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12 gauge buckshot, maximum effective range?

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    12 gauge buckshot, maximum effective range?

    I realize it will vary by shotgun, but assuming a typical 28 inch barrel shooting 3" magnum buckshot (00 or 000), what would the maximum effective range for wild hogs? This is of course ruling out the spray and pray method.

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    #2
    Pattern your gun.

    I’ve shot, killed, and recovered pigs with #4 buckshot out to 60 yards.

    Have shot further, hit them, but didn’t find them.

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      #3
      30-40 yards, maybe?

      I shot one at 18 yards two years ago and it ate up 2 3" 00buck like it was nothing. Luckily, one of the pellets hit im in the nose and he didnt know what to think and just wandered off into the brush shaking his head and snorting. Had to get down and finish him off with the trusty 10macmilly.

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        #4
        I’ll kill them out of a helicopter pretty regular at 50-60 yds, any further than that when hit run pretty far

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          #5
          If you want to flip them over and actually find them about 30- 40 yards.
          They can take a few scattered pellets a long ways

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            #6
            Originally posted by cbd10pt View Post
            If you want to flip them over and actually find them about 30- 40 yards.
            They can take a few scattered pellets a long ways
            I concur with this statement. You can get better chokes for tighter patterns but the difference is like night and day 40 yards and under.

            60-100 yards it really loses the magic

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              #7
              Thanks everyone! That was kind of the range I had assumed based on personal experience.

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                #8
                I did a lot of reading a while back, I have never shot a deer, pig or anything else of similar size with a shotgun, either buckshot or slugs. I found multiple groups, that are from east of here, where they do a lot of hunting with shotguns. Guys will tell you they have killed deer at 80 yards, but then will tell you, you are best off, not shooting at anything past 40 yards. 40 yards seems to be the recommended max safe range. Then the 000 buck is not very popular at all, most like shot size under 00 buck. Typically what I read, was number for is best for 20 ga., 12 ga. work best with number 2 or 0 buck.

                Then slugs are supposed to much more deadly out past 40 yards, than buck shot of any size. The only size buckshot I could find locally was 000 buck. I tried some, at 20 yards, it's kind of impressive. I would like to try some number 2 or 0 buck. I found a bunch of rifled slugs, so I bought a bunch of those in 12 ga. and 16 ga.

                I still want to give the buckshot a try someday, but I think I will try out the slugs first, really curious what type of damage they do. Always thought they should make one heck of a big hole in something.

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                  #9
                  I’ve killed quite a few deer(15-20) and 1 pig, and seen many more killed with buckshot. To get the best out of the gun you definitely need to pattern it. Overchoke it and you can blow the pattern pretty bad. Typically, a factory full will give you a good killing pattern out to 30-40 yards with 3” 000 or 00. The furthest I killed a deer with buckshot was right about 70 paces on a dog drive, and she went arse over nose with one shot. The gun I was shooting shot buckshot like nothing I’ve ever seen though.


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                    #10
                    Thanks again everyone! I grew up in South Carolina hunting deer with dogs and buckshot. Killed many a deer that way, but no hogs. I would assume that with thicker skin, 00 or 000 would be best and had assumed ranges might be limited.

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                      #11
                      Originally posted by BoneDigger View Post
                      Thanks again everyone! I grew up in South Carolina hunting deer with dogs and buckshot. Killed many a deer that way, but no hogs. I would assume that with thicker skin, 00 or 000 would be best and had assumed ranges might be limited.

                      Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

                      Awe, the good old days, except we were in Louisiana.


                      From my Make Believe World

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                        #12
                        put a red dot on it so you can truly pattern/adjust the pattern 00 is hell on em out to 50 ive just been using a carlson coyote choke works good

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                          #13
                          00 3" 12 gauge in a semi auto is a great tool to eliminate 25% of a sounder in less than 2 seconds.
                          I have done it a couple times by walking right up in the middle of the sounder and letting the mom with the smallest piglets have it first, then bust 4 more adults

                          An Ar on a running line of pigs with a good tripod works well also
                          Attached Files

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                            #14
                            Finding the right choke/pellet combo for your shotgun is the key-- I grew up hunting deer in NC with buckshot and recovery rates go way down past about 50 yards.

                            The TSS shot would be really interesting as a hog load-- much greater density, better penetration. Probably not economical for hogs unless you roll your own though.

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                              #15
                              A much more effective shot 40yrds and under on hogs is #4 buck with a Carlsons coyote choke. You would not believe the killing power out to that range. Put the bead on the head neck area and goodnight!!

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