Fine-Tuning Your Turkey Gun

You've spent countless hours getting ready for turkey season. You have scouted a great location with plenty of gobblers, and you've practiced your calling. What about your turkey gun?

There are some very important aspects of accurately shooting a turkey gun that need your attention before the season rolls around. After you've found a load that patterns well, one that puts over 100 pellets in a 10-inch circle at 40 yards, it's time to fine tune.

When you're shooting a tight-patterning shotgun at a small target — like a gobbler's head and neck — you have to be sure the core of the load is hitting precisely where you aim.

Similar to shooting a rifle, changing loads from one brand to the next can change the point of impact down range. Switching choke tubes can change point of impact, too.

• When sighting-in and testing loads, use a steady rest.

• Wear your hunting clothes to make sure the gun fits the same way it does in the field.

• Try a few shots from a sitting position with the gun propped on your knee to make sure our eye — your rear sight — is lining up the same as it did from the shooting bench.

• If your turkey gun has bead sights, remember to press your face tight to the stock for every shot, keep the beads in perfect alignment, and your shooting eye focused on the front sight, which should slightly blur the target.

• The level of sophistication in firearms available to the turkey hunter has followed the same path as turkey calls. As more hunters have joined the sport, manufacturers have responded to their needs by making shotguns with features ideally matched to the turkey woods.

  Here are a few tips for making sure you have the right gun for the job this spring.

  • Make sure the shotgun fits you. There is no sure way to determine gun fit other than seeing a firearms expert. To ensure that your gun fits, pull the gun to your shoulder (with the muzzle pointed in a safe direction, of course). Ask yourself the following questions. Does it swing into place without extra movement or effort? Does the weight feel comfortable? Try adjusting the placement of your forward hand. Can you hold the shotgun steady for a given amount of time? Can you comfortably carry the shotgun for long distances? You should be able to answer "yes" to all of these questions. All these variables play a role in determining gun fit for turkey hunting.

  • Bigger isn't always better. With the new, high-powered turkey loads and chokes available, 20-gauge shotguns have become very popular for use in the spring turkey woods. Better advice than simply purchasing the largest gauge or load size would be to ensure appropriate length, weight and recoil for the person doing the shooting.

  • Pattern, pattern and then pattern again. Take the time to shoot the shotgun with different loads, shot sizes and even choke constrictions when possible. Most shotguns come with several choke options and the aftermarket chokes have shown great success in increasing pattern performance down range.

  • To camo or not to camo? Camouflage is another consideration in choosing a firearm this spring. We all know that turkeys have keen eyesight and getting a shotgun with functional camouflage could give you that added advantage.

  • Saving the best for last. The best advice for making sure that you have the best shotgun this season is to know the limitations of your firearm. Patterning, experimenting with different loads and chokes and practicing real hunting situations on the range will help you learn when to shoot and when the shot may be risky. If using a 20 gauge, you may need to be within 25 yards of your target for your shot. The same distance could be used as a rule of thumb for very young hunters. Making sure you are aware of the capabilities of the hunter, as well as the firearm, can be the difference between success and disappointment.

  The trick is, you probably have the right shotgun for harvesting that trophy gobbler this spring. It may just require some experimentation and practice to determine the optimal choke constriction, load, shot size and distance. If you are in the market for something new, just about every manufacturer is now producing shotguns made specifically for turkey hunters. They all perform well, however, the same considerations must be considered before carrying one on a hunt.

• Prior to the start of hunting season, many hunters head to the range, set up a turkey target at 40 yards, pull the trigger and are satisfied that their pattern is more than adequate. So they put their shotgun back in its case until opening morning.

  But I say, "Not so fast."

  I can't tell you how many birds I've seen missed, not because a hunter was shooting at a bird at the limit of his range, but because it was too close. That's right, too close.

  With today's choke tube offerings and tight-patterning turkey loads, the shot that covers a pie plate at 30 or 40 yards can be smaller than your fist at just 10 or 15 yards. Shoot a little to the right or the left of a gobbler's head and all you're going to see is flapping wings and tail feathers as that ol' tom takes flight.

  Be ready for any approach by a wary longbeard this spring. Know how your gun patterns at 10, 20, 30 and 40 yards by practicing on targets at those ranges before the season. Then, you'll be prepared to take the proper shot. Remember, you don't have to shoot. He'll be there again for another try.

• Pattern Perfection

   

  As the first signs of spring emerge in the Deep South, the distant echoes of last year's gobbling start to reverberate in the very souls of turkey hunters. Dreams of past turkey hunts become more frequent and the ones that went bad begin to haunt us. Awakening from a convulsive sleep, our thoughts go to one place: "What happened?!" Though there's nothing we can do about the past, we can do something about future events. Being prepared, knowing our quarry and our shotguns and a little range time can, and will, prevent the nightmares that humble us now.

  Shoot the official target of the National Wild Turkey Federation .

  Mine is bigger than yours

  This is the mindset of hunters across the spectrum when choosing a truck, an ATV and a gun. There's something about big things that draws out the machismo in us. Some will tell you if you're not shooting the latest and greatest 3½-inch turkey slayer, then you'll never kill a bird. Well, I can tell you from experience, that a 20 gauge will do so as well and is much more enjoyable to shoot and carry. So, when choosing a shotgun for turkey hunting, choose a gun that you are confident and comfortable shooting.

  Chokes and such

  A key element to a good turkey gun is a good turkey choke. A turkey choke has more constriction than a Full choke, and they are often labeled Extra Full or XX Full. The dimensions for a 12-gauge turkey choke may range from .670 inches down to .640 inches. The tighter chokes in the .640- to .655-inch range are designed for smaller No. 6 or No. 5 shot. The more open constrictions are better suited for larger pellets such as No. 4s.

• Can you have too much constriction? Yes, you can. Depending on your gun and the ammunition you've selected, you can over constrict the shot to the point where the pattern falls apart. In this case it is possible for the pellets to bounce off of each other or become deformed, leaving large holes in your pattern. The solution for this is to go to a more open constriction or smaller shot size.

  Ammunition

  The ammunition you choose can drastically affect your pattern. Each gun-choke combination will shoot a specific round better than the others. The only way to determine which is to shoot a variety. Vary your shot sizes and brands from several distances and stick with the one that gives you the most consistent pattern.

  What's in a pattern?

  What is the difference between a bad pattern and a good pattern, and what can you do to improve the pattern of your shotgun?

  The ideal pattern for turkey hunting is 100 pellets in a 10-inch circle at 40 yards. This density means that there should be plenty of pellets in the small vital area of the turkey's head and neck to kill it ethically.

  If you prefer No. 6 turkey loads (approx. 222 pellets/oz.), then a two ounce load of No. 6s should pattern about 25 percent of its shot in the 10-inch circle. Two ounces of No. 5s (approx. 171 pellets/oz.) should give you a pattern of about 30 percent. Two ounces of No. 4s (approx. 135 pellets/oz.) should result in a 37-percent pattern. These numbers are based on lead pellets, so heavier- than-lead alloy pellets will have fewer pellets per ounce and the percentage will differ slightly.

  Why 40 yards?

  We pattern our turkey guns out to 40 yards because that is the maximum distance promoted by the Turkey Hunting Safety Task Force as the proper range to ethically and cleanly kill a turkey with a shotgun.

  Dial it in

  Initial pattern tests should be on a 30-inch target. Sheets of butcher paper or craft paper are great for targets. Draw a small two-inch circle in the middle and color it in with a marker, then draw a 10-inch circle centered on that. Measure off 40 yards or use a laser range finder to mark your distance. Use a shooting brace/bench to reduce human error and shoot a single round at each target. Write the results on each target and note the choke constriction, brand, etc... as well as the ammunition you used. Shoot a few different types of ammo and then compare the results. Pick the round that gives you the densest pattern.

  If one combination gives you a great pattern, but just isn't centered in the 10-inch circle, adding rifle sights, a scope or red-dot-type sight allows you to truly tune your shot pattern. You can move the gun's point of impact so the densest part of the pattern is at the point of aim.

  Fading Out?

  Does your camo lose its color after a few washings? You can protect the color of your camo by following a few steps, and by treating your camo like you treat a fine bow or shotgun.

  Before washing your camo, turn the garments inside out. You can then choose to wash them by hand or in a washing machine. Hand washing will give you the longest color life and can be achieved by taking a five-gallon pail of cold water and some baking soda and sloshing the camo up and down in the mixture a few times before letting them stand overnight. In the morning, wring out your garments, shake them out and then hang them to drip dry. This will reduce color loss by reducing abrasion and heat applied to the fabric.

  If you need to use a washing machine, wash in cold water on the delicate cycle with baking soda and hang the camo to drip dry. If you're in a rush, use a clothes dryer, but turn the garments inside out and run on the short cycle just long enough to dry them

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