is it worth the trouble?

jabronij3

and expense to shoot the 3 1/2 inch mags vs a 3" just because the gun will handle it or should we just pick our shots better

MFI

Tough question to answer. The 3 1/2 add that extra pop and a little more distance to your shot . Drawbacks are more exepensive ammo and depending on what your shooting it may knock your shoulder into another area. LOL.. I had a guy who bought a 835 Mossberg and shot the 3 1/2 for the first time and broke his nose....He shoots 3" and 2 3/4 now..[:)]

swearengine

I don't think it is. I have a group of 5 hunters who have hunted with me for 10 years (ducks and geese) and all of them use only 20 gauges. They also usually have their limit by 9:00 in the morning.

duckhunter

Depends on what you hunt. Very popular in this area for spring snow goose hunting

JustC

My father-in-law,...an ex nat'l skeet shooting campion,...has never used anything but 2 3/4" shells. I have seen him beat the crap out of the 3 1/2" guys on multiple occasions. If you can't get a good,...fold-em-up shot with a 3" at most,...your lead was incorrect and possibly your choke. I have personally never needed over a 3" and I am NO nat'l champ.

"Sky Busting" is an unethical practice,...and 3 1/2" shells don't excuse poor shooting ability. I have never even fired one in my guns.

HandgunHTR52

The only thing that I have found the 3.5" shells to be good for (besides beating the crap out of you) is for late season turkey hunting. The birds get call shy and tend to hang up at 50-60 yards. With the 3.5" shells and a good gun, you can get out to them.

p3skyking

3.5 inch shells aren't made for normal men to shoot. They are only made to sell to them. Fad du Jour.








Remember all the suckers that bought ten guages? How many still shoot them regularly?

laxcoach

Duckhunter is right---- 3" (unless it's Hevi-shot) non tox is not enough for snows.

Sav99

I like mine for high flying late season honkers. The recoil isn't as bad as you might think.

tsr1965

Using a 21" Remington 870 Express Turkey Gun, stock Rem. EX. Full TKY choke, and 1 3/4 oz. copper plated 6's, dumped birds at 65 yards. If you can't do it with a 3", then chances are a 3 1/2 is not going to work either.

only winchesters

Good morning jabronij3: Well first off, if your going to buy a 12 ga. 3 1/2in Mag, buy a semi-auto. It wont beat you to death!

The 12 or 10ga. 3 1/2 in. is for "large birds longer distances period". you certainly don't need one if all you do is shoot ducks and geese over decoys with shots less than 50 yards period.

If all you plan to do is shot standard steel with a FPS rating of less than 1500, you can accomplish the same or do better with premium 3 in. shells, in Tungsten/Matrix, Bismuth, or Hevi-shot etc.

However if you enjoy pass shooting like I do, using Premium 3 1/2in. loads and the right choke, 60-80yards can be achieved without any problem. When you start breaking a gooses wing(s) at the shoulder at 70 yards, you will see the advantage. the real question is how much "long range" shooting do you do? I go Pass shooting with my 10ga about 5 or 6 times a year. But I bought my 10ga back in 1990 when sub 1400 FPS shells were the only thing on the market. Now I shoot only Bismuth BBs out of the 10ga. to me it was worth keeping after I switched to Bismuth in 1995.

If your a turkey hunter, all I can say is I've "rolled them" at 65 yards with lead #4!!

OBTW may standard duck load 2 3/4 in. 1 3/8oz. of Bismuth #4. I can kill all the ducks I want with that, 50 yards or less. The only time I use 3 in. Bismuth for ducks is when the wind is above 20mph!

Regards Dave