which caliber

[curt songer]

hi all ,i have been thinking of building myself another smooth gun but cant figure out what caliber. i have a 62 cal and 72 cal .wanting something smaller this time .it will be used to hunt everything from deer to squirrel. been thinking 24 or 28 gauge but cant decide. whinch of the two do you favor? thanks for the thoughts in advance
ymhs and friend curt

 

[thomas]

I've always liked the 24 ga. myself, not to big or small. Nice sized ball & good on small game with shot.

Thomas

 

[B.Habermehl]

I'll vote for 28. Have one like it. Works well with rb and shot. Minimal recoil is a pluss as well. BJH

 

[roundball]

My Remington .28ga is a favorite modern shotgun and I just got a .54cal(.28ga) GM smoothbore Flint barrel, patterned it this weekend...sweet...beautiful even pattern at 25yds...several #6's in a coke can at that same distance...it'll be terrific on small game

 

[big bore 75]

I like my cheifs grade type d trade tulle, its a 24 ga, and I Run .535 round ball out of it great for plinking, tree rats, bunnies, got me two doves with it, was a little finiky with shot till for some reason it likes 70 grains 3fg 2sweat gum leaves,and #4 shot, 85 grains measured from my powder measure and another sweatgum leaf bb75,

 

[pathfinderifh]

I've found that the red fall leaves of the silver maple give my 20ga tulle' the best patterns :blah:

 

[Mike Brooks]

28ga. the longer the barrel the better.

 

[big bore 75]

well how long is it , but please don't embarrase me mines 44" and octagon to round with one wedding band, silver maple leaves yuck why not sugar maple they taste better. bb75

 

[Beerd2]

I too shoot a 24 bore fusil. Use .570 balls with felt/fiber wads (no patch). I tried patched .562 RB but it was a hammer tight fit. I find that .535

 

[bnail]

Mike, in your opinion, how much advantage would a 46" bbl have over a 44"? in 28ga?

 

[Mike Brooks]

Not much if any. I wouldn't go below a 42" barrel. My old Type G trade gun had a 48" 28 ga barrel. It was one helluva shooter for RB & shot.
Most all of the "widow maker" barrels I've used have been Getz 44" C weight barrels or Getz Large Dickert barrel. Those barrels in 28ga are superb shooters.

 

[Wes/Tex]

FWIW: My 58 year old eyes do better the longer the barrel is. Agree completely to not go below 42" and have found my 48" fusil does better than any shorter one. Seems there's a lot to sight-radius. :m2c:

 

[pathfinderifh]

At 51,the longer the barrel,the better. My rear sight would pass the front on anything shorter than 42"! :curse: :crackup: As far as using sugar maple leaves for wadding,too sticky,3 shots max before she fouls up! :results: :haha:

 

[Ohio Rusty]

Heck Curt ..... make one with a smoothbore .40 caliber barrel !! I had a .40 caliber smoothbore pistol and it was a great shooter. I sold it at Friendship, and I wish I had it back.
Ohio Rusty

 

[Swampman]

I wouldn't get anything smaller than a .62. When it comes to shot, more is better.