What would you guys do??

shadycove

Twelve Pointer
I checked today and Precision Reloading has both Remington #2s and their brand of nickle plated #2s in stock. Data is easy and I will help if you want to try #2s.
And yes, she is impressive.
 

hawglips

Old Mossy Horns
The beautiful thing about patterns and turkey loads is, there is a way to know for sure what is better, when comparing loads. All you have to do is compare patterns, and penetration. With the hard work already done on the penetration question by ballistics software, all you got to do is plug in the numbers and then go to the range.

So, let's look at things objectively through the eye impartiality. No need for opinions or favorites to come into play in a discussion like this. We can look at the real numbers and know what the deal is.

There is a reason you hardly can find #2 lead turkey loads to shoot. If you go by the most widely accepted standards among turkey shell ballistics guys, there just aren't enough pellets for it to be a good turkey load. It's relying too much on the roll of the dice to have one of those pellets to actually hit his vitals. A 2 oz load of lead #2s has only 177 pellets in the entire load. Since we aim at the turkey's head and neck, and the vitals are relatively small area, the traditional approach is a pattern that is dense enough to hit the vitals, with enough energy to penetrate it. The most common standards out there to know your viable range is two-fold - 100 pellets in a 10" circle at the range you're shooting, and 1.25" ballistics gel penetration at the range you'll be shooting. With nickel plated lead 2s, you have way overkill on the penetration, and way underkill on the pellet count for pattern. It's a very lopsided load to shoot.

Here's some load comparisons (sea level, 32 deg, 1200 fps MV):

2 oz lead #2s
pellets in shell: 177
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 97.6 yds

2 oz Hevishot 5s
pellets in shell: 318
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 73.6 yds

So, of those two, the Hevishot 5s are a much superior turkey load, since they have adequate penetration out to 73+ yds, and an 80% greater chance of pellets actually hitting the turkey's vitals (brain and spinal column).

Here's a few more comparisons.

2 oz Heavyweight #7s
pellets in shell: 439
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 80.4 yds

This load has almost 2.5 times as many pellets as the nickel plated lead #2s, and way plenty penetration range. So, an even more superior turkey load.

2 oz TSS 8s
pellets in shell: 502
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 94.2 yds

So, for illustration, comparing the pattern density and penetration energy of TSS 8s with nickel plated lead 2s, a 2 oz load of TSS 8s load would be about like shooting a 5-2/3 oz load of nickel plated lead #2s.

And check this out. A buddy who came over to load shells the other night, loaded him up some 2-1/2 oz shells of TSS 7-1/2s. (Those things give 20 more yds of penetration energy than the nickel plated lead gives, with 213 per ounce, compared to only 88 per ounce with the lead 2s). Here is his 60 yd pattern.

TSS%202.5%20oz%207.5s%2060%20yds%20Rodney%20Blanks_zpsxaznalkv.jpg


So, he has more pellets in a 10" circle at 60 yds, than a 2 oz load of nickel plated lead #2s has in the entire shell. Plus all those other high energy pellets on the outside of the core of the pattern in case his aim isn't perfect.
 

Thutty-thutty

Eight Pointer
The beautiful thing about patterns and turkey loads is, there is a way to know for sure what is better, when comparing loads. All you have to do is compare patterns, and penetration. With the hard work already done on the penetration question by ballistics software, all you got to do is plug in the numbers and then go to the range.

So, let's look at things objectively through the eye impartiality. No need for opinions or favorites to come into play in a discussion like this. We can look at the real numbers and know what the deal is.

There is a reason you hardly can find #2 lead turkey loads to shoot. If you go by the most widely accepted standards among turkey shell ballistics guys, there just aren't enough pellets for it to be a good turkey load. It's relying too much on the roll of the dice to have one of those pellets to actually hit his vitals. A 2 oz load of lead #2s has only 177 pellets in the entire load. Since we aim at the turkey's head and neck, and the vitals are relatively small area, the traditional approach is a pattern that is dense enough to hit the vitals, with enough energy to penetrate it. The most common standards out there to know your viable range is two-fold - 100 pellets in a 10" circle at the range you're shooting, and 1.25" ballistics gel penetration at the range you'll be shooting. With nickel plated lead 2s, you have way overkill on the penetration, and way underkill on the pellet count for pattern. It's a very lopsided load to shoot.

Here's some load comparisons (sea level, 32 deg, 1200 fps MV):

2 oz lead #2s
pellets in shell: 177
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 97.6 yds

2 oz Hevishot 5s
pellets in shell: 318
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 73.6 yds

So, of those two, the Hevishot 5s are a much superior turkey load, since they have adequate penetration out to 73+ yds, and an 80% greater chance of pellets actually hitting the turkey's vitals (brain and spinal column).

Here's a few more comparisons.

2 oz Heavyweight #7s
pellets in shell: 439
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 80.4 yds

This load has almost 2.5 times as many pellets as the nickel plated lead #2s, and way plenty penetration range. So, an even more superior turkey load.

2 oz TSS 8s
pellets in shell: 502
distance of 1.25" ballistics gel penetration: 94.2 yds

So, for illustration, comparing the pattern density and penetration energy of TSS 8s with nickel plated lead 2s, a 2 oz load of TSS 8s load would be about like shooting a 5-2/3 oz load of nickel plated lead #2s.

And check this out. A buddy who came over to load shells the other night, loaded him up some 2-1/2 oz shells of TSS 7-1/2s. (Those things give 20 more yds of penetration energy than the nickel plated lead gives, with 213 per ounce, compared to only 88 per ounce with the lead 2s). Here is his 60 yd pattern.

TSS%202.5%20oz%207.5s%2060%20yds%20Rodney%20Blanks_zpsxaznalkv.jpg


So, he has more pellets in a 10" circle at 60 yds, than a 2 oz load of nickel plated lead #2s has in the entire shell. Plus all those other high energy pellets on the outside of the core of the pattern in case his aim isn't perfect.

That 60 yd pattern is probably the most impressive load I've ever seen. Wow!! Your statement about penetration and density makes perfect sense to me. I'm rethinking my position on larger shot always being better


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Top