Maximize Your Range with 2 ¾” Shells

[Broken Brow]

If your 12 gauge only takes 2 3/4" shells, and there is no way you can swing a new shotgun before this fall, you may feel that long range turkey hunting is not an option. That is not the case anymore. You can still extend your range past 40 yards thanks to the advancements of HTL shot. Standard turkey loads don't offer any good options in that shell size. Look at Hevi-Shot Duck loads instead. Don't let the word "duck" bother you. They will put down a turkey just like a turkey load. You are going to have to use #7.5's to have a decent chance. Try the same choke diameters that you would use for standard turkey loads. I would only recommend this for 2 ¾" shells as there are better options in 3" and 3.5" shells.

You can realistically expect to reach 45 to 50 yards with the right choke. At 1300 fps, you will have more than enough penetration for turkey. Give it a try.

 

[HighKnob]

I've got 2 boxes of Win surpreme turkey in 2 3/4" with 1 1/2 oz. #6 HTL. I bought these a couple of years ago for a old M12 Win I have. They shoot good out to 40 yds. That's the best i've been able to do with it. I'll have to give the duck loads a try. I can't even find these Win shells any more. Don't know if they don't make them or just nobody stocks them. I've really enjoyed your posts. Keep em up.

 

[davkrat]

I've heard a lot of the denser than lead tungsten based shot is going away. Now we have all sorts of boutique shot for duck hunting. I'd imagine for turkey hunters there will always be some sort of super high density shot available though. When you buy 5 at a time it's easier to pay the price.