Favorite upland loads?

[Jbotto]

I’ve pretty much used the same loads for years in MN pheasant and now WY chukar and pheasant. It’s been a Federal blue box 1-1/4oz load of 5 shot in a 2.75” 12ga. Results have been good but a bit hard of the meat side of birds. Especially the chukars.
I’ve shot these for years through a 870 Express with 28” barrel and a factory Modified choke. Originally paid $17.79/box, wish I could find them again!

What are your favorites load combinations? What do you use them for? Looking for a general discussion to get my head back around a shotgun a bit.

 

[Brittany Chukarman]

When I was hunting chukar a lot I had settled on the Estate high velocity hunting load. Sportsmans Warehouse gave a discount for buying by the case. It specs out the same as your Federal load but I liked #6 shot.

 

[Walkathon]

Runnings sells the below HV Dakota Country Pheasant. Says Federal cartridge on the side of the box. about $2-$3 less per box vs. branded Federal. It's what I use for Pheasants / Sharptails...

 

[MTLabrador]

I like Kent fast lead or Federal high velocity copper plated lead. 1 1/4 oz of 5s in 12 gauge and 1 oz of 6s in 20 gauge.

 

[Jbotto]

Runnings sells the below HV Dakota Country Pheasant. Says Federal cartridge on the side of the box. about $2-$3 less per box vs. branded Federal. It's what I use for Pheasants / Sharptails... View attachment 307888

I might have to look for some of these. Federal ammo lines have changed up enough recently and I don’t think they make the “blue box” shotgun load anymore. I wonder if this is it.

 

[Mica Man]

1 OZ of 7.5' or 6's for Chuckar depending on how well they are holding and what your current load for pheasants looks good.

 

[howl]

Win AA Super Sport 7.5s on the head works for me for anything where I'm allowed lead and can choose coming or passing. Small, hard and fast works.

When I am in a situation where body shots are required, I have no confidence in anything being regular nor predictable. So I buy what looks cool and whang away. I've put in effort to find pretty patterns only to watch said patterns engulf a bird that kept on flying.

 

[Jbotto]

Keep the suggestions coming! I’m still looking for something good that’s available locally.

 

[golfer]

I liked the results this fall I saw from Remington Nitro Pheasant #4’s.

 

[Dave2643]

18 bucks for a box of shells is mind boggling. I paid $11 for some #6 field loads and felt like I splurged. Been a while since I bought anything but trap loads. Why is ammunition so stinkin high?

 

[Birdbander]

For dove, woodcock & ruffed grouse I use Winchester Xpert steel #7. I'll be using these going after white tailed ptarmigan also.
For blue grouse Winchester Xpert #6
I've purchased half a case of Winchester #4 steel 3" for a future South Dakota pheasant hunt.
Shooting 20ga.

 

[TheJason]

I buy Fiocchi HV (1300 FPS) field loads by the case(s). I usually pay about 16-17 per box.

Usually 5 shot for everything. If I can’t find it I buy 6 shot.

I’m shooting an I/C and Mod gun. .

 

[TheGreek]

Fiocchi golden pheasant seems to be the gold standard.

 

[Flynarrow]

For 20 ga I buy cases of 7 1/2 and 6s in one ounce if I can find them. 7 1/2 for huns and quail and 6s most everything else such as phez and chukars. Winchester, Federal, Rio based on price/shipping.

Usually IC/mod in O/U or mod in single barrel.

 

[Jnasa]

Have you considered reloading? You probably won’t save any money. However, you can build what you want. If you just load a few boxes of field loads a year you can pick up a Lee for around $60. A MEC is better but costs more. Sometimes see a used one for a good price.

For factory I’m still using up some old Super X high brass my Grandpa left me. Last box I bought for Pheasant was Kent Fast Lead in 6 shot. Worked well in my gun.

 

[Jbotto]

Thanks for all the continued responses! A bit of an update, a friend with a good bird dog decided he liked hunting with me so I got out a lot this fall for pheasants, both game farm birds (dog training) early on and then wild birds as the fall seasons opened. Never found any load I was looking for when I made it to a store. But did end up picking up a box of Winchester Super Pheasant that I used for some of this fall. I had a brain fart before this last weekend looking at empty shell boxes and scrambled to find something for my last pheasant outing. The local shop sold me a 3” load of Fiocchi Golden Pheasant 6’s that I never ended up using due to my shell pockets being full in my vest from the prior outing.

Basically I ended up trying to use up partial boxes that I had of various makes, shot sizes, etc and wouldn’t you know it, my shooting stayed relatively the same or better than normal since I shot more in the field this year than I did on clays.

Now a bit of story:
I don’t really know why but I started the season with a half dozen or so of the remaining box of Federal 5’s I originally posted about and sparingly used them. I had two left for my last outing this past weekend to try and use them up with as much nostalgia as I could muster. Started the day with one in the chamber and the last one next in line. The first bird to get up was a big rooster that rocketed out of some Russian olives in front of us and presented a beautiful crossing shot. It would have been prettier if it had been 20 yards closer though. This bird flew left to right and I swung past him and pulled the trigger. Sure of my own expertise in wing shooting I expected to see him crumple. Instead, he just kept on flying, looking pristine, as he flew over the cattails and landed with a giant middle finger in my direction. Dumbfounded. I was so sure of the shot that I never even cycled the gun until after he had landed. In hindsight it was a very long shot that I probably had no business shooting at anyways. One shell left.

I topped off the magazine and went looking for the next one. A few hundred yards later I got my chance as another rooster got up in front of the dog and presented a left to right quartering shot. With the last of my magical shells ready to go, again I swung through this rooster and pulled the trigger folding this rooster as if I knew what I was doing. I must have even impressed my partner with my excellent shooting as he complimented me on not missing.

My bird season is all but wrapped up. I hunted for pheasants more than chukars/huns this year. My shooting greatly improved when I reminded myself that I didn’t need to shoot at every Hail Mary shot and to slow down. I’ve never been very fast at follow-up shots with my pumpgun as I’ve mostly hunted without dogs and it’s always been better for me to mark birds where they fall. I lost a few birds by forgetting that this year with my friend’s young dog and instead focusing on trying for multiples.

For chukars and Huns I tried using these older Estate 6’s I had figuring the lighter payload was going to be enough to bring the smaller birds down even though my pattern would be less dense. It didn’t seem to matter as these birds were still humbling and yet I managed to bring home some each time out.

I think I worry too much about shells as I ended up using four different loads this year with no real difference in my success rates. I think for how I shoot a shotgun I gotta just settle roughly on a load of 1-1/4oz 5’s or 6’s north of 1300 fps and be done with it. Actually patterning the load with my gun/choke would probably be beneficial too. I’m still wanting to find a good nontoxic option and will probably give BOSS a try next year. Seems like the last time I was on their website I found a tempting load of 5’s that was calling to me.

Thanks for reading my late night rambling.

 

[Jbotto]

I buy Fiocchi HV (1300 FPS) field loads by the case(s). I usually pay about 16-17 per box.

Usually 5 shot for everything. If I can’t find it I buy 6 shot.

I’m shooting an I/C and Mod gun. .

This seems like right aligned with me. I think my mind likes 5’s a bit better for the longer shots that I seem to always take, but 6’s seem right for the smaller chukars/huns. Idk. More of me overanalyzing it all.

Fiocchi golden pheasant seems to be the gold standard.

In my area it sure seems that way too. In the 12Ga, I don’t think I need the 3” load that I bought for upland, but it might actually make me pattern my gun once to really see what it does.

Have you considered reloading? You probably won’t save any money. However, you can build what you want. If you just load a few boxes of field loads a year you can pick up a Lee for around $60. A MEC is better but costs more. Sometimes see a used one for a good price.

For factory I’m still using up some old Super X high brass my Grandpa left me. Last box I bought for Pheasant was Kent Fast Lead in 6 shot. Worked well in my gun.

I’ve considered reloading for shotguns but I really can’t like that idea. I don’t have time to do all the rifle loading I want to do, so it’s best for me to just find a shell I like and buy a few cases of it instead of the random box here and there I have been doing.

Still only shooting an older 12Ga 870 express with a factory Modified choke. I took my 20Ga version of the same gun out to shoot clays but it didn’t seem fair to leave my 12Ga at home for birds this year.

 

[shrapnel]

I have started hunting more with less. I love the old traditional double barrel hammer guns and shoot low pressure 2 1/2 inch shells and prefer 7 1/2 shot…

 

[Candiru]

I like the federal Hi-Bird loads. 1.25 ounces of 5s @ 1330fps. I have seen them at Walmart. Late season I like Remington Nitro Pheasant 4 shot. For non toxic, I go with some of the Bismuth waterfowl loads.

I don't skimp on Pheasant loads. After all the other expense and the effort I and the dog put in to it, shells are cheap. Don't be afraid to order online. I think most places offer free shipping over a certain dollar amount.

 

[Salmonchaser]

I have started hunting more with less. I love the old traditional double barrel hammer guns and shoot low pressure 2 1/2 inch shells and prefer 7 1/2 shot…



View attachment 354517View attachment 354518View attachment 354519View attachment 354520View attachment 354521View attachment 354522View attachment 354523

I am not worthy!