What ammo to buy?

D. Moreau

D. Moreau

Active member
I am still very new to duck hunting (age 14) and i dont hav much experience with different types of ammo. Last year, i took 6 shots with Black Cloud #2's during the 8 times my cousin took me out, and this year I wacked 3 teal and a mallard with an early christmas present - Winchester blind side #2's, I am going to hav to get some more ammo soon, any suggestions??? I am not going to get the 30$ for 10 shells deal, im looking for ammo that is averagely priced that will do the job without killing the little amount of money i hav - so, what ammo do you reccomend for:

teal
Mallard/blacks
Geese

Thanks for the input!!! I know black cloud and Winchester blind side works well, but any other thoughts? (must be 3" shells, goes through an 870 express magnum)
 
check wal-mart--The winchester ammo there is not steep, and we have had pretty good fortune with it--Am going to try shooting some of the kent this weekend.
 
Rogers sporting goods Liberty,Mo. What ever they have on sale in 3" for $99.99 free shipping. That's $10 a box. I've used Kent,Fiocchi,Federal,Winchester.Any thing I've got from them has worked great. 816-883-4545
 
Keep your game close, (read- shots close), I have been whacken-em with cheap, 'ole Wal Mart Winchester cheap steel. Like $10 a box. (I don't always buy it there...). Kent Fast Steel is great too.

I remember a few years ago, I bought only the best stuff. The $30 box of ten stuff. Couldn't hit crap with it. Then one day my buddy said to me- "it's all
psychological. Every time you shoulder the gun, your mind is sayin- There goes $3.00, BOOM, there goes $3.00".
I think he was right.,
I switched to the cheap stuff. No pressure. Now I find myself shooting a whloe lot better.

The absolute trick is to pick and keep your shots close. Maybe 40 yards max.

Good luck and let us know how you do!

Jon
 
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Winchester X-Pert Hi-Velocity. Buy yourself some 2 3/4". It won't be bad on your wallet at all and will kill 'em just as dead.
 
Does the MO dealer ship all the way to CT?

David,
Roger's will ship those shells to you with free freight included. You will also be surprised at how quickly they ship. I have used Winchester X-perts for years and like Bob Furia said, "They kill ducks dead!" Good luck. If you have to have a 3" shell, this one will work well just like the Federal Speed Shok 3" shell that you can get for $99.99 a case delivered. It has the same speed (1550 fps) as does the X-pert. Some day after you have a few years on your frame, you might think about going to 2 3/4 inch shells. Just a thought. Good luck.
Al

The first one represents Federal shells

http://www.rogerssportinggoods.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=37_40

This second one deals with Winchester shells

http://www.rogerssportinggoods.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=37_52
Click to expand...
 
steal my pictures, dont listen to me about ammo, jeeze i think im going to start taking your brothers out

anyway, good to see you got onto the forum little cousin, lots of good information and people on here
 
I have had good luck with Rio, Estate and Federal, all in 3", 1 1/4 oz, #3s.
More important than which brand is to shoot well and make sure the birds are in range!!!
Those long passing shots are tempting but taking them at under 30 yards over the decoys will result in a lot more birds in the bag, a lot less shells expended and less cripples lost.
 
Been using Winchester X-Pert HV shells for the past few years. As others have said... Don't expect any 60 yard one shot kills with it, but out to 40, it's deadly if you put your shot where it needs to be.

For your break-down of ducks, I'd say this:

Teal - 2 3/4" or 3" #4 or smaller (At 30 yards, you can hammer multiple teal if they are tight, with one shot. Keep that in mind with ANY ammo on teal.)
Mallard/Black (or any bigger duck) - 3" #2-3's.
Geese - 3 to 3 1/2" BB

If you have the extra money, buy a box of Kent, Win X-Pert, Rio, etc. and see which one your boom-stick does best with for the choke you are using. Or if you have buddies who use different loads, get together with them and trade up a few shells. That way you all won't spend as much money. If you're planning on long shots, steel just doesn't keep the energy to really put a smackin' on them. You'll end up wounding a lot of birds. Got with a heavier metal like tungsten. But expect to pay more.
 
steal my pictures, dont listen to me about ammo, jeeze i think im going to start taking your brothers out

anyway, good to see you got onto the forum little cousin, lots of good information and people on here
Click to expand...
Is it that bad to get other people's opinions on things??? and ill change the picture the next time i get one - i thought this one was the best out of the bunch! and im the only one with the legal stuff, so your stuck with me (for a while)!! hahaha
 
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I've always read that if possible, you should try to pattern your ammo. Spending a few extra dollars here or there won't matter so much, because you'll see your shot/duck hit ratio increase somewhat!

I have been planning to do this exact thing now for several years! but something always comes up. Four years ago, I went out and bought 1 box from every conceivable #2 steel shot manufacturer I could find at Cabelas. I took ten shells from each, put in them a ziplock with the ripped off top of the box (so that I could know the shell details). Wouldn't you know it, I never got around to doing it... over the next two seasons, I would grab one of those ziplocks instead of buying a new box of shells.

I did notice that I killed more with Hevi-Metal #2s, and the price was ok. So I bought a case, and I'm going though it right now.

Anthony
 
As some people have already said, most important is to wait for a good, close shot. It's fun, costs less money, and you spend a lot less time chasing and wasting cripples.

Be careful about "High Velocity" loads, it often means a lighter shot payload which can result in less desirable patterns.

Although I don't do it often, patterning your load on a large sheet of paper or cardboard will tell you a lot about the capabilities of your gun and shells.

As far as brands, I've had good luck with Kent FastSteel. I also like Winchester Drylocks, however they've gone from $12 per box to $21 per box in the last 5 years or so.
 
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