Chokes and comps?

[Stan]

Evening all,

Some very basic questions regarding chokes:
Are there rules on choke usage in comps?
Can you change chokes as you go round?
Do people do that?

Stan

 

[Will Hewland]

Evening all,

Some very basic questions regarding chokes:
Are there rules on choke usage in comps?
Can you change chokes as you go round?
Do people do that?

Stan

No rules. You can change as you like. Massive subject of discussion. I don’t.

 

[Martinj]

yes, wouldn't it be nice if changing chokes was so simple that you could change them at will (no pun intended) and use the perfect combination for every stand.
If I'm using 1/4 and 1/2 I might change to 1/2 & 1/2 for odd long pairs but there's usually no need.
Some people change frequently as they go round, I find it distracting and slightly stressful as your turn to shoot is fast approaching, I would prefer to stick with my 1/4 and 1/2 unless both birds are far out.

 

[donna]

Never bothered me when I had a fixed choke gun but they were tight chokes. When I got my new gun I had multi chokes, again I hardly ever changed them until Phil said what was the point of having a multi if you dont use them? I struggled badly on very close targets due to issues with eye dominance etc until I had my lessons and I am now of the opinion that if changing a choke gives you a bit of confidence then go for it. I tend to stick to 1/4 and 3/8 and switch over barrels if needed BUT if there is a target really close I will put in a cylinder or a 1/2 for a long target.

Like Martin though, if I get to a stand and I’m up first i don’t always change as I don’t want to be rushed and put other people off but if I’ve plenty of time then I will.

Honestly - do what’s best for you. If it gives you confidence to change then do it. No rules on changing going round although if I haven’t time to change a choke I might use a bigger size cartridge instead. Again, I’m not good enough or intelligent enough to understand whether that makes a blind bit of difference at all! Just feels good when you do smash that clay up.

I actually had a cylinder in and forgot to change back to the 3/8. Went to next comp, was hitting stuff very nicely and got to a close target. Thought to myself I’ll put in my cylinder for this only to find out I’d been shooting with cylinder and 1/4 all along. What that cylinder hit was unbelievable. It’s all in the head!!!

 

[Jonny English]

With me being a bit of a simpleton I need to keep my head as clear as possible to concentrate on the task at hand of centreing the gun on the target. 3/8 and 3/8 in all the time for me, I can manage without demons in my head wondering about choke.

I find that when I start introducing choice, be it with cartidge size, wad type, choke, lense colour, beads, stock dimensions, clothing etc I'm soon on a slippery slope to insecuritu and poor scores. I have to keep everything as simple and standard as I can to focus on technique and concentration rather than hardware to shoot well.