Wrong size of shotgun cartridge?

landkeeper

and i am speaking from practical experience over many years as well as a practical test we did with a steel fox cutout many boxes of shells and a bucket of whitewash , we found that 1s and 3s were the best compromise enough energy to kill and enough pattern to make sure you hit vital areas
what you say does hold true IF you can actually manage to hit it with a single pellet
at 40yrds with 000 buck you may do it 1 time out of ten with a full choke tube
how many foxes have you actually shot with 000 shot yourself

Grizzly 45

Since my first one at sixteen with AA as you described and at the distance of more or less 40 yards,[36 meters,I'm a metric man..Much easier:D]which took two loads from a baikal SXS on half and three quater.The fox still managed to go over 50 meters before dropping dead out on a winter field of kale.
That was 29 years ago.
Excluding rifle shot In the meantime I've dropped around15/ 20 both here and in Germany,and in the Irish situation they have been mostly flushed with a mossberg 12GA 24in cylinder bore,ALL with 000 and in the 20 meter range of things. If it passes that mark ,let it go..
It works for me.

johngalway

landkeeper wrote: »

why lads insist on using aaa /oo buck or such for shooting foxes i really don't know it's a @20lb mammal
1s and 3s are fine for most fox shooting having more than enough kinetic energy and pattern density to kill out to 50yrd from a choke barrel

Though I use BB's myself I do agree regarding the larger sized pellets being completely unnecessary.

landkeeper

and how many didn't drop grizz , personally i wouldn't use anything bigger than bbs and then only if i had to , i saw too many foxes that should have been stone dead carry on as if nothing happened cos that's what happened nothing !!the few pellets that there were in aaa's ooo bucks etc went all around them or hit them where it didn't matter
a 20lb fox isn't hard to kill with a shotgun at moderate range if you hit it in the right place
no1s at 40yrds will go right through the fox and be in the skin the opposite side from entry and a fox with his skin off is a small target for 9 balls of lead
anyway doctors differ and patients die overkill is overkill for a 20lb animal

Tackleberrywho

Arthur. wrote: »

Sorry for the basic question, just shotguns really arent my forte at all. More of a rifle man.

Bought a box of lyalvale cartridges (AAA) for charlie. Only I when I got home I see they are for 3inch chambers. I have a 2 3/4 chamber.... Will it do any harm to gun (or me) if I fire these? Or is it just a case of 3 inch chamber is optimal?

Always use ammunition suitable for your firearm.

This is why I like Remington as it can take several types of game shells.
I like to shoot Duck on the Shannon where range can often be an issue if walking the foreshore

Grizzly 45

[

QUOTE=landkeeper;73424452]and how many didn't drop grizz ,

Plenty!:D But then again I wasnt taking shots at them at over 30 meters

personally i wouldn't use anything bigger than bbs and then only if i had to , i saw too many foxes that should have been stone dead carry on as if nothing happened cos that's what happened nothing !!the few pellets that there were in aaa's ooo bucks etc went all around them or hit them where it didn't matter

As I said in my other post .I hit one of my first with both charges of BBs and it still continued 50 meters before dropping dead.I even remember both hitting the fox.Any others I have shot with 000 have been stone dead.

a 20lb fox isn't hard to kill with a shotgun at moderate range if you hit it in the right place

no1s at 40yrds will go right through the fox and be in the skin the opposite side from entry and a fox with his skin off is a small target for 9 balls of lead

Unless you are using a full choke or super full choke ??

anyway doctors differ and patients die overkill is overkill for a 20lb animal

Exactly...Use what works for you.I prefer enough gun to too little.

Longranger

Just a point to the OP.Before this becomes a raging debate of which size shot is best,remember this,if you like your face being attached to your head,DO NOT use any cartridge that your shotgun isn't chambered for. Maybe you'll get away with it for a couple of shots,but I wouldn't like to be standing beside you when it goes tits-up!

Half-cocked

Its been mentioned somewhere earlier but worth mentioning again. The specified length of cartridge is its uncrimped length - a 70mm cartridge will actually only measure 58 to 60mm long unfired.

I remember some one was caught firing 70mm (2 3/4 inch) cartridges out of an old english gun chambered for 2 1/2 inch up in my club. A committee member noticed that all his empties had the crimps shot off:eek: The culprit claimed that the cartridges were 2 1/2 inch, despite what it said on the box, he had measured the and they were fine! He was bloody lucky his gun had handled the excessive pressure of having the forcing cones partly obstructed by the crimps.

beretta686s

have shot lots and lots of foxes over the years with loads of different cartdiges 36g bb 42g no 2's even a 32g 7 once 36g 7 all did the job if u know your distance and what ur cartdige can do.all that said we were out 1 sunday with the hounds and 1 of my friends with an 11 shot benlli <yes 11 shot> thought he'd try sum slugs for the foxs he these yolks would be sum job,wel when the 1st fox came out 2 him bang bang bang bang bang bang no fox....... :eek:bang bang fox down and loads of holes left in the field and that was the last of them yolks......:rolleyes:

Sika98k

What nobody seems to have mentioned is not to shoot a load over the maximum load for your gun.

For example shooting 36grm loads out of a gun proofed for say 32grms.

Sure we have all done it but it doesnt do your gun any good in the long term or even worse in the short term !

Arthur.

And for those of us that bought second hand guns with no paperwork, how we figure out what the maximum load is..?

Tackleberrywho

Arthur. wrote: »

And for those of us that bought second hand guns with no paperwork, how we figure out what the maximum load is..?

google/e-mail manufacturer

FOXHUNTER1

Arthur. wrote: »

And for those of us that bought second hand guns with no paperwork, how we figure out what the maximum load is..?

If your gun gas the PSF mark with one * over it then it is standard nitro proof or up to 36gr
If it has the PSF mark with two ** over it then it is magnum proofed which is generally around 42gr in older guns ie:mini magnum in 2 3/4 chamber.

Heres a link to some more proof marks seen on guns https://store.bluebookinc.com/Info/PDF/Firearm/Proofmarks.pdf

FISMA

Arthur. wrote: »

Sorry for the basic question, just shotguns really arent my forte at all. More of a rifle man.

Bought a box of lyalvale cartridges (AAA) for charlie. Only I when I got home I see they are for 3inch chambers. I have a 2 3/4 chamber.... Will it do any harm to gun (or me) if I fire these? Or is it just a case of 3 inch chamber is optimal?

Arthur,
No, do not attempt to fire 3" when the barrels are marked less.

Engineers are a clever bunch. Listen to what they have to say and things are usually grand. Start taking a bit of leeway here and there and you are looking for trouble.

Also, from your other post, with the "guinea pig," I would advise against that too. Even if the gun does not catastrophically fail on the first or second shot, I am sure that it has become weakened or stressed at some level that may allow catastrophic failure once you go back to using the approved rounds.

For example, a 38 pistol shoots the same diameter bullet as the 357 magnum. I believe the difference is how they're measured - lands/grooves...

A 38 cannot shoot a 357 magnum, but those of us with Dirty Harry's older 357 magnum know that when money is tight, shoot the 38caliber ammo through the 357 pistol.

Given the length of the 357, I don't think it would fit in the 38, however, let's just say a 38 special could chamber it. I would absolutely never test fire it. Nor, would I want to buy one whose owner had put a few through - an accident waiting to happen.

landkeeper

carefull going on the * marks some guns have them to denote choke

Grizzly 45

beretta686s wrote: »

have shot lots and lots of foxes over the years with loads of different cartdiges 36g bb 42g no 2's even a 32g 7 once 36g 7 all did the job if u know your distance and what ur cartdige can do.all that said we were out 1 sunday with the hounds and 1 of my friends with an 11 shot benlli <yes 11 shot> thought he'd try sum slugs for the foxs he these yolks would be sum job,wel when the 1st fox came out 2 him bang bang bang bang bang bang no fox....... :eek:bang bang fox down and loads of holes left in the field and that was the last of them yolks......:rolleyes:

Shooting a single bullet or slug in this case at a moving target.Not the easiest feat anyway.

Tackleberrywho

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Shooting a single bullet or slug in this case at a moving target.Not the easiest feat anyway.

Especially when 4"+ group from a smooth bore @100 yards would be expected from Slugs (or so i've heard )

beretta686s

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Shooting a single bullet or slug in this case at a moving target.Not the easiest feat anyway.

it sure wouldnt be he said he judged it by the holes he was leaving behind the fox and then gave him a gud enough lead:)