Choke tube

[Disabled Combat Vet]

I have a Remington 870 12 GA. Express, I'm going Turkey hunting for the first time. I bought a Full Rem Choke. Is that good enough or should I get a Extra Full Choke. I'm not sure how much Turkey hunting I will be doing after this hunt.




Thank You

 

[Slugz]

Many different opinions on this. The full that came with it is fine in my opinion. If you are gonna put a dot sight or higher end sight on it I would get a turkey choke. My Remington 1187 with a turkey choke gets me roughly a 9 inch diameter of pellets at 50 yards. Very accurate and is great at hitting them in a raised up head at longer ranges. I hunt them in the mountains so I look for every little gain I can get. If I'm on the plains only I'd probably only use my full choke. Hope that helps.

 

[Disabled Combat Vet]

Hey, I tried sending you a PM but your box is full lol

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Full choke with lead shot should do fine.

 

[Slugz]

In box cleaned.

 

[Bonecollector]

You'll be fine, but it is fun to buy and tinker. I'm killing them with a bow, so you can't go wrong with either.

 

[00BUCK]

I've been hunting Turkeys for over twenty years now. They are very tough birds and seem to find holes in patterns. That being said your combo will work though not ideal. You will need to be close.

The main problem is that if the birds are grouped up or close together your set up could drop multiple birds.

Be patient and and wait for the right opportunity.

 

[Fink]

Keep it inside 40 yards and you'll be fine. My wife shoots turkeys with a modified and I pretty much never shoot more than a full. I shot two last year with a Carlsons midrange waterfowl choke..
I'd buy some of the higher density bismuth or TSS shotshells before I bought a new choke. High density loads in 6 or 7 shot will easily kill a bird at 40, with a full choke.

 

[mallardsx2]

I enjoy the "Wiggle room" of a full choke for turkeys. Using 3.5" HV #5 Winchesters I have had very good luck.

I do have a couple XXX-full COMP-N-CHOKES as well. They are nice. But admittedly, years ago I missed a bird at 25 yards with that tight choke....then the gun jammed. wosh wosh wosh....never to be seen again. lol All I can figure is he moved his head down right as I shot....I'll never know. Would I have been better with a full? Probably. It would have been even better if my gun had not jammed and I could have easily killed the bird with the second shot as it took flight....

Pattern the gun to see what it really looks like with he full and like Fink said keep it within 40 yards and you should be good.

The TSS #7's would be interesting to see how they preformed with a modified choke. It may be the cats pajamas.

 

[Fink]

The TSS #7's would be interesting to see how they preformed with a modified choke. It may be the cats pajamas.

I think I'm gonna shoot Apex TSS #9 this spring. The 9's hit with the same energy as 5 lead, I'm thinking that will be a nasty pattern clear out to 50 yards. I've never shot a bird further than 30 yards, so it's probably overkill.... But, I like my turkeys to not even flop.

 

[chiefgobbler]

In my experience hunting and killing turkeys for almost 30 years I would use an extra-full choke. If you get a chance take a look at the NWTF still target championship results from the last few years. They list the choke and shell combinations of the winning contestants. No full chokes there. I also worked with the California State Chapter of the NWTF during still target competitions at 40 yards. Folks brought all kinds of guns and chokes. The best patterns always came from extra-full chokes. I have also found that higher velocity 1300 fps or more trumps heavy 2 oz. loads that travel slower every time for clean kills. I will be trying the new TSS shells in 7 and 9 shot this year. I have friends that use them and swear by them.

 

[THelms]

Check out the Review we did for Wingmen on TSS
https://www.wingmen.us/single-post/2018/09/24/The-New-Heavyweight-TSS-From-Federal

 

[THelms]

I think I'm gonna shoot Apex TSS #9 this spring. The 9's hit with the same energy as 5 lead, I'm thinking that will be a nasty pattern clear out to 50 yards. I've never shot a bird further than 30 yards, so it's probably overkill.... But, I like my turkeys to not even flop.

https://www.wingmen.us/single-post/2018/09/24/The-New-Heavyweight-TSS-From-Federal

 

[THelms]

My dos pesos...
0-40 yards... full choke is fine.
0-60 yards and the better all around choice is a choke with around a .665 constriction (extra full), lots of companies make these; my favorite is Patternmaster and Carlson's... I ran a .650 Indian Creek for several years and it was wicked but unforgiving.

If I'm killing birds up close (inside of 20 yards) I like Modified or even IC, especially when reaping as those super tight patterns can be tough to hit a bird in the head with inside of 20 yards.

Any of the TSS loads are incredible and well worth the money for certain, our favorite being the Federal Premium loads.

 

[brianboh]

IMO you should not shoot anything less than a XXX choke. I have hunted turkeys all over N. America and Mexico. I have seen more people miss with chokes that are not XXX full. Can you kill one with a full yes but it is not ideal. Proper choke tubes and ammo are a must. Most of the people that I have guided miss with cheap ammo and the improper choke tube. Someone referenced using a waterfowl choke. If they were using a full that is equivalent to a extra full with steel shot. Plus typically people think a gobbler is 30 yards and he ends up being 45 yards. Now do take into consideration that I learned hunting easterns and osceolas and not the retarded merriams and Rios. Easterns and osceolas are less forgiving while hunting vs the latter. You can buy a Carlson long beard choke for like 30 bucks and a box of 10 long beard rounds for 20. You can kill gobblers from 5 yards to 70 yards. When shooting turkeys I feel like you need to have an adjustable sight. At minimum a rifle type iron sight to adjust windage and elevation. On the high end I would go with a red dot. However, trust me on this next statement as I have shot a lot of different ones and learned the hardway. DO NOT BUY A CHEAP RED DOT. A lot of them are built with springs that adjust the elevation and windage. These sights are very easy to screw up while in the field and you will not know it until you miss a bird. All of the Hype with TSS is not needed. Yes they are awesome loads just like Hevi-13. However, they are ridiculous expensive. I have killed gobblers with all types of loads (Hevi-13, Hevi Magnum blends, TSS, Nitro loads, Winchester extended range, Winchester XX, Longbeards etc....). I have killed gobblers at 5 steps and 75 yards with a shot gun. However, there is no reason to not shoot longbeards. They are just as effective and you can shoot a gobbler that hangs up at 70 yards. Some good choke tubes are the Indian Creek (won the NWTF contest for ALOT of years), Carlson Longbeard, comp-n-choke and the Kicks choke (made by Comp-n-choke). To each is there own on their choices. I just hate seeing someone miss a gobbler or mush less wounding one. I promise if you take this advice you will have more gobblers in the tailgate.

 

[Fink]

IMO you should not shoot anything less than a XXX choke. I have hunted turkeys all over N. America and Mexico. I have seen more people miss with chokes that are not XXX full. Can you kill one with a full yes but it is not ideal. Proper choke tubes and ammo are a must.

I guess if you're trying to shoot gobblers at 75 yards, then yeah, don't go less xxx full. But, I have to ask, do they even make anything more than xxx full?
I shot two more birds this year with a modified choke (12 yards and 34 yards), and one with an extra full Indian Creek tube (12 yards). The two shot with modifieds were just as dead as the extra full.
I've got to disagree with you on the missing situation. I've never missed with a modified or a full, and have missed quite a few with an extra full. Most of the misses from people hunting with me have been with extra full tubes. Slinging a baseball sized pattern at 15 yards is a recipe for a miss. Slinging shots at 75 yards with any tube is a recipe to wound a bird.
Enjoy the show, let him strut to inside 40 yards, or better yet, inside 25, its so much more fun. Shoot him with a full choke, he's dead. If he hangs up at 75, let him go.

 

[brianboh]

I guess if you're trying to shoot gobblers at 75 yards, then yeah, don't go less xxx full. But, I have to ask, do they even make anything more than xxx full?
I shot two more birds this year with a modified choke (12 yards and 34 yards), and one with an extra full Indian Creek tube (12 yards). The two shot with modifieds were just as dead as the extra full.
I've got to disagree with you on the missing situation. I've never missed with a modified or a full, and have missed quite a few with an extra full. Most of the misses from people hunting with me have been with extra full tubes. Slinging a baseball sized pattern at 15 yards is a recipe for a miss. Slinging shots at 75 yards with any tube is a recipe to wound a bird.
Enjoy the show, let him strut to inside 40 yards, or better yet, inside 25, its so much more fun. Shoot him with a full choke, he's dead. If he hangs up at 75, let him go.

Indian creek tubes would be considered a XXX choke (.660-.770) if you are shooting their Turkey Choke (Black Diamond). I am not aware of anything smaller than a XXX choke. At 12 yards yes a modified will ford one up. In regards to missing with a tight choke that is where I think it is imperative that you have a sight on your gun that is adjustable with two points of reference (like a true glow rifle sight) or a red dot sight. I think more people miss because they do not know how to aim down a shotgun barrel with just a single bead. We don't shoot a rifle with a single point of reference on a barrel for a reason. Shooting a gobbler at 35 yards with a modified choke is going to tick my wife off when she bites down on a piece of lead or worse a piece of tungsten. I do agree with letting him strut with in 40 yards and enjoying the show.

 

[mallardsx2]

I guess if you're trying to shoot gobblers at 75 yards, then yeah, don't go less xxx full. But, I have to ask, do they even make anything more than xxx full?
I shot two more birds this year with a modified choke (12 yards and 34 yards), and one with an extra full Indian Creek tube (12 yards). The two shot with modifieds were just as dead as the extra full.
I've got to disagree with you on the missing situation. I've never missed with a modified or a full, and have missed quite a few with an extra full. Most of the misses from people hunting with me have been with extra full tubes. Slinging a baseball sized pattern at 15 yards is a recipe for a miss. Slinging shots at 75 yards with any tube is a recipe to wound a bird.
Enjoy the show, let him strut to inside 40 yards, or better yet, inside 25, its so much more fun. Shoot him with a full choke, he's dead. If he hangs up at 75, let him go.

How did the TSS #9's preform for you this spring? Seems like your shots were close so it was probably hard to judge. Birds died lol

 

[Fink]

How did the TSS #9's preform for you this spring? Seems like your shots were close so it was probably hard to judge. Birds died lol

I think I had unrealistic expectations of it based upon the price.. Kinda wanted to see it flaming through the air, chop their heads off, or something.. It hammers birds hard, and kills them stone dead. It throws a really nice pattern, and I really didnt feel handicapped at all on my last bird, shooting him with a 2 3/4 Federal TSS. I'll shoot the shells I have left next year, and will continue to buy TSS for my 2 3/4 A5. But, for my 3 inch guns, I'll just continue to shoot through the 15 boxes of Federal copper plated 5's that I have.
If I didnt have a bazillion turkey bullets lying around waiting to be used, I'd probably shoot TSS out of all my turkey guns, because I do think it's the real deal, and when you see the pattern a load of 9's throws at 30 yards... It's impressive

 

[Hilltop]

$7 every time you pull the trigger??? Wow that seems a little ridiculous but I'm spoiled here in Nebraska with relatively easy turkeys. I'll stick to my WalMart specials.