Indeed, you didn't say that HE said they balanced one another. Rather, you stated: "If these two loads balance one another . . . " Since you recognize they obviously don't balance one another, why would you make that statement in the first place . . . other than to imply that's what Brister's sentence meant? Looks to me like you were twisting his words, and you're now trying to twist your own to get out of your original twisting. (Where's Chubby Checker when we need him?)
And on your expectations for what a gun will do at various distances, you're starting at 75%, which is already beyond full at 40 yards--and really good for that poor little 28ga, because it's supposed to deform more shot than a larger bore. Black's Wing and Clay, listing full at the standard 70%, suggests an 84% pattern at 35 yards--and that's at a stationary target. And since most people (other than Brister) haven't shot patterns moving at 40 yards, I don't think we can say anything is "normal"--except that I think a 90% pattern at that range, with string in the equation, is a result I think one might have trouble duplicating on a very consistent basis. But I guess we won't know that until we repeat Brister's experiments with moving pattern sheets. And my wife has already told me there's no way she's going to drive the pickup with me shooting.
