Re: A Word on Federal "Flitecontrol" Buckshot
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tx_Flyboy</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Norm,
It's kind of difficult to reach the same conclusion as you did without a little more background on the intended purpose of your shotgun.
If this is a hunting shotgun, those close range patterns are meaningless. A shotshell/choke combination that throws fist sized patterns at 25yards can throw abysmal patterns at 40yards to 50yards...the only way to know is to pattern your shotgun. Your patterns were taken at less than 35yards. THis is not enough to reach a conclusion on a hunting shotgun except to say that you can reliably kill up to 35yards. Move the patterning board out to 40yards, 50yards, and 60yards. You will be stunned in how much the pattern opens up every 5yards.
If however, your intended purpose is home defense, and those distances you mentioned are typical distances wherein the shotgun will be employed, then yes, those are very good patterns.
Remember, to really evaluate the potential of your shotgun, you gotta find a shotshell/choke combination that puts enough pellets in the kill zone of whatever you are shooting at. This requires a lot of time at the range, and buying a bunch of different shotshell loads and aftermarket choke tubes to find that optimal shotshell/choke combination.
lastly, since you like the federal flite control shotshells, remember that they only work well with non-ported choke tubes...the ported choke tubes are wad stripping chokes. Ported choke tubes are incompatible with the flite control wad which is desinged to stay with the shot column longer, reslting in tighter pattens downrange.
Go to Predatormastersforums.com and read up on the sticky about patterning your shotgun.
Just me $0.02.
Regards, </div></div>
Thanks for the info!
This would be a self defense load in a combat shotgun with rifle type sights through a 20" barrel that is only cylinder bore (no choke tubes).
I tried several different loads from #4, #1, 0, 00 and 000 buckshot in 2 3/4" and 3" from various manufacturers (Fed. Rem. Win.) and tried them from distances of 21', 50' and 100' to see how they patterned and what the recoil was like for follow up shots. To me, the 3" was too much recoil for no added velocity and no improvement in patterning, -- no tight pattern density, just more widespread shot.
Assuming that 00 and 000 buckshot (especially copper plated) would have the best penetration, it seemed to me that the 2 3/4" shells were the best all around: easy recoil and GREAT pattern density with the Flitecontrol wads. If I'm not mistaken, the Flitecontrol wads were specifically designed for cylinder and IC barrels.
Second, by a fairly wide margin, was Remington 2 3/4" 000 lead buckshot out to about 50'.
Also tried some Winchester Supreme Elite, which is a 1 oz. Foster slug with three 00 pellets, which was fairly accurate out to 50' with low recoil, but would think the slug might over penetrate.
Your results may vary.
