Anyone ever had any luck with a pattern master choke tube?

The patternmaster is an awesome choke when used with Federal Premium 00 or 000 buck shot. If you ever want/need to use a shotgun for deer hunting, it is the way to go (we are talking 100% patterns in a 16" circle at 40 yards). It's performance is very sensitive to the type of shell used. I spoke with the developer of the choke a few years back and he said it was developed and optimized on the Federal Premium Loads. My experience at the range verified this.

I do not hunt deer much during the general firearms season, but I have shot 3 deer with this load/choke combo in my 870 at ranges varying from 30 to 45 yards. All three dropped in there tracks. My hunting buddy has killed two deer at similar ranges with his patternmaster and Fed. Premium buck shot loads. One dropped in his tracks, the other ran about 30 yards before going down.

This is probably what you really want to know about ........

Out of curiosity, I tried it with various turkey loads from all the major manufacturers and with Hevi-shot. The patterns were certainly lethal, but not what people have come to expect from tightly constricted choke tubes. The patterns were very uniform, but the pattern density was more similar to a standard full choke pattern than what you would likely see with a turkey choke. If you are looking for a good uniform pattern (no holes) with decent density from a turkey load it is a good choke. If you want a setup that will turn a head to pulp, then you probably will not be satisfied. I suppose, for no real good reason, I fall into the later category and shoot a Kicks tube (a .655 for HV #6 and a .670 for HV#4) for turkey hunting.

IMO, this choke tube is widely servicable for many different applications, but really shines for the deer hunter who is required to or wishes to use shotguns (remember to use Fed. Premium Loads).

Hope this helps.

Later,

ODT