Chokes
Interchangeable choke tubes allow you to quickly and easily change the choke of your shotgun to match specific hunting conditions. Choke tubes are made the highest grade of heat-treated, seamless stainless steel - giving them the strength to handle steel or lead shot without wear or loss of constriction

The inside bore constriction at the muzzle end of a shotgun's barrel is known as the "choke." When a shotshell is fired, shot travels down the bore, exits the muzzle and begins to "spread out." Just as a nozzle on the end of a garden hose controls the spray of water, the choke controls the spread of shot — making it narrower or wider.

 

The three basic chokes for a shotgun are known as "full" (tight constriction; delivers a narrow, dense spread), "modified" (less constriction; delivers a medium-width spread) and "improved cylinder" (even less constriction; delivers a wide, open spread). A gun which has no choke is called a "cylinder bore" and delivers the widest spread. There are also a number of specialty chokes that provide narrower or wider spreads — some of the most popular are for skeet shooting and turkey hunting

 

A shotgun's choke also determines its effective range. The tighter the constriction, the farther the effective range. For instance, a "full" choke is most effective at 40 to 50 yards. An "improved cylinder" is most effective from 20 to 35 yards. Shotgun barrels come with either "fixed" (non-removable) chokes or today's more popular "interchangeable" screw-in choke tubes that allow sport shooters to quickly and easily change chokes to match changing shooting conditions.

Full Choke: Tight constriction for dense pattern (approximately 70% of a shell's total pellets in a 30" circle at 40 yards). Best for trap shooting, pass shooting waterfowl, turkey hunting and shooting buckshot

Modified Choke: Less constriction than full choke (approximately 60% of a shell's total pellets in a 30" circle at 40 yards). Excellent for all-around hunting of waterfowl, long-range flushing upland birds (such as late-season pheasant and sharptail grouse) as well as other small game. Also used for trap shooting.

Improved Cylinder Choke: Even less constriction than modified (approximately 50% of a shell's total pellets in a 30" circle at 40 yards). Ideal for close-in small game shooting, upland bird hunting (such as quail, grouse and pheasant) as well as hunting waterfowl close over decoys. Rifled slugs also perform very well from this choke.

Cylinder Bore: No constriction (approximately 40% of a shell's total pellets in a 30" circle at 40 yards). Most often used by law enforcement for service shotguns.

Skeet Choke: a specialty choke (approximately 50% of a shell's total pellets in a 30" circle at 25 yards) designed to deliver optimum patterns for close-range skeet shooting.

 Handling Your Gun

Make sure your gun fits you. To check this, raise the gun to your face and shoulder with eyes closed--then open them. You should see the front bead right in the groove of the receive. If the bead is above or below, your gun doesn't fit and you should have a good gunsmith adjust the stock accordingly.
Never place the gun to your shoulder and then lower your face to the stock. This makes for tenseness in the neck muscles. Instead, raise the gun to your face, to be backed up by your shoulder; adjust height by raising or lowering elbow.
Handle your gun safely at all times. Keep the receiver open and the muzzle pointed toward the ground. Don't load until you are on the target station and actually ready to call for a target.
Hold your gun lightly, with the fore-end just resting in the palm of your hand. This will let you point the gun smoothly and easily. If you grip or "muscle" the gun, your arm and body will become tense and poor shooting will be the result.
Don't hold the fore-end so far forward that your arm is practically straight. This also produces tenseness. Your elbow should be bent to the degree that is most relaxed for you.

Safety

The primary concern of every shooter...even over shooting excellence... must be safe gun handling. Review the Ten Commandments of Firearms Safety here.
Always keep the action open and the muzzle pointed to the ground. Never load until you are on your position and ready to call for your target.
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Body Position

Make sure you have the correct foot position and gun-point position for every shot.
Bend the left knee slightly to pivot your body for a smooth swing. (It's the right knee, if your left handed.)
Be relaxed but physically alert when calling for your target.

Leading Targets
There are three ways to get your lead:

Swing-through lead--Start with the bead behind the target, overtake it, and fire as you swing through and out ahead of it.
Pull-ahead lead--Start with the bead on the target, pull out in front of it, obtain your lead and fire.
Maintained lead--Start ahead of the target to begin with, adjust your lead and fire.

Follow Through

A stopped gun is probably a lost target. Keep your swing smooth, and follow through after the trigger is pulled on every target.

Shooting

If possible, shoot with both eyes open. This will give you a better sight picture both of the target and of the bead on your barrel. You will also be more relaxed with both eyes open.
Always keep your gaze focused on the target, not on the bead. You should see the bead only as a reference point, either on the target or out in front of it if you're leading it.
Remember that you must fire the moment you have obtained and checked proper lead. If you start rechecking you lead to make doubly sure of it, you will slow down your swing and miss your target.
Never forget to follow through. And on those tough middle stations, 3, 4, and 5, remember that a really positive follow-through is a must.

 The basic fundamentals of skeet shooting are really pretty simple:

- Focus your eye on the target, not the sight bead

- Have a stance that allows you to swing at the hips

- Lead the target (shoot in front of it)

- Keep your head on the gun's stock

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