at $2K or so are good).I took a chance last year and bought a DeHaan. (20ga., screw-in chokes, double triggers, extractors; <$1K) It is a Turkish import that got some extra QC and tune-up work from a company in the US. It looks good and swings OK. I took it to the skeet club to break it in. I snuck out early and shot a round to see how it would do. It performed well and I was pleased. So I showed it off to all the guys and then went out to shoot another round. The right side stopped firing at the second station. :foot:
I returned it for factory warranty repair and it has been trouble-free since. It's a good grouse gun and I love the "sight picture" of a SxS, but if something happened to it, I don't think I'd buy another cheap SxS.
Stay sharp,
desmobob
Hi,
Sadly, Mark DeHaan is also at least temporarily out of business. Though I believe he is offering a semi-custom model or two. I think CZ really put the squeeze on him by selling the same guns. I almost bought one from him several years ago. But I'm a left handed shooter. And those Turk guns have stocks that are bent with cast-off for righties, (the CZs are the same). So I passed.
Uggies are pretty decent guns. But sadly, the prices have been climbing on those too. The whole exchange rate has really been giving a beating to imported shotguns from Europe.
Like a good knife, every man should have a good SxS game gun in his safe. There is nothing quite like them.
dalee
Sadly, Mark DeHaan is also at least temporarily out of business. Though I believe he is offering a semi-custom model or two. I think CZ really put the squeeze on him by selling the same guns. I almost bought one from him several years ago. But I'm a left handed shooter. And those Turk guns have stocks that are bent with cast-off for righties, (the CZs are the same). So I passed.
Uggies are pretty decent guns. But sadly, the prices have been climbing on those too. The whole exchange rate has really been giving a beating to imported shotguns from Europe.
Like a good knife, every man should have a good SxS game gun in his safe. There is nothing quite like them.
dalee
There should be a choke wrench that came with the gun. Use it to unscrew the choke tube from the end of each barrel. Each choke tube should have written on its side a description of how tight of a choke it is. You probably have one "modified" choke (medium constriction of shot pattern). The other may be either "improved" (more open pattern) or "full" (tighter constriction of shot pattern). Very generally speaking, you usually use a more open choke (like improved) at closer ranges and a tighter choke (like full) at longer ranges.
I would recommend Googling "shotgun chokes" and reading up on the subject.
DancesWithKnives
I would recommend Googling "shotgun chokes" and reading up on the subject.
DancesWithKnives
Hi,
If you remove the chokes with the wrench, look at the notched end. There will be a number of lines scribed into the end of the tube. The more lines, the more open the choke. If I remember correctly, mine came with 3 tubes, Improved, Modified, and full.
1 line= Extra Full
2 lines= Full
3 lines= Modified
4 lines= Improved Cylinder
5 lines= Cylinder
After market chokes can be purchased. If I remember correctly, your Uplander uses the older, shorter Mossberg/Browning style. The cost should be right around $20. I personally recommend getting a "Skeet" tube. That would just a bit tighter than Cylinder.
dalee
If you remove the chokes with the wrench, look at the notched end. There will be a number of lines scribed into the end of the tube. The more lines, the more open the choke. If I remember correctly, mine came with 3 tubes, Improved, Modified, and full.
1 line= Extra Full
2 lines= Full
3 lines= Modified
4 lines= Improved Cylinder
5 lines= Cylinder
After market chokes can be purchased. If I remember correctly, your Uplander uses the older, shorter Mossberg/Browning style. The cost should be right around $20. I personally recommend getting a "Skeet" tube. That would just a bit tighter than Cylinder.
dalee
