Choke key recommendations??

[El Spavo]

Got the proper Browning choke key for a 525 sporter one, invector plus chokes (below), and unbelievably one of the 4 little METAL notches that slot straight into the chokes snapped off! Not loads of use, but expected the plastic on it to give waaaay before the cast metal bit?!

Anyway, phoned Browning to ask if the metal giving was normal and they couldn't be more disinterested, even suggested getting an after market replacement one as it may or may not be stronger!

So since I'm gonna have little faith in their ancillary products if they dont either, can anyone recommend a DECENT choke key for invector plus that is less likely to be made of just hope than the one that came with the gun?!

 

[Daz W]

Teague tapered choke key. It looks like it wont work very well, but it does. It's a friction fit, rather than locating in notches. Its design means if you do try and overtighten your chokes it will slip, rather than overtighten. Also fits every 12G gun I've tried it on.

 

[thebigH91]

Fully agree with Daz, taper fit choke key, ive had one for years and it spins them out and in no problem

 

[ColinD]

Got the proper Browning choke key for a 525 sporter one, invector plus chokes (below), and unbelievably one of the 4 little METAL notches that slot straight into the chokes snapped off! Not loads of use, but expected the plastic on it to give waaaay before the cast metal bit?!



Anyway, phoned Browning to ask if the metal giving was normal and they couldn't be more disinterested, even suggested getting an after market replacement one as it may or may not be stronger!

So since I'm gonna have little faith in their ancillary products if they dont either, can anyone recommend a DECENT choke key for invector plus that is less likely to be made of just hope than the one that came with the gun?!

Browning UK after sales is a joke to be honest, having had the same experience with them in the past with firing pin replacements

 

[antse7en]

Yup another vote for the tapered key. Teague unit available for about £14 I bought one not long ago. 

 

[El Spavo]

Thanks guys, I'll check it out.

Always been a bit twitchy about not getting a choke out again after you've tightened it once and then put a shedload of shot through it, the fear of the trip to the gunsmith for removal, but never been told how many shots is it reasonable to leave it in for before that happens? Just been told when I first got it to loosen and tighten it once in a while to prevent it getting stuck permanently.

 

[El Spavo]

Teague tapered choke key. It looks like it wont work very well, but it does. It's a friction fit, rather than locating in notches. Its design means if you do try and overtighten your chokes it will slip, rather than overtighten. Also fits every 12G gun I've tried it on.

Like friends who have extended chokes and are constantly tightening them by hand between stands, do yours ever slip, cos I prefer to fit & forget for 500/1000 odd shots or until I clean the gun? Do NOT want a nice bulging barrel because of summat I don't necessarily need to be constantly checking just in case!

 

[ColinD]

If you use the choke key I have never had a choke come loose.But I tend to clean my Barrels after each shoot if it's going to be a week or more before the next one.

Last thing after the barrels are cleaned I remove and wipe the chokes, re-crease threads and refit using the key

OCD I know but

 

[Daz W]

Like friends who have extended chokes and are constantly tightening them by hand between stands, do yours ever slip, cos I prefer to fit & forget for 500/1000 odd shots or until I clean the gun? Do NOT want a nice bulging barrel because of summat I don't necessarily need to be constantly checking just in case!

I've got a 525SL with Midas extended, and an Ultra XS with Titanium extended. Hand tightening on both, I find I need to recheck every 3 or so stands. With the Teague tapered key I've never needed to retighten or had difficulty getting them out. With the  standard Browning choke key, I managed to slightly overtighten one on the 525SL, and had to get a hairdryer on it to get it out.  I store my guns with the chokes out,  they're 32" with all the stock spacers and thickest recoil pad fitted, which makes them a bit of a squeeze going into my cabinet.

 

[Fred Flintstone]

To be fair, I much prefer the extended chokes (I have after market in my Beretta). Admittedly, I do recheck them at each stand (it has become part of my pre-shot routine as I walk into the stand), but only ever finger tight.

Much easier to get in and out for cleaning etc., and no key to worry about.

Wife’s gun is factory flush chokes, and already I’m looking for after market extended, just because it’s a pita checking them with a key for her!

 

[Will Hewland]

To be fair, I much prefer the extended chokes (I have after market in my Beretta). Admittedly, I do recheck them at each stand (it has become part of my pre-shot routine as I walk into the stand), but only ever finger tight.

Much easier to get in and out for cleaning etc., and no key to worry about.

Wife’s gun is factory flush chokes, and already I’m looking for after market extended, just because it’s a pita checking them with a key for her!

Chokes don’t need to be tight if checked several times at a shoot, they just shouldn’t be loose.. Just use fingernail to ensure they (flush fit) don’t turn, and put a key on them when back home.

 

[MartynB]

Oh for the original knurled collar Winchoke , all you needed was a pair of water pump pliers once you’d lost the knuckle skinning C spanner ! 

 

[Fred Flintstone]

Chokes don’t need to be tight if checked several times at a shoot, they just shouldn’t be loose.. Just use fingernail to ensure they (flush fit) don’t turn, and put a key on them when back home.

Agree..., I never get the key out when shooting, but still a pain checking them with a key at home! 
I also think there is a tendency to over tighten them (flush) with a key in the first place. It’s a man-thing I reckon ... ‘oh, this has a spanner type tool, must need to be ‘tight’! I dread to think how many blo*dy bolts I’ve sheared in my younger days when tinkering with various old bangers using a socket wrench! It was a truly enlightening day for me in my early twenties when I purchased something called a ‘torque wrench’!

Extended are only ever finger tight to start with, so no real problems encountered (for me, anyway).

 

[Wonko the Sane]

available from about every shooting supply house in the US

I've been using one for +/-20yrs.  Works on any brand.  Quick and easy and damages nothing.

(for example)     https://www.opticsplanet.com/carlsons-sporting-clays-speed-wrench.html

 

[El Spavo]

Mine are just wound up solid beforehand. That's it! Never checked them on a shoot cos they're nipped up every time I clean it or loosen and retighten the chokes, every 4 or 5 shoots or so. I'd forget to do it, so would rather have them proper locked in, and so far never had an issue apart from the quality of the key.

 

[El Spavo]

Answer: Beretta standard choke key works as an absolutely spot on match on Invector+ choke notches, and comes in at a whopping SIX POUNDS!! Problem solved, can carry on the routine I had before.

...makes what Browning charge for a replacement look utterly ridiculous, on top of their now seemingly non existant customer service!