454 
FOREST AND STREAM 
October, 1921 
blocks. Load, 3 dms. Hercules E.C., 1% 
oz. 7 Yz ch. shot. 
A 
COMPARISON 
OF 
SHOTGUN 
LOADS 
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Full choke 12 gauge. Trap pattern. 30- 
in. circle at 40 yds. 70% pattern, 3-in. 
blocks. Load 3 dms. Hercules E.C., 1% 
oz. 7*4 ch. shot. 
KILLING POWER, AT THE AVERAGE DISTANCE AT WHICH GAME 
IS STRUCK, IS WHAT DETERMINES THE VALUE OF ANY LOAD 
By C. S. LANDIS 
I T is human nature to want to do 
something better than the other fellow 
can do it. Shooters are no exception. 
We all want a gun and a load that 
will put it all over the next best com- 
bination available. Sometimes we think 
we have it, for a while, at least, and 
then everything is lovely until some- 
one comes along with a combination that 
seems to be just a shade better, and then 
the pursuit of the rainbow starts all over 
again. We have all met the fellow who 
believed that he owned a combination 
that would kill ducks, geese or turkeys 
up to a hundred yards. It usually was 
either a io-lb. ten gauge, a 7-lb. twenty 
or else one of those so-called special 
built-to-my-order 12’s, that was such a 
world beater. While it exactly suited 
him it was not much of a comfort to the 
couple of million chaps who own the 
standard grades and weights of shot- 
guns that kill the greatest portion of our 
game. 
Selecting the best load for the pur- 
pose at hand is not always such an easy 
proposition. A 12-gauge, loaded with 
one of the standard charges and proper- 
sized shot, is usually a fairly safe bet 
for average work, but sometimes a 
change in the load will bring about a 
difference that is well worth the effort. 
Killing power, at the average distance 
at which the game is struck, is what 
determines the value of any load. This 
depends upon the velocity of the shot 
pellets at the striking point, the weight 
of each pellet, and the density and even- 
ness of pattern. The last-mentioned, of 
course, determines the number of pellets 
that hit the bird. 
As the twelve-gauge gun is the stan- 
dard of comparison, we shall compare 
various loads adapted to it in the first 
part of this article and take up the six- 
teen, twenty and ten gauges in due time. 
Tn making a comparison of this kind, 
there are three values to consider : ve- 
locity, penetration and pattern. All of 
them must be regarded in determining 
the killing power of the load. 
V ELOCITY, that is, the speed of the 
shot when it strikes the game, is 
the most important factor in determin- 
ing the killing power of a charge. It is 
customary, however, in ballistic work to 
compare the velocities of different loads 
by comparing the average velocities 
over a given range, A good distance 
for this purpose is the standard shotgun 
patterning range of 40 yards. 
The accompanying table, prepared by 
a leading shell concern, gives the 
average velocity in foot seconds, over 
a range of 40 yards, for each of the 
commonly-used twelve-gauge field or 
trap loads. All the figures are averages 
taken over a considerable interval of 
time and show the velocities obtained 
with Hercules E. C. Bulk Smokeless 
Shotgun Powder in factory loaded 
shells. 
at 40 yds. 68% pattern, 3-in. blocks. 
Load, 3 dms. Hercules E.C., 1*4 oz. 7 
ch. shot. 
TABLE OF VELOCITIES— 12 GAUGE LOADS 
£ V. . 
• H 
. N 
N 
2 N 
2 N 
2 N 
<n . 
N 
o'.c 
jiou 
on c- 
tn • 
U. N 
QC 
20 
tn O 
Qist 
QO 
QO 
QO 
QO 
^ i 1 
o 
CO i-( 
CO 
C0 '-I 
CO rH 
COtH 
CO rH 
COrt 
2 
994 
974 
954 
1014 
994 
1054 
1034 
3 
976 
956 
936 
996 
976 
1036 
1016 
4 
957 
937 
917 
977 
957 
1017 
997 
5 
938 
918 
898 
958 
938 
998 
978: 
6 
919 
899 
879 
939 
919 
979 
959 !; 
7 
900 
880 
860 
920 
900 
960 
940 
754 
891 
872 
851 
911 
891 
951 
931 
8 
882 
862 
842 
902 
882 
942 
922 
10 
844 
824 
804 
864 
844 
904 
884 
A table of this kind is a handy thing [ 
to cut out and keep for future reference, ' 
because it shows at a glance the average 1 
velocity over hunting ranges of every 
commonly used twelve-gauge load of 1 
one of the best-known bulk smokeless ! 
powders. It can be used for a compari- : * 
son of the probable effectiveness of dif- * 
ferent loads and sizes of shot used with ! 
different loads of powder. By examin- I 
ing it we can see at a glance the different I 
velocities obtained by different sizes of 1 
shot. It is quite desirable to have a s 
table of patterns at hand to use when 
making these comparisons. A table of , 
this kind arranged to correspond with , 
the velocity table follows: 
TABLE OF SHOT PATTERNS 
No. of shot in pattern Sizes of Shot 
% Oz. 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
7i 
8 
10 
No. shot 
in charge 
75 
93 
116 
147 
191 
255 
302 
350 
742 
40% 
30 
37 
46 
58 
76 
102 
120 
140 
296 
60% 
45 
55 
69 
88 
114 
153 
181 
210 
445 
75% 
53 
70 
85 
110 
143 
191 
227 
263 
557 
1 Oz. 
No. shot 
in charge 
86 
106 
132 
168 
218 
291 
345 
399 
848 
40% 
34 
42 
52 
67 
87 
116 
138 
159 
339 
60% 
51 
63 
79 
100 
130 
174 
207 
239 
508 
75% 
65 
80 
92 
126 
164 
223 
259 
300 
636 
lVs Oz. 
No. shot 
in charge 
97 
119 
148 
1S9 
245 
327 
387 
449 
954 
40% 
38 
47 
59 
75 
98 
130 
154 
179 
381 
60% 
58 
71 
88 
113 
147 
196 
232 
269 
572 
75% 
73 
90 
111 
142 
184 
245 
290 
337 
716 
VA Oz. 
No. shot 
in charge 
107 
132 
165 
210 
272 
364 
431 
499 
1060 
40% 
42 
52 
66 
84 
108 
145 
172 
199 
424 
60% 
(54 
79 
99 
126 
163 
218 
258 
299 
636 
75% 
80 
116 
124 
15S 
204 
273 
.323 
374 
795 
( Continued on page 473) 
