Finally got the courage (or lost the sense) enough to fire a 3 1/2in shell in my whisper-light NEF single-shot.

We flipped a coin to see who would take their lumps first. My dad won (or lost, depending on your perspective), pulled out the wicked looking shell and examined like it was a suppository. He inserted into the magazine, shucked it into the chamber and said, "Lord, for what we are about to do . . . " When he pulled the trigger, it turned his pump gun into an auto with the shell flying out of the chamber and into the windshield of the truck! It's as if the gun said, "Get that outta here and don't you EVER try that again!"

Then, in a stroke of brilliance, I decided to fire one in my little 5lb gun. I folded up a jacket between the gun's butt and my shoulder, lined up the shot, squeezed the trigger, and crumpled on the hood of the truck whimpering for my mother. That little gun's muzzle jumped at least 18" in the air, and the recoil smashed the trigger guard into my fingers bruising my trigger finger and skinning my knuckles. Good times!

Of course they always say that when you're shooting at a gobbler, you won't feel a thing and usually that's true. But this is the kind of recoil that breaks collar bones when your shoulder is pinned between the gun and a tree. I'm thinking I'd probably feel THAT! Patterning your turkey gun: good idea. Shooting a lot of these shells: recipe for a wicked flinch!

PM,

Too funny. Hope your shoulder is doing better. I decided a while back that I wasn't going any larger than a 3". I like power too, but not when it is turned against me. Now that 3 1/2"s are common I think the next generation will fire grape shot and be carried on wheels.

Vic

PM..is it a 12 or 10 guage? Does it have a weight in the stock(take offthe butt plate and look). Do you have a slip on recoil pad on it? My NEF ten has a counter weight in the stock, slip on pad, and I made a monte carlo cheek piece out of hard foam, taped on the stock, in order to hold my cheek tight to the gun. All of that helps , and in fact my 870 3 inch gun has more recoil I think. I do theink the 3.5 12 guage kick more than the 10 becasuethe shot and load is coming out of a smaller diamter area at the muzzzle.

That's why I sold my 835 years ago and switched to a 3" Winchester 1300. I couldn't take the pounding of those 3 1/2" shells at the pattern board anymore!! After only just 9 shots, I was done for almost 2 weeks trying that stunt again!!
NO more 3 1/2" shells for this guy!!

Good ouestion. If velocity and payload was the same, would the recoil force be the same between a 3 1/2 12 and a 10 ga. I'm thinking yes. its the gun configuration ( not barrel dia.) that would be variable. What say ye?

Hey MT, didn't you read Mossbergs label? It clearly says: "Maims at one end Kills at the other" After a few shots with it, you can easily figure out which end is which

A 10 ga pushing the same payload at the same velocity as a 12 gauge should have slightly less recoil. It is a question of surface area. The wad in the 10 has more surface area than the 12. To get the load moving up to the same velocity a 10 will require less force per unit area since it has more area to work with. For example, if you compare a 1 to 2 square inch surface, the 2 sq in surface will require half the force of the 1 sq in surface to lift the same amount of weight. It is just like a lever, a longer lever will lift the same weight with less effort.

Vic

GN, it's a 12 and I'm fairly certain it does not have any counterweight added. I bought it new and I know I haven't done it. The 3" Hevis do very well in my gun, and after this, I've decided that the 3" is where I need to stay with this gun! They pattern very well, and I don't feel like I'm "settling" for anything less than a respectful, clean-killing pattern. That said, it would be interesting to try a 3 1/2" Hevi-Shot shell since they also have a bit less recoil . . . wait a minute! What am I saying!!? (I don't think they make a 3 1/2" shell anyway.)

You really don't feel it when shooting at a Gobbler..

. . . unless it breaks your clavicle.

The following are taken from various sources including the recoil nomograph in the Handloader's Digest 8th Edition, the online recoil calculator at Big Game Info (http://www.biggameinfo.com/RecoilCalc.asp), or calculated from the formula given in the Lyman Reloading Handbook, 43rd Edition. The formula is:


E = 1/2 (Wr / 32) (Wb x MV + 4700 x Wp / 7000 x Wr)squared

Where E = recoil Energy in ft. lbs., Wr = Weight of gun in pounds, Wb = Weight of shot+wad in grains, MV = Muzzle Velocity of shot in feet-per-second, Wp = Weight of powder in grains.

Alot of 3 1/2 12s are overbored to 10 ga so I'm told. Most of the guys i know that have 3 1/2 capable guns shoot 3" as their best turkey load/pattern.

Bird Dog,

Good equation. It will provide a good estimate. I have talked to a lot of guys who shoot 10 and 12s and they say a 10 is a little milder with equivilent shot load and velocity. Anyway they kick like mules.

As to a 3 1/2 shooting 3s better, it is probably the same reason a slug gun does. The bore which receives the shell only has so much releaf for the shell itself. When the folds of the crimp open up they have to go somewhere. In a 3 1/2 they can lay against the walls of the chamber while shooting a 3" shell. If you shoot a 3 1/2 in a 3 1/2 the folds wind up in the start of the bore. This compresses the shot stream a little starting an ossilation in the pellets as they go down the barrel. With a 3 in a 3 1/2 the folds line up with the bore and don't disturb the shot flow and allow for a better pattern.

A guru on slug hunting said the same thing about slugs. When the roll crimp comes out it has to go some where. Shooting a 3" shell in a 3 1/2" chamber will give improved accuracy. I would think the same would apply for a 2 3/4" in a 3" chamber if it allows the plastic haul to lay against the side of the chamber and not interfere with the slugs entry into the bore where it engages the rifling.

Just a guess. That is why patterning is so important.

Vic

I've got a single shot NEF 10 ga. I used to turkey hunt with that kicks like a freakin horse. It'll knock the snot out of a gobbler, though. I just bought a Browning A5 10 ga. from a buddy for $340 because he just couldn't handle the kick. I think I'll use it for goose hunting to give me a little extra distance on those birds that skirt the spread.