I have used an L.C.Smith 3" Ideal Grade Longrange Gun exclusively for my waterfowling for the last 5 seasons now. It has the 'special boring', and retains its tight original chokes. I load 1 1/8 ounce Nice Shot or 1 1/4ounce Bismuth, at 1250 fps, in 2 3/4" AA hulls. The gun and 'light' loads kills decoyed geese and ducks with alacrity. IMO there just isn't a need for truly heavy loads unless one is pass shooting, and even then...
Mind you, its effectiveness with such light loads I feel is due to the tight chokes. Enough pellets are brought to bear on the target to effect clean kills, albeit forcing me to bear down a bit more than when shooting an open choked gun- which is not a bad thing IMO.
None of my 12 gauge side-by-sdie guns are choked any more open that Mod and Imp. Mod or Mod and Full- I light tight chokes for all my pass shooting- whether Euro Pheasants from a Tower or Silo, barn pigeons, ducks and geese. The Full choke is the 'experts' choice, and Hunter and other new this- as std factory boring was F&F unless o/w ordered. To paraphrase my gunning Hero- the late T. nash Buckingham-- "You've about had all the thrills shotgunnery offers when you see your dove crumple up in mid-flight and vector down to the ground- stone cold dead in the air- you only get that with a tight choke and appropriate shot sizes and loads. of course, I have to substitute barn pigeons for morning (or afternoon, or even evening) doves here in MI, as there is no legal season on them--
