Chokes and fox's

elius

Just wondering what Choke you lads would recommend for fox's? Im going to be using a semi auto.
Any tips advice welcome
Cheers...

johngalway

Either 3/4 or full for me.

To be honest I don't much bother about it, whatever's in the gun does me!

Double Barrel

Plus one for what John recommended.

meathstevie

As thight as you have ( minimum 1/2 I'd say ) and a good heavy cartridge.

dwighet

Choke em till there eyes pop...

pedroeibar1

U/O or SxS or semi-auto make no difference, it's how and where you point it. They are not the best for foxing, due to effective range.

Shotsize is much more important than choke.

Distance from which you shoot is more important than choke.

Last season I took a snap shot at foxy from about 30 metres with a 12 bore, no.6's, choked quarter and half and he was dead when I got to him. Not sure which barrell, but neither was he.
P.

FISMA

How close can you get to Mr Fox? I would expect that you will want the maximum range, thus, full (as mentioned before), extra full, or turkey.

Tackleberrywho

I used to have an 1187 with a Turkey choke and it got some distance for dropping duck on the shannon.

Never tried it on a madra rua though.

It added an inch to the barrels length though.

First fox I killed was with a 12 G Alphamax 4's I think at about 20 yards

FISMA

20 yards, ouch. At that distance you could have used a skeet choke.

There's a bit too much pressure on the foxes in my neck of the woods. The ones who are left know the game and will not let you get in that close when lamped.

johngalway

/off topic... First foxes...

I remember when I started shooting first. My mate bet it into me "You have to be quiet!", quite effectively - God knows what's happened since.

I was out on Dad's land with the Baikal. There was really heavy dew on the ground, great for dampening (pardon the pun) sounds of grass underfoot.

Night was as quiet as a grave. Could hear gravel crunch under the tires of cars across the bay. Spotted this fox way way off downhill. Crept really really quietly down the fence line towards him, went well over 200 yards. He never budged.

Problem was he was sat in comfy behind this hillock and all I could see are his eyes and ears. I hadn't ever shot a fox on my own up to this point. Fence was blocking me to the left, and rushes I think to the right, and he wasn't for moving.

He ran off down the cliff after a bit of a stand off. Went home :mad: Told the mate when I saw him the next day.

"Oh, you should have whistled at him so he'd rise up his head" :rolleyes:

" 'Sake, I was being quiet !!"

Don't know what choke I had in that night but the cart wasn't good enough for shooting through hills

Tackleberrywho

FISMA wrote: »

20 yards, ouch. At that distance you could have used a skeet choke.

There's a bit too much pressure on the foxes in my neck of the woods. The ones who are left know the game and will not let you get in that close when lamped.

It was an old baikal s/s.

It was the open barrel.
The dog and I were out after duck, when the dog went ballistic running around a bush.

He was the only fox I shot with the 12g, rest were with .22lr .223 and a few with a 6.5 Norma BT

But the Turkey choke was some man on the shannon with 3" magnums.
The Ducks normally flew very high so I needed all the range she could muster.

My current shotty I use the no 2 choke as a general choke.

Don't do as much duck shooting now. I got more into the rifles around that time.

FISMA

Ducks on the Shannon appear to have a degree in Ballistics Physics.

THey know exactly the height at which they can fly and the distance off shore to avoid the normal shotgun loads.

They're also the most skitterish things I have ever seen. Don't want to be within 300y of a person.

Perhaps, they have encountered yourself tackleberrywho!:)

Tackleberrywho

FISMA wrote: »

Ducks on the Shannon appear to have a degree in Ballistics Physics.

THey know exactly the height at which they can fly and the distance off shore to avoid the normal shotgun loads.

They're also the most skitterish things I have ever seen. Don't want to be within 300y of a person.

Perhaps, they have encountered yourself tackleberrywho!:)

By god they have.

I have a lot of shooting on the shannon.
And you would need a 300 yard shotty to get most of them.

Several mornings we went out in mist, thems are the best times as we got quite close and dropped a few.

We used to go out to the islands early and row the boat.

Used to work most times.
We would only use the engine to get home.
Rowing kept ya warm on frosty mornings

barrym682

elius wrote: »

Just wondering what Choke you lads would recommend for fox's? Im going to be using a semi auto.
Any tips advice welcome
Cheers...

I been shooting foxes a long time both with rifle and 12g semi. The best time of year for shooting foxes with 12g is august when the corn is cut, lamping over stubble fields, you will be able to call young foxes right in to 25 or 30 yards and shoot them with a 3/4 choke and a decent no 4 shot size prob 36g load sometimes 42g for longer range.

gunning84

i do a good bit of fox shooting myself and agree with barrym682, i use full choke with 42g no1 in my semi , it covers the in close fox and the longer ones, nothing worse than being left short

customrifle

3/4 choke and fiocchi magnums work great in my semi auto. Think they are no. 2s. I patterned them before on a fox target at 50 yards and ten or 12 pellets were in the fox. Shortly after was out lampin, was one and only night to bring shotgun, a fox came in to call, was further out than would usually have liked but was confident with way the fiocchi had patterned so sent a quick 2 shots downrange. Fox dropped on spot, was fine vixen close to 50 paces. Since then have always used the fiocchi s when out fox driving.