MAKING SENSE OF MAGNUM LOADS
"Magnum" shotshells are designated as such by ammunition manufacturers. Part of the reason is to convince you that they shoot better and, thus, ammo companies sell more shells at a higher price. Some experts claim that magnum loads don't perform any better than regular loads, while others say that they do make a difference. Before spending extra cash for these high-brass cartridges, you need to know more about them to determine if they're worth purchasing for your late-season hunts.

The word magnum refers to the quantity of gunpowder in a shotgun shell, which is usually the maximum amount possible for the shell size. The theory is that the more gunpowder available, the harder, faster and farther it can push the pellets toward the target. This energy is commonly called "knockdown" power, and it provides cleaner kills at longer ranges because of the increased velocity.

Steel shot has been required in many regions for waterfowl hunting for nearly 30 years. Steel shot complicates the magnum debate because steel carries less energy than lead, in fact, only about half as much. Therefore, if you want your steel magnums to have the comparable hitting power of lead magnums, you have to shoot steel that's two shot sizes larger. In other words, steel BBs hold their energy about equivalently to lead No. 2s.

Also, at first look, it appears that steel might have an advantage in pellet numbers because steel's lighter, and, therefore, it takes many more pellets to weigh an ounce. But because the pellet diameter is the same -- No. 2 lead is the same size as No. 2 steel -- you can only pack only so many pellets into a given shell space. That's one reason they created the greater-capacity 3 1/2-inch magnums in the 12 gauge. Consider that a 3-inch turkey shell can hold 2 ounces of lead, but a 3-inch waterfowl shell can hold only 1 3/8 ounces of steel. As another example, a 2 3/4-inch 12-gauge shell can hold a full 1/4-ounce more lead than steel.

Because steel pellets of equal size to lead pellets carry less energy, the ammo manufacturers add more powder to steel loads to compensate for steel's lack of velocity. Thus, one reason why magnums have become popular is because they push steel shot out of the gun as fast as possible, which helps balance off its rapid energy loss in flight.

If you compare two equal gunpowder loads of, say, 3 3/4 drams, but one has 1 1/8 ounces of steel, while the other has 1 3/8 ounces of the same size steel shot, the lighter one may, technically, hit harder. That's because with fewer pellets, there is more energy available per pellet. An argument can be made for shooting standard loads with less gunpowder and fewer pellets. These would cost less and kick less than a magnum with more pellets and more powder.

All this considered, remember that if you shoot a different gauge shotgun, these shell measurements will vary significantly. And, naturally, choke selection will play a vital role in pellet distribution. Don't forget that to safely fire 3- and 3 1/2-inch shells, a gun must be chambered for them.

When the late season rolls around, the ducks that survived the early season are wary and decoy-shy. Don't be afraid to experiment and use non-traditional techniques, including shotshell loads, decoy spreads and blind positioning to convince birds that your spot is where they want to alight.