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This is typical of the private CRP fields we were hunting in North-central Kansas. Many of the fields had food plots or were adjacent to food. Hard to walk when temperatures were in the 70's but worth the effort because there were plenty of birds.

Member Joined: 27 Jun 2012 Posts: 1113

On my Montana trip (had to miss my buddy's idaho ranch this year), I used LtMod/IMod choke combo on the sharptail we hunted. The cover really dictated how tightly the birds held and what range of shot was offered. Birds in heavy cover like weedy draws would hold until I was within 10 feet or so and could have easily been handled with SK/IC chokes, although I was 100% with the chokes I had on close flushing birds, there was often more meat destruction than I like to see. Hilltop sharptails in lighter grass cover would hold for the dogs, but often flushed at 50 yards out as I approached. The only shots offered on those birds was a crossing shot if they screwed up and offered any at all. The LTMod/IMod chokes worked well on those birds, although I wasn't anywhere close to 100%.

Since getting home, I've been hunting the local preserves and running field trials on bobwhite and have SK/IC chokes in my SXS's. I had one run of 21 straight 1 shot kills on preserve quail with that combination including a few shots I thought I was going to have to get to the IC choke and the bird dropped on the first shot. On wild quail later this season, I'm going to shoot the fixed IC/LtMod choke barrels on my two Ugartecheas to handle those earlier flushing wild birds.

Joined: 09 Mar 2016 Posts: 753 Location: Mn.

Guest

I started the year out with an over & under choked .000 & .010 and because I've never taken the leap of shooting a straight cylinder choke I made a note this year of all my first shots. I thought surely I'd need to tighten up as the season progressed, but it simply hasn't been the case. Sunday in northern Iowa I saw one rooster. My 9 year old Drahthaar had him pointed on the edge of a drainage right in front of me. It ran and we didn't get it up until we were another 120 yards down the field. It blew wild, low and fast, but still within skeet choke range. Again, as I noted before, my other "ah ha" has been how many more I'm killing dead with open chokes vs birds coming down flapping. It probably is the result of some good dog work and a more forgiving pattern. I'm certainly not telling anyone what to do. Just sharing a couple unexpected observations and wondering what range the average first shot has been for others this year. If I were not carrying a double with a 2nd tighter choke I would not shoot such an open choke. Thank you to those who answered the first shot distance question!!

Maybe I should have just made a poll on shooting ranges this year.

Joined: 29 May 2016 Posts: 79 Location: Burke Co, GA

i assume this is another pheasant thread, and that doves, ducks and quail are not really what the question is about.

SRH

Guest

Yeah, pretty much. Are there other game birds? Wink

I suppose quail with pointers might fit. I wasn't very clear on my opening post. Sorry!!

FWIW, I was served some karma casserole today. Everything was wild flushing. I wanted to make it a 16 gauge outing, so I packed my SK/Mod OU and Rem. 48 with the IC barrel. It was not a day for open chokes. The nearest thing to in-range was a 35 yard straight away in brush, and with SK and 7's I decided to pass. Didn't seem like a good idea to go to the back trigger for the euro 6's either. Pushed about a dozen rooster and none of them stuck around waiting to give me a close range shot. Back to reality.

Joined: 15 Mar 2015 Posts: 118 Location: Manhattan KS

if i could only have 1 set of chokes it would be Skeet/Improved Modified.

Member Joined: 27 Jun 2012 Posts: 1113

My health has gone South, so no hunting for me. I have an old German hammer gun.

It is choked cyl and full, now I think that makes sense, most of my first shots at pheasant over my lifetime have been around 20-25 yds.

If I miss the first shot, by then the bird is really hauling ass! So the full choke isn't going to tear the bird up too much, if I happen to hit it!

Just an old man's opinion. Wink

Dale

*Last edited by cowdoc87 on Sat Nov 26, 2016 6:25 pm; edited 1 time in total*

Circling a plumb thicket in December in fairly deep snow down in a bowl where the birds can see you a half mile away and you're at max range max choke max 3 1/2 turkey loads for the close ones Smile

Guest

I went down again today and just took my 9 month pup. We got the only one we saw from the drainage area were we saw the most roosters yesterday. This time I had my 12 gauge 686 with the IC/Mod choke tubes in place and used B&P MB Long Range nickel 5's (1 1/4 oz.). I was watching the pup work some scent above me and I was in this hot looking corner, so I just paused 45 seconds, took two steps, paused again, and this rooster's nerves shattered and it was in the wind RAPIDLY departing! Another low fast near-straightaway and I had time for one good shot and the load of 5's brought it down. I believe I would have been in trouble with less load and choke. I can't tell you how satisfying this one bird was today!

So in hindsight, this year, early season on through my South Dakota trip which is always the first week in November, very open chokes served me wonderfully. Now it's almost like a switch has been tripped because everything has gotten tough. It's that late midseason without nasty weather and the pheasants are educated. Every bird is an accomplishment right now.