Carlson chokes

Does anyone have much experience with these. I bought the three pack from Cabelas and I have missed birds all weekend. Yeah I could be a crappy shot but I put a whoopin on the dove so I know I can knock some birds down. I've been shooting the Mid range choke and Kent #2's. do I need to be leading these birds further or right on them? I tried from there nose to three foot in front of the ducks. So tell me what you know of them and what you've learned about them.

Hate to say it... but sounds like operator error. Carlson's are some fine chokes. The mid range is the same constriction as a mod. you should be good to go.

Okay, I was afraid of that. I read the reviews on cabelas and they had a lot of good stuff to say about them. I'll just start increasing my lead and see how far out front I need to aim.

I have a mid range and think it is one of my best chokes

Your trying to hard. Dont try to aim so much and just shoot em. You got to feel it!

here we go again. I make this post at least once a week. most likely it is the shooter not the shell/choke combination. shoot better don't blame it on the shell or choke.

Jo: That totally depends on your shooting conditions. If you're shooting at birds getting up out of your decoys, you hardly need to lead at all. If you're attempting a 30 yard side-to-side pass shot at birds that are moving with purpose, then that requires some significant lead.

Also, you should always be shooting at the bird's head.

I agree that my Carlson's mid-range is probably my favorite choke.

I bought a LM choke hopping for the perfect all around choke. I hate it. I tried it all dove season and now duck season. Most wounded/crippled birds I've ever had. Just my opinion and thought.

I have Carlson chokes for both my shotguns. I also got the forcing cones lengthened on both of them as well. My 870's shoot like a high dollar shotguns now. I love my Carlson chokes.

I don't think it is the shooter at all. Dove shells were probably lead, the duck shells steel. These are apples and oranges.

I don't want to type up a big long thing again about chokes. So in short, I have found the less restriction you put on steel the better. I also believe it is way rediculous to shoot ducks with a #2 pellet. Bump up to #4. Save the #2s for when you are goose hunting.

There will be a whole lot of blah blah blah responses about the pellet size. Research it and I don't mean on here. A 75% pellet pattern in 30 inches at 30 yards is optimum. The bigger the STEEL pellet you try to force through a restricted choke the more deflection and deviation in pellet flight.

If you get that #4 pellet 75% pattern on a goose at 45 yards he will die hard enough to stop flapping his wings and drop his head and neck. I would much rather have a goose with 10 to 12 pellets #4 pellet holes from head to butt, than have that few #2 golden pellets.

There is also the ft pound energy scale but I am too busy to write that up. Maybe someone can tag in here.

Not many people realize nor have even heard of a forcing cone. Not all guns need it but when they do it makes a tremendous difference in stabilizing a shotload long before it comes out the barrel.

On the reverse side I have talked to poeple that have lengthened the cone but went with an extremely tight choke, never patterned their weapon. They get angry when they can't hit the ground. The whole key is to start with a pure form of pellets and end witha pure form of pellets. Rock either end of the pellets in the barrel and you have just undermined your operation.

I love my set of Carlson chokes they throw a much more consistent pattern that my factory chokes did. Did you buy the waterfowl pack?

There is no substitute for patterning your shotgun at varying distances with the shells and chokes you plan to use. The time you spend will be a very worthwhile investment.

I could not agree more.

except that a cheap choke cost you $50-$75 and shell cost $0.50-up to $2.00 per shell. so you but a couple different chokes and boxes of shells and wow you have spent $300 in no time. that's a "worthwhile investment". and it probably wont help you shoot better at all. if you don't mount the gun correctly, have the proper stance, proper fit of the gun, proper swing, I could go on and on...if all of these things don't come together you will not hit birds consistently. Period. I cannot believe that yall don't understand that. most of the time it is not the choke or shell it is the shooter.

Certainly agree. Patterning does not help much if you cannot shoot.

So it is not the choke and shot it is all stance and swing only. Oh, OK I got it now. Well dang it man, I wish I would have met you on the forum years ago before I wasted all that time. I could have saved the money paid to a gun smith to lengthen polish and smooth out the forcing cone on my shotguns.
Dang where were you when we needed you?

wal...if you will look at my post it specifically says that I could go on and on, on gun and shooting mechanics. and yes 99% of the time it is the shooter not the choke or shell. glad I could clear that up for you.

After some additional thought, I would add that wingshooting is sort of like putting... You have to be able to "feel" where to shoot and you can make a case of the yips worse by believing that your equipment is the problem. "Ducks aren't hard to hit, they're just easy to miss." If you're thinking about how much to lead while you're shooting, you're probably shooting in front of them or over them. Did you notice how the wad looked like it was going right at the duck? That means your pattern went right in front. Duck shooting is different than dove shooting. There's something about the size and speed of a dove that makes it a more ideal target. Ducks always seem to be closer, farther, faster or slower than they actually are. You're not going to fix it with clays, you just need to hunt some more ducks until they start falling and you get your mojo back.

I'll agree with Wal that the #4s pattern better; there are more pellets in the center of the shot column that never touch the wad and fly truer as a result... but, you're not missing birds because you're shooting Kent #2 rather than Kent #4 and you're probably at less risk of cracking a tooth at the dinner table. The tools you have are absolutely fine, you just need to get off the steep part of the learning curve.

Wal hanging out with Marcstar has been doing wonders for your shotgunning

Seriously, listen to Wal on this post...he is guiding you in the correct direction. You have good chokes now you just have to figure out which shell your gun and choke likes. Then you can work on all the stuff that Double-R is talking about.

Pattern first then work on mechanics because if your gun isn't #1 shooting where you are looking and #2 producing a deadly pattern then you can have the best mechanics in the world and only be a so/so shooter.

You also don't have to spend $300 to pattern a gun...pick a good choke and then try different shells until you get one that patterns to your liking.

An example, my 391 hates my hand rolled #4's...there are holes in the patterns that ducks could fly through...I go to #3's and it is a well spread pattern. Dangest thing I have even seen and if I wouldn't have patterned it I wouldn't never known.

I say it is the other way around get your fundamentals down first then worry about trying to kill birds and using different chokes/shells

go to any place that coaches shotgunning. a 4-h skeet range is the best place. and look at what they teach the young kids first. proper mechanics. then they worry about what choke they are shooting.

Dub: I don't disagree that fundamentals are important and that working on mechanics can be beneficial for anyone, but it seems to me that someone who is efficiently killing dove already knows how to shoot. Just my opinion, but if that guy is having problems killing ducks he just needs to hunt more ducks until all the nuts and bolts in his brain tighten up to duck shooting.

I've been duck hunting for 15 years and I've never patterned my shotgun on paper. I don't think I ever will either.

Take a case of shotgun shells out to the skeet field and shoot a box at each station. If you still can't hit anything, sell your gun and buy a bag of golf clubs. Problem solved.

My head hurts.

I just had to buy a few chokes (I bought Carlsons) as my shotgun only came with 2 mods (also carlsons). This is exactly how I felt!

I did but the waterfowl pack and I didn't use these chokes during dove season. I know I can shoot and the way everyone is talking these are some good chokes. So I'll just chalk this weekend up as a loss and start fresh. I did connect with a few birds and liked the results but I know I can do much better.

I have Carlson's skeet choke for my Maxus, been very pleased with it. Other than that I shoot the IC that came with it for ducks with Kent fasteel #3's or #4's. Somewhere I heard the rule of thumb is that you're choke is one size smaller when shooting steel- so IC = Mod, mod = full, etc. Anyone else confirm that? This may not apply to purpose built waterfowl chokes, hence the reason to pattern your gun. I never have, but, I've never felt like missing birds was on any other accord than my own either.

I've taken lessons from one of the best in the country and the very first thing we did was pattern our guns and check for proper fitting. He can't teach without making sure the gun is shooting where you are looking.

We aren't disagreeing that fundamentals are important but if the gun doesn't shoot where you are looking then you are whizzing in the wind. I'm assuming this guy knows basic fundamentals because he is hunting and killing dove. I really don't think it is a fundamental problem.

I get what you are saying and you're right.

And the wood ducks thank you for it.

You can't blame a guy for stirring a cow patty every now and again!

I do completely agree on fundamentals. But you learn those with lead, not steel. Steel changes everything in the game. Lead conforms going through the choke, where steel will not. So I say yes learn the fundamentals but when you get to steel you can settle for an average pattern or you can dial it in to put a good pattern on a bird.

To Ishoitspoonoes- apparently what you bought to use hunting worked. There are times when they don't. You say you will never shoot paper but one day, if you experience a problem, paper is where you start to find it. It is the same thing with a bow, the paper tells all.

To Judd-please kick yourself in the nads for comparing me to Marcus!

My O/U has been rocking two Carlson extended mid-range chokes since I bought it. Plenty of dove and duck harvested. Plenty missed as well. Dang good chokes for lead and steel IMO. 3rd shot?....nah

Damn you a straight up duck killa. Sweet humble brag.



Shane

Haha you win. Erase 'plenty' insert 'more' in front of missed. I'm happy with one duck after all the effort. A limit is a blessing. But 3rd shot?....nah

It's all good brotha. guess you were on spoon patrol last week. Way to get after them.

Eh. I kill some, I miss some. It's has more to do with my piss poor shooting, rushing shots, and not leading birds than it does to my choke/shell combo. I'm a terrible shot. It's not my guns fault, or my chokes, or my shell.

In fact... That gives me an idea for the OP...

Let your buddy shoot your gun if he's killing birds with his, and see if he kills with yours. And you shoot his. Hmmmmmmmm.... Thinking outside the box.

#trouthead

You do realize you just instructed him to run a test to see if weapon was shooting correctly, right? Just saying!

Yeah. I do realize that.

And I'd put money on it the same results occur that were happening before the gun switch. Guy killing birds kills birds. Guy missing birds misses birds

Jo... let the red headed Guy you hunt with show you how to shoot he can shoot great IV hunted with him alot

Might try leading a little less. I know there's always a transition for when I hunt dove for the first time every year. When I go from a tight choke with fast duck shells to an IC with whatever old lead I can find, it's a whole new ball game. If your shooting anything over 1400fps just lead them a little bit and swing through your shot, might be suprised.

Not to get into the choke vs shooting argument but take a video of you shooting and see if you're mounting the gun correctly when you're hunting and that you're putting your head down on the gun. I know it sounds stupid but people get excited and don't put your head on the gun and shoot over the birds. But when they go practice they shoot fine because they arnt in the moment and the rush of hunting. I've been a competition shotgun shooter for a long time and one of the biggest things is gun fit. Have someone that knows shotguns and shot gunning look at how it fits you. Your gun should have different shims to fix it if there are any problems. If you would just hit the duck you would be a better shooter

also practice in your heavy hunting coat. I mount the gun great when I am in a t-shirt at the range. Then you sit in a pit when its 10 degrees in thermals, a sweatshirt, and a heavy waterfowl coat, and all of a sudden you are not mounting the gun the same over 15 layers of clothes.