I'm getting a Navy Arms sxs 12 gauge and was also planning on trying goose hunting next season. I've never done any waterfowl hunting and have some fields to hunt near or on ponds. It's a cylinder bore and I'd have to use bismuth shot I think? What kind of range do you guys shoot these at? I'm already excited for next year because at one of my spots I always see tons of geese early and later in the year. Thanks.
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Any Goose Hunters?
- Thread starter luieb45
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I'm out of date on muzzleloaders with geese using today's nontoxics, but back in the days before we had to quit using lead up here I whacked a lot of Emperor geese using lead. They're roughly the size of a whitefront or a dusky, but lots harder to kill cleanly in my experience. I found #4's to be a little light and #2's throwing too thin a pattern. I settled on #3 lead as ideal within the ranges I shot, usually no further than 30 yards or so. The #4's would knock them down, but too often I had to scramble around to collect cripples.
I managed a double on full-sized Canada's with a modern 28 gauge and #6 bismuth along a brushy creek while hunting ducks and pheasant, but the range was between 10 and 15 yards and I was aiming for head and neck. Deader than dead, but I sure wouldn't have tried a body shot even at that range. If I couldn't get #3 bismuth, I'd sure use #2's rather than #4's on honkers.
Some of the other folks on here have been using ITX or Nice Shot for ducks, but I don't recall if they tried geese. I'm looking forward to their reports, too.
I managed a double on full-sized Canada's with a modern 28 gauge and #6 bismuth along a brushy creek while hunting ducks and pheasant, but the range was between 10 and 15 yards and I was aiming for head and neck. Deader than dead, but I sure wouldn't have tried a body shot even at that range. If I couldn't get #3 bismuth, I'd sure use #2's rather than #4's on honkers.
Some of the other folks on here have been using ITX or Nice Shot for ducks, but I don't recall if they tried geese. I'm looking forward to their reports, too.
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Oh, the Emperors probably avearge between 6 and 8 pounds live weight, as a guess. Full size Canada's I'd be happiest with #3 or #2, but still hold the range down to 30 yards or less.
Jason Lewis
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since your gun is cylinder, you're looking at 30yrds max for geese. i would be shooting #4 bismuth and shoving around 1 1/2oz over around 90grn of 2F. #3 or #2 is good too, but you loose pellet count fast. since it's close, i'd use the #4's.
as an experienced goose hunter, don't waste your shots on passing birds. wait untill they're feet down and wings locked coming in. hold your shot untill they're a few yards off the ground. they'll for sure be in range. aim for the head.
as an experienced goose hunter, don't waste your shots on passing birds. wait untill they're feet down and wings locked coming in. hold your shot untill they're a few yards off the ground. they'll for sure be in range. aim for the head.
Richard McCullough
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I don't shoot cylinder bores, but my load for waterfowl to include geese and swan, is 1 1/4oz #4 ITX shot and 85 grains of 2F Goex. nice tight pattern at 35 yards from modifed chokes. I would suspect with good load development, you should be able to get a good 30 yard patern.
I tried a few times with my cylinder double but never got lucky.
The canada I took with a 410 (fast at 25+yds) had 1/2oz of English 7s. I pushed that little gun well far forward for the head and neck. 9 pellets in the neck and head, dead in the air.
That bird I remember the most out of all the honkers I have taken.
I now try to imagine their heads as little doves now, sounds easy but ain't.
I do remember hearing pellets striking those big birds from my ML double that I had loaded with large shot. Now I would try to get closer and use 6 or 5 on the head neck.
Paper shot cups did tighten things up some :thumbsup:
Brits.
The canada I took with a 410 (fast at 25+yds) had 1/2oz of English 7s. I pushed that little gun well far forward for the head and neck. 9 pellets in the neck and head, dead in the air.
That bird I remember the most out of all the honkers I have taken.
I now try to imagine their heads as little doves now, sounds easy but ain't.
I do remember hearing pellets striking those big birds from my ML double that I had loaded with large shot. Now I would try to get closer and use 6 or 5 on the head neck.
Paper shot cups did tighten things up some :thumbsup:
Brits.
I hunt geese all the time, but with modern guns. This up coming season I'll have a new 10ga fowler to use. Beleive it or not I kill more canadians (giant, greater and lesser) with #4 steel. I wait till they get within 25 yards and aim for the head and neck. The giants are bigger than turkeys dressed and make awsome roasters, so I really try to get them close as not to put any pellets in the breast. Giant canadians are the best eating of all waterfowl in my book. I will admit to having shot waterfowl with eveything from 7 1/2 shot to BB. If I were shooting non-tox lead equivilant loads and was only expecting geese I'd probably go with heavy #3-#2 shot loads and keep your shots well within 35 yards if duck are expected to mix in I'd use #4 or my favorite #5 shot and keep shots within 30 yards.
paulvallandigham
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It depends a lot on location, time of season, how much corn is available, whether the geese are eating the beans already, etc. If you have lots of snow on the ground covering the corn, and beans are available, the geese will be in the beanfields.
I'm not sure how much I'll be hunting with the front stuffer because it's going to be quite a challenge of getting them in range with any of my guns. After turkey season I'm going to buy a call or maybe I will at the outdoors show in Peoria this weekend. The way I think of it though is if I hunt with my double I won't know any better :idunno:. I'll probably use the pump shotgun at first in the early season to get the hang of it. What kind of non-toxic shot would be ok to use in a gun w/o a chrome lined bore?
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Hey Luie,
Your mind is working good directions and you're asking good questions. We mostly hunt geese with small, mobile setups, and they might work for you. Here are the key points:
Watch the pattern of goose behavior for a day. Ideal is a morning "fly out" when they leave for water or whatever, then come back to the same spot. Basically wait for them to leave, set up, and wait for them to come back. If you can do a good enough job of hiding, shots are really close.
We use 3-6 oversize shells. I don't know what's current, but mine are Big Foot brands and the geese take them for the real thing.
A call is really important, because the returning geese will want to greet the newcomers in "their" spot, and they'll expect conversation back. Get a tape and learn to call, but don't call too much.
Expect the geese to circle out of range, then a few of them to drop down to join your spread. That's cool, and go ahead and shoot them, rather than expecting to wait for the whole flock to come down.
We use fine camo mesh or web to hide, the kind that's pretty closely woven but you can still see through. It usually won't work by itself, but lay down in any kind of fold or depression in the ground, pull it over you, then pull a few pieces of vegetation onto it to break up it's outline. Cover yourself completely and look through the mesh to watch the birds, rather than exposing your face and hands. I own three colors: Dark brown, white and two-sided green/brown camo. The pieces I have are roughly 8x8' and wad up to nothing in a decoy bag. I just swap between them, depending on what's natural in a spot.
Hide out to one side or the other of your decoy spread, rather than upwind like most people do. Geese will land into a breeze if there is one, but if you're upwind of them, they're looking right at you as they land. Getting off to the side gives you side shots, which I like better anyway. It's a fine point, but sometimes it helps to put one of your decoys a little apart upwind of the rest, just where birds would "expect" hunters to be hiding. In some cases it really helps to reassure them.
Your mind is working good directions and you're asking good questions. We mostly hunt geese with small, mobile setups, and they might work for you. Here are the key points:
Watch the pattern of goose behavior for a day. Ideal is a morning "fly out" when they leave for water or whatever, then come back to the same spot. Basically wait for them to leave, set up, and wait for them to come back. If you can do a good enough job of hiding, shots are really close.
We use 3-6 oversize shells. I don't know what's current, but mine are Big Foot brands and the geese take them for the real thing.
A call is really important, because the returning geese will want to greet the newcomers in "their" spot, and they'll expect conversation back. Get a tape and learn to call, but don't call too much.
Expect the geese to circle out of range, then a few of them to drop down to join your spread. That's cool, and go ahead and shoot them, rather than expecting to wait for the whole flock to come down.
We use fine camo mesh or web to hide, the kind that's pretty closely woven but you can still see through. It usually won't work by itself, but lay down in any kind of fold or depression in the ground, pull it over you, then pull a few pieces of vegetation onto it to break up it's outline. Cover yourself completely and look through the mesh to watch the birds, rather than exposing your face and hands. I own three colors: Dark brown, white and two-sided green/brown camo. The pieces I have are roughly 8x8' and wad up to nothing in a decoy bag. I just swap between them, depending on what's natural in a spot.
Hide out to one side or the other of your decoy spread, rather than upwind like most people do. Geese will land into a breeze if there is one, but if you're upwind of them, they're looking right at you as they land. Getting off to the side gives you side shots, which I like better anyway. It's a fine point, but sometimes it helps to put one of your decoys a little apart upwind of the rest, just where birds would "expect" hunters to be hiding. In some cases it really helps to reassure them.
I have found the layout blind is the most effective blind for geese, you must pick a field that they are already landing in consistantly because you will not attract them to a field that they don't frequent even if it is only 100 yards away. lay your dekes out with a open landing zone right out in front. When the flights come in call them until you know you have their attention and then lay off unless they lose intrest. then just stay still till one figures out the jig is up and nail em.
Jason Lewis
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+1, and where you and I live in relation to the big river, you'll probably be getting morning flights from the water heading too the fields to feed. i've brought them in ML range many times in bean fields.texcl said:
I crow hunted the spot I was considering and saw several geese close that were flying very low but I stepped out of the cedar tree I was hiding in and they veered off. I'm not sure if I found a productive spot but I found out one of the small ponds on this property is on our side of the fence. It's not very deep and I'm not sure if it always has water in it or if it's from snow melt :idunno:. I'll try to get out there another day this week and take some pics for you guys to ponder.
