texashuntingforum.com logo
Main Menu
Advertisement
Affiliates
Advertisement
Newest Members
nmmuledeerhunter, Dzia-Dzia, TraeMartin, Beatixre, MooseSteed
71989 Registered Users
Top Posters(All Time)
dogcatcher 110,788
bill oxner 91,416
SnakeWrangler 65,416
stxranchman 60,296
Gravytrain 46,950
RKHarm24 44,585
rifleman 44,461
Stub 43,769
Forum Statistics
Forums46
Topics537,029
Posts9,719,584
Members86,989
Most Online25,604
Feb 12th, 2024
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
3.5" vs 3" #7013649 12/27/17 11:16 PM
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,512
R
rickym Offline OP
THF Celebrity
OP Offline
THF Celebrity
R
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,512
Whats the advantage other than if your skyblasting or its a dedicated goose gun? I know the 3.5" shells are significantly more expensive in most cases.



Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013663 12/27/17 11:35 PM
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,418
B
BDB Offline
Pro Tracker
Offline
Pro Tracker
B
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,418
"Whats the advantage"

Your shoulder gets a good workout. Lord know most of us needs the exercise and workouts.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013742 12/28/17 12:31 AM
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 961
T
TTUGrad08 Offline
Tracker
Offline
Tracker
T
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 961
Never found the advantage of using 3.5’s, though my guns are chambered for them.

Nice to know that I can shoot them if that’s all I can find on the shelf at Walmart or Academy.


Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013827 12/28/17 01:30 AM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
B
beaversnipe Offline
THF Celebrity
Offline
THF Celebrity
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
I use 2 3/4 all day
Shoot em in the head


www.TexasPondPoppers.com
Originally Posted by bill oxner
Loved my 4 inches. Well needed.

Originally Posted by bill oxner
Hate Russians. Love happy endings. I saw snot fly. cheers


Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013839 12/28/17 01:43 AM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
B
bentman Offline
Pro Tracker
Offline
Pro Tracker
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
No advantage


If it bleeds I can KILL IT
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013917 12/28/17 02:38 AM
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 26
J
justinxxxz Offline
Light Foot
Offline
Light Foot
J
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 26
You get more pellets towards your target but on the downside more more recoil with 3.5. The added recoil can also prevent some people from making a good follow up shot.

I use 3.5 BB for cranes(they can take a beating)and my shoulder never hurts but my 68 year old dads does.

Shoot 3 rounds off of each at a couple group of birds. If there is a difference in your follow up then the 3" would be the way to go as you would probably not be making the best use out of those more expensive two 3.5 shells.

- He-Man




Last edited by justinxxxz; 12/28/17 02:48 AM.
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013960 12/28/17 02:58 AM
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 2,234
G
gusick Offline
Veteran Tracker
Offline
Veteran Tracker
G
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 2,234
Larger pellets means you can't fit as many in the shell. Going to a longer shell gets some of that capacity back.

I only use them on turkeys and cranes. I don't think I need them with smaller shot sizes.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7013963 12/28/17 03:01 AM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
B
bentman Offline
Pro Tracker
Offline
Pro Tracker
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
No advantage learn to shoot better quite spending money on expensive shells


If it bleeds I can KILL IT
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: BDB] #7013968 12/28/17 03:04 AM
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 11,857
S
Simple Searcher Online Content
THF Celebrity
Online Content
THF Celebrity
S
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 11,857
Originally Posted By: BDB
"Whats the advantage"

Your shoulder gets a good workout. Lord know most of us needs the exercise and workouts.


We downed just over 200 snow geese on a conservation hunt, we had extensions longer than our barrels and we were shooting 6-8 3 1/2" shells at every volley, man that was nuts. At the end of the day we would have a small group of geese come through and not one hunter would shoot, hoping the other guys would. We were some hurting hunters. Man I couldn't bare the thought of pulling the trigger again, I just laid there and watched.


[Linked Image]

"Man is still a hunter, still a simple searcher after meat..." Robert C. Ruark
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: Simple Searcher] #7013981 12/28/17 03:10 AM
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 26
J
justinxxxz Offline
Light Foot
Offline
Light Foot
J
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 26
Originally Posted By: Simple Searcher
Originally Posted By: BDB
"Whats the advantage"

Your shoulder gets a good workout. Lord know most of us needs the exercise and workouts.


We downed just over 200 snow geese on conservation hunt, we had extensions longer than our barrels and we were shooting 8-10 3 1/2" shells at every volley, man that was nuts. At the end of the day we would have a small group of geese come through and not one hunter would shoot, hoping the other guys would. We were some hurting hunters. Man I couldn't bare the thought of pulling the trigger again, I just laid there and watched.


Sounds like you need some padding...


Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7014163 12/28/17 05:03 AM
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 594
T
TOMCAT21 Offline
Tracker
Offline
Tracker
T
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 594
Unless you are shooting Snows at extreme ranges there is no need to shoot 3 1/2" shells.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: bentman] #7014265 12/28/17 12:16 PM
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 3,993
6
68A Offline
Extreme Tracker
Offline
Extreme Tracker
6
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 3,993
Originally Posted By: bentman
No advantage


I agree with this, unless you’re primary use is skyblasting cranes and geese.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7014286 12/28/17 12:49 PM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
B
beaversnipe Offline
THF Celebrity
Offline
THF Celebrity
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
Shooting kent 3 inch tungsten matrix nr 5 this morning.
Best load ever


www.TexasPondPoppers.com
Originally Posted by bill oxner
Loved my 4 inches. Well needed.

Originally Posted by bill oxner
Hate Russians. Love happy endings. I saw snot fly. cheers


Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7014327 12/28/17 01:26 PM
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 5,294
8
8pointdrop Offline
THF Trophy Hunter
Offline
THF Trophy Hunter
8
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 5,294
I shoot high flying crane with 3" 4 shot and a modified choke, while my buddy misses crane with 3 1/2 bb loads and a kicks high flyer choke. He kills his shoulder and I kill crane, can't see a reason to go bigger even if I went goose hunting.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7014380 12/28/17 02:23 PM
Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 1,829
Adchunts Online Content
Pro Tracker
Online Content
Pro Tracker
Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 1,829
Been hunting waterfowl for a lot of years and have only shot a handful of 3.5" shells, usually when I grabbed them out of my buddy's bag. Several of my blind mates have run the gamut of ammo over the last 25 years, including 12 gauge 3.5", 10 gauge 3.5", Hevi-Shot, and several others I don't remember. All eventually came back to 12 gauge 3" rounds. Never saw an increase in kills with any of the bigger shells, and often a decrease (that 10 gauge recoil was BRUTAL).

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: beaversnipe] #7014383 12/28/17 02:27 PM
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 1,045
N
nacgoat08 Offline
Pro Tracker
Offline
Pro Tracker
N
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 1,045
Originally Posted By: beaversnipe
Shooting kent 3 inch tungsten matrix nr 5 this morning.
Best load ever


I thought you use 2 3/4 all day?

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7014715 12/28/17 07:17 PM
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,037
G
Greekangler Offline
Veteran Tracker
Offline
Veteran Tracker
G
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,037
Nothing is better than heavy shot. You can shoot 6’s at Ducks- stone them dead at 60+ yards


[Linked Image]
Take a kid Huntin
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: 68A] #7014717 12/28/17 07:18 PM
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,037
G
Greekangler Offline
Veteran Tracker
Offline
Veteran Tracker
G
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 2,037
Originally Posted By: 68A
Originally Posted By: bentman
No advantage


I agree with this, unless you’re primary use is skyblasting cranes and geese.


Study after study shows they do pattern worse than 3 inch


[Linked Image]
Take a kid Huntin
Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: Greekangler] #7015318 12/29/17 03:47 AM
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 35,409
Guy Offline
THF Celebrity
Offline
THF Celebrity
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 35,409
I used to shoot 3.5 inch #4, back when I did not have confidence in my shooting. Another disadvantage is the extra weight, not worth it.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7015742 12/29/17 04:43 PM
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 853
M
Matagorda Mud Pig Offline
Tracker
Offline
Tracker
M
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 853
I freaking love 3.5 inches. I kill birds I'd never kill with 3 inch or 2.75. I switch after teal season and won't look back. Your experiences may vary.




Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: nacgoat08] #7015891 12/29/17 06:56 PM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
B
beaversnipe Offline
THF Celebrity
Offline
THF Celebrity
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 23,830
Originally Posted By: nacgoat08
Originally Posted By: beaversnipe
Shooting kent 3 inch tungsten matrix nr 5 this morning.
Best load ever


I thought you use 2 3/4 all day?


Me too


www.TexasPondPoppers.com
Originally Posted by bill oxner
Loved my 4 inches. Well needed.

Originally Posted by bill oxner
Hate Russians. Love happy endings. I saw snot fly. cheers


Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7017459 12/31/17 12:07 AM
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 271
B
Bluesea112 Offline
Bird Dog
Offline
Bird Dog
B
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 271
I like 3.5" shells for the extra speed I can get out of them. Shooting 1 1/4 ounce of shot in a 3" shell gives you a speed of around 1400 fps. When you shoot a 1 1/4 ounce load in a 3.5" shell you get a speed of 1650 fps. If the shot loads are identical in both 3" and 3.5" shells, the 3.5" shell can hold more powder. When shooting steel shot speed can make the difference between killing a duck and wounding it. 250 fps is significant in steel shot ballistics, so there is a big advantage of shooting 3.5" shells over 3" shells. The advantage is proven through ballistic science, and not just my opinion.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7017710 12/31/17 03:30 AM
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 324
C
Charlie817 Offline
Bird Dog
Offline
Bird Dog
C
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 324
I use the 3.5 to break in the gun as manufacturer recommends to enable cycling of low brass dove loads. Manufacturer recommends 200 rounds. Don't use 3.5 for hunting.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: Greekangler] #7022924 01/03/18 04:11 PM
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 134
W
Whitecrow Offline
Woodsman
Offline
Woodsman
W
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 134
Originally Posted By: Greekangler
Originally Posted By: bentman
No advantage




Study after study shows they do pattern worse than 3 inch


This^^. The bore x length results in an elongated shot string that doesn't perform well on flying birds. On turkeys they probably work ok. Pretty similar to the .410 shotgun. Stick with 3", or if you want the extra capacity, shoot a 10 ga. I have an SP-10 that weighs ~11lbs and is not bad to shoot all day. I've run multiple boxes through it in a day on geese and never had a problem.

Re: 3.5" vs 3" [Re: rickym] #7022975 01/03/18 04:42 PM
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
B
bentman Offline
Pro Tracker
Offline
Pro Tracker
B
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,398
Bluesea112...250 ft per sec is no advantage


If it bleeds I can KILL IT
Page 1 of 2 1 2
Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread

© 2004-2024 OUTDOOR SITES NETWORK all rights reserved USA and Worldwide
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.3