Any Buck shot hunters?

[KSC]

Anyone hunting with buckshot as their primary load? I'm new to the whole black powder scene, and don't own a smoothbore bp yet, but am curious of them. I've used quite a bit of buckshot in the past with x-full turkey chokes for flushed deer and pigs.

What are your thoughts on buckshot? It's one of those love or hate things I guess, some guys seem to think buckshot is a sort of inhumane hack-hunt technique. To me it's the best way to take flushed deer who are moving or stopping momentarily. I say its better to spray 3-4 pellets through the lungs than one slug through the guts.

 

[rabjr]

The problem with buckshot is that to many people just don't know how to use it. I can't tell you many times I've heard, "Well I have x amount of chances to hit a deer at 100 yards"... :barf: And you just need one jackass to get lucky and kill one with one pellet to never hear the end of it. I've skinned far to many deer out and had buckshot fall out.

For a close up 25, 35 yard shot depending on your choke and pattern, yeah I won't argue with ya but people just don't know how to use it.

 

[Protrucker]

I say its better to spray 3-4 pellets through the lungs than one slug through the guts.

I say,....."It's better to take responsible shots & insure that you hit where it counts! If you can't put the shot in the right spot, don't take the shot."

 

[BrownBear]

I used to use it on one small island. Not ML, but still a handful of lead pellets flying through the air.

The reason I used it in that particular location was distance. Longest shot I ever made there wasn't even 25 yards. Brush so thick you had to crawl on your hands and knees looking for legs, then look up a little to check for horns and find a hole big enough to shoot through.

At those ranges the buckshot was somewhere between awesome and wicked.

Of course, every once in a while the legs you spotted were big brown and hairy. If you think you're being quiet sneaking forward in that kind of brush, try being quiet while sneaking backwards......

Yeah, I'm still alive and neither so young or so dumb. And age and wisdom tell me to leave that particular island to the bears.

I tested those loads at 25 yards and the patterns fluctuated between about 6" and 9". That's what I'd look for with a ML, and only shoot as far as my particular gun and load would do it.

 

[tg]

I have played around with shot and buck and ball and with the open bore of a ML it is a very cloes range load 10-15 yds depending on the gun, one may do better with shot cups I did tie 7 or 8 .30 shot in a bag and it mad a oblong hole at 25 yds but I don't think one can get much comsistancy with that method

 

[John Wasmuth]

When I was growing up out in the Big Cypress Swap, Florida everglades I had an old spanish flinter, have no idea how old it was, Not even sure of the bore, but about 20 comes to mind. I know that it came from the old family, we used it often and it was very effective given the ranges that one employed it in, on both hogs and deer. Now that I make a living tanning and working buckskin, the fewer holes the better the skin, the better the skin, the more value it carries. Buckshot is some very good stuff when employed correctly.

 

[Stumpkiller]

Make sure buckshot is even legal for deer hunting in your state first. It is not in NY.

 

[Rancocas]

Its not legal in Tennessee, either.
In other states I have taken several deer with 00 buckshot from a 12 gauge. My longest shot with it was only about 20 yards. The deer went down hard and fast, on the spot. Know your gun, but personally I wouldn't take a shot over 40 yards with it.
I used to teach police shotgun tactics, and I did a lot of shotgun work. Within its limits 00 and 000 buckshot will do the job. I would not use #4 buck, or smaller, for anything bigger than a coyote.

 

[cptleo1]

Its not legal in Tennessee, either.
In other states I have taken several deer with 00 buckshot from a 12 gauge. My longest shot with it was only about 20 yards. The deer went down hard and fast, on the spot. Know your gun, but personally I wouldn't take a shot over 40 yards with it.
I used to teach police shotgun tactics, and I did a lot of shotgun work. Within its limits 00 and 000 buckshot will do the job. I would not use #4 buck, or smaller, for anything bigger than a coyote.

Strange about different folks opinions

I have always believed a 12 ga 3" mag full choke with #4 buck to be the deadliest 30 yd load I have ever used.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

[Capt. Jas.]

We used buckshot in our county for years. I have probably taken over 25-30 deer with buckshot. It is not a 75 yard load though.

 

[roundball]

What are your thoughts on buckshot?

Buckshot is the biggest cause of wounded / slow death for deer, deer hunting load there is other than the broadhead...and that's using the best possible modern shotguns with fast lock times, instantaneous ignition, short barrel time, high velocity buckshot loads, through well engineered chokes.

Buckshot has no place in the muzzleloading world of slower lock times, slower ignition, longer barrel time, slower velocity, less than optimal chokes for making snap shots at "flushing deer".

 

[paulvallandigham]

I agree with Roundball on this. In modern shotgun shells, in full choke barrels, buckshot may be useful out to 20-25 yds. But with BP shotguns, the velocity is way too low, and the shotguns mostly lack any kind of choke, to deliver a good pattern on deer. I know in some states, a mature deer weighs only 50 lbs. or so, but in the Midwest, we feed them corn and soybeans, and they get huge. At 2 1/2 years old, most bucks will weigh more than 200 lbs. Does will go 150-175 lbs. at the same age. Yearling deer( 6 months old at deer season) will often weight 120 lbs. and dress out at 85 lbs. They deserve a better death than being shot with small ( .24 caliber #4 buckshot). If you're using a choked barrel, that will handle 000 Buck( .36 caliber), you might have a 30 yard gun using black powder, but it would all depend on the actual patterns you get. Those .36 cal. balls only weigh about 65 grains each.

 

[Hamourkiller]

The Dixie Triball load changes my concept of "Buckshot" Three .60 cal balls kinda bridges the gap between buckshot and slugs. So dont turn your nose up to all buckshot. Using turkey full chokes the triball redefines buckshot ranges and killing power.

 

[bingo1952]

The effective use of buckshot follows the same general rules for small shot. Pattern your gun, know where it shoots, and don't exceed the range where you can put at least three pellets of nothing smaller than 0 in the vitals. I personally have taken several deer with a 12 gauge using 0 buckshot and have not lost one. None of the shots have exceeded 25 yards.

 

[bingo1952]

When I use buckshot for deer my hunting style is ambush. I don't wander the woods jumping deer and making "snap shots" on them. Used in a setting that is more like bow hunting with similar ranges it is very effective.

 

[roundball]

When I use buckshot for deer my hunting style is ambush. I don't wander the woods jumping deer and making "snap shots" on them. Used in a setting that is more like bow hunting with similar ranges it is very effective.

No problem with that...however, I assume you'd agree the typical intention for using buckshot is to use it like a shotgun on running deer and that was the point of the discussion...not the way you use it...

 

[Dave K]

This is terribly confusing to me. We have threads, many threads, on what cal. is best for deer. The general thought is bigger is better when it comes to cal. Then we take 30cal. balls and throw them at deer. I would rather take one 30cal ball, carefully aimed for the boiler room, then a "spray and pray" shot. Just my honest opinion. To me, this makes the talk about a 45cal being, on the weak side of size, a very and extremely moot point! :surrender:

 

[Britsmoothy]

I agree with runball and roundball sumerises it perfect. In the past we developed a tri-ball load our selves. IIRC it contained three .54 or .58 balls packed in the cartridge with black tea, yes black tea. They were awesome out to 80yds. We would keep all three balls on a railway sleeper stood up all the time at 80yds and spread no wider than 6". I have never forgot that time and felt that up to 50yds it would be mustard on game. But that was in a cartridge and when ever I have tried it in M/L minus the tea packer it goes all over.
Any way just thought I would add my bit. :hatsoff:

 

[Rancocas]

Its not legal in Tennessee, either.
In other states I have taken several deer with 00 buckshot from a 12 gauge. My longest shot with it was only about 20 yards. The deer went down hard and fast, on the spot. Know your gun, but personally I wouldn't take a shot over 40 yards with it.
I used to teach police shotgun tactics, and I did a lot of shotgun work. Within its limits 00 and 000 buckshot will do the job. I would not use #4 buck, or smaller, for anything bigger than a coyote.

Strange about different folks opinions

I have always believed a 12 ga 3" mag full choke with #4 buck to be the deadliest 30 yd load I have ever used.

Different strokes for different folks.

We did a lot of testing to compare 12ga. OO buck with #4 buck. We put an old heavy quited winter coat on a target frame and shot it. We found that #4 buck did not reliably penetrate that coat at only 25 yards. OO buck did the job.
However, like others have said, we were using modern shotguns. Even then, I would not use it beyond 40 yards. But, I agree that buckshot in a muzzleloader is an extremely short range, something like 20 yds. proposition. Just know your gun and do a lot of testing.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Harborkiller. I don't know where you live, but a .60 caliber ball is NOT BUCKSHOT! I have no doubt that 3 .60 caliber balls will kill a deer. ONE .60 caliber. Roundball does quite well, thank you.

Buckshot has specific sizing, and dimension. #4 buck is the smallest in diameter, ( and weight) at .24. 000 Buck is the largest and the heaviest, at .36"

Here is a table of buckshot sizing:

#4 Buck = .24
#3 Buck = .25
#2 buck = .28( rarely seen or sold these days)
#1 Buck = .30
#0 Buck = .32
#00 Buck= .33
#000Buck= .36( some manufacturers make this at .35")

If we don't understand the language, then we are not likely to be communicating about the same things, NO? Those Triball loads are totally different than Buckshot loads.

Roundball and I are talking about using Buckshot. Neither of us is impressed with it, because beyond 15-20 yards, the pellets do not weigh enough to do much penetration. That means you are wounding the deer, and it is doomed to suffer a slow death, unless you get lucky with a neck or head hit.

Again, in some locations, the deer are so small, its like you are hunting dogs, not deer. It doesn't take much to kill a 35-50 lb. animal, dog or deer.

Having said that, the first time I worked a deer check station, back in 1968, a man brought in a fawn that weighed 35 lbs. dressed, and the little guy had been hit 13 times with shotgun slugs, before falling dead in front of him, after he shot under the belly of its mother. He didn't even see the fawn, until the smoke cleared. He tagged the deer and brought it into the check station, sick at heart that the little guy had been killed.

Apparently a family lined one side of a ravine the deer used, and opened up on deer as they ran up the ravine. None of them was using a shotgun with a rear sight. None had made any effort to sight in their guns for a particular brand of shotgun slugs. They bought the cheapest ammo on sale at K-mart, whatever brand that was that year. He didn't even know that different brands shoot differently in his gun, and that the slug would hit a different POI.

The carcass looked like Swiss cheese. He said he was going to grind up all the meat for venison burger. I had a lot of respect for the man for using his tag on that little deer. He could have left it lay, claiming it wasn't killed by him, and wasn't his deer. That would have let him blast away during the rest of the season in hopes of killing a bigger deer. Instead, his season ended with that deer. I heard him talking about getting a " slug barrel " for the next season.