New choke question

[uplander]

I just picked up a Primos tight wad turkey choke from dicks. Im probably just an idiot but i wanted to see just how tight it was and tried to push a wad throught it and it barely went in the breech end. Obviosly it has alot more force when you fire it, but its really just that tight? also does anyone just use there bead sight or a truglo, or do most of you use scopes? thanks alot for any help, im going to try to get out hunting this week.

[ACEarcher]

Tighter chokes can be a blessing and a curse. Tight patterns are a great thing for turkey hunting just becareful when it comes to distance. The closer the turkey the even tighter the pattern will be. If you get a closer shot make sure you make it count. Your pattern will be much tighter closer in. The farther the shot the pattern will loosen. I still use my stock beads on my turkey gun. I've used fiberoptic sights and I think it's just a preference issue. Low power if any, red dot scopes are a great tool when you might be in some thicker stuff. It will help you identify a shooting oppertunity in an area that is thick. Always be sure that you have batteries in the scope and that it is sighted in. Many people don't like that cause it's another thing that can break. Always shoot your turkey gun before you hunt. You should know where it is patterning before you go into the field.

[njgolfer]

Other than pre-hunt scouting out of the hunting area, the most important thing you can do is to pattern the gun at a range. Test different loads, distances, etc.

I have found that some of the "turkey" loads with modern age metal pellets are no better than a standard lead load.

All will pattern differently and you can better see how the choke will work.

I don't use a scope and have never needed to take a shot further than 20 yards. The bead sights work well once you practice with them.

[Setterman]

Every shotgun is an individual and each shoot different loads differently. You should try various loads and chokes if you have the luxury to do so. And shoot and pattern your gun at different ranges as well. The combination that produces a good killing pattern at twenty yards could be very different at thirty-five yards. I have a double-bead sight on my shotgun. That's fine for me. You don't need optics for turkeys, most of your shots are going to be in the twenty to thirty-five yard range anyway. 40 yards is stretching it unless you are shooting large shot which carries the energy at that range, the the pattern still needs to be dense. I started handloading my own turkey loads about 11 years ago. You'd be surprised what you can customize for your gun without dropping $100 on a single-choke tube which may produce erratic results. I'm cheap, I can't see paying $2-$3 a shell. If you're serious about turkeys you should purpose-build a custom turkey gun. A simple but effective suggestion is simply to have a gunsmith lengthen the forcing cone. This $65 fix does wonders for a shotgun in relieving backpressure and enhancing patterns.