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Have we debated the one-and-only-one optimum load for rooster pheasants yet this week ?

Some say a full choke 410 with #7½ shot is optimum.

Others prefer 2-ounces of #2 copper-plated shot from a 10 gauge.

With guidance from Nobel Laureates, what say y'all ?


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I thought .375 H&H magnum was the legal minimun.

Well I have never hunted pheasant, so I am curious as to what the experienced hunters recommend.

However I think the High Brass No6 lead would be hard to beat.

In high wind or if the birds are rising up far off then I would want some No4's.

12 or 20ga, would not matter to me.

Cannot use lead shot, No5 Bismuth.

Haven't had the experience yet, not having been to one of the places requiring it, but some states make you use steels shot, just to throw a cog in your spoke. Personally, I vote for 1 1/8 oz. of #6 lead shot with a modified choke.

Here's a link to Ultimate Pheasant Hunting Forums. I joined mainly for the bird dog stuff, as we have no wild pheasants here so I seldom get to hunt pheasant, but there's sure a wealth of good info.
http://www.ultimatepheasanthun...orumdisplay.php?f=95

#5's 2 3/4" with improved cylinder choke in 12 or 20 gauge, over good pointers.

Big Bird got it mostly right.

My favorite is Fiocchi Gold Pheasant nickel plated #6 out of my Parker 28 gauge (M/F) over my pointing labs....

1-1/8 oz #6 out of a 16 gauge with modified choke. I like Estate High Velocity.

Maybe I'm making it too complicated but I shoot a 20 ga double with #6 for the first shot and #5 for the second shot. Works for me. For grouse and woodcock I use #7 1/2 for the first and #6 for the second.

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Isn't the only proper gun for pheasants a double-trigger side-by-side short-chambered 2½ inch 16 gauge with splinter forend and English straight stock ?

With 7/8 ounce of #5½ lead shot.

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Or was it a 10 gauge Parker ?


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Proper my ass, Traditional, yes...IMO.

A SxS may be more traditional for pheasants, however, I've seen more O/U in the fields as of late.

This year I will hunt pheasants one day w/ my SxS & the other w/ my O/U and I'll find out which gun suits me better.

As for shot, using a double & 2 different chokes; I'll use FIOCCHI Golden Pheasant #6 & #5. I have used the #7.5 w/ good results as well.

In conclusion, I believe that a shotgunner needs to find the gun/choke/ammo combo that works for them best, based on experience & practice.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Bird:
#5's 2 3/4" with improved cylinder choke in 12 or 20 gauge, over good pointers.

What he said......although it's usually #6 for me.


Wow, Slug.....you a professional?

FAR from it. In fact, if I was a better shot I'd have gotten 4 more pheasant so far this season...

Did manage to get a few though

If I had to use one, and only one load for pheasant, it would be #6 Hevi-shot. This would cover Non-toxic shot areas, long or close shots, high winds, etc.

Other than that, I really like #5 shot, with #4 later in the season.

Sweet, Slug! Love that English stock.....I have the same on my Citori.

Always fun to talk about shootin roosters. My optimum load for early season roosters, as in this time of year, is 2 3/4" #6's in my 20 ga.
Towards the end of November, when the roosters are starting to get full growth and fully educated 3" #5's in the 20 ga. becomes optimum.
We had a great morning hunt today also. My buddy and I found lots of birds and our 20's made for an early morning limit. My little girl lab was a little bummed that we had to go home so early though. Ya gotta love the outdoors and this time of the year. You all shoot straight and have a fun season.

No one optimum load in my opinion, as differing conditions will dictate different loads. But 4's 5's and 6's in high brass shells for the 12, 16, 20 or even the 28 will work the majority of the time!

Lot of driven hunts in our neck of woods.

30 g #6 (the gentlemans load) for game esp phesants. Chokes: choose between half, quarter and three fourth. Depending on the shoot and the person.

#6 - 3" 12ga.
Remington 870 pump with full choke

12 gauge 2 3/4" high brass shells loaded with 1 1/8 ounces of No. 6s will fold them right up.

I use an O/U with IC/M chokes.

Most of my shots are taken inside 30 yards.

quote:

Originally posted by Hammer:
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Isn't the only proper gun for pheasants a double-trigger side-by-side short-chambered 2½ inch 16 gauge with splinter forend and English straight stock ?

With 7/8 ounce of #5½ lead shot.

.

They die pretty good when we head out for them after ducks using steel 4s, but what do I know?

16 gauge #6 Bismuth

#5 Season Shot.....

I have kiled hundreds of them with 6's 1oz1/8 in 20 or 16 1oz1/4 in 12 ga hard shot works well copper plated seems to be a wee bit better.

Then there is really nothing wrong with 5s or 4s

In the non toxi areas 3 inch 12 ga 1oz1/8 steel 3s at 1550fps works really well. If one can afford them hevi no 6s can't be beat.in any ga 1oz on up.

Let me make the water clear as mud by adding one more dimension to the original question

WHERE are the pheasants being hunted ?

OPTION #1:
Pen raised birds at a preserve..... .410 with IC choke #9 shot would kill those genetic abnormalities easily.

OPTION #2:
On the other side of the spectrum say you are in South Dakota on a cold November morning with wind howling side ways with some snow and sleet mixed in....going after TRUE WILD BIRDS...say 40 yard crossing shots on wild roosters....I would like to use a 12 gauge with copper plated #5 shot Fiocchi loads.


Here are some pics I took in South Dakota a while back. All wild roosters ... no pen raised birds ... month of October. We had some fine 16 gauge doubles in the group...one brave soul even took out a 28 gauge but ended up wounding birds the first day...he quickly switched to a 20 gauge the next day. Ideal load for these wild roosters is 12 gauge #5.

I hate spitting BB's from my pheasant meals so I recommend 1oz #4 lead from 16 bore scattergun.

Nice photos, I love it when they get those blue markings on their backs.

A friend in Germany went to a shoot in Hungary that was almost 50% Reeves pheasants and about 10% melanistic pheasants.

Would have loved that.

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Looking at the shelves in the gun store yesterday...

Saw boxes of 3-inch 12 gauge with 1-3/4 ounce of #4 or #5 copper-plated shot at 1,200 fps graphically marked as "pheasant loads". Saw others with 1-3/8 ounce of #5 at 1,400 fps -- again marked specifically as pheasant loads.

Then hear about others using 3/4 ounce loads # 7½ soft lead shot from 28 gauge and risking their very lives by taking on the wild pheasant.

Is there any other animal that the disparity of what one thinks is either adequate or essential for hunting is so wide ?


For elephant, the difference between the 375 H&H and the 500 Nitro is not so great as the difference between the #7½ soft lead 28 gauge versus the #4 copper-plated shot from a 2-ounce 10 gauge load.


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Remington international pigeon 7 1/2, 1 1/4oz
very effective.

Have we debated the one-and-only-one optimum load for rooster pheasants yet this week ?

Some say a full choke 410 with #7½ shot is optimum.

Others prefer 2-ounces of #2 copper-plated shot from a 10 gauge.

With guidance from Nobel Laureates, what say y'all ?


.[/QUOTE]

Killed many a pheasant with 20ga #6 2 3/4" high brass out of a Win. M21, Mod/full.


Perry

hi over here in ireland rough shooting over labs and springers i use skeet gun 12 g with 32 grm 7s and 6s i also shoot 3 driven days i use quater and half chokes with 34 gr 6s i have shot a lot of birds and would not change it

quote:

Originally posted by steyrman2:
hi over here in ireland rough shooting over labs and springers i use skeet gun 12 g with 32 grm 7s and 6s i also shoot 3 driven days i use quater and half chokes with 34 gr 6s i have shot a lot of birds and would not change it

For USA shooters his loads would equate to:

32 grm 7s and 6s = 12ga 1-1/8oz of #7-1/2 and #7
34 grm 6s = 1-3/16oz of #7

In the USA you almost never encounter #7 (#6 UK) but many British guns are regulated to that shot size.

For older British s/s guns with 2-1/2in chambers, like my Evans with 28in barrels and 1/4 and 1/2 chokes, 28g #6 (UK) is probably the best all-round load. For taller birds and January cocks, 30g #5 (UK) works well.

Put me down for #5 Golden Pheasant loads. Born and raised in SD. Still own the farm there.

I live in SW Kansas, we hunt 3 days a week. Usually put in about 30 days of full hunting
over my six GSP's. My hunting partner has six
English Pointers, we put four dogs on the ground
and rotate dogs after each go. We both have for years used B&P's High Pheasant #6 in 12ga 1 1/16 oz, B&P F-2 Classic #6 1 1/16 oz in 16 ga and
B&P F-2 Classic #6 15/16 oz in 20 ga.(lead or Nik whatever they have in stock at the time).

Guns...SxS's, I do sometimes us my O/U mud gun if it's really wet.
Chokes.. whatever the gun has, some are open and
some are tighter (quality ammo is more important than getting all concerned over what choke the gun has). As to what ga., depends on my mood for the day.

Bird population looks good this year, the trick is knowing what areas had hail during the summer. Get in one of those areas and your hunt turns into a walk.

Terry

#6 Kent 20ga

I just returned from S.D. and we used a variety of brands of ammo. 15 hunters in all, took our limit of 45 birds everyday. The Federal and Winchester generic loads, #4 and #5 shot were not as effective as the premium Fiocchi #5 copper plated loads. There was a noticeable difference in felt recoil. The Fiocchi was definitely harder hitting in the shoulder. I saw some roosters take 3 solid hits in the body from the inexpensive Federal and Winchester ammo, fold up in the air, hit the ground, then 10 seconds later hop up and take off running. They are definitely tough birds. The birds shot with the Fiochi did not run off. Better penetration with the Fiocchi made for quicker kills.

I also just returned from a late season hunt on mostly public land in South Dakota. With skittish birds late in the season fast loads of #2 steel proved to be the most effective. #4's were not getting the job done. Damn tough birds!

I'll never forget the day, usually the difference between 4s,5s, and 6s was a debate with no real outcome. My brother-in-law used paper Federal 6s for everything because he lived next door to a Federal employee and got a reduced price. These were 12 ga, probably 1-1/4 oz, but possible 1-1/8. Well, it was late season N. Minnesota. Northern mallards were coming in over our decoys. I always shot 5s, 1-3/8 os max loads in a AA hull. Anyway, you could hear the 6s hitting the mallards as they flew away.

quote:

Originally posted by 375er:
I also just returned from a late season hunt on mostly public land in South Dakota. With skittish birds late in the season fast loads of #2 steel proved to be the most effective. #4's were not getting the job done. Damn tough birds!

Sounds like you folks need to try the Kent Ultimate Upland 1 1/2oz in number 4 or 5, a mild load at 1450 fps. FS