http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/turkey_loads.htm
"TURKEY LOADS”
WHAT DOES IT TAKE AND WHICH ONES WORK
By Craig Endicott
(Updated April 2008)
What does it take to be an effective turkey load and which loads on the market are up to the task? Well, I’ll examine these questions and see if I can provide some information and recommendations on which turkey loads really do work the best.
Before I go any further, let’s all agree on a couple of things. One, turkeys are big tough birds and, as such, you’ll need to use effective loads to eliminate or at least minimize crippling. Also, when it comes to shooting turkeys, I’m talking about head-and-neck shots only, no body shots allowed. That means your pattern should be centered on the mid-neck area to ensure good head and neck coverage. With most shotguns, this entails a sight picture that is essentially a six-o-clock hold on the wattles or lower-neck area which allows for the tendency most shotguns have to shoot a bit high.
WHAT DOES IT TAKE?
The following performance parameters were established by combining information from several sources including: first, a report of findings from an empirical research test run by Tom Roster titled “The Relative Effectiveness and Lethal Limitations of Three Lead and Three Steel Pellet Sizes for Taking Turkeys” (copyright 1990 by Tom Roster) which he ran under contract with Winchester Division/Olin Corporation.. Roster eventually used this information to create a horizontal line, concerning turkey lethality, in the current version of Cooperative North American Shotgun Education Program’s (CONSEP’s) Nontoxic Shot Lethality Table (copyright 2006 by Tom Roster). Second, ammunition manufacturer’s information and claims to tungsten-composite shot properties and performance. And, third, my anecdotal observations of in-the-field turkey load performance.
There are two basic performance parameters I’ll be concentrating on to evaluate the loads on their effectiveness. One is sufficient pattern density -- enough pellets in the pattern, at a given range, to ensure multiple hits on the target’s vital areas. For turkeys, the load will have to place a minimum of 210-230 pellets in a 30-inch diameter pattern with three to four skull and/or cervical vertebrae (S/CV) hits on a turkey head-and-neck target to be deemed effective. The other is ample pellet energy -- enough per-pellet energy to reliably penetrate the target’s vital areas at a given range. To ensure the pellets retain ample per-pellet turkey-S/CV-penetrating energy the pellets must not be used beyond their maximum effective ranges. My analysis of the maximum effective ranges for pellets comprised of different metal types is:
35 yards -- No. 6 lead shot;
45 yards -- No. 6 tungsten-composite shot (min. 12 g/cc), No. 5 lead shot or No. 4 steel shot;
55 yards -- No. 5 tungsten-composite shot (min. 12 g/cc), No. 4 lead shot or No. 3 steel shot.
Some may say that these maximum effective ranges are too stringent, but as previously mentioned, turkeys are big tough birds so let’s error on the safe side when it comes to pellet energy. Actually, you should reduce each of these maximum effective ranges by five yards to allow for in-the-field range estimation errors.
In addition, I’ll also calculate true pattern percentages for the load and choke combinations tested. While pattern percentages aren’t as important as the two previously mentioned performance parameters, they are indicators of load and choke efficiency so relatively high pattern percentages (good efficiency) will be something I’ll be looking for in our loads.
Ultimately, the goal will be to find loads that can exceed the established performance parameters by providing sufficient pattern density on the target, ample pellet energy for the distance, and show good efficiency by registering relatively high pattern percentages.
WHAT LOADS AND CHOKES DID I TRY?
Obviously, there were lots of different turkey loads and chokes on the market that I could have tested. However, I tried to keep this exercise simple (if you can call shooting and counting well over 150 patterns simple) by concentrating on the most popular 12-gauge turkey lead, steel and tungsten-composite loads available to hunters. And, since this wasn’t going to be a choke tube test, I used Remington 870s with factory extended turkey chokes (a shotgun and choke system commonly available to hunters) recommended for the loads. In addition, the barrels and choke tubes were measured with a bore gauge to determine their actual interior diameters (I.D.) and true choke constrictions.
All 12-gauge 3-inch loads were shot through a Remington 870 Special Purpose shotgun with a 26-inch barrel (I.D. / .728 inch). The lead loads were shot through a Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.063-inch constriction) and the steel shot and tungsten-composite shot loads (Hevi-Shot, Hi-Density Shot and Heavyweight Shot) were shot through a Remington Hevi-Shot Super Full Extended Choke (.053-inch constriction).
All 12-gauge 3 ½-inch loads were shot through a Remington 870 Express Super Magnum Turkey shotgun with a 23-inch barrel (I.D. / .727 inch). The lead loads were shot through the same Remington Turkey Super Full Extended Choke (.062-inch constriction) and the steel shot and tungsten-composite shot loads (Hevi-Shot, Hi-Density Shot and Heavyweight Shot) were shot through the same Remington Hevi-Shot Super Full Extended Choke (.052-inch constriction).
All loads tested were purchased from local sporting goods or hunting supply stores. Additionally, the in-shell pellet count averages were the result of cutting open and counting the pellets from five shells out of the same box/lot as the pattern loads. These in-shell pellet counts allowed for true pattern percentage calculations.
Looking down the list of in-shell pellet counts you’ll notice there were some discrepancies between manufacturers on how many pellets are contained in supposedly identical loads. In the shotgun world, in-shell pellet counts commonly vary by a few pellets (10-20) from one shell to another, so small discrepancies between manufactures isn’t anything you should be overly concerned about. After all, what matters is how many pellets you end up with in the down-range pattern not how many pellets the load starts out with!
HOW DID I DO THE PATTERNING?
The pattern testing was accomplished by using pattern sheets of 48-inch x 48-inch paper and turkey head-and-neck targets. A turkey head-and-neck target was placed in the center of each pattern sheet prior to the patterning shot. This additional turkey head-and-neck target, not normally used while patterning shotguns, provided the S/CV hit data for each pattern. However, the pattern count data was derived from drawing a 30-inch diameter circle around the densest portion of the pattern (after the shot) and then counting pellet strikes on or in the circle.
These pattern sheets were attached to a frame and the distances, from muzzle to pattern, were measured with a tape out to 40 and 50 yards. From a sitting position, with my elbows propped up on my knees, I fired five pattern shots (one each at each pattern sheet) with each load at the appropriate distance
