Selecting The Shotgun For Turkey Hunting
April 6, 2009
While far be it from me to tell anyone they don’t need a new gun but the reality is for many first time turkey hunters their current shotgun will work just fine. The 12 gauge is probably the most popular gun but with the advances in ammunition and choke tubes the 20 gauge is gaining in popularity. I’m sure a few gobblers meet their demise each year with the rare 16 gauge and 10 gauge. While a 410 will fold a dove or quail it’s probably a bit light for the turkey woods.
The key to a good turkey gun is working up a good shot pattern within the gun usually the tightest choke is what you will want. There are a number of aftermarket choke tubes that you can use to help work up that killing pattern but before you rush out to buy one check the tubes you may already have. I didn’t have a full choke for my Mossberg 500 so I bought an Undertaker Choke Tube a number of years ago and it works great.
The other part of the puzzle is the ammo you’ll use. I would suggest that you pick up a box or two of turkey loads because the technology has advanced a lot to make it worthwhile to spend a little bit of money to get a turkey load. I use Hevi Shot # 5’s that seems to give me the best pattern over the years testing a variety of different ammos. Most people I talk to seem to use #5 or #6 shot and occasionally I run into folks who use #4. Like anything individual guns will work better with a particular shot size and even a brand then another so it’s important to test them out.
Other aspects that you may want to consider when pulling a shotgun out of the safe to use is the importance of camo. Some guns have a camo finish others you can add a sock or tape to help the gun blend into the woods. While it is not a must to have a camo gun avoiding shiny or reflective items that may help the gobbler bust you is important.
Tomorrow will go a bit more into the sighting in process and I’ll even give you some free targets to use on the range.
Moose Droppings is a place that chronicles my journey, I’ll explore new places and ideas I’ll learn new things and I’ll teach the things I’ve learned to others. Join me on the adventure and hopefully it will help you in your outdoor endeavors.
[...] important step and have no idea what kind of pattern there gun is shooting. We talked before about shot size and choke tubes in an earlier post and both will effect the pattern your gun will shoot. When it comes to shooting a [...]