sporting fixed choke

sporting do able with 1/4 & 1/2

yes or no

Yes.

8s for close stuff

5 or 6 for other stuff

yes or no

What I do is, 8's for close, 7 1/2 for edge on/far away...

oh .. Does s half size make THAT much difference then ( not disagreeing just trying to learn as much about a discipline I know very little about) would have thought with open choke you would need bigger shot like 6 to get a denser pattern

What size of pellet do you shoot trap with?

English 7 at the moment

but historically 7.5

I use Italian 8.5 which is 2.2 mm equivalent to English 8 for all my ESP. You cannot use English 5 in registered shoots it's  2.6mm max which is an English 6.  The biggest I have used is English 7 and never felt the need to go any higher. 

8's for the lot.

8s suprises me for long stuff, remember I am talking 1/4 - 1/2 so assumed a bigger shot required for distance stuff

Bigger shot, fewer pellets. I have hit some very long stuff lately at Westfield and Weston wood. Smashed to bits with 1/2 choke and 8's. Your 1/4 and 1/2 choke with 8's is fine. Just concentrate on where to point it, honestly.

ok simplified things then. Begs the question if everything on a esp can be shot quarter half why multi ???

That's a debate that will go on forever, I suspect a lot of us that have shot sporting for any length of time have played about with chokes.

 I will stick a cylinder choke in for a rabbit because it could conceivably jump over a tighter chokes pattern. I will also open up on low driven as I can wonder  slightly off line. 

Both can be shot perfectly well with 1/4 or 1/2 just it's something I do and reckon over the years has got me the odd clay. 

Will Hewland said:

8's for the lot.

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Will, are  Rio Target's loaded with English 8's or continental 8's (7.5's)?

ips said:

ok simplified things then. Begs the question if everything on a esp can be shot quarter half why multi ???

Click to expand...

Because the sheer physics of it prove that it makes sense to have as wide a pattern as possible on any given target, as long as there are not holes in the pattern, so some shooters strive to optimise this. HOWEVER to actually achieve this, choke changers then give themselves a lot of distraction and extra work to do if they are actually going to choke perfectly for a whole course. For me, there is a much greater benefit in leaving my mind quite alone with the clays and not having a whole extra set up to perform on every stand. And, btw, every time I have found a great spreading cartridge, or when I had a m/c gun, I always missed close stuff when my brain got lazy, imagining the great big pattern. Leave it all alone. Placing the muzzle in the right place will be 99.9% of the problem. Anybody who thinks they can break clays with technology will fall down. I was this bloke for a few years, before it dawned on me to keep it simple.

Darkside said:

Will, are  Rio Target's loaded with English 8's or continental 8's (7.5's)?

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They actually measure as 7.75! 

My sentiments exactly. Keep it simple. All very informative from everyone many thanks. Beretta parrallelo here we come. I shall set a new trend of modern sxs use ?

ips said:

My sentiments exactly. Keep it simple. All very informative from everyone many thanks. Beretta parrallelo here we come. I shall set a new trend of modern sxs use ?

Click to expand...

I bought a beretta 471 sxs, becaue it was single trigger, heavy enough and I had the stock extended etc. I could get within about 5 clays (to my o/u) on a normal course. Not as nice to use. Have fun. When you get into ESP you will get an o/u for the job..

I agree keep it simple  1/4 and 1/2   8s  great patterns , we need the advantage not the clays ...  reading target line and lead required  is enough for me to consider  ! 

Will Hewland said:

I bought a beretta 471 sxs, becaue it was single trigger, heavy enough and I had the stock extended etc. I could get within about 5 clays (to my o/u) on a normal course. Not as nice to use. Have fun. When you get into ESP you will get an o/u for the job..

Click to expand...

you may be right but at least I will have a sxs for game ?

One more thing

looking to the future if I got into this sporting malarkey what would be the best big comp to do that isn't THAT big or THAT hard.