doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Steel loads in a sxs

Does anyone shoot steel loads in a Browning BSS? I assume no full choke. I use steel in other guns and am very happy with the results...

I know a few guys who do. Absolutely no ill effects other than the typical heavy load issues you�d have with any SxS shooting loads like that on a consistent basis....the only issue being the gun will eventually go off the face. It might take literally decades of heavy use for that to happen. Make sure the chokes are open enough (nothing tighter that .020), make sure your draw bolt is nice & snug. That�s about it. Lots of guys out there shooting Citoris, SKB�s, Nikko�s, Mirokus, 101�s, (lots of those are the same gun I know) etc from the BSS era with zero ill effects.
I myself use a late 80�s early 90�s SKB O/U with steel. It digest a lot of heavy 1 1/4 Oz loads with ease.

Surely light 7/8oz loads are the way to go in classic s/s guns for normal shooting ??? I`ve used 7/8 steel in 20b to decent effect so would`ve thought it would be good in a 12b s/s?

Light 7/8 steel loads for ducks?? Maybe for early season teal here in the States, but that�s about it. You try shooting a 35 or 40 yard late November or December mallard with a 7/8 Oz load and it�ll bounce off like the birds wearing Kevlar.

He really didn�t say what he was gonna use the gun for actually, so I just assumed with him being in Alaska, that he was talking about waterfowl.

I don`t shoot ducks sorry ,was talking about game birds !!!All we can get here atm are 11/8oz upwards in 12g.These are pretty unpleasant in a normal s/s imho.

True. Some of these loads can be pretty unpleasant in a �soft� shooting gas gun too.

I shoot steel in one of my sxs guns. Or I used to. I mostly shoot Bismuth now. However, Briley's made it clear that steel was fine in not more than modified chokes, as stated above by others, and also to not use larger than #4s. I have adhered to both of those two stipulations for a quarter century now of problem-free shooting. But the advantage of Bismuth is loading my own to lower pressures and less recoil and not giving up any measurable performance.

rule of thumb: if it was made before '89, be cautious
shooting steel...

an if hit were made prior to '69, don do hit...

with certain exceptions, of course...

My first post on the BSS was for a friend who insists on using a sxs for everything, including geese. He started by using bismuth, then went to one of the other non-toxic 3" 12 ga loads for "old guns". He is not the world's best shot, but does get birds.

Birds. I am talking about ducks like pintail, mallard, etc. and Black Brant and small to medium size geese.

I was just out at Izembek Lagoon where 150,000 brant come through on their way to WA, OR, CA, and Mexico. %0,000 winter at Izembek. This is near the birthplace of "weather". Shooting over salt water in wind requires That you don't just cripple birds which will swim and dive away from your dog.

For my waterfowl shooting, I use a Beretta O/U made in about 1986 (686) with updated steel proof choke tubes (Modified). Ultimately, I want to recommend to my friend that he use steel (If he has the right chokes.) I use 3" BB, 1, 2, and 3 steel shot and it has worked well for me. The larger shot kills surprisingly well at distance. I shoot 1-1/8 or1-1/4 ounce loads that are pretty fast.

So the consensus is that the BSS will handle steel.

Thanks for the comments!

I've used 3" steel on early season ducks in my BSS 20 with LM/IM chokes, no problem. Friend shoots 3" steel on ducks in a BSS 12 with one barrel fixed Mod and a Briley tube in the other barrel, no problems.