At the 2023 SHOT Show and the NWTF Convention, it was hard to take two steps without hearing how the 28 gauge is the next big thing for turkey hunters. Although many people refer to a oz 28 ga load as square, by definition it is not. The Remington Model 870 Wingmaster is a fine 28-gauge pump. The 410 is technically not a gauge, rather a measurement of the bore in hundredths of an inch. If you dont think this makes much difference, consider the cumulative effect of all that recoil energy. Loading a 28-gauge load up to 1 ounce will offend puristsbut it will put more pellets on your target. But some patterns were so wide, they hit other targetsone scoring a kill shot with a pellet in the adjacent gobblers head. Just $1 per month , Is the 28 gauge really that much better than a 410? This couldve been because wed gotten used to the 410, or just the way the gun fit (our 28-gauge shotgun came with a different stock than the 410), but the 28 did have a little more kick. When she informed me several years ago that her 16-gauge double was no longer fun to shoot, I suggested that before shopping for a new gun she shoot sporting clays with several of mine in order to get some idea of what she was looking for. For that same load in the. For the guns, we turned to Mossberg. Just $1 per month , This little gun packs a big punch on upland birds and even waterfowland its a dream to shoot, By I still have TSS and Tungsten Poly to play with and I will post those patterns up as I get to those shot types. This method is why no greater introduction could be made of the late Bob Brister, a man of many accomplishments. My only wish was that I started earlier in life! Steel is too hard for older barrels, and bismuth or Kent Tungsten Matrix are the only shotshells safe for them if youre a duck hunter. The rarity, demand, and modern manufacturing of the 28-gauge is making this rising star even more accessible. You can also now order 28-gauge loads with Federals dense tungsten super shot (TSS) directly from the Federal Custom Shop. In some guns, less expensive field loads such as Winchester Super-X, Federal Classic and Remington Express pattern about as well as the target loads or if there is a difference it is not enough to matter. Yet in the field, the 28 does seem magical. If you want a 28-gauge gun with the barrels arranged side by side, youll likely pay a good deal more for it. The 28-gauge has made a come back in duck hunting. There is, he said, no magic in the 28 gauge.. Other reasons could be that our shells didnt like the choke we had in. A.J. The 20-gauge comfortably continues to hold the number one spot. Non-toxic pellet requirements for waterfowl have been in existence for more than 30 years. We took two shots (these shells are hard to get, and we only had 10 of them) and connected with the target with each. Side-by-side shotgun shooters made up for 49.35 percent of the 28-gauge crowd, followed by 44.16 percent in over/under. Some hunters like to boast about reaching into the next county and bumping off a pheasant with their favorite scattergun, and while they may occasionally luck out and do just that, the majority of the shots they make are no more than 35 long paces from the toes of their bootswith a very large percentage inside 20 yards. The previous days featured limits of ruffed grouse and woodcock under leaf-covered trees in cover I call Mars. We used a mix of shells by various makers ranging from #6 and #7 bismuth to #8 lead. If you measured it in terms of gauge, it would be a 67 gauge. 28 gauge vs 20 gauge TSS pattern test DIY Hunter 9.93K subscribers 6 119 views 6 days ago We are doing a pattern test with a 28 gauge using TSS versus longbeard XR rounds. One of the best things the 28-gauge gun has going for it is something it lacks: recoil. Brister, using data from the National Skeet Shooting Association, speculated the 28-gauge shooter would be giving up only three to four percent between his little gun and the 12-gauge.. According to the 1888 book Modern Shot Guns, A 28-gauge double gun with 26-inch barrels should weigh under 4 lbs. That is much lighter than its more popular cousins. We noticed a difference in consistency with the 410. Of course, success in the field has a lot more to do with factors other than gauge size. A short shot string helps explain the perception that the 28-gauge punches harder than it should, but the 28 also benefits from comparisons to the 410 gauge, which it outclasses in every respect. I shot a lot of pheasantsI mean a lot of pheasantsthat day. While that introduction was absolutely the catalyst for the popularization of the gauge stateside, it has a much older history. But tests have shown that not to be true. Here's a look at how the 28 (left) patterned versus the 12. A lighter object sheds velocity faster and loses energy quicker than a heavier one. 2023 Outdoor Sportsman Group. Guns. For some reason, the big shots went home shortly after I arrived, leaving me alone and all dressed up in the new brush pants I had splurged on for the occasion. A New England native, he grew up hunting and has spent over 30 years in pursuit of big and small game species across three continents. I've shot lots of ducks over decoys with the 28 and find ammunition from Bismuth Cartridge Co. loaded with 34-ounce of No. 181K views 4 years ago Discussing some of the differences in the .410 bore and 28 gauge shotguns and shooting some patterns with #6 birdshot hunting loads. With the right buffered load, a 28 bore is highly effective. The most I have seen in a 28 in a commercial load is one oz, but it didn't pattern all that well. Shotcups can eliminate some of that deformity, taking the edge off the standard theories of pellet deformity and square loads. A lot of that technical shooting success is due to a properly fitting stock, the weight of the shotgun, and effectiveness of the load. Thx for this informative and very interesting article! You can carry a lot more 28-gauge shotshells in the pockets of your upland vests, too. Tungsten is 56 percent denser than lead, and though it cannot be safely shot through the older guns, it is a most effective duck killer. Other shells might perform differently than the results below, but we feel this is still a good comparison. Sign up for the Field & Stream newsletter and get the latest intelligence straight to your inbox. Twenty-eight gauge fans have always thought their favorite sub-gauge was somewhat magic. You also get five screw-in chokes with this inertia-drive semi-auto. All it lacks is the public acceptance that would bring with it a larger assortment of guns and ammunition at reasonable prices, and that may be coming. Personally, when I had my 28's, I found 8-1/2s to pattern best. Best TSS Pattern Percentage: Fiocchi Golden Turkey TSS 3-inch, 1 5/8 . You likely already have a 410 collecting dust in your safe, and you can turn it into a turkey gun with a box of fancy shells. Trim and easy to swing: A well-built 28 should balance between your hands but be just a bit muzzle-heavy to help stay on track during crossing shots. Youll notice that the safety is not tang-mounted on this particular gun the way it is on most Mossberg autos and pumps. Theoretically, the 28s squareness results in less-deformed shot, because as the payload accelerates, theres less weight on the pellets at the bottom of the stack, so they stay round and pattern well. To me, this is the load to use if you're just looking to make a 40yd 28ga duck load. Thats been my experience with the 28 on wild pheasants, too, so long as I keep my shots to 30 yards or less. No matter what you call it, the 410 is a favorite of small-game hunters, and with the right ammo, its a great option for youngsters chasing long beards. I killed a lot of birds with it, but I killed a lot more at the start of a hunt than at the end of a hunt after carrying that behemoth for miles. Shotgun choice is important when it comes to hunting success and fortunately there are both affordable and high-end auto-loaders that are reliable offered in 28-gauge. People smarter than me have pointed out that all shotgun ballistics apply except when talking the 28-gauge. When we finally did find some 28-gauge target loads in a store, the clerk said, Youre the only person Ive ever sold 28 gauge to. The winner here is the 410. For a 410 loaded with Apex #9.5s, youll pay around $6.19 per shell. Subscribe to OL+ for our best feature stories and photography. The 28-gauge gun does have its limits, but a well-fitting 28 naturally lends itself to fast, almost effortless shooting. The 28-gauge averaged 128 pellets inside a 30-inch circle at 35 yards; the 12-gauge averaged 188 pellets at the same distance. I very much doubt it. There are, however, deals to be found, such as the CZ Sharp-Tail side-by-side, listed at $1,289, or the 5.5-pound CZ Bobwhite G2 side by side, which has a price tag of just $702. In the future, well likely see more 28-gauge turkey guns hit the market if hunters decide to take up the shell. That translated into 85 percent and 88 percent respectively. While we had to use binoculars to spot our 410 patterns from the bench, we could see our 28 gauge patterns with the naked eye. It was like dissecting a unicorn and finding out it was just a horse with a growth on its nose. Is it superior to its bigger cousins, the 20, 16, and 12-gauge? But give her a light-recoiling gun in 28 gauge and she hits far more often than she misses and can burn up ammo faster than I can produce it with my progressive reloader. Its a 6.5-pound gun thats gas operated and very reliable. Sign In As Brister would say, its the exception of the 28-gauge, which simply kills better than its supposed to., Before modern shotshells were invented, it was said that the 28-gauges effective killing range was 35 yards and under. Phyllis eventually settled on a Remington Model 1100 in 28 gauge for two reasons--she shot it extremely well and of all the guns she tried, it was the most comfortable to shoot. Once believed to be an inferior killer of wild game, advancements in gunpowder, the shotcup, and even the introduction of new metals would catapult this gauge forward in the modern era. Subscribe to OL+ for our best feature stories and photography. A few years ago, the 410 was given new life thanks to Tungsten Super Shot (TSS). Just $1 per month , The advancement of non-toxic shot has brought the 28-gauge back to the duck blind, By Although many people refer to a oz 28 ga load as square, by definition it is not. If thats still too rich for the budget, consider the Tristar Viper G2 or the Mossberg International SA-28 semi-auto. Rewind your clocks to the late 19th century and dive into the shotgun era. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. They are lightweight, easy to handle guns. 9 TSS shot is roughly equivalent to No. Remington also offers exactly one hunting load in 28 gauge. This is not at all unusual since most hunters are more accurate more often with a gun they love to shoot than with one they dread shooting. It can dominate small bore skeet, it's effective on upland birds, and it makes a light yet low recoiling gun for beginner or expert alike. Almost 10 percent of upland hunters preferred the 28-gauge to other gauges, making it the fourth most popular gauge overall. One question that many people ask is whether they should shoot 20 or 28 gauge in tournaments. of recoil according to my Shotgun Recoil Table. But it comes at a price. Fiocchi lists no fewer than 22 loadings in 28 gauge, ranging from a high-velocity ounce and one-ounce hunting loads to 11/16 ounce and 7/8-ounce Golden Pheasant loads in shot sizes No. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Other hunters I know don't try to explain why they shoot the 28 so well; instead, they just go about the business of doing what they do best. As time went on, however, customer requests increased. The deformity mentioned in the research above by professional ballistician all refer to it as a square load in relation to only the shot column. Those are a lot of ifs, and they offer clues where the real magic of the 28 gauge may be found, and why some people break more clays or put more game birds in the bag with a 28 than they do with larger gauges. Viper G2 or the Mossberg International SA-28 semi-auto the 28 and find from... 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