Hunting Forum

Personally I would use either a modified or a full. If you find yourself taking alot if 25+ yard shots, you may want to lean torwards a full. For the simple fact of getting more pellets on target and less wounded birds to go chasing down the river.

I prefer a modified choke myself. It really depends on how good of a shot you are. I bought a $100 extended range patternmaster for my browning, thinking I was going to shoot birds at farther distances. Turns out, I couldn't hardly hit a duck at any distance with it. I went back to my modified, and had no problem shooting ducks from 10 to 35 yds. I rarely shoot farther than that anyway.

Good point Clint. Concealment is really your best weapon. The better concealed you are, the better you will be able to work the ducks and the closer the shot's will be. That will also afford you to use a more open choke and even smaller shot sizes to optimize the amount of pellets in your pattern. for close work I usually use #4 shot.

Have you patterned the gun with the load that you use to hunt with? you may not be able to hit anything at any range with the full choke because of holes in your pattern for the load and gun/choke combination you are using. I have a shotgun that has a great pattern when using #6 lead but if I shoot #7.5 there is a big hole in the pattern ok again with #8s. I suspect that the same can be true with lead shot. I personally shoot with a modified choke with #3 steel shot. Seems to work best for me. My friend uses and extended full choke shooting #2s and that works best in his gun. He has a bit more range than I do, but we both come home with our limits mor often than not, so I guess both work. One other thing, my modified choke is really full choke for steel and modified for lead. I suspect that my friends extended full choke is full for steel to equipvalant to mine, but I do not know for sure.

I use a carlson extended choke in a modified I am shooting a Stoeger 2000 with a 28 inch barrel this set up works really well in my gun
papabear

you gotta pattern with the load you shoot and the chokes you got.... too many variables to get a direct answer.

i plan to pattern my sbe with some Kicks and Patternmasters as soon as they arrive in the mail

yea, agree, patteren but also pattern with different loads, and shell brands.