What steel shot size for ducks should I use?
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Since the move away from lead, duck hunters have been faced with the problem of matching the right steel load with their gun to effectively down ducks. Thankfully the steel shot of yesteryear has been replaced with much higher quality loads on the market today.
To me it comes down to two things: speed and shot size. I am a big proponent of fast steel. I've seen the difference it makes when hunting ducks. I consider anything over 1,500 feet per second to be "fast steel". I only shoot steel that travels faster than 1,500 fps. I have found the Winchester Xpert shells traveling at 1,550 to work quite well, despite their relative bargain price. But enough about speed, you came here expecting a post on shot size. Well my unscientific response is 2 shot. I have run the full gamut of shot sizes over the years trying to find the "perfect" duck load. I have used as small as 6 shot for teal over decoys to as large as BBB. My experience has shown me that you can kill ducks with the smaller shot, but it 
will also lead to more cripples and birds that keep on flying. For this reason I have settled on 2 shot. When I hit a duck I want that duck to come down, there is nothing worse than being centered on a duck and watching it fly away hurt but not much worse for wear. 2 shot has been very good in this regard.
I encourage you to take some 2 shot to the duck blind with you the next time you are out. I think you will notice an improved kill rate if you have been using smaller shot sizes.
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Comments
2 shot works well at close ranges assuming you actually hit the bird! Not trying to be a smart alec, just pointing out that it may be a slight bit harder to hit the bird when at 10 yards than at 30 due to the pattern being so tight.
Shot size does NOT have anything to do with pattern size. That is controlled by your choke. 2 shot works great at short range. I think I have settled on 2 or 3 shot for ducks.
Micah,
Perhaps I misspoke with use the term “pattern size” when I actually meant “pattern density”. Pattern density is absolutely a output of both the choke restriction as well as the shot size. Smaller shot size = more pellets = denser pattern. And this all falls back into what is important when out duck hunting. Denser patterns = more kills when it is combined with enough pellet energy to efffectively kill a passing duck. Thanks for the comment!
I shot a 10 gauge for years after the switch to steel. In the early days, steel shot was beyond poor and the extra payload and power of the 10 gauge helped to make up for that. #4’s would result in clean kills over dekes.
This year I switched to my old remington 870 express mag in 12 gauge. Even with the advancements in shot shell technology and performance (1550 fps), I’ve found the #4’s to be lacking. Currently using #2’s in 3″ with good results over dekes.
Brett,
I would tend to agree. I used to shoot 4 shot quite a bit and even went as small as 6 shot when targeting teal early season, but neither seem to have enough knockdown affect when it comes to steel shot. 2 shot has been a great load for my duck hunting since I switched some years back. Thanks for the comment!
Is 2 shot good at killing ducks at short ranges as it would be for longer?