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We have about a 10 acre section on our property that is thick as can be. Been thinking of using a 12 gauge with 3 inch 00 buckshot. It would be almost impossible to shoot beyond 35 yards. Anyone have any experience with whitetails and buckshot?
Would like to hear about your experiences.
Thanks
My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.
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Take it out and shoot it with the same buckshot you plan to hunt with and make sure it shoots a good pattern and you get a feel for it.
Then when hunting, I always aim at the head of a running deer. If I miss the head, chances are I'll hit the vitals. That's what has always worked for me out to 50 yards, sometimes further.
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Campfire Oracle
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"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
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In my early years, I hunted with a Rem. 1100. But I used 3" No. 1 buckshot. No problems with it and some dropped in their tracks.
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Inside of 50 yds buckshot is very effective . I'd see what your gun likes best as far as patterns . I used to do a lot of hunting in eastern Va where buckshot was the only thing allowed . Worst thing if you don't drop the deer in their tracks it's usually not much of a blood trail .
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35 yards its a dead deer. You can even get 000 if you want. At that range #4 buck would even work. Finding a load and choke combo that patterns good is the same as getting a turkey gun ready. But it is possible to get softball size buckshot groups at 35 yards. Some guns do well with modified, some need up to extra full.
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Campfire Greenhorn
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It works, I'd personally prefer a slug if legal.
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Buckshot sucks
If you can use anything else, do that instead.
You won't see a lot of deer in there if it's really that thick.
If you do see them, it will be just about as easy to hit them with a rifle or handgun which will give you a better blood trail.
One shot, one kill........ It saves a lot of ammo!
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It sucks compared to a rifle but thousands of deer are killed every year in the south on dog hunts with it.
I used it for years on hogs before I could afford a rifle. It patterened like crap in my shotgun but I was shooting at hogs no further than about 30 yards. Even then I found a lot of it never got through to the vitial organs.
So is it effective , yes. Efficent , no.
I finally broke down in 1988/9 and bought an open box Marlin 30/30 on sale from Service Merchandise for $125. I shot it with the open sights for five years until I bought a Ruger Tanger in 30/06. The old marlin killed alot of game and to this day that particular rifle still wears no scope.
But if your concerned about your bullets leaving the property buck shot will work.
Life can be rough on us dreamers.
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I used to hunt with it periodically, and within its limits it's very effective. I bought several brands and sizes and patterned them. My 870 with a modified choke would shoot the Winchester 3" 00 load very well, and of the 4 deer I shot from 4 to 35 yards, all dropped where they stood. Since my pattern wasn't as tight as I liked at 50 yards, 40 was my personal limit. Buckshot can be very effective if you do your homework.
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Campfire Ranger
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I have used everything from 000 thru #4 . I pattern the shotgun and never had to look for a deer shot within 50 yards never.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Buckshot sucks
If you can use anything else, do that instead.
You won't see a lot of deer in there if it's really that thick.
If you do see them, it will be just about as easy to hit them with a rifle or handgun which will give you a better blood trail. Never had it fail on me. Of course you have to know its limitations and how to use it. Like anything else. I'd take it at that range you mention over a handgun all day long... At 30-35 yards nickel plated #4 would put a lot of holes in one asap.
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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Campfire Ranger
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We have about a 10 acre section on our property that is thick as can be. Been thinking of using a 12 gauge with 3 inch 00 buckshot. It would be almost impossible to shoot beyond 35 yards. Anyone have any experience with whitetails and buckshot?
Would like to hear about your experiences.
Thanks Buckshot is damned effective out to about 35 yards. Don't get stuck on just 00. Pattern what works best for your shotgun and go with that; #4 to 000. Now, that said, I would not hunt that 10 acres. If you have that, then keep it as a sanctuary for the deer. Not only will the deer on your properties use it to escape pressure and stay on your land, but so will deer from adjacent properties when the pressure goes up. I'd not go in it, at all. Instead, figure out where to hunt the edges of it and the travel corridors to and from on different winds and conditions and do that. Give the deer a place to hide where they feel safe, don't go in there, and the deer will stay. If it's really that thick, you MIGHT get lucky - once - and get a shot at something decent, but the greatest odds are that you'll just push things out and they won't come back in there because they don't see it as a safe place to hide.
America needs to understand that our troops are not 'disposable'. Each represents a family; Fathers, Mothers, Sons, Daughters, Cousins, Uncles, Aunts... Our Citizens are our most valuable treasure; we waste far too many.
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I killed several deer with buckshot when I hunted with dogs and in thickets as a young hunter.
It's important to try different loads and chokes to see what patterns best. I always used double ought and my dad used #1 buckshot.
Both killed well inside of 40 yards or so. 00 would exit the body more often,but #1 would always work.
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Now, that said, I would not hunt that 10 acres. If you have that, then keep it as a sanctuary for the deer. Not only will the deer on your properties use it to escape pressure and stay on your land, but so will deer from adjacent properties when the pressure goes up. I'd not go in it, at all. Instead, figure out where to hunt the edges of it and the travel corridors to and from on different winds and conditions and do that. Give the deer a place to hide where they feel safe, don't go in there, and the deer will stay. If it's really that thick, you MIGHT get lucky - once - and get a shot at something decent, but the greatest odds are that you'll just push things out and they won't come back in there because they don't see it as a safe place to hide.
Hunt a good edge and use a rifle. 
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I used it[00] almost exclusively in my first years of hunting and mostly with an H & R single shot.
Knowing it's limitations is key.
FJB & FJT
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We have about a 10 acre section on our property that is thick as can be. Been thinking of using a 12 gauge with 3 inch 00 buckshot. It would be almost impossible to shoot beyond 35 yards. Anyone have any experience with whitetails and buckshot?
Would like to hear about your experiences.
Thanks Like some others have suggested I think I'd leave that 10 acres alone. But here's some pics of TriBall results. http://www.dixieslugs.com/photos.htmlhttp://www.dixieslugs.com/images/standard_order_triball_3in.pdf
“When Tyranny becomes Law, Rebellion becomes Duty”
Colossians 3:17 (New King James Version)
"And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."
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If you could ask about 60 bucks taken from SE Alabama that question....they'd tell you.....DAMNED EFFECTIVE!!
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that.
molɔ̀ːn labé skýla
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I've never used it before. With that said, I'd be using a slug. Slugs are bad ass. We're not allowed to use a rifle, shotgun only with slugs only. No buckshot.
Not sure about your tree situation, but I'd be trying to find a tree to climb and get above the thick schit.
"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem."
Ronald Reagan
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that. I've killed multiple deer that had broadheads in them. By your statement, should I quit bowhunting? Buckshot, like anything else has limitations. That doesn't mean that everyone will understand those limitations.
FJB & FJT
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Buckshot is very effective IF you pattern your exact load and choke you'll be hunting with and realize it's effective range as well as know the POI in relation to POA. Shotguns don't always shoot where the bead is pointed, in fact many rarely do with certain loads and chokes.
Shoot at a large sheet of paper and find where you get 50% of the payload in a 16" circle. Call that your max range and you'll have no problem slaying deer.
I've shot a bunch of deer with buckshot and always thought 000 killed with much more authority if it patterned decent. OTOH if your gun puts up tight patterns with #1, that's what I'd use. Some guns will not pattern very well and some ammo sucks out of certain guns.
Federal's Premium CP buck is good stuff.
Good luck,
loder
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Buckshot will kill no doubt but why not be precise and use a low power scoped rifle?
Lowcountry Wildlife Management Knowing Wildlife Beyond Science [email protected]Genesis 9;2
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Thanks for the feedback. Plenty of good responses and I appreciate it.
My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.
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Campfire Ranger
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All of my hunting, until I was 24 was done with a shotgun. We still hunted and ran dogs for deer and I got my share. I never kept count, but 4-6 deer/yr for 10 years averages out to about 50 deer. Add another 30 or so killed since then with a shotgun and now it's about 80. Learn your guns limit (how well it will pattern different shot) and have at it.
My guns do not shoot slugs very well and I never killed a deer with one.
Like stated before, pattern your gun to see what it likes. One of mine likes #1 buckshot and the other #4. Draw a 12" square on newspaper and back off 40 yds. Shoot the box with different ammo and see which one puts the most in the square. 2 3/4" #1 buckshot- one gun consistently puts at least 9 out of 16 in the square. 3" #4 buckshot- gun consistently put 21 out of 42 in the square. These are at 40 yds.
At 35 yds, you should kill any deer in the US, with buckshot, if it patterns good.
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that. Most likely a result of a hail mary shot. Some fools think you can shoot a deer with buckshot at 100 yards and kill them, it penetrates the Skin readily but that might be about it . The BC and SD on a .33 caliber round ball is minimal at best at 100 yards
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that. Most likely a result of a hail mary shot. Some fools think you can shoot a deer with buckshot at 100 yards and kill them, it penetrates the Skin readily but that might be about it . The BC and SD on a .33 caliber round ball is minimal at best at 100 yards That's what I figured. The buck was all over the body from the neck to the hind quarters.
molɔ̀ːn labé skýla
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that. Most likely a result of a hail mary shot. Some fools think you can shoot a deer with buckshot at 100 yards and kill them, it penetrates the Skin readily but that might be about it . The BC and SD on a .33 caliber round ball is minimal at best at 100 yards That's what I figured. The buck was all over the body from the neck to the hind quarters. That's sure what it sounds like.
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Buckshot isn't legal in TN for deer hunting except one county in west TN if I am not mistaken. So that should mean stick to slugs or rifle. That was easy enough
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no.........
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I'd use it out to 35 yards no problem.
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It works, I'd personally prefer a slug if legal. This. As good as buckshot can be, a slug is better IMO. My shotguns always shot best with the cheap foster style slugs, or Brenneke, I've never had to shoot twice with a 12ga slug, and never missed or lost one.
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs?
Old Turd- Deplorable- Unrepentant Murderer- Domestic Violent Extremist
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Buckshot isn't legal in TN for deer hunting except one county in west TN if I am not mistaken. So that should mean stick to slugs or rifle. That was easy enough That's what I get for not reading the regs close enough. Thanks for pointing out to me for what I didn't know.
My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.
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Campfire Ranger
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be.....
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Campfire Ranger
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Buckshot is some deadly stuff - I actually prefer #4 Buck but whatever patterns the best in your gun/choke combo is what I'd run...
The first 5 or so deer I ever shot was with buckshot. All within 40 yards. All were bang flops.
- Greg
Success is found at the intersection of planning, hard work, and stubbornness.
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be..... Whatever
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... It was forced on New Jersey hunters for a very very long time, they didn't change the law until the early 80's I believe and then we could use slugs and buckshot, Only time you could use a rifle was for groundhogs and not sure it is even legal today.
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Campfire Ranger
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be..... I had a nice SxS shotgun chucking 000 and never failed to kill a deer , I want to see the carbine,big bore handgun whatever except maybe a mini gun get on point faster and kill what they pointed at .
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They are lighter and shorter than most shotguns. Why wouldn't they point as well or as quickly?
Shotguns were not designed for deer hunting. A fact that should be self evident. Much better tools for the job IMO........
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You fellows don't have a clue!!
Even birds know not to land downwind!
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Campfire Ranger
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They are lighter and shorter than most shotguns. Why wouldn't they point as well or as quickly?
Shotguns were not designed for deer hunting. A fact that should be self evident. Much better tools for the job IMO........
You can use the same argument for pistols  They point nicely and work and yes it does not have the range of a big pistol,carbine or rifle but it still works
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Within that range, devastatingly effective. But I would be more comfortable with "well within" that range.
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Buckshot isn't legal in TN for deer hunting except one county in west TN if I am not mistaken. So that should mean stick to slugs or rifle. That was easy enough That's what I get for not reading the regs close enough. Thanks for pointing out to me for what I didn't know. In that case I'd think a little lever in a 44 or 45 Colt would be what I would need.
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Campfire Ranger
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This is the only thing buckshot is good for ![[Linked Image]](http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p32/2muchgun/70013791-5E69-47E7-AD6C-35AF878E83D6_zpsaffidayk.jpg) Winchester military grade, please: ![[Linked Image]](http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p32/2muchgun/841CE446-19E9-4FE9-9F3E-45392F1A7CDD_zpsgfvorkd0.jpg) Never felt anything but good carrying this deluxe carbine in a thicket. You can tell me all about how it don't work well....  ![[Linked Image]](http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p32/2muchgun/100_0163.jpg) 250 grains of joy..... ![[Linked Image]](http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p32/2muchgun/100_0164.jpg)
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I once shot an 8pt that would qualify as a dink and found 8 00 pellets in various parts of his body. They had encapsulated and had puss in most of the capsules. I'll never use buckshot because of that. I've killed deer with , buckshot in them, broadheads in them, legs blown off with rifles. They all can fail when not done right.
TB, CWD and Covid-19 , free so far.....
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Jump shooting deer with a shotgun and buckshot is fun stuff, esp after stitting hours and hours on stand. Something diff once in awhile is always nice.
TB, CWD and Covid-19 , free so far.....
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You fellows don't have a clue!! Rick, I'd like to see them in a good palmetto flat, a 5 yr cut over, a good pine thicket, etc. with dogs running a deer.
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Campfire Ranger
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Well up here we obviously have no palmetto flats. And we do not hunt deer with dogs.
But we do have plenty of supermegathickass woods that are dark on sunny days, cedar swamps, and pine thickets.
Tell me what a shotgun will do that a lighter, 38" or less carbine can't do.....
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be..... I've obviously been using the wrong weapon for grouse all these years.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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killed my first deer with #2 Buck out of a Stevens single shot 20 GA. Never used buck shot again though.
I hunt a lot in very close cover, Florida swamps and palmetto thickets. A .44 Mag lever rifle does that sort of thing perfectly.
Sam......
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... If a shotgun deer hunt is beyond you, picture this.. 50 or 60 standers, all with shotguns and buckshot, a team of about 20 dog drivers, all with shotguns and buckshot pushing a pretty good sized pack of dogs. It starts off simple enough, a few yelps from the pups, a few shots ring out, and then a few big boys get up... It's an experience of a lifetime that would be totally impossible without shotguns and buckshot. It is also a way of life down here for some folks. And, if the stuff is only meant for defense, wouldn't it be called dudeshot?
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I hunt a lot in very close cover, Florida swamps and palmetto thickets. A .44 Mag lever rifle does that sort of thing perfectly. My thoughts exactly. However, I have never experienced anything like Rick stated. 70 people hunting deer in the same place plus a pack of dogs? I just don't know what to think of it. Honestly. Sounds.......crazy May be a good time though. I will say it is not how I would ever prefer to deer hunt. But may be cool once a year or something. We don't use dogs either. Some do for bear though. I like my quiet solitude in the woods when possible. But am not totally unsociable. It is just something I am completely unfamiliar with. Sure we do deer drives sometimes. But maybe 5-6 people and no dogs. My feeling is that some feel the buckshot to be better in a "spray and pray" type situation, and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Sounds like a lot of potentially wounded deer to me. But I am all for whatever is legal and personal choice. I just hope that hunters are responsible enough not to abuse the freedoms they have been afforded at the expense of the deer. Not sure if deer drives with dozens of hunters and dogs were considered by the OP, but I guess in certain situations, in which I have no experience, buckshot may have it's place. As stated by Randy and Rick. For myself, however, I doubt I will ever use it on a deer..........
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Some of those southern swamps would be just about unhuntable without dogs and buckshot. Not to mention many areas buckshot and shotgun is the only legal weapon.
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Some of those southern swamps would be just about unhuntable without dogs and buckshot. Not to mention many areas buckshot and shotgun is the only legal weapon. See this is what I don't get. We have woods as thick as woods get. You can barely make it through some of them. I am talking aazzholes and elbows thick. We use carbines and/or handguns. Some use dogs on bear. We do not have anywhere where buckshot is the only option. When we did have a shotgun zone in the southern 1/3 of the state, you could still use a muzzleloader, handgun, or slug. I always went with muzzleloader or handgun. That said, I have seen more deer wounded with shotguns than all other firearms combined. But I lay that mostly on the hunters, rather than the guns. The shotgun is easily the favorite choice of the inexperienced around here.....
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Some of those southern swamps would be just about unhuntable without dogs and buckshot. Not to mention many areas buckshot and shotgun is the only legal weapon. See this is what I don't get. We have woods as thick as woods get. You can barely make it through some of them. I am talking aazzholes and elbows thick. We use carbines and/or handguns. Some use dogs on bear. We do not have anywhere where buckshot is the only option. When we did have a shotgun zone in the southern 1/3 of the state, you could still use a muzzleloader, handgun, or slug. I always went with muzzleloader or handgun. That said, I have seen more deer wounded with shotguns than all other firearms combined. But I lay that mostly on the hunters, rather than the guns. The shotgun is easily the favorite choice of the inexperienced around here..... Shotguns are just like any other weapon. Great when used inside their effective range which buckshot is about 50 yds . I'm sure it's hard to judge the difference between 50 yds and 70+ yds when a deer comes by hauling a##. As far as buckshot being the only thing legal it has more to do with the topography (flat) than anything else.
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When the shooting is close and furious, a shotgun RULES.
Buckshot rules the roost for 20 yard or less shots. My god does it tear stuff up at close range. Almost too much.
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It sucks compared to a rifle but thousands of deer are killed every year in the south on dog hunts with it Just as many are lost due to lack of blood trails and slow kills. Very few here use shotguns when running dogs. If I had to use a shotgun, I'd use slugs.
One shot, one kill........ It saves a lot of ammo!
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Campfire Kahuna
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It sucks compared to a rifle but thousands of deer are killed every year in the south on dog hunts with it Just as many are lost due to lack of blood trails and slow kills. Very few here use shotguns when running dogs. If I had to use a shotgun, I'd use slugs. Just because you are damn ignorant doesn't mean you are correct.
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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I hunt a lot in very close cover, Florida swamps and palmetto thickets. A .44 Mag lever rifle does that sort of thing perfectly. My thoughts exactly. However, I have never experienced anything like Rick stated. 70 people hunting deer in the same place plus a pack of dogs? I just don't know what to think of it. Honestly. Sounds.......crazy May be a good time though. I will say it is not how I would ever prefer to deer hunt. But may be cool once a year or something. We don't use dogs either. Some do for bear though. I like my quiet solitude in the woods when possible. But am not totally unsociable. It is just something I am completely unfamiliar with. Sure we do deer drives sometimes. But maybe 5-6 people and no dogs. My feeling is that some feel the buckshot to be better in a "spray and pray" type situation, and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Sounds like a lot of potentially wounded deer to me. But I am all for whatever is legal and personal choice. I just hope that hunters are responsible enough not to abuse the freedoms they have been afforded at the expense of the deer. Not sure if deer drives with dozens of hunters and dogs were considered by the OP, but I guess in certain situations, in which I have no experience, buckshot may have it's place. As stated by Randy and Rick. For myself, however, I doubt I will ever use it on a deer.......... I'm with you on not caring for deer drives. But the folks that say shotguns ain't cutting it, go use a pistol? Geez I don't think I want to hang around with a crowd whose brain accepts that eitehr....
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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I've used buckshot some. Killed 2 with it and shot a few more that ran off dripping a little blood that I never found. All were within 50 yards. I wouldn't use it.
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I am just saying that I sometimes use a handgun in close cover.( Not on a deer drive) Shots are deliberate and well aimed, not flung in a general direction. One bullet weighs 325gr.-400gr. and the other 270 grain usually. Shot in single action mode. All will shoot clean through deer and deer do not go far.
What is wrong with a large handgun in tight cover?
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I've used buckshot some. Killed 2 with it and shot a few more that ran off dripping a little blood that I never found. All were within 50 yards. I wouldn't use it. 50 yards is about 15 yards too far. Might have something to do with your problems.
America needs to understand that our troops are not 'disposable'. Each represents a family; Fathers, Mothers, Sons, Daughters, Cousins, Uncles, Aunts... Our Citizens are our most valuable treasure; we waste far too many.
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In general, I wouldn't use buckshot at any longer range than I would bird hunting with #6 or 7-1/2.
It's just 6 & 7 are for birds and buck shot is for.... bucks?
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I have never got to hunt deer with dogs and buckshot but it's the one of things I have always wanted to do.
I patterned a lot of buckshot just to see what it will and won't do. A lot of you guys have no idea what a good shotgun and buckshot will do.
You guys should watch Bubba rountree outdoors on YouTube. Those fellows are deer killers with buckshot.
Dink
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Campfire Savant
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I have never got to hunt deer with dogs and buckshot but it's the one of things I have always wanted to do.
I patterned a lot of buckshot just to see what it will and won't do. A lot of you guys have no idea what a good shotgun and buckshot will do.
You guys should watch Bubba rountree outdoors on YouTube. Those fellows are deer killers with buckshot.
Dink Bubba and his crew are slinging buckshot at deer 100 yards away. He came on my radar with his videos about patterning for coyotes. After watching that screwed up mess I watched some of his deer videos. I think he got his screen name honestly...
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
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Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
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Would 5, .440 dia. round balls qualify as buckshot?
If not, never mind. Please disregard.
Founder
Ancient Order of the 1895 Winchester
"Come, shall we go and kill us venison?
And yet it irks me the poor dappled fools,
Being native burghers of this desert city,
Should in their own confines with forked heads
Have their round haunches gored."
WS
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I have never got to hunt deer with dogs and buckshot but it's the one of things I have always wanted to do.
I patterned a lot of buckshot just to see what it will and won't do. A lot of you guys have no idea what a good shotgun and buckshot will do.
You guys should watch Bubba rountree outdoors on YouTube. Those fellows are deer killers with buckshot.
Dink Bubba and his crew are slinging buckshot at deer 100 yards away. He came on my radar with his videos about patterning for coyotes. After watching that screwed up mess I watched some of his deer videos. I think he got his screen name honestly... True. They do shoot at deer way to far. Look at the ones they shoot 40 yards and under. They seem to have a little knowledge of chokes and shot sizes so I'm not sure why they are throwing those 80 yard shots. Dink
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Because they're "Bubba's"?
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
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You fellows don't have a clue!! Rick, I'd like to see them in a good palmetto flat, a 5 yr cut over, a good pine thicket, etc. with dogs running a deer. Over a 5 year period of time my friend from Alabama and I tested all different types of buckshot through standard chokes that are available. The usual consensus is that 'open chokes' were required for shooting buckshot and that turned out to be horse schitt! The most effective thing we discovered after shooting many many patterns at various ranges out to 60 yards was a full-choked vent-ribbed barrel on a 26" Model 870 using 000! It delivered the best patterns out to 60 yards. I guess all those bucks I killed in Alabama died from fright! And anyone that has ever hunted in SE Alabama knows what the terrain is like! When the hurricanes come up through that area of pine timber it lays criss-crossed pine trees down that are nothing but a jungle of briars and 'wait a minute' thickets and rifles are about as much use as a fart in a whirlwind!! And I won't even tell you how far I've seen my buddy Ned kill running bucks with 000!! None went over 50 yards from where first hit either!!
Even birds know not to land downwind!
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What kind of buckshot? What kind of shotgun? What kind of choke? Did you pattern it?
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Winchester 3" Mag!
The rest is above!!
Even birds know not to land downwind!
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be..... I had a nice SxS shotgun chucking 000 and never failed to kill a deer , I want to see the carbine,big bore handgun whatever except maybe a mini gun get on point faster and kill what they pointed at . Here you go: ![[Linked Image]](http://i1346.photobucket.com/albums/p686/adm_anthrax/Ruger_zps30f5dfed.jpg)
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I'm finished with this post! It's quite apparent that some posters here are intellectually disarmed!!
Even birds know not to land downwind!
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Campfire Ranger
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rlott,
When those Ruger .44 magnums came out I bought two. I couldn't hit a fifty-five gallon drum from twenty-five yards with either.
"Only Christ is the fullness of God's revelation."
Everyday Hunter
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Why anyone would use buckshot, or a shotgun for deer is beyond me.
I can see it if forced by some dumba$$ law, but given a choice, not only no, fuuk no......... Evidently you never had to hunt deer in a thicket. Have you ever hunted deer with running dogs? Have hunted in the thickest $hit anyone would ever care to hunt in. A nice little lever action, carbine or big bore handgun are much handier than any shotgun will ever be..... I had a nice SxS shotgun chucking 000 and never failed to kill a deer , I want to see the carbine,big bore handgun whatever except maybe a mini gun get on point faster and kill what they pointed at . Here you go: By the time you acquire a sight picture with your scope or even using iron sights ,my deer is on the ground kicking its last . I filled a small cargo container with deer killed with all kinds of buckshot that we were forced to use as a kid. I have absolutely no qualms of having to use it ever again if regulations changed.
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I'm finished with this post! It's quite apparent that some posters here are intellectually disarmed!! +1000
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A few years ago I experimented with different loads in a few shotguns and fianally found a really great load of 000. It patterned all 10 pellets in about a pie plate at 35 yards. I thought wow, finally. Then I had a thought, why not just use a slug? Sometimes I think the advantage of buck shot is not to get a really small pattern. Too small and it becomes diminishing returns, obviously vis versa also. I get it, that in some areas you have to use buckshot no matter what.
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets.
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets. That's great if you can find a #1 load your gun likes. Most times I find the gun will pick the load. If you are determined to find a #1 load your gun likes, I'm sure you will. Just be prepared to spend time and money.
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I've been through the process searching for effective coyote shotgun, choke and load combinations. It's a process just like finding the best handload for your deer rifle and then getting it shooting to point of aim. Many guys have no real idea how finicky shotguns can be. I do use No. 1 Buck in my self defense Benelli Tactical. Wicked stuff...
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
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I've taken a few deer that would have been impossible to kill without a shotgun. Sometimes when hunting a piece of thick property that is holding deer the hunting pressure can make them go nocturnal. If we don't stir them up they stay bedded until after dark.
My brother and I will take turns doing man drives. The stander gets up in a high spot overlooking the exit we predict the deer will take. You can take a rifle too but you had better be holding the shotgun and be ready. The deer come out like lightning bolts and if you are holding anything other than a shotgun the odds are way against you.
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets. I prefer 00, all it takes is one pellet to kill a deer and it's not always in the vitals.
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets. I prefer 00, all it takes is one pellet to kill a deer and it's not always in the vitals. A 00 Buck pellet weighs 54 grains and clocks about 1,300 fps from the muzzle. Without dogs can you find a deer hit in a non-vital area by just one pellet in those super thickets mentioned in this thread? Honest question...
Last edited by MOGC; 11/21/16.
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
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Can you find a deer hit in a non-vital area? Define non-vital? You could shoot the tail off a deer with a .50 BMG and it would run off and you couldn't find it, with or without dogs. Honest answer... I've killed over 80 deer with buckshot, only 1 was hit with 1 buckshot and it was at 20 yds and it dropped him. Only 1 ever got away. Knowing what your gun will do and taking good shots is the answer, same as shooting a rifle. When you can only see 30-40 yds or less, buckshot will work. The advantage of buckshot in a thicket is this. You can shoot thru the brush and have more opportunities to make a hit. Some shot will hit limbs, but some will get thru. If a rifle bullet hits a limb, will it get thru? Dont know. Agreed they usually dont bleed as much, but I've only lost 1. Most have piled up right there.
Old Turd- Deplorable- Unrepentant Murderer- Domestic Violent Extremist
Just "Campfire Riffraff and Trash"
This will be my last post! Flave 1/3/21
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets. I prefer 00, all it takes is one pellet to kill a deer and it's not always in the vitals. A 00 Buck pellet weighs 54 grains and clocks about 1,300 fps from the muzzle. Without dogs can you find a deer hit in a non-vital area by just one pellet in those super thickets mentioned in this thread? Honest question... My first choice is a rifle, but I prefer a shotgun with 00 when I know the deer will be running by at warp speed. I've seen a lot of deer drop in their tracks that weren't hit in the vitals. Sometimes the pellet lands in the neck or head. I don't like to take marginal shots with a shotgun where the odds are the deer will run off a long ways even if hit. To answer your question: If the deer doesn't run too far, but ends up in the thick stuff, I'm gonna find it. I think it's more of knowing when to shoot and when not to shoot. If I can't aim at the head of a running deer 50 yards or closer, I don't take the shot.
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Now, that said, I would not hunt that 10 acres. If you have that, then keep it as a sanctuary for the deer. Not only will the deer on your properties use it to escape pressure and stay on your land, but so will deer from adjacent properties when the pressure goes up. I'd not go in it, at all. Instead, figure out where to hunt the edges of it and the travel corridors to and from on different winds and conditions and do that. Give the deer a place to hide where they feel safe, don't go in there, and the deer will stay. If it's really that thick, you MIGHT get lucky - once - and get a shot at something decent, but the greatest odds are that you'll just push things out and they won't come back in there because they don't see it as a safe place to hide.
Hunt a good edge and use a rifle. Yep...+3... We have a very thick bedding area within our acreage that is off-limits to hunting. We kill bucks on the edge of it every year, this year we got two--I got mine last night! I walk that area every year after the season and revel in the beds, rubs, scrapes, deer scat. Amazing. Leave it be!
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I took my first deer with buckshot, but that was the last one.
Decades later I patterned my modest collection of shotguns with most of the buckshot available from #4 to 000. Three shotguns were tested: one had a 20" cylinder bore choke, another a 24" cylinder bore choke, and the last a 28" barrel with IC, mod, and full choke tubes.
Some worked better than others. As someone mentioned the Federal premium plated stuff worked well, and as someone else said the cylinder bore chokes did not work well. The result of this testing is that I wouldn't used any of the combinations for shooting deer beyond 20 yards. The admittedly arbitrary, but I believe reasonable, criterion I used was the ability to keep half the pellets on an 8-1/2" x 11" sheet of paper. None of them would do this at 25 yards.
FWIW, that first deer I shot with a Winchester model 1400 with a 28" barrel with a full choke tube using Remington 2-3/4" 12 pellet unplated and unbuffered 00. I shot two shots at the deer 35 yards away. Of the 24 pellets out there only one hit the deer. The pellet went between two ribs, through the valves of the heart, and out between two ribs. I have no idea where the other 23 pellets went
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I used to hunt the Big Thicket in east Texas. I had a 870 Wingmaster choked full and it would not pattern any of the bigger buckshot worth cussing out. I found some 2 3/4 #4 buck that would almost all stay on a paper plate at 25 yards. I never got a shot at a deer until I painted that shiny gun flat black and brown but after that I took many deer with that shotgun at ranges all the way to 30 yards though most were closer than that. It had a 28 inch vent ribbed barrel that was handy for knocking down spider webs and moving thorn vines out of the way. I tried to aim for the neck and have to say it was very effective.
Last edited by Palidun; 12/02/16.
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When I was a kid in the late 70's early 80's we lived in Southern Michigan where you had to use shotguns to deer hunt.
My brother and I hunted a thick swamp behind our house. Between us two, we must have killed at least 20 deer with 12 gauge 00 buck shot. Some nice bucks too.
Keep it inside 30 yards, and it'll do the job just fine.
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How are pellets outside a deers vital area helpful? Seems to me that if my pattern were larger than 12" - 16" I'm wasting precious pellets. How many 000/00 pellets does it take to reliably kill deer cleanly? Just to be on the safe side, maybe 4 or 5? Then there is all that brush in the way and of course distance and the pattern opening up is a consideration. May have some bone to break. I'd rather have a center dense more concentrated pattern than a wide pattern to try to get as many pellets through cover and into the vitals as possible. Pellets in the gut or leg or whizzing through the brush completely missing the deer do no good. In fact, I think I'd work with Number 1 Buck for a close range load. Many more .30 caliber pellets would seem better to me than about half as many .32/.33 caliber pellets. I prefer 00, all it takes is one pellet to kill a deer and it's not always in the vitals. A 00 Buck pellet weighs 54 grains and clocks about 1,300 fps from the muzzle. Without dogs can you find a deer hit in a non-vital area by just one pellet in those super thickets mentioned in this thread? Honest question... Some folks are better at tracking than others.... but I do enjoy my dog very much lately.
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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At ranges within the capability of the shotgun (in terms of pattern), I'm sold on buckshot. If brush is involved it can't be beat.
But it is not magic and poorly hit deer still do what they do, which is go forever. A single .30 cal shot does nowhere near the damage a single rifle round does of similar caliber -- but you know this. In fact, a single round from a .223 damages much than a single shotgun pellet of .30 cal.
But that's not point. I used it a lot out east and would again.
Now if one is in a shotgun only area, I personally would use a specialty rifled slug, not buckshot, unless hunting a nasty thicket with no options.
I've killed quite a few whitetails with a double barreled 12 gauge quail gun stoked with buckshot.
I do not entertain hypotheticals. The world itself is vexing enough. -- Col. Stonehill
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- Clint Eastwood
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I have an 870 with a 3" chamber with a Paternmaster choke tube. This thing is deadly out to 50 yards. I have seldom hot anything with it past 30. I do not use it much any more as I am too old and busted up to tackle the thickets as I once did. A deer in the thickets is running like a bat out of Hades, dodging stumps and trees and zig-zaging like a snipe or a woodcock. Not only that you can only see bits and pieces of them once they get going. Hitting one with a rifle or a hand gun is not likely if it starts moving before you shoot, and most of them are moving in a hurry. Besides, like another poster said, buckshot appears to penetrate thick stuff where a bullet will not go through. I am partial to #1 buck for that reason when it is really thick.
Don't listen to anyone that says buckshot is not effective on deer. Like other posters have said, you have got to be willing to live within the limitations.
There was no greater freedom than when I would leave Holiday Park Fish Camp heading my airboat west toward the Big Cypress. Fuel for 4 days, a good machete, an ice chest. No phone, no radio. Just God and me and the Everglades.
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I mostly hunted from my bow stands and would shoot looking almost down on them. I aimed for the neck and almost all fell right there, I never lost one.
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Extremely effective. Out to 35 yards you don't need the extra horsepower of 3". I shoot the Remington 2 3/4" 000buck. Pick one and pattern it before you hunt. Also try different chokes. I use a skeet choke in my 20" Rem 870 barrel. I get 8-10"patterns at 40 yards despite the "looser" choke than improved.
My brother uses the same load with a modified choke and gets about the same pattern. So don't be afraid to go up or down as needed.
Have fun and good luck! Thanks, Tom
Last edited by Tom2506; 12/08/16.
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I just got a Primos Tight Wad Turkey choke and tested it with #1 and 00 Buckshot. The #1 Buck was some 20 year old Federal Magnum 2 3/4 20 pellet count stuff (no longer made), put 15 on a paper plate at 30 yards and the rest a bit high. The 00 Buck is the cheap 2 3/4 Express load, it put 6 on the plate and 3 just on the right edge of the plate. If I had centered the paper plates better I bet I would have gotten a few more hits with both types of Buckshot. Good enough for me.
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The bigger the buckshot, the more open the choke you need. OO should start with a Mod or Imp choke to test it...
I have killed an awful lot of deer and hogs for 45 years with it. Limit your shots to less than 50 yards and it will stone them if you center the pattern. If you don't, no firearm will help for a pulled shot. I would also advise you to go ahead and get COPPER PLATED buckshot. It will pattern much better than regular lead, esp at longer ranges. Good luck.
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Going to test Fiochi nickel plated #4 buck as soon as it arrives. I still hunt from my bow stands on public property in Texas. Your lucky to see 35 yards in there and once the season starts that is where the deer are.
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Been working on hand loading buckshot and I have 2 loads I'm settled on for now. I'm loading for a 3.5" Benelli SBE 2. This gun does great with Factory Rem 3.5" 00 (factory 00 actually measures .32, so 0), but costs about $2.50 a shell. This gun with this load, through an extended extra full choke (.685) shoots 13" patterns all day @ 40 yards. The tru-lock extra full measures the same as the factory benelli full choke. The factory shell clocks at right around 1100 FPS, and I have killed a bunch of deer with this load.
The first load, through the same gun and choke, is putting 14 000 (Hornady 000 is .35 and 63 grains each) into 12- 14" patterns @ 40 yards. I also shot this load @ 60 and it put them all into 22" with 6 of the 14 into 6". This load clocks @ 1175-1195 FPS.
The second load is 16 true 00 (hornady .33 cal, 54 grains). Through the same gun and choke it is also throwing 12-14" patterns @40. Also @ just under 1200 fps.
I am loading these loads for about $1.28 each. That is with me buying the buckshot. and putting it in new primed hulls. I plan to start casting, and the cost will go way down then, as the shot is costing just under a dollar per shell.
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Wow bet those loads kick! If I can't get the job done with 2 3/4 inch loads I just won't shoot. I also like the higher velocities of the shorter shells. Perfect to me would be a 20 pellet count #1 buck load using plated or extra hard buckshot.
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Now, that said, I would not hunt that 10 acres. If you have that, then keep it as a sanctuary for the deer. Not only will the deer on your properties use it to escape pressure and stay on your land, but so will deer from adjacent properties when the pressure goes up. I'd not go in it, at all. Instead, figure out where to hunt the edges of it and the travel corridors to and from on different winds and conditions and do that. Give the deer a place to hide where they feel safe, don't go in there, and the deer will stay. If it's really that thick, you MIGHT get lucky - once - and get a shot at something decent, but the greatest odds are that you'll just push things out and they won't come back in there because they don't see it as a safe place to hide.
Hunt a good edge and use a rifle. I agree with this. I've spent a lot of time hunting blacktails in thick brush where shots are about like what you describe. I've killed plenty with rifles and revolvers, and never felt like not using a shotgun cost me an opportunity. Okie John
If Montana had a standing army, a 270 Win with Federal Blue Box 130's would be the standard issue.
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It is hard to beat a shotgun for taking down running game at close range. Plus they seem built for hunting in bad weather and rough conditions.
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Wow bet those loads kick! If I can't get the job done with 2 3/4 inch loads I just won't shoot. I also like the higher velocities of the shorter shells. Perfect to me would be a 20 pellet count #1 buck load using plated or extra hard buckshot. Yes, they will beat you up a little bit. I don't even notice when I'm shooting deer. Patterning in the back yard is a different story. When patterning, it takes a lot of will not to pull the shot. I've tried a couple times to load lighter weight loads faster, but the pattern seemed to blow up when I got much over 1250 fps or so. A true #1 .30 cal pellet weighs 40 grains. 40x20 =800, 800 grains is 1.83 oz. My loads are right @ 2 oz, not a whole lot different. If you find your "perfect" load, you better be ready to rattle some fillings loose too. especially if you try to get more velocity.
Last edited by fldoghunter; 07/28/17.
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I found three 5 packs of now discontinued Federal 20 pellet magnum 2 3/4 #1 buck in my stash of unused old ammo. Yes no problem telling when they go off!
Last edited by rickt300; 07/29/17.
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Interesting read. I just came upon it. I've never hunted deer with buck. I did however crumple a lioness back in the 90's in Zim with 12ga 3inch #1 Winchester XX magnum. That was a long time ago. A so called "buddy" winged her and she came on. Broken front shoulder and not very fast. PH shot, I shot. PH was a nano second faster than me. I think his 458 Lott did it, but, the buck hit her full force in the chest.
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On my 5 acres at 100 feet I shot at a coyote broadside with 00 buck and he trotted off unharmed.
Animals I shot with #4 buck were not so lucky.
As said so many times above. You will have to pattern it, and know your range.
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. -Ernest Hemingway
The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything.-- Edward John Phelps
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I gotta question. Why is #1 Buck so overlooked? I'm noooo way a buck guy. Have used it very occasionally. Did a lioness many years ago and the odd coyote here and there. My thoughts is #1 at moderate range is golden. 00 is big but very spread out, meaning some holes in the pattern. Yes?no?
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I gotta question. Why is #1 Buck so overlooked? I'm noooo way a buck guy. Have used it very occasionally. Did a lioness many years ago and the odd coyote here and there. My thoughts is #1 at moderate range is golden. 00 is big but very spread out, meaning some holes in the pattern. Yes?no? I would guess the reason #1 is overlooked is that it isn't readily available. Being as buckshot isn't very popular, a wide selection is hard to find. Which in my opinion also makes it less popular. A lot of folks have had bad experiences with buck because they buy whatever they can find at the local walmart, throw it in an open choke gun and (because that's what they have read/heard) and either pattern it or just use it and see poor results. In no other use of a shot gun is patterning more important. Turkey loads even take a back seat in the "need to pattern" department to buck shot. So to answer your question, poor performance leads to poor sales, leads to poor selection. Then poor selection leads to poorer performance, leads to internet buck shot "experts" condemning it's use (not speaking about 24 Hour. This has been a very open minded discussion). If you can get a good pattern with #1, it would be a very good choice. I personally like larger buck shot and really like 00 and 000 if it patterns good and #1 would be the smallest I would personally use. In a tight patterning gun 00 won't have holes in the pattern. There are 18 00 in a factory 3.5" load. the gun I shoot will put them all into 13-14" at 40 yards, not much room for holes in that pattern. The same gun and load will shoot 20" 60 yard patterns, and I am very confident in it at that range. I have pattern pictures I could post, but don't know how with PB no longer working.
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Last month I took the couple of shotguns I keep for home defense out for their annual shooting. Still no surprises. With various 00 and #1 the guns will pattern 1/2 or more of their load onto an 8-1/2" x 11" piece of paper well at 15 yd. and usually at 20 yd. Beyond that one should be thinking of wounding, not killing. My guns and my ammo, but YMMV.
Brushbuster: "Is this thread about the dear heard or there Jeans?"
Plugger: "If you cant be safe at strip club in Detroit at 2am is anywhere safe?"
Deer are somewhere all the time
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I've only seen one deer taken by buckshot.
Southern boy dropped him at 40 yards.
Before the days of choketubes.
I guess if one tests and stays within limits..........it's certainly good enough (can be said about anything).
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Wonder how many people confuse buckshot sizing with reg shot (#4 or #1) ?
Had a yote hunter flub it.
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I have used 0 buckshot. There are 10 pellets in the shell. a 12 gauge 3 inch magnum. You have to pattern the shot. I have used an adjustable choke to pattern out to 100 yards. but use have to pattern your shotgun no matter what shot you are using to see what you can hit or maximum range. Be careful tightening the choke towards full. Too tight may blow your barrel with an adjusted choke.
Last edited by mtnsnake; 08/07/17.
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mtnsnake, I've still got some of the old Remington Express 12 gauge 2 3/4" 0 Buck we used to be issued. It is a 12 pellet load. I would think that a 3" load of that would have to be somewhere around 15 pellets.
"The number one problem with America is, a whole lot of people need shot, and nobody is shooting them."
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Thousands upon thousands of deer are killed across the south each year with Buckshot. At 35 yards it is wicked; however, you need to pattern several different shells to see which ones work best. My last shotgun would only pattern Remington buckshot for some reason but it patterned it exceptionally well. I took one large doe at 85 yards with Remington 3.5 inch 000 a couple years ago - penetration all the way to the far ribs.
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Fellows ,
I live in New Jersey for the last 46 years . I came from Pennsylvania , a big rifle state where we use to have close to a million licensed hunters and " buck Monday " school was closed !
When I moved here and found out buckshot only for deer it was an awakening !
Lucky for me I hooked up with guys that knew how to setup and use shotguns . After much trial and error I found that my model 12 was good to MAX of 40 yards with number 1 buck . We hunted from tree stands with an occasional silent drive by a couple of guys or even just one . Never lost a deer and at that time you could shoot 3" spikes . Now we can use slugs and my Savage 220 F clover leafs at 100 yards with Remington sabot slugs .
Buckshot is very effective if you know and any attention to your limits . AND find out what shoots in your particular shotgun .
Semper Fi
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On my 5 acres at 100 feet I shot at a coyote broadside with 00 buck and he trotted off unharmed.
This has NOTHING to do with effectiveness of buckshot - you just MISSED.
Last edited by Sasha_and_Abby; 08/09/17.
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Haven't used it much but carried it a lot for bear protection in camp esp. at night in Alaska. The type pellets make a huge difference with the high antimony Magnum type patterning better and the copper or nickle hard plated shot doing even better. The buffered loads were also an improvement but don't know if anything better is available now.
Buckshot has been used to dispatch many wounded leopards and if the PH's trust it with their life as the weapon of choice that's a pretty good endorsement. They used European or Brittish loads that were about the equivalent of size 0 or # 1. Or if American loads then 00 as most of the improvements are directed at this size.
"When you disarm the people, you commence to offend them and show that you distrust them either through cowardice or lack of confidence, and both of these opinions generate hatred." Niccolo Machiavelli
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On the several leopards that I've done always a shottygun backup, buck for sure. 1st backup was 00 in an old Sauer double barrel. Now Rem 870 3 inch #1 Win XX. I have never had to blast one, but I did do a lioness point blank.
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Thousands upon thousands of deer are killed across the south each year with Buckshot. At 35 yards it is wicked; however, you need to pattern several different shells to see which ones work best. My last shotgun would only pattern Remington buckshot for some reason but it patterned it exceptionally well. I took one large doe at 85 yards with Remington 3.5 inch 000 a couple years ago - penetration all the way to the far ribs. Did you mean 00? Nobody that I'm aware of makes a 3.5" 000 load. If you meant 00, that load shoots so good because it is actually in a wad. That Rem 3.5" 00 load is the only traditional buckshot load that is in a wad. It shoots good in every 3.5" gun I have tried it in.
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FLdoghunter,
Yes, I did mean 00 buck. It has 18 pellets, not the 15 found in a 3 inch shell. Shell produces about 50 pounds of free recoil....it's a lot to handle. The Winchester 3.5 inch super high velocity actually caused my shotgun to jump completely out of my hands a couple of times; though it was real fast and you could hear the difference of the impact on the pattern board, it didn't pattern well at all in my Remington shotgun. The Remington buckshot patterned very tight.....like 18 inches in diameter at 40 yards, but all other brands sucked in my gun. You really have to do a lot of testing to have the best performing shotgun when it comes to buckshot.
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FLdoghunter,
Yes, I did mean 00 buck. It has 18 pellets, not the 15 found in a 3 inch shell. Shell produces about 50 pounds of free recoil....it's a lot to handle. The Winchester 3.5 inch super high velocity actually caused my shotgun to jump completely out of my hands a couple of times; though it was real fast and you could hear the difference of the impact on the pattern board, it didn't pattern well at all in my Remington shotgun. The Remington buckshot patterned very tight.....like 18 inches in diameter at 40 yards, but all other brands sucked in my gun. You really have to do a lot of testing to have the best performing shotgun when it comes to buckshot. I had pretty much the same results with my Benelli. Winchester 18 pellet load shot horrible. The black 15 pellet load didn't do too bad, around a 20" pattern at 40 that was very even. Then the Remington does great. Not only will it put all the pellets in 13", but about 12 of those are in a very tight 8" core. I used to load green shell, black shell green shell black shell, trying to cover all my bases. I killed one deer with the gun loaded like this. The second shot sounded and felt so much different than the first shot, that it messed me up. I hesitated for a few seconds thinking I had blown my gun up or something. I quit loading it that way after that and just figured I better remember to aim, especially on close shots. I still load a 3" black shell as the last shot. I modified my SBE2 to be able to float a shell, then it will hold 2 3.5s in the tube and one 3, for a total of 5. It won't hold 3 3.5s in the tube.
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That is what I did with my Versa Max - floated a shell. I could hunt with four 3.5 inch shells or five 3 inch shells. The Black Winchester Super High Velocity Buckshot is the hardest recoiling shell I have ever shot. It's not even close to the other shells from Federal or Remington. I am actually glad it did not pattern well in my gun!!
Do you dog hunt in Florida? Most folks that have never done it have no idea how much fun it can be. I grew up dog hunting in SC and still do it a few times each year....nothing like the sound of a pack hot on a trail and rip roaring through the swamp on a crisp November morning.
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Yes sir. I hunt public land in central Fl. I'm feeding 8 hounds right now, and love it more than anything. Though my job doesn't pay great, it usually allows me to take 6 or 7 weeks off during the season. I spend them wearing out a Toyota and running hounds. You're right, there's nothing like it!
Most of Fl is bucks only. On this hard hunted WMA, we don't get many oportunities. I learned a long time ago to make the most of them. It blows my mind to see folks blow their ony chance at a buck because they don't know how there gun performs.
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Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,987
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,987 |
To All,
ImVho, after nearly 3 decades of Army service & many hunting days "on post", where ONLY buckshot is allowed for deer (and feral hog) hunting, I can assure you that 00, 0 & #1 Buck will work fine on WT-sized game out to 50M, IF you have found a brand that works well in YOUR shotgun.
(My old pump-gun works OK with several brands BUT Remington Express #1 Buck works BEST.)
yours, satx
"VICTORY OR DEATH"
William Barrett Travis, Lt.Col., comdt.
Fortress of The Alamo, Bejar
F'by 24, 1836
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Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 10,775
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 10,775 |
Friend of mine is just wrapping up a 35 year career as a senior fish and wildlife technician with the DEC. During that time one of his primary duties was dealing with nuisance wildlife. He has also acted as "agent" for landowners with permits to cull large numbers of deer where they are doing agricultural damage, orchards, whatever. In the course of his career he's shot a whole bunch more deer under a whole lot more conditions and restrictions than most of us face, in a whole lot more ways. He has told me that, within the effective range of a particular gun and load (usually about 30 - 35 yards) absolutely nothing bang-flops deer like buckshot.
Mathew 22: 37-39
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Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 8,069
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 8,069 |
When I was a kid I grew up in a shotgun only county and stacked deer up with my Marlin 12 gauge and 00 Buck. It wasn't 'til I got older, and wiser, that I learned how under-gunned I was .
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Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,987
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,987 |
skeen,
CHUCKLE.
yours, satx
"VICTORY OR DEATH"
William Barrett Travis, Lt.Col., comdt.
Fortress of The Alamo, Bejar
F'by 24, 1836
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Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 8,109
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 8,109 |
Buckshot is not legal for deer here, but it is in my home defense shotgun. (Alternating buckshot, and deer slugs.) It will do just fine.
An unemployed Jester, is nobody's Fool.
the only real difference between a good tracker and a bad tracker, is observation. all the same data is present for both. The rest, is understanding what you're seeing.
~Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla~
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 207
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 207 |
I haven't read the whole post and I am no expert for sure but I've killed a few deer with buckshot and my family has taken a lot with it. Louisiana has never been a buckshot only place but it was a preferred choice when most deer hunting was done with the assistance of hounds that were bred just for that purpose. Don't worry about the "poor little deer." Deer were never run down and killed by the dogs not was it a pot shoot where every deer that the dogs ran was shot. There were a lot more times that the deer were not bucks and were illegal to kill. Many is the time when a buck was seen and never presented a shot. The dogs were used primarily because of the briar thickets and swamps were there was zero chance to still hunt. Buckshot was the right tool for those circumstances and it got the job done. Now I will get off of my soapbox.
Buckshot is a funny animal so to speak. You could have two identical shotguns that patterned buckshot completely different. 00 was/is what most people think of when buckshot is mention but it is not always the best choice. For example, my brother's 870 would not pattern 00 at all but No.1 was deadly with tight patterns out to fifty yards. I found that my old 12ga. would pattern well (repeatedly) with 3" magnum 00 but only if it was the Winchester unplated, buffered kind. Inside 30-35 yards a shotgun that patterned well would drop a deer insight of the hunter if he had done his part. In my my experience out to 50yards a deer wasn't going far IF you had done your part to find the right load and shot true. By that distance buckshot per pellet energy is getting low and is losing it fast. Sure, someone would make a freak shot and kill deer at 75 yards, or if they lived right, further. Before you call me a liarremember that we were using dogs who could follow them up. I've read all my life about how useless buckshot is past 25-30 yards at most but I've got generations of hunters that say that isn't so. One writer in a "tactical" article wrote that, "buckshot will not go through a leather jacket at 70 yards." I realize that is a looong way for buckshot but no one could get him to put on the jacket and let someone take a shot.......
"I know you believe that you understand what you think that I said...
But I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
( A quote of my Father)
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