10 gauge or 12 gauge 3.5

I can only speak to this issue from 32 years of service shooting a 10 ga. And I am sure that some of you may agree with what I am about to say and others will certainly dis-agree and that is OK. When the 10 ga. first hit the market with an autoloader in the early 70s, only winchester was making a 2 oz. load. It was a paper hull, patterned poorly at 40 yards. An outdoor writer named Tom, I can't remember his name developed the one piece plastic wad. Later Federal started producing this wad. During those years the development of 10 ga. & 12 ga. shells got good. After Federal perfected their magnum loads with the one piece wad, NO 12 ga. gun could compete with the 10 ga. magnum. I have stood beside numerous men in goose blinds in TX. and held off on shooting while watching 12 ga. magnums (3") hit birds with shot and could here the shot hit the bird and I would stand up and shoot and kill the bird. This was not a one time deal. Now comes along the 3.5" 12 ga. I have a Remington 870 3.5" and did have a Benelli 3.5". I have made some outstanding long shots with both guns and I have absolutely no regrets ever shooting either gun. The 12 ga. 3.5" is probably the greatest gun built for all purpose you can get. If your stature can handle the weight and size of the 10 ga. and you want the best in long distance guns you can not beat the 10 ga.s built today. On paper the story is not always told. The size of bore of the 10 ga. is one of the advantages. You can push heavy shot loads from the larger bore with a faster burning powder and with a shorter shot string. More shot hits the bird at the same time with a 10 ga. You can use a more open choke to get tighter patterns. All of the loads today- 10 & 12 shoot tighter than they did 20 years ago. Most hunters use a choke that is to tight. The modern loads today shoot like a rifle. One final thing, if you consistantly shoot at birds and hear the shot hit the bird and he flys off or comes down wounded with a 12 ga. you can stomp the bird with a 10 ga. One of the situations that the 10 ga. shines is in truely high wind which you often get at the coast. If I was going to have to buy a truck load of shells that would have to last me my entire life and use them for ducks/geese I would purchase #1 shot. I have killed stone dead more geese with #1s. I wound many more with BB or T shot.

Ithaca MagTen
North Carolina
www.High-Rock.com