Like many people you may be considering trying some steel shot for your game shooting this season, but with so much misinformation around online, how do you know where to start?

We must start by realising that what is right for somebody on Facebook may not be right for us. Add to this that the range of biodegradable steel shot cartridges on offer is growing every month and we could be forgiven for feeling confused and uncertain.

NARROWING IT DOWN

To narrow down the increasing range of options we must take into account two factors - our chosen quarry and our chosen gun. The significant measurements of chamber length and choke on our chosen gun will cross off some of the cartridge choices and although that might be restrictive it makes the decision easier.

We must also be aware that steel shot itself falls into one of two categories - Standard Steel and High-Performance steel. Standard steel can go through any nitro proof barrel in good condition (the Proof House also says that pre-1954 proof marks should be submitted for Nitro re-proofing) and no one has set a lower threshold for barrel wall thickness for nitro proof guns. The other factor to be aware of is the current guidance from the British Proof Authorities calls for half choke or less for use of any standard steel cartridge. It is important to say at the outset that if you are in any doubt about any of these measurements you should have them assessed by a competent gunsmith with a professional wall thickness gauge, bore gauge and a chamber gauge. For peace of mind, it is worth doing it anyway even if you think you know, and if you are near us at Holts Auctioneers it is a service we offer free of charge.

High-Performance steel can only go through barrel stamped with the Fleur De Lys Symbol.

ENGLISH SIDE BY SIDES

The majority of English side by sides will have chambers that measure 2 1/2 inches or 65mm. There are some exceptions to this as some guns have had their chambers lengthened to 2 3/4 inches or 70mm, and some were made a 3-inch chambers 76mm. Essentially you will be limited as a consumer in the current market to one choice: Eley Grand Prix Traditional Steel 30g 4 (2.9mm) with a bio-degradable wad. These cartridges have just hit the shelves and others for 65mm guns will follow (I am testing some now). All shotgun cartridges are looking for a good balance between the penetrative size of larger shot, and good patterns of smaller shot. The shot size of 2.9mm - 3mm maybe a sweet spot between these two variables for reasonable game at reasonable distance. The other factor to be aware of is the current guidance from the British Proof Authorities calls for half choke or less for use of any standard steel cartridge. These 2.9mm shells will likely be fine for most game shooting. Few people who regularly shoot higher pheasants and partridges use side by sides these days, and these cartridges may not be up to the task of a January cock pheasant coming off a West Country escarpment. I would be looking to use a High-Performance steel load and a larger shot size in this situation.

So far, so straight forward. There is only one product and to begin with, it will be offered in one shot size only.

As you will notice, chamber length and shot sizes will be given both in inches and in millimeters. This is because infuriatingly, different manufactures in different countries measure steel shot sizes differently. Eley’s size 4 is not the same as Gamebore’s size 4, but a millimeter is a millimeter no matter who you talk to. I believe that millimeters should be mandatory on all cartridge packaging because, as we shall see later with bigger shot, there is a safety aspect to be considered. Size does matter.

MODERN SIDE BY SIDES & OVER & UNDERS APPROXIMATELY 10 YEARS OLD OR OLDER.

These guns are not likely to be proofed for High-Performance steel (although there are exceptions) and may have chambers either 2 3/4 inches (70mm) or 3 inches (76mm) but we will focus on 2 3/4 inches (70mm). For users of these guns, the options expand. For specialist days after snipe, woodcock, and perhaps for teal on a flight pond, Eley’s Bio-wad steel 28g 7 will fit the bill nicely. For grouse, partridge, and as a good all-rounder for most pheasants, Gamebore’s Dark Storm Precision Steel with the new bio-wad and ‘Quad Seal’ in a 32g 5 (3mm) or 4 (3.25mm) will almost certainly do everything you want it to. Again, these are very new to the market and may not be available everywhere to begin with.

Other options to consider at this point are BioAmmo with their 30g 5 (2.9mm) which I have found to be effective on pigeons, and Jocker, with their cardboard tube-style wad, in 32g 4 (3.1mm) and 5 (2.9mm).

MODERN OVER & UNDERS & SIDE BY SIDES PROOF TESTED FOR HP STEEL.

These guns will be the most versatile because of the wider choice available in the current market. However, we are yet to see 'biowads' in the kind of HP Steel cartridges that have been proved to be capable of killing ducks and geese at range on the foreshore.

Having said that, some of the new offerings qualify as HP Steel by the fact that their shot size is over 3.25mm – this is why size in millimeters matters. Bioammo 32g 3 (3.5mm) currently falls into this category and while they would undoubtedly (given their larger shot size) be effective for mallard and pheasants the importers tell me that they will be made with 3.25mm shot in the future. The other cartridge that naturally falls into this category is Gamebore’s Precision Steel in 32g 3 (3.5mm). Again, for a mixed day of pheasant and duck through ¼ or ½ choke this is likely to be very effective.

Some might think that fractions of a millimeter in shot size cannot make any real difference to performance, but we are having to learn anew about steel shot as a community. The old knowledge of lead shot and what works is of little use to us - steel shot behaves very differently. As with much in life, it is about finding the correct balance for our own style of shooting. If we are on a specialist day then the choice it seems is a little easier to make. One of the challenges we face is that we are very often presented with a mixed day of pheasant and partridge sometimes with some wildfowl mixed in. In this situation, a compromise is called for and it may be that our own choices out in the field when making the selection of which birds to shoot and which to leave has to be adjusted as a result. If we go large and shoot 3.25mm – 3.5mm we might be effective against good distance pheasants but far less effective at partridges at a similar range. If we compromise and choose 3mm – 3.25mm then we will have to exercise some self-restraint when faced with a climbing cock pheasant that used to be on the limit of our range when we shot lead.

When we eventually see the 34 and 36g loads with 3.65- 4mm (2’s and 1’s) with biodegradable wads then all but the most specialised forms of game shooting will be catered to.

SMALL BORES

The exception to that will be the smaller bore shooters. Much of what can be applied to 65mm 12 bore loads currently offered in 4 (2.9mm) should apply to 16 bore fans like myself but I fear that we will be the last to be catered to over the transition period given we are considered a small subset of game shooting.

Given the differences in steel shot sizes, we must be cautious of taking what works for others as gospel truth for our kind of shooting. Our own experimentation and build-up of experience will be far more instructive than the received wisdom of the internet. If we go in with an open mind and a willingness to try different products we may find that the path to confidence in a cartridge we trust is a shorter one.

PRODUCTS ON THE MARKET IN 2020

FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE SHOOTING TIMES, SEPTEMBER 2020