Fibre and Choking

[TerryTibbs]

I shot some Hull Pro Fibre 24g 7.5s on the weekend and they are a thoroughly enjoyable and low recoil cartridge if not a bit overpriced. I shot using my simple 3/8-3/8 setup and a fellow shooter claimed that with fibre cartridges you need tighten your chokes. This was a plastic allowable ground but i was using up odd ends of cartridges on my quest to the find the lowest recoiling bang for the buck.

By that estimation I would shoot 1/2-1/2 instead and get the same results (if i was using plastic)? Or would this be the case with lower performance fibre shells. I have shot both fibre and plastic and cannot as of yet discern the difference in performance and quality of kills.

 

[Martinj]

Interesting post, I'm sure there will be a lot of different opinions, having read a number of comparison reports based on actual test results I have formed the opinion that there will not be enough of a difference to make it worth worrying about.

It is commonly thought that Plastic wads give slightly tighter patterns but this has been disproved in tests, at least with some cartridges.

For instance:

https://www.clay-shooting.com/coach...e shown that,quality, can be remarkably slim.

 

[TerryTibbs]

Interesting post, I'm sure there will be a lot of different opinions, having read a number of comparison reports based on actual test results I have formed the opinion that there will not be enough of a difference to make it worth worrying about.

It is commonly thought that Plastic wads give slightly tighter patterns but this has been disproved in tests, at least with some cartridges.

For instance:

https://www.clay-shooting.com/coach...e shown that,quality, can be remarkably slim.

Cheers Martin, i will give that a read.

 

[Will Hewland]

Pro Fibres are a classy shell that hold a decent pattern. As Martin implies, worry about everything else.

 

[chippy]

There was nothing at Northampton Sunday that fibre and 3/8 choke wouldn't break. The longer targets were all showing some belly or dome.

 

[westley]

I very occasionally tighten UP to 3/8 for longer targets or fibre wads. However, last time I shot at a fibre wads ground, I forgot and left my 1/4 & 1/4 Briley chokes in. My score remained pretty much the same, and I noticed no difference in the 'breaks' .

 

[jonz]

have shot both fibre and plastic and cannot as of yet discern the difference in performance and quality of kills.

Think you have just answered your own question, if you don’t notice any differences in keep your focus on hitting the clays and leave the plastic/ fibre issue alone

 

[FreeShot]

It depends - hardness of the shot has far more influence on pattern than wad.

Less difference when shot has a high antimony percentage (hard shot). On low antimony percentage shot (soft shot) there is more difference when shooting with plastic or fibre wad.

Does it matter - IMO it is just like with chokes - as long as you believe it does - it does.

 

[Cuffers]

I really like Hull Cartridges but interestingly (maybe), I really don't like Pro-Fibres (they leave a lot of residue in the barrels). I'm sure it's just me.

I spent some time a few weeks ago putting different odds and sods cartridges that I had left over on to pattern plates using a variety of chokes and distances. Other than the pattern opening and closing slightly when I changed chokes, the results were 'unremarkable'. I think someone else may have mentioned it but at distance (and I mean a Steve Lovett Extreme distance target), I look for harder shot through a tighter choke rather than quality of pattern and that seems to have served me well enough (when I point the gun in the right place!)

It's all about individual confidence. I'm not bothered if a shell is plastic or fibre. I'm shooting Wiltshire Rod & Gun 28g 7.5 felt-wad branded Eleys at the moment and they are breaking the long 60-70 yard looper on stand 2 and the usual fast long L-R crosser on stand 8 at Barbury with no problems at all!

 

[TerryTibbs]

I really like Hull Cartridges but interestingly (maybe), I really don't like Pro-Fibres (they leave a lot of residue in the barrels). I'm sure it's just me.

I spent some time a few weeks ago putting different odds and sods cartridges that I had left over on to pattern plates using a variety of chokes and distances. Other than the pattern opening and closing slightly when I changed chokes, the results were 'unremarkable'. I think someone else may have mentioned it but at distance (and I mean a Steve Lovett Extreme distance target), I look for harder shot through a tighter choke rather than quality of pattern and that seems to have served me well enough (when I point the gun in the right place!)

It's all about individual confidence. I'm not bothered if a shell is plastic or fibre. I'm shooting Wiltshire Rod & Gun 28g 7.5 felt-wad branded Eleys at the moment and they are breaking the long 60-70 yard looper on stand 2 and the usual fast long L-R crosser on stand 8 at Barbury with no problems at all!

I can confirm they do indeed leave a lot of residue in the barrels, but I have found a bore snake shifts it without the use of chemicals. I haven't ventured above 1/2 choke, so i'm unsure of when to choose the tighter chokes.

 

[chippy]

I can confirm they do indeed leave a lot of residue in the barrels, but I have found a bore snake shifts it without the use of chemicals. I haven't ventured above 1/2 choke, so i'm unsure of when to choose the tighter chokes.

A local ex world sporting champion uses 1/2 choke for everything never changes so I wouldn't worry about using more than 1/2.

 

[Will Hewland]

A local ex world sporting champion uses 1/2 choke for everything never changes so I wouldn't worry about using more than 1/2.

I use 1/4 choke. That’s half as much, because I’m only half as good as a World Champion.

 

[chippy]

I use 1/4 choke. That’s half as much, because I’m only half as good as a World Champion.

I use cylinder because iam useless

 

[TerryTibbs]

I’ll be piggy in the middle and stick with my 3/8-3/8 setup and pray.

 

[Clear Miss]

I use 1/4 choke. That’s half as much, because I’m only half as good as a World Champion.

Do you ever worry about pattern on side (ish) on long targets? Example being the B and C birds in this past Sundays pool shoot at Westfield? If you shot it that is.

They were fast moving L-R crossers from a tower with around half face showing at 50+ yards each.

I hit 1 from around 6 of the B and C targets presented having overled them for the first 5 attempts.

I've tended to use 1/2 and 1/2 choke and only alter cartridges to suit close in targets with the thought that I'd rather be over choked than under. This is using a Browning which are slightly looser choked than CG, Beretta etc..

 

[Luke_(NL)]

If someone would pay me a pound for every clay that I didn't break as a result of the clay slipping through the shot pattern, I'd be... five quid better off. Maybe. And I shoot 1/4 & 1/4, albeit with steel cartridges.

 

[Will Hewland]

Do you ever worry about pattern on side (ish) on long targets? Example being the B and C birds in this past Sundays pool shoot at Westfield? If you shot it that is.

They were fast moving L-R crossers from a tower with around half face showing at 50+ yards each.

I hit 1 from around 6 of the B and C targets presented having overled them for the first 5 attempts.

I've tended to use 1/2 and 1/2 choke and only alter cartridges to suit close in targets with the thought that I'd rather be over choked than under. This is using a Browning which are slightly looser choked than CG, Beretta etc..

I do, but really long edge on targets are pretty unusual these days so in reality it’s mostly fine. The Westfield course had none. Didn’t do the pool shoot

 

[Timfish]

I had a 3800 Trap choked by Nigel Teague many years ago. He left 12 and 16 thou in the barrels. Effectively 1/4 and 3/8.

It would kill virtually anything - if I pointed it in the right place. I remember once winning a shoot-off at a local charity shoot where the targets were ridiculous. The 2 others left standing were much better shots than me and almost certainly put heavy chokes into their guns. But it didn’t help them as the targets were so tricky to read.

 

[Clear Miss]

If someone would pay me a pound for every clay that I didn't break as a result of the clay slipping through the shot pattern, I'd be... five quid better off. Maybe. And I shoot 1/4 & 1/4, albeit with steel cartridges.

It's one of those things that without some pretty impressive camera equipment, we'll never know the answer to.

I have pattern tested a few steel game cartridges in the past through 1/4 choke and I was quite disappointed in just how big the gaps in the pattern were for a 32g steel 4 compared to a 30g lead 6, easily enough for a smaller game bird to be missed when the ranges were out past 40 yards. I would imagine that a lead 7.5 or 8 would present a pattern that is a lot more populated for a lot longer.

Given that both the shot and target are continuously moving relevant to each other, I'm not sure how effective pattern testing really is.

 

[Clear Miss]

I do, but really long edge on targets are pretty unusual these days so in reality it’s mostly fine. The Westfield course had none. Didn’t do the pool shoot

You are correct, there was nothing present in the main course that would have troubled a 1/4 choke.

Those B and C bird were quite something. If one had found them with the 1st shot then you'd have gotten all 6 but they did seem to be quite misleading given those who shot before and after us also had trouble finding them.