Shotgun Chokes for Beginners

When I started shooting in 2017, I had no clue about chokes. After two years of maths and physics studies, I now understand better how they work. In a shot shell, when you shoot a round of birdshot, it starts to spread from the time it leaves the barrel. The spread increases over distance until it loses momentum and falls to the ground about 300 m away.

Gillian Maistry

There is an optimal pattern diameter when you shoot clays. This is in the region of a 750 mm diameter spread at the clay hit zone in order to provide a good ratio between pattern size and pellet density. Let us consider the discipline of clay shooting: 1. If you want to shoot skeet, you will break clay at about 20 m. This is the distance at which you want to achieve a 750 mm diameter pattern. It implies you need little to no choke so that the optimal pattern can be achieved as soon as possible. 2. If you want to shoot trap, you break clay at about 38 m. Achieving a 750 mm diameter pattern at 38 m require lots of constriction on the barrel (choke) so that…

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On Target Africa (Digital) - 1 Issue, July/Aug 2022

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