chocked vs cylinder loads

[rayb]

At the pattern board this weekend with a squeezed choke CVA gobbler i noticed that the equal shot volume /equal powder volume loads didn't do very well. so i tried dropping the powder charge a little and kept the same shot volume, which seems to be the conventional wisdom on this board. Worse results.

So i tried the opposite, kept shot volume constant and increased the powder charge. Bingo. nice tight pattern at about 36 paces. It seems to be the same kind of behavior with a jug choked gun i'm trying as well.

Question therefore is: Is the more shot/same powder charge procedure basically a cylinder / unchoked thing? It seems to have worked for me in the past, but all those guns were unchoked.

Has anybody else noticed the opposite type of behavior in the choked guns?

:results:

not only may they vary, they most likely will vary.

rayb

 

[Bob J]

Rayb - In my Pedrsoli 10 ga. with imp cyl and mod barrels, the old volume-for-volume loads didn't work (3 1/2 drams powder/1 1/2 oz. shot). 4 drams of powder (110 grains) and 1 1/2 oz. shot works well. So, in my opinion, and as recently posted by someone else, the old volume-for-volume loads tended to be best in non-choked shotguns.

 

[Dave K]

All I shoot, are cyl. bores. A little more shot than powder by volumn, seems to be the best patterns. One will never know for sure until you actually pattern and play with it though. I have no experience with choked ml'ing shotguns though.

 

[Rebel]

110 grs of powder and 1 1/2 oz of shot are equal volume loads. 1 1/2oz of shot will throw form 110 grs measurer.
Measurer setting:
70 gr= 1 oz
80 gr= 1 1/8 Oz
90 gr= 1 1/4 Oz
100 gr= 1 3/8 Oz
110 gr= 1 1/2Oz

 

[Bob J]

Rebel - According to my adjustable shot/powder measure, 1 1/2 oz. of shot is equivalent with 3 1/2 drams of powder. 1 3/4 is equivalent to 4 drams of powder. This measurer may be an antique. It is stamped "B G I Co. Pat Nov 23 86".

 

[Rebel]

Could be, not all measurers deliver the same amounts of powder or shot. Mine shows what i posted. Don't really matter, as long as it works for you. take care.

 

[Bob J]

You're absolutely right, Rebel, powder measures aren't all calibrated the same. What I meant to say in the previous post is that my antique old adjustable powder/shot measurer has the drams powder listed on the right side of the indicator and the corresponding oz. shot listed on the left side of the indicator. So if you scooped 3 1/2 drams of powder and then scooped the shot (at the same setting) you would be throwing 1 1/2 oz. according to the measurer. This would seem to verify that the volume-for-volume setting was pretty commonly used. Of course it is adjustable.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

I have the same little powder/shot dipper, it is part of a very simple little set of tools to reload paper shotshells, kind of like the old Lee Loader except made mostly of wood. Mine was still in it's original cardboard box marked Bridgeport Gun Implement with the original retail price penciled on the bottom, 55c. That was the price of the full reloading set, not just the dipper.
:m2c: Of course the average wage was probably 50 cents a day. :m2c:

 

[Bob J]

CoyoteJoe - That's interesting, thanks for the info. It was in my Dad's shooting box and since I'm the only muzzleloadin' son, I ended up with it.

 

[Wes/Tex]

The very reason you can't assume what works for one will work for all! Even the same model and make of gun, particularly can give different results. The base fact is you have to actually shoot a gun to tell what works best in it. A sort of a rule of thumb is the higher shot volume working best in open bores and equal or smaller volume working best in choked bores. In your case the latter worked as it should...the next gun may be totally different. That's why muzzleloaders get grey sooner than ca'tridge shooters! :crackup: