As some of y'all may have read, I missed a bird with my System 1 M/L. It was a quick decision to shoot or not and he was at 32 steps and following a hen. I could clearly see his neck and head. Slam dunk with modern shotgun or my TK2000, but I figured it was marginal. I figured dead or missed and I missed. I had the bead right on his noggin and was rock steady - no flinch or anything. I was real comfortable with it at 30, but there was some brush too.
So it got me to thinking. I bought some of the 12 gauge Federal TSS that was on sale at Cabelas (I only hunt with my 20 now and have a lifetime supply of the shells).
So, here are my questions.
1) Could I gently cut open the shell and ease out the intact hull and buffer and shot and push that down the barrel over my chosen powder charge?
2)Could I use my 3" wads that I have that are pre-slit and pour the buffer and TSS out of the shell while not retaining the wad? Use a fiber cushion inside the hull to make sure the wad is full before adding the overshot card (or felt wad). I worry about the buffer and shot being well mixed this way.
3) Do what I do with the HW#7 in the TK and get rid of the buffer and just fill the 3" cup with a mix of TSS #9 and copper plated #5?
This gun if very repeatable, I just am not getting a good 40 yard pattern like the TK and it is my backup M/L (I was carrying it on a hunt with my nephew that had just killed a bird with the TK and we struck this bird before I could get back to the truck for a reload on the TK). I misjudged the distance, but dang it, it was close to my comfort zone. I could hunt it and limit it to 25 yards, but it seems I should be able to get it better.
