mustad

So my wife has asked me not to use lead this year; primarily due to her health concerns related to my 4 year old. Whether or not her claim is valid is not what I wish to debate, but am curious to find out what those of you that don't shoot lead choose.

Right now, I'm thinking about using Bismuth; mainly because it's so similar to lead that I probably wouldn't notice any differences. Let me know what you think.

cheers,

psandhu

How many shells do you shoot in a season, and what do you shoot them at? steel is ok, but not great. If you just go pheasant hunting a few times a month I would go with hevishot. If you are going after doves, steel would be a much more economical alternative.

mustad

I will be hunting for woodcock, ruffed grouse and snowshoe hare. I don't think I'll go through more than 100 shells. Last year, I probably went through 30-40 shells, but I didn't hunt quite as much as I will this year.

Cheers,

moosehunter21

I use Federal steel for Ruffed Grouse... Seems to work quite well... I shoot about 250 shells a year with targets and grouse.

psandhu

30-40 shells a year, get kent tungsten maitrix. better than lead or bismuth.

mustad

Thanks psandhu,

I actually just pulled the plug on the bismuth cartridges. If I run out, I'll give the Kent a go.

Cheers,

ryanaller

Prepare to open up your wallet if you plan on using Tungsten. That stuff is not cheap in comparison to lead.

jaysweet3

Yeah, it isn't cheep but when you are only gonna go through 3 or 4 boxes a little extra dough may not be a bad thing. Especially if you aren't hunting that often.

porknbeans

What is the upside/downside of using the Tungsten (other than the cost) over Bismuth? I have to admit, I'm pretty much in the same boat as mustad although I probably shoot 3-4x the shells per year.

Nord QC Bouman

For small game I would use Steel certainly in 6+ shot size.