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Post by Dutch on Mar 13, 2023 4:15:25 GMT -5
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 13, 2023 6:26:33 GMT -5
That is all the rage these days for sure. But many are using TSS and going to 20 and 410 gauge to have a lighter gun but still the performance of a 12. It took me forever to find good old lead #6 turkey loads in local retailers but most had TSS shot available. I finally found some lead turkey loads recently. I may try to tote the shotgun this year instead of the crossbow for turkey. I haven't shot a turkey with a shotgun in like 10 years.
As far as whether we are losing something. I think it comes down to the individual hunter. Compounds increased the range for archery. Crossbows increased the range. Scoped rifles increased the range. Better shotgun chokes have increased the range. If a hunter wants to challenge of limiting their weapons to shorter range, they can.
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Post by Loggy on Mar 13, 2023 7:27:26 GMT -5
Interesting article!! I'm not a 90 yarder but comfortable out to around 70 with my 12 ga 3.5" Magnum Semi Browning Gold Stalker. I have set-up with scope plus a custom Trulock choke specifically designed for hevi-shot no. 7 shot. I soley hunt the big mountains which many times affords longer range shots vs the flat lands & farm country. I do strive for inside 40 yards but pending terrain, cover density etc......ain't gonna happpen(especially fall hunting). To me....my longer range set-up brought a whole new level of enjoyment/challenges to the sport!!    |
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Post by dougl on Mar 13, 2023 13:29:04 GMT -5
I started shooting fed heavyweight in a 20ga 10 years ago when my son turned 7.On the first day of the youth hunt we got on to 2 lone longbeards.We had to reposition twice and the second time was a poor spot high on a ridge and the birds came in below us in a flooded creek bank.They were over 50 yards,not getting any closer and Jordan jumped the gun and shot.To my surprise the gobbler dropped like a rock and did the headless chicken dance.I'm not into shooting them past 50 yards but the terminal performace of tss with a 20 gauge within that distance is impressive.It allows me to use a 5.5lb shotgun and not get beat to death.It's the perfect combo for me but unless you load them,they're cost prohibitive today.
I'm sure you can kill them at 70 yards with tss but you're gonna see some fly away and I'm not into that.Under 60 yards with a 20ga?No problem.I don't even ow a 12ga any more.
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Post by dougl on Mar 13, 2023 14:11:05 GMT -5
I don't personally know a single person who uses tss in a 12 ga.Just about everyone I know who uses it,loads their own and uses either a 20ga or more increasingly 410.
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Post by Loggy on Mar 13, 2023 14:40:02 GMT -5
My Browning 12 3.5” is a gas auto with recoil less than an 06. It’s more of a push vs a sharp whack…doesn’t really bother me. With sling toting it is not bad. Last time I shot a shotgun smaller than a 12 ga was a 410 single shot hunting squirrel when I was 12 years old. Since then….all 12s. To each there own as they say.
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Post by dougl on Mar 13, 2023 15:43:04 GMT -5
I hate heavy guns.All of my rifles are Kimber Montanas and I have three franchi affinities that barely weigh 5lbs.The Franchi 20ga's are sweet little inertia operated semi's.I use regular 2 3/4" #5's for pheasants but my son has used norhing but 3" mags out of it since he was 12.I'm a hiker whether it's deer or turkey and I take very little with me.For years I used a 12 ga win 1300 with a 22" barrel for turkeys and it was pretty handy for a 12ga.
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Post by fleroo on Mar 14, 2023 12:23:25 GMT -5
COME ON MAN ! A man of your caliber (no pun intended), "Heavy" isn't in your vocabulary.  |
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Post by Dutch on Mar 14, 2023 13:57:29 GMT -5
I hate heavy guns.All of my rifles are Kimber Montanas and I have three franchi affinities that barely weigh 5lbs.The Franchi 20ga's are sweet little inertia operated semi's.I use regular 2 3/4" #5's for pheasants but my son has used norhing but 3" mags out of it since he was 12.I'm a hiker whether it's deer or turkey and I take very little with me.For years I used a 12 ga win 1300 with a 22" barrel for turkeys and it was pretty handy for a 12ga. My dad's Model 70 Winchester from the early 50s must weigh 10 pounds. My brother took it out last year for a bit, yeah, while he loved that gun years ago, age has changed his mind |
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Post by dougl on Mar 14, 2023 14:48:34 GMT -5
I bought a Kimber Montana for my son the day after he was born.I used it until he was old enough and it spoiled me.
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Post by dougl on Mar 14, 2023 14:49:28 GMT -5
COME ON MAN ! A man of your caliber (no pun intended), "Heavy" isn't in your vocabulary. It really is one one the wonders of the modern world.I just spend more time carrying one than shooting one.. |
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Post by Loggy on Mar 15, 2023 6:53:41 GMT -5
As my whiskers grow the only weight that currently bothers me is the weight of a deer killed while several miles from my truck!! Of course, that's subject to change as the whiskers lengthens! Although....I have dropped some fuel weight in the number of sammiches plus thermos's carried on day hikes in excess of 5 miles.  |
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 15, 2023 6:56:45 GMT -5
Apparently the 410 with TSS is also all the rage these days for gobblers. The local Sportsman's Warehouse has a boatload of dedicated turkey 410a for like $200. I was talking to the sales guy this past weekend and he said they move well the past couple of years.
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Post by dougl on Mar 16, 2023 8:45:40 GMT -5
MY BIL had a weird bucket list thing to do by loading tss in everything from a 12ga to a 410 and killing a turkey with each one.The patterns he was getting with #9 tss at 40 yards out of a 410 were pretty impressive.
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Post by rusty on Mar 16, 2023 12:16:11 GMT -5
IMO, if we are shooting turkeys at 90 yards plus, rifles should be allowed unless it's a safety concern.
I have shot lots of turkeys, all with an old 311 stevens SxS and 2 3/4" 6 shot or a .22 while hunting squirrels and carrying a turkey call "just in case". I doubt any were more than 40 yards with most being much closer.
For spring birds it's all about calling them in close and feeling the gobbles making the hunter's hair stand on end. I'm surprised spring gobbler hunters want something that makes a 90 yard shot possible.
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Post by dougl on Mar 16, 2023 13:27:22 GMT -5
It's no longer about calling them in Rusty.The new method is setting some lifelike decoys in front of a blind and waiting them out.It's more about the facebook opportunity than it is about the fun of calling them in.
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Post by fleroo on Mar 16, 2023 13:41:40 GMT -5
I completely agree. But I would think the 70-80-90 yard type hunters, are a VAST minority. Per calling them in close. Gobbling their head off, and pulling them in on the proverbial "rope", I always thought was the draw for a hardcore Turkey Hunter ? Mastering the call, and realizing the thrill ? I liken a TRUE Turkey Hunter's rush, about the same as I do an upland hunter preferring to watch their dog "work" as opposed to ground-swatting said upland bird ? To each their own, but this is why I disagree with a 2nd Gobbler tag. Isn't it "good enough" for a Turkey Hunter to call 5-10-20 birds in, even for a friend/relative, etc... ? Those things don't taste good enough for the thrill to be filling them with lead shot.  To each their own I reckon. |
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Post by Loggy on Mar 16, 2023 14:22:49 GMT -5
No different in hunting deer. Some prefer not to carry a scope sighted centerfire capable of killing practically any deer within sight out to several hundred yards. Some prefer to only hunt with open sighted flintlocks and hunt natural trails, funnels, use deer calls etc to get deer within close range affording more challenges requiring greater woodsmanship skills. Some properly equipped/skilled hunters prefer long range deer hunting setting up at ranges of 1,000 yards shooting from one mountain to another at totally unsuspecting game. Some true traditionalists longbow hunters no way would hunt with a cabled/camed bow with sights, releases etc. They get their rush getting deer within 20 yards or even closer to make their shots. Won’t even mention crossbow hunting. I could go on but as said……”to each their own”.  |
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Post by dougl on Mar 16, 2023 14:49:28 GMT -5
I completely agree. But I would think the 70-80-90 yard type hunters, are a VAST minority. Per calling them in close. Gobbling their head off, and pulling them in on the proverbial "rope", I always thought was the draw for a hardcore Turkey Hunter ? Mastering the call, and realizing the thrill ? I liken a TRUE Turkey Hunter's rush, about the same as I do an upland hunter preferring to watch their dog "work" as opposed to ground-swatting said upland bird ? To each their own, but this is why I disagree with a 2nd Gobbler tag. Isn't it "good enough" for a Turkey Hunter to call 5-10-20 birds in, even for a friend/relative, etc... ? Those things don't taste good enough for the thrill to be filling them with lead shot. To each their own I reckon. YES YES YES YES. |
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Post by dougl on Mar 16, 2023 14:50:44 GMT -5
No different in hunting deer. Some prefer not to carry a scope sighted centerfire capable of killing practically any deer within sight out to several hundred yards. Some prefer to only hunt with open sighted flintlocks and hunt natural trails, funnels, use deer calls etc to get deer within close range affording more challenges requiring greater woodsmanship skills. Some properly equipped/skilled hunters prefer long range deer hunting setting up at ranges of 1,000 yards shooting from one mountain to another at totally unsuspecting game. Some true traditionalists longbow hunters no way would hunt with a cabled/camed bow with sights, releases etc. They get their rush getting deer within 20 yards or even closer to make their shots. Won’t even mention crossbow hunting. I could go on but as said……”to each their own”. Well,the difference is,it's specifically stated in the digest that spring hunting is "by calling only." |
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Post by Loggy on Mar 16, 2023 15:01:23 GMT -5
No different in hunting deer. Some prefer not to carry a scope sighted centerfire capable of killing practically any deer within sight out to several hundred yards. Some prefer to only hunt with open sighted flintlocks and hunt natural trails, funnels, use deer calls etc to get deer within close range affording more challenges requiring greater woodsmanship skills. Some properly equipped/skilled hunters prefer long range deer hunting setting up at ranges of 1,000 yards shooting from one mountain to another at totally unsuspecting game. Some true traditionalists longbow hunters no way would hunt with a cabled/camed bow with sights, releases etc. They get their rush getting deer within 20 yards or even closer to make their shots. Won’t even mention crossbow hunting. I could go on but as said……”to each their own”. Well,the difference is,it's specifically stated in the digest that spring hunting is "by calling only." Didn’t realize Fall Turkey Season was canceled. |
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Post by cspot on Mar 16, 2023 16:22:18 GMT -5
Apparently the 410 with TSS is also all the rage these days for gobblers. The local Sportsman's Warehouse has a boatload of dedicated turkey 410a for like $200. I was talking to the sales guy this past weekend and he said they move well the past couple of years. I have one of these except instead of a .410 I got a 20 gauge. Topped mine with a scope as I don't like a red dot. They are deadly. Nice thing is they already come with a turkey choke and setup for TSS. This is a Stevens 301.  |
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 16, 2023 18:16:51 GMT -5
Well,the difference is,it's specifically stated in the digest that spring hunting is "by calling only." So you can't call them down off of a ridge and shoot them in the field at 90 yards? Is it only considered calling only if you shoot them within 40 yards? |
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Post by rusty on Mar 16, 2023 19:42:30 GMT -5
It's no longer about calling them in Rusty.The new method is setting some lifelike decoys in front of a blind and waiting them out.It's more about the facebook opportunity than it is about the fun of calling them in. I believe much of the hunting today is as much or more about the "hero shot" than the experience. I never been able to sit in one place waiting for very long, especially when I was a young hunter. I can do it for a couple hours at a time in archery season, but turkey is more moving and listening for a bird to work unless I had listened to them roost the night before for me. As said above, like all hunting, to each his own. |
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 17, 2023 6:50:37 GMT -5
I never been able to sit in one place waiting for very long, especially when I was a young hunter. I can do it for a couple hours at a time in archery season, but turkey is more moving and listening for a bird to work unless I had listened to them roost the night before for me. As said above, like all hunting, to each his own. This isn't directed at you. Some say that shooting them from a blind isn't challenging or not a true turkey hunting experience. Yet, some of these same folks don't have the patience to do it, preferring to run and gun. I can tell you that I have killed many dozens of spring gobblers over the year here in Pa. Both with arrows and shotguns. I used to run and gun like many do looking for that hot bird. Killed many that way with shotguns and a few with arrows. When it comes to some of my most rewarding hunts from an hunting experience standpoint, a few have been from a blind. Scouting to find some good roosts. Setting the blind well before light. Working the bird as he gobbles from the roost. Get frustrated as he doesn't work due to hens or other factors. Sitting tight peering out of a small window for 4 hours as he answers occasionally. Listening to other gobblers sounding off two ridges and deciding to sit tight on the same bird instead of making a move on the "hot" gobbler. Baking in the blind till 10:30 then all of a sudden the gobbler you are after gobbles his head off looking for you finally. You call and he answers back and he sneaks in at 11:15 and does the death flop after over 6 hours in the blind. One of the best turkey hunters I know is a run and gun type of hunter. He wanted to try to shoot some with arrows and did the blind thing for awhile. He found out he didn't have the patience to sit and work one bird for hours and went running and gunning the hot birds then switched back to the shotgun when success didn't come easy with arrows. |
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