I am looking at turkey chokes for a 20 ga auto. I see Carlson offers a non ported choke with three different constructions (.555 , .565 , .580 ).
I typically use Winchester Long Beard turkey loads and Carlson has a specific ported choke tube for this ammunition choked at .568
My long time turkey hunting buddy is adamant that the tighter the choke constriction, the tighter the pattern.
I would appreciate some comments from personal experience with this ?
Thanks.

Hopefully someone with a greater range of experience will chime in, but for now I have a Trulock ported .565 for my 20ga. When I patterned the Winchester #5 loads at 40 the results were not great. The TSS 5/6/7 was awesome though.

I’ve done all sorts of patterning with all sorts of shells, guns and chokes thru the years. My experience has taught me that every gun is different and you just have to shoot yours to find a combination that works to your liking

First, I believe in choke tubes. Choke tubes are normally labeled, AND, as hunters, we have a tendency to just "go with" whatever the tube is labeled.
It is imperative that each tube be tested for pattern.
I have a "Mod" tube that shoots a tighter pattern that the "Full" tube that goes with the gun.
Had me scratching my head until I tested the 2 tubes thoroughly.

I have a Carlsons "TSS choke" for my 20 gauge Browning BPS. That gun uses an Invector Plus system. The TSS tube is .565 constriction. I've patterned it at 40 yards. It patterns #9 and #7 TSS shot very well. But Winchester 3" # Double XX is too open for comfort at 40 yards. It would probably be pretty good at 30 yards. You'll have to pattern your gun to see how well it does.


40 yards, TSS#9


40 yards, TSS#7


40 yards, Double XX#5 (12" circle)

Before I pattern the 20 ga, I need to decide on the turkey choke and which constriction. I understand patterning different brands, etc.
I currently prefer Winchester LongBeard turkey loads in my Browning 12 ga (5's & 6's).
Haven't tried the 20 ga yet......checking the different chokes out there.
Anyone have any experience with the Carlson LongBeard turkey choke ?

I have a Carlson's Long Beard choke in my Winchester SX4 12 gauge. That gun uses the Browning Invector Plus system. It's a .665 choke constriction. I've tested it at 40 yards using Winchester Long Beard 3.5" #5. Here's what it will do (though I shot a wee bit high).



I have a Carlson's Turkey Choke, .665 constriction, in my Browning A5. The A5 uses the Browning Ivector DS choke tube system. With Long Bear 3.5" #5, this is that it will do.



Not much to choose from between the two guns.

My 20 did not care for longbeards put through a .555. I just tried it because I still had the ammo and the choke but I was going to tss shot. When I shot longbeards only I used the carlsons choke and it didn’t shoot a bad pattern. My buddy and I doubled one morning with it after his gun had actually jammed and I handed him mine while the other bird pecked at his dying compadre. Shot was probably a touch over 40yds and there wasn’t an issue with him dying with his friend. Gun is a browning silver with a 26” barrel.

TraderVic, what's your shotgun? I have some different 20ga Rem-Choke turkey choke tubes that I could mail out to you for you to try. Please just return them! Ha! I know firsthand how expensive all this "testing" can be! Lol! Send me a PM if interested.

I appreciate the offer DeanA, however, my 20 ga is a Benelli M2. Thanks for your generous offer

I have three shotguns with the Carlson Longbeard choke. In my 12 gauge 11-87 it gives a great pattern with the Winchester Longbeard 3 inch #5 shot, shooting as good a pattern as any gun I've ever had. The other 2 shotguns are 20 gauges, an 11-87 and a Mossberg SA-20, both shooting 3 inch Longbeard #5 shells. The Mossberg patterned better than the 11-87 did, and since the 11-87 is the one my granddaughter uses, I am using some Federal Turkey Thug shells I had on hand because they pattern just as good as the Winchesters, and she won't be shooting over 30 yards anyway.

To sum it up, I'm happy with the 12 gauge choke, just so-so with the 20.

Tighter is not always better when it comes to chokes, but sometimes it is. You have to find what your gun likes with the shell you plan to use. I have seen first hand that you can over choke your gun and blow the pattern. I have also seen where a shell with #6 shot does not pattern well, but the same shell/choke/gun patterns great with #5 shot.

I learned a long time ago that when you find what your gun likes, buy as much of that ammo (same lot number) as you can. Shell companies have been known to change components in their loading process from one lot to another. I had a gun that shot Hevi #6 shot great, the next lot I bought did not shoot worth a crap. They had changed their wads between the two lots.
I started loading my own shells shortly after that so I could control what I was getting. I hate patterning and trying to find a combo that gives me what I want. When I find what I want, I don't want to have to change anything, so I have the gun/shell figured out and I control my shells so I have not changed my combo in years.

With the prices for tubes and ammuntition being what they are, it’s kind of a chicken and egg question as to how to go about getting the best you can. I did some patterning yesterday with the Calson’s .555 TSS choke I bought for my 20ga Browning Gold Hunter. The best of what I had on hand turned out to be Apex 3” 8.5s, with an amazing pattern at 40 yards. Hevi TSS 9s were good too, but the center was off to one side a bit. No sights on that gun, so 8.5s it is. Need to start saving up for another box……

Also got a good result with some 3” standard Hevi Shot 6s; nice even patterns that won’t burgerize a turkey if a body shot is needed for follow-up or a flushed bird.

Apex 8.5

Can’t comment on the long beard, but in my 20s I run 555-562 with my hand loaded tss. I do prefer a hot core.

Just my opinion but it’s well worth the money for the tss as this is the cheapest part of my hunt

TSS, especially larger pellets will likely pattern better witha slightly more open choke. if you are shooting Longbear 6's try a .555 constriction. #5s id start with the .555 and try a .565 and .568