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Greetings all, I've got a Pedersoli 12 sxs, one barrel cyclinder, one improved. I've been trying to get this shotgun to shoot tighter patterns. I've asked in different forums and have tried different suggestions, one thing that has not come up has been shot size. I've been using no.4 birdshot, I shoot my turkeys at about tweenty yards. Can I use a smaller shot size and still get good penatration for a quick kill, if so how small can I go? My thinking is smaller shot more shot.
Thanks
 
I'm not familiar with your Pedersoli, but I do own a White Thunder .12 ga. shotgun. Do you use shotcups? My shotgun has straight rifling so shotcups work great with very good patterns. You might want to think of using smaller shot, a lot of turkeys have been killed with #5, #6, and even #7 or #8 shot.
 
Do you use shotcups? I have tried them, the ones from BPI, they helped but no enough.
My shotgun has straight rifling so shotcups work great with very good patterns. My shotgun is a smooth bore, can't use rifled guns for turkey here in NC.
 
What is your Loading sequence? Are you using the Thick Cards, and Big cushion wads over the Powder?
 
I started using this “Caywood“ method long ago and it works AWESOME,

interesting, The thing I noticed the most was shot size, but using a fine buffer also seems valid.
The article mentions 1 1/8 oz measure for a 20ga, think that would work for a 12ga or would you up the amounts? Say to 1 3/8oz?
 
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The article mentions 1 1/8 oz measure for a 20ga, think that would work for a 12ga or would you up the amounts? Say to 1 3/8oz?

1-3/8oz would be just fine, a little more “Payload”. I used 1-1/8 Oz for 12 Gauge, that is the same load i always used for Trap Shooting my 12 Gauge shotguns, since it worked so well there I decided to stick with it in my Blackpowder Shotguns :lewis:

One of My Gobblers this Last season with the above Load
R1glvsC.jpg
 
I REALLY like this Under hammer, They are a neat looking Gun :lewis: I would love to have a Rifle just like this Shotgun some day
 
Make sure and post back here with results when you get a chance to Pattern your Shotgun with the method above :lewis: The KEY is using the little thin over shot cards on the powder INSTEAD of the Big heavy Card and Fiber Cushion Wads, They are to heavy and Blow through the Shot causing Causing Doughnut Holes in the Pattern
 
I personally didn’t bother with the Muffin Mix stuff he mentions, I got EXCELLENT results without it
 
A number of years ago, I had a single barrel inline 12 gauge shotgun. After a lot trial and error, I started using those plastic shot cups with a 1 3/8 oz load of #6 shot. I used the same volume measure for the 2f black powder, which I think equals about 80 grains, IIRC. I also used 2 thin over shot cards.
That gun threw a good pattern on paper but I never had the chance to take a bird with it.
 
Since you have a cylinder bore you could use BPI TPS wad and #7.5 to #9 TSS shot 18gm cc. That would create a denser pattern. #9 TSS 18gm = about #6 lead. The TPS wads were created to handle TSS shot in regular barrels.IC being .720 probably a no go for a wad. I’ve never tried.
I could send you some wads. I use them in my TK2000.

East coast here we are nailing turkeys 70~ 80yds with 20ga using #9 TSS . Benelli’s and Indian Creek chokes. Incredible stuff.
 
Lewis, If you ever stop yanking on a chainsaw starter cord, you should become a pro photographer. You take some just great pictures!
 
Thanks for all the info guys. I have stopped using the heavy cards, I now just peel them in thirds, this has helped with a better pattern The patterns I'm getting are just really thin or spread out and I might not even hit the turkey head/neck on target. I have also used the TPS wads from BPI, I'm starting to think my problem is i'm looking at this from a modern shotshell point of veiw. I have only been turkey hunting since 2016, before that it was pheasant,rabbit,squirrel,deer. All with either a rifle or shotgun, when I was finaaly shown the joys of turkey hunting I was told use no.4 shot. When I got my ml shotgun I stayed with the same shot size. I'm reading all these responses and seeing much smaller shot size, which in its self should fill in the pattern, add shot cups and a buffer and no heavy wads. I hope to be able to get all this together in the next couple months and will add pics of my targets either way. Again thanks for the responses.
 
I fill the TPS wads with the oz of shot I want. Make a measurement on the wad of the shot column. Then trim the wads to that length. While filling I keep the wad in a cylinder choke tube for uniformity.
Once trimmed I place back in the chk tube and shot. Add buffer tapping the choke tube to let buffer settle.
Once full I dump the shot / buffer contents in a scale to see how much buffer was added.
This is what I do for my TK2000 ml.
 
Greetings all, I've got a Pedersoli 12 sxs, one barrel cyclinder, one improved. I've been trying to get this shotgun to shoot tighter patterns. I've asked in different forums and have tried different suggestions, one thing that has not come up has been shot size. I've been using no.4 birdshot, I shoot my turkeys at about tweenty yards. Can I use a smaller shot size and still get good penatration for a quick kill, if so how small can I go? My thinking is smaller shot more shot.
Thanks

Being a long time turkey hunter, I’ve always used 12 ga extra full choke shot gun for best pattern. I use a .640
That being said I have never hunted turkeys with bp shot gun.
Being that you using a gun with almost no choke to try to shoot a tight pattern maybe very hard to develop a tight pattern. Just my 2 cents. Best of luck to you.
 
For penetration, consider using bismuth/hevi-shot rather than soft lead. Killing isn't just about paper patterns, it's also about penetration. Harder lead shot also provides more uniform patterns b/c the shot doesn't deform bouncing around inside the barrel.

Ask waterfowlers about Hevi-shot compared to steel (not a fair comparison to lead, but really opened my eyes). Harder premium lead shot is one of the differences between "promo" shells and premium shells in modern shotshells.

As an added "plus", the bismuth-type shot is legal on areas where lead shot is prohibited - like mamaged waterfowl areas and some government hunting spots.
 
Penetration ??? Bismuth over TSS 18gm/cc. Bismuth while good stuff, is not even in the same league as TSS.
Not hard to find specs on it. Drawbacks ? Cost of TSS.

From Trap Shooters.
TSS shot is over 50% denser than ITX or Bismuth shot, so you can use much smaller shot sizes in TSS shot. ITX shot and bismuth shot are pretty close to being the same density.

From KPY Shotshell Ballistics.

ITX #4 shot at 1300 fps gets 2.20" of gel penetration at 30.7 yards and has about 149 pellets in 1 oz.
Bismuth #4 shot at 1300 fps gets 2.20" of gel penetration at 27.3 yards and has about 154 pellets in 1 oz.
TSS #7 shot at 1300 fps gets 2.20" of gel penetration at 78.8 yards and has about 182 pellets in 1 oz.
 
Google, and try out the SkyChief load. If you decide to try it, do not deviate from the instructions. Every post that says the recipe failed to work for them can be directly traced to some sort of substitution for one of the components.

A lot of smoothbore shooters get their best results when only using the thin overshot card wads. From 3-5 of the thin 0.060" thick card wads over the powder, then the shot charge, and then a final, single overshot card wad over the shot.

For those that might want to try the SkyChief load, then a super-saturated, 0.500" thick, veggie fiber wad that has been soaked in olive oil until it won't absorb any further oil. This goes directly over the card wad covering the shot.

I have read of some shooters that then dip the olive oil soaked fiber wad in paraffin wax to allow them to carry these wet wads afield without the oil getting into/onto everything else in their possible bag/hunting pouch/jacket pocket.

The only drawback is that when the oil soaked fiber wad is introduced into the muzzle of a smoothbore, the excess oil is going to start leaking out of the wad as it is compressed into the bore. This requires that a cloth rag be carried so that it can be wrapped around the barrel below the muzzle so as to catch, and absorb the excess oil as it is squeezed out.

The SkyChief load has been credited with getting rid of the donut hole that plagues the center of the shot pattern, increasing the number of shot pellet hits in the kill zone, and sometimes adding additional range to a smoothbore's pattern.
 

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