Recently you guys all helped me understand trap/skeet/barrel length. Thanks again.

So now I have 28 inches on my Mossberg pump.  Still short but so be it. Which choke should I use for trap?  Choices are Improved, modified or full.  Just so you know I do not have cylinder bore available.

Thanks.

 

 

 

I use a modified choke in a 28" barrel and it works fine for me.

For trap, you'll be shooting at 16 yards to the trap house, so Improved Cylinder.  Your just interested in breakin' em, not smokin' em, yet!

You need to pattern your choke and shells to get a 20 inch circle at 30 yards. Otherwise you will be spinning your wheels trying to see where you are aiming. Winchester makes a AA tracer target that sometimes helps.

 

7 minutes ago, T Bill said:

 

For trap, you'll be shooting at 16 yards to the trap house

 

True, but if you're a beginner shooter the average distance you'll track then hit the bird at after you say "pull" ("hep" or "arrgh" if you're one of those guys) it can be double that distance. I'd vote MODIFIED. If you'e shooting doubles you're breaking the first of the pair as soon as you can to get aligned for the next clay. On singles and if a novice, double the distance from 16.  

 

(And YES, I'd pattern my load & choke to ensure an even pattern density at the proposed distance of the break.)

On 5/2/2018 at 6:54 PM, almiz111 said:

Recently you guys all helped me understand trap/skeet/barrel length. Thanks again.

So now I have 28 inches on my Mossberg pump.  Still short but so be it. Which choke should I use for trap?  Choices are Improved, modified or full.  Just so you know I do not have cylinder bore available.

Thanks.

 

 

 

I rilly need to get sum tubes and pattern mine and her guns.  I’d start with what you got. But get sum tubes and pattern them. If the clays are way out there when you shoot you generally want tighter choke. 

On 5/2/2018 at 6:54 PM, almiz111 said:

Recently you guys all helped me understand trap/skeet/barrel length. Thanks again.

So now I have 28 inches on my Mossberg pump.  Still short but so be it. Which choke should I use for trap?  Choices are Improved, modified or full.  Just so you know I do not have cylinder bore available.

Thanks.

 

 

 

If you jump on them right away, while they're still on the way up or at the crest of their arc, then use a modified choke.  If yer like most Newbie's & wait to shoot until AFTER the bird is already sinking like a lead balloon, then use a full choke & aim a couple feet under the bird  .  A full choke will teach you WHERE you're hittin' the bird.  If you hit the bird too far out in front of its' flight path you'll break the "nose" of the clay.  Conversely, if you're chipping the bird's BEHIND, you're hitting the clay in the keister.  Adjusting your lead and/or follow-thru will enable you to DUST the birds.  You'll KNOW when yer "on them" because you'll "dust" the clays.

Different ammo from different manufacturers behaves differently in the same gun with the same choke:  some wider & some narrower patterns.  Finding the ammo that performs the best in YOUR scattergun by doing a "patterning" is always best.

Last important tip:  It's NOT a rifle, so keep the gun MOVING!  Stopping the swing creates more missing than anything else.  On a hard right out of the trap house, if yer on position #5 on the far right, point the gun 4-5 FEET in front of the bird as you "slap" the trigger & KEEP THE GUN MOVING!  Ditto in reverse for position #1 with a hard left.  You'll be surprised how far in front of the bird you have to point & fire in order to break the bird  

Always good debates  about how wide your pellets get at what distance.   There are some who say wider is better “you just need to nick the bird”, to “wider is not better if you are constantly off target the bird can sail between the wide spread.”

i think the best advice I heard for wanting a tighter spread is that it will make you want to improve more.   Yeah it’s adequate to chip birds.   But VAPORIZING them is the shit.    And you don’t vaporize then with a wide spread.  

For trap, you want a full choke, extra full choke, even a turkey choke will suffice for trap but umm trap choke is best for trap.

For skeet you want a wider pattern, so skeet or IC will do.

The load you are shooting has a lot to do with how your shot will spread too.  Some wad cups are designed to open sooner, and some have a delayed opening.

Get the appropriate choke for the type of shooting you are doing, pattern it and practice.  Three easy steps to success.

Get the appropriate choke for the type of shooting you are doing, pattern it and practice.  Three easy steps to success.

Agree here... but once you get it squared away, leave it alone.

I’d used to see guys complaining that the choke was the reason why they did crappy at trap. Kind of like, it is the equipment and not me... when I likely was the shooter. Nine times out of ten, it is because of the wind, them shooting early/late, or some other issue caused by the shooter. If your choke is causing you to miss under some circumstances... you had the wrong choke to begin with.

I liken that to people who complain about cold bores. I always considered it, but after reading Ryan Cleckner’s book... I view it as a cold shooter. Dry-fire to get used to the trigger.

Just now, Screwball said:

Nine times out of ten, it is because of the wind, them shooting early/late, or some other issue caused by the shooter.

Yep. a wider choke will not help with trap.  You can hit clays but you won't hit as many and won't know how to correct when you miss or slightly miss. 

I'm generally a pretty okay trap shooter and I went through almost an entire box of shells before I figured out what I was doing wrong at a recent informal shoot.  Trap is a very specific discipline, skeet is very different from trap, sporting clays is a mish mosh. 

Just because I'm pretty good at trap does not mean I will be good at skeet or sporting clays and I will do especially poorly if I try to use the same equipment and methods for all.

btw.  I love cold bore (rifle) shots.  In the real world hunting or defense scenarios, it's the one that counts the most. 

For trap, I use Full choke's in my shotguns. With 28" barrels. I seem to do alright with them. @Zeke