do you shoot steel or lead for turkeys

portable ladder · 03-25-2004, 08:40 AM

i bought a super full choke and it says on the package lead shot only, I have a remington 870 and was going to use #4 steel shot that i use for waterfowl, i guess i have to go buy some lead shot, what do you recommend

Aught Six · 03-25-2004, 10:28 AM

I stick with copper-plated lead (Winchester Double-X Magnum 2¾" 1-5/8 oz. #4 shot). I'm pretty pleased with my old Wingmaster and the M.A.D. Max .665 choke I got for it.

portable ladder · 03-25-2004, 11:27 AM

thanks for the response

ironranger · 03-25-2004, 11:37 AM

I use the Winchester shells too and have had really good results with them.

Stump_MN_Hunter · 03-25-2004, 11:56 AM

All depends on where you hunt in reference to whether it's legal or not. Because I believe(someone can clear this up if I'm wrong) that here in MN, if your hunting on WMA's(Wildlife Management areas) you have to use steel shot. I believe that's the rule. Atleast it is for pheasant hunting. I don't know why it would be any different for turkey hunting.

portable ladder · 03-25-2004, 11:59 AM

what would happen if you shot steel through a lead shot only choke, could it really cause that much damage? i'm not trying it, i don't want things to get ugly, but is there really that much difference?

Strut&Rut · 03-25-2004, 12:36 PM

Haven't tried, but I'm guessing mucho damage. Lead will compress and distort when it's forced through the choke, hence it compacts the shot which increases (a) velocity, (b) density, and (c) momentum (or knock-down power).

If the shot can't compress---such as steel---and the choke is made of steel which is less dense than the shot...

Well, I'm a biologist and not a mechanical engineer, but I'm guessing you could mushroom the entire end of the barrel...

pointerDixie214 · 03-25-2004, 12:39 PM

i'm not sure what it would do, but i think strut&Rut hit the nail on the head pretty close...

tnichols · 03-25-2004, 12:50 PM

Why would you want to shoot steel. It is worthless since hevi-shot was introduced. Hevi-shot is harder than steel and denser than lead and patterns tight!!! which is great for turkeys.

snowdog2 · 03-25-2004, 02:18 PM

I would caution AGAINST using steel. If you are hunting where non-toxic shot is required, I'd use HeviShot or bismuth or tungsten, but not steel. Steel doesn't have the mass (weight) per pellet and hence lacks (per pellet) penetration power. I'm not saying steel shot "bounces off" turkeys like bullets do off Superman, but I'd think using steel would increase the risk of a wounded, not dead, bird, especially at longer distances.

BUT, most "lead only" chokes DON'T WORK with the other non-toxics, (HeviShot, bismuth, tungsten) either. (BUT/AND shooting an improved cylinder or a modified choke will usually give you a tighter pattern with non-toxics, equivalent to a lead full, anyway.)