I finally caught a day when the wind permitted posting large paper to pattern my 28 gauge at the standard 40 yard distance. The load was 3 drams (81 grains) volume measure of 2fg, two .135" Circle Fly overpowder cards, 1/2 of a fiber wad lubed with "Old Zip", same volume measure of #6 shot and an overshot wad punched from a Styrofoam meat tray.
I counted out 100 pellets of the shot and weighed them at 171 grains or 1.71 grains each. The full measure of shot ran 475 grains, so I calculate 278 pellets to the load.
I fired 2 loads at 40 yards and got 49% in the 30" circle, with 29% in the 21" inner circle. The 21" circle has half the surface area of the 30" and if a pattern were perfectly even it would have half the pellets. This pattern shows about 50% more pellets in the inner circle than in the outer ring and that "central thickening" of the pattern is to be expected of a gun having some degree of choke.
I had jug choked this 30" barrel with a wheel cylinder hone and expected improved cylinder patterns and 49% is about there. Improved cylinder is about all the choke I like in a general purpose bird and bunny gun, anything tighter is hard to hit with and tends to mangle anything inside 30 yards.
In short, the patterns were about what I'd expected and hoped for except that the central thickening was a bit more than expected. With a 50% pattern in the 30" circle I'd expect no more than 26% or 27% in the inner 21" circle. The 29-20 distribution was a little tighter than I'd like but that is not all bad, it tells me that inner ring will reach a 40 yard pheasant or jacks if I can put the center on them. :grin:
I counted out 100 pellets of the shot and weighed them at 171 grains or 1.71 grains each. The full measure of shot ran 475 grains, so I calculate 278 pellets to the load.
I fired 2 loads at 40 yards and got 49% in the 30" circle, with 29% in the 21" inner circle. The 21" circle has half the surface area of the 30" and if a pattern were perfectly even it would have half the pellets. This pattern shows about 50% more pellets in the inner circle than in the outer ring and that "central thickening" of the pattern is to be expected of a gun having some degree of choke.
I had jug choked this 30" barrel with a wheel cylinder hone and expected improved cylinder patterns and 49% is about there. Improved cylinder is about all the choke I like in a general purpose bird and bunny gun, anything tighter is hard to hit with and tends to mangle anything inside 30 yards.
In short, the patterns were about what I'd expected and hoped for except that the central thickening was a bit more than expected. With a 50% pattern in the 30" circle I'd expect no more than 26% or 27% in the inner 21" circle. The 29-20 distribution was a little tighter than I'd like but that is not all bad, it tells me that inner ring will reach a 40 yard pheasant or jacks if I can put the center on them. :grin:
