3½ 12 gauge shot gun pains

[smokepole]

I received this a few years back from a friend in Katy, Texas. I thought with people looking for new "turkey / waterfowl" guns it seemed appropriate to copy it here.

Coping with turkey pains

By Shannon Tompkins
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle

Turkey hunters can be excused if their shooting shoulders seem a bit tender after firing on of the relatively new 3½ inch, high-velocity, 12 gauge rounds offered as a gobbler getter.

These Roman candle-size shotshells produce recoil equal to or exceeding that of most of the largest rifle rounds, including the legendary, shoulder-bruising .458 Winchester “elephant” cartridge.

Winchester Ammunition engineer Steve Myers said the company’s 3½-inch, high-velocity 12-gauge turkey loads produce more recoil than any round the company builds for civilian (non-military) use.

How much recoil?

Fired through an 8-pound firearm (typical approximate weight of a standard rifle), Meyers said recoil energy in foot-pounds for some familiar rifle cartridges are approximately:

• .30-06 Springfield – 17 ft.-lbs.
• .300 Winchester Magnum – 26 ft.-lbs.
• .338 Winchester Magnum – 34 ft.-lbs.
• .458 Winchester Magnum – 65 ft.-lbs.

In the real world, of course, there are no 8-pound .458 Winchester rifles. But there are 10-pound .458s, and a 10-pounder in that caliber produces about 57 ft.-lbs. of recoil.

How does that compare with the big turkey loads?

Approximate recoil from Winchester, 12-gauge, high-velocity “turkey” loads fired from an 8-pound shotgun:

• 3-inch load – 54 ft.-lbs.
• 3½-inch load – 71 ft.-lbs.

A 3½-inch turkey load produces more then four times the recoil of an Ought-Six and twice that of the mean-kicking .338!

[huntergreen]

wow i always knew that it hurt when i shot my 3 1/2 now i know why lol

[goosereaper]

wow...i knew there was some reason i only shoot 3"ers.....no need for 3-1/2's, especially after seeing that data.....

[wildbill]

iv,e shot thousands of 31/2 in rounds as a goose guide. i guess over the years iv,e gotten used to it.

[turk2di]

goosereaper said:

wow...i knew there was some reason i only shoot 3"ers.....no need for 3-1/2's, especially after seeing that data.....

Amen. No need for a 3&1/2 anyway

[SpurMaster09]

I've shot turkeys out past 40 yards with 3's and they went no problem. I have no need for 3 1/2s

[Mobe]

I was certain I'd never been hurt as bad by any other gun I have!
BTW, the turkey load seems to kick much more powerfully than my deer slugs!

[poohcracker]

I had a mossy that shot them and I hated that gun . For the recoil and the jamming. I got another mossy one that only shot's 3s and used it for 6 years with very few problems. I never did miss that recoil. And I killed alot of geese.

[Limbhanger]

This is what my garage wall looks like... I have never shot a turkey with a 31/2. Not needed for turkey in my opinion. Why kill your shoulder for 10 extra yrd's. Just learn how to get em' closer. Excellent for geese though. honk honk

[Bill Saiff 3]

My sentiments exactly!

American hunters have the mistaken impression that bigger is always better. The thrill of a big gob strutting into a set up is alot greater at 10 yards then at 50 yards. I'm not saying that you shouldn't strive to be as lethal as possible but we've filmed alot of smashing great Turkey kills inside 15 yards with 2 3/4" loads in modified tubes.

I would stretch to say that at least 70% of all Turkey hunters still don't pattern their guns. In this case, it doesn't matter what size shell you're using. Work on the guns set-up, calling and woodsmanship-then enjoy the intrinsic qualities of a well constructed Turkey hunt. The rest is just a sales gimmick!

Shoot straight,

Bill

[BackWoods]

Exactly how I feel on this subject... I use a 3inch 2oz. load which is more than enough.. I have alot of buddies that to this day still stand behind their good Ole 2 3/4... Nothing wrong with that at all... Bill U are right about people not going to the field prepared.. Every year no matter if I patterned that gun in the previous year , I still will go out at the range to fire a few shoots just to make sure everything is working properly..Most people just go to the store by some shells and go huntin..( probably different shells also) thinking they will shoot exactly the same.. In my opinion the animals we have the privilege to hunt should be killed in a quick humane manner!!! So prepare yourself before you go huntin... We owe the animal that much!!!

[Limbhanger]

Bravo Bravo My fine com-padres. Bill I could not have said it better myself. So what do you think is the reason for everyone wanting to go bigger and better? I feel like people are loosing what hunting is all about.
I can remember when I was a boy how excited just the thought of the weekend coming and knowing that I was heading to deer camp or to some secluded fishing spot my dad had found made me. Then the lessons began. The learning process that included every ounce of knowledge my dad and great Granddad had learned from their many years in the woods. I learned how to be an outdoors man. I learned to respect the wisdom of an ole' Tom by failing over and over and over again. I learned to respect the outdoors as a whole. That is what made me who I am today and that my friends is who I will be tomorrow. I don't need the "steroids" of the hunting industry to make me a hunter. I became a hunter by experience, by trial and error. God willing, that is how my boys will be raised also.

[Bill Saiff 3]

Well Limbhanger,

I think the reason hunters go for the "bigger is better" mentality is because we are constantly hammered via the media to buy the latest and greatest thing. I've got 30 years experience in the television market and have produced countless videos on hunting and today there is so much information available that most hunters don't suffer the trial and tribulation that we did as young sportsmen. Sometimes it's easier to buy your way to the top. Unfortunately, when you don't have as much invested (time learning) your love of the sport cannot be as deep. Fortunately, there are still influential persons in hunting that promote the intrinsic values of a well constructed hunt or outdoor experience. I hope that in the long run these individuals can influence more dramatically than the "Flash in the Pan" Pomp and Circumstance that seems to be governing our hunting industry today. Rest assured that my little girls will understand exactly why we hunt, fish and enjoy the outdoors. It sounds like you are of the same mind.

I for one am glad to hear it!

Good luck with your boys.

Bill Saiff III

[BackWoods]

Bill I couldn't of said it better!!!! ;D

[Limbhanger]

Thanks for the gesture Bill. I had a spell a few months ago and got all nostalgic about my boys and hoping that they would follow in mine and their grandfather and great grandfathers footsteps. One of my outlets is writing so I wrote the following for them and put it up for when I am gone. Enjoy......

I can feel it, a subtle change in the air. A defining moment when I know the time is upon me. The time when my soul wells outward like a springtime creek in a drenching rain. The wind shifts, I pull my sleeves down. The rhythmic chant of geese in the distance takes me to the fields. The fields I long to trudge through. The fields that hold memories of hunts that will forever grace the walls of my mind. Great dogs, even better friends, feed call chatters and lonesome hens echo through the splash of rice field water on my waders. Visions of cupping wings and the sounds of the gun encompass it all like a mother embraces her child.

I think of the leaves of the oak rustling impatiently, the life slowly draining from them. Waiting for their time to join fallen comrades. Comrades that gave their life so the forest may live. I find myself among the branches. Bow in hand. Watching, waiting, listening. Listening for a sound, not just any sound but the right sound. There it is, soft steps, occasional pauses and then finally a glimpse. Ears pricked forward, front leg up, head low to the ground. I draw, slowly and deliberately. The pin settles and the arrow takes flight. Crimson splashes on the ground point the way to my gift, a gift born from the land.

I think of cool whispers of springtime air and the slow awakening of Mother Nature cradling me against a tree. Soft smells of honey suckle and wildflower blossoms overtake me. I was here just a few months ago. The morning he gave me the upper hand. When he, with a thunderous gobble, confessed his love and devotion to a piece of slate and a rose wood striker, spitting, drumming, and strutting his way into my photo album.
I am in love with this way of life. It is sewn in the fabric of my being. Therefore, I am consumed with the task of making sure my three boys have the opportunity to love it just as much as I do. A gift of immeasurable value I would have to say. I will teach them to love it so that when I am gone they will know where to find me. Look for me boys…I’ll be there. There beneath the fodder of ten thousand oak trees on a hardwood ridge in the Boston Mountains……. in the deep, rich pine thickets of Drew County….. the buckshot rice fields of the Mississippi river delta………….. and the flooded timber of Seven Devils Bottoms. Look for me boys…I’ll be there.

Bo Dottley
11-30-06