Aftermarket chokes; are they worth it?
 

Are the aftermarket chokes worth the $50-$90 in improving pattern performance? Shoot a Benelli 20g w/ crio tubes for doves. Found that the Mod. tube holds patterns the best....but not great. Friend shoots the same gun with Brilley IC with far better results even in 40-50yard shots. Asking if any of you experienced the same difference with extended choke tubes.

I bought a patternmaster and didn't care for it. Wouldn't recommend it but I bought a kicks and I'm satisfied with it

I had a kicks and wasnt too impressed. I traded it for a duck call and went back to factory benelli . Ive found different brands of shells pattern better with different brands of chokes too. This was for ducks and not doves though

Choot'Em
 

Keep in mind that different chokes shoot differently with different loads. I learned this from turkey hunting. I forgot this complex situation recently. I had my favorite duck and turkey gun stolen from my vehicle. I had my Briley extended Light Modified choke tube in the gun. I have taken many high flying geese and long kill shots on ducks shooting the Winchester X-Pert loads with this LM choke in the past. My insurance company replaced my stolen gun with a brand new gun of the same model. I decided to purchase the Carlson's ported Medium Range "Cremator" choke. This MR was listed to have similar ID as my old LM choke.

I took the new gun and choke teal hunting this year. to my surprise, the new choke shoots much tighter patterns than the Briley with the same Winchester loads. So...

Just keep in mind that you may have to switch loads and pattern to get the desired results no matter what manufacturer and choke that you decide to purchase.

Duckaholic

And...
 

Also, don't forget, extended chokes aren't just cool looking, they have a purpose. The longer tube has more surface contact with the shot creating better patterns. And... There is no common ground between manufacturers on choke sizes and restrictions. You just have to shoot each with your load to see if it is better....

Sucks but that's the facts.

I've found that anything tighter than an IC I'm my benelli patterns like &h!t. But the pattern master extended is nice for turkeys.

X2

Shot size and type can make a big difference. The extended chokes will also reduce recoil. Read up on them before you buy, they should recommend shot size etc. If you shoot black cloud, they have chokes made for these, and will warn you to not shoot them through others. I've shot the Kicks HF in Full and Mod for the past few seasons and love them. Before that I had a Patternmaster Full and it was extremely tight with everything I shot, from BB's to #4. If I had to have only 1 it would be the Kicks HF Mod.

Kicks
 

FYI ... The Kicks HF is on sale now it Midway USA for $44.99

FYI... lots of the chokes are made in the same place and repackaged under multiple brands

Examples?? I didn't know this

I don't stock chokes in my store, but I talk to all the guys that sell them at trade shows every year. In the gun industry, lots of things are outsourced. Fastenal makes a lot of firearm parts for small time manufactures. Chokes are one of those things. Also, a TON of shotguns use Mossberg manufactured barrels, when people come in asking for XYZ brand barrel I always check going direct with Mossberg first, try to save them some money.

I used a Briley extended ic or lt mod in my browning gold. Briley out of Houston a few years ago made chokes for different companies. Speed of load, load weight, hardness of shot, round or shape of steel or lead and wad used make the chokes act different in patterns. If you want to really know what your gun will do you have to spend time on a range with big sheets of paper and compare.

I shoot a browning gold, mostly cheaper #4 shot. Do you have a recommendation for ducks?

aftermarket chokes...are they worth it.
 

I shot estates that were 3 1/2" number 2s for big ducks with lt. mod and a ic with 3" number 3s or 4s during teal I also had the forcing cone reamed out of my barrel. That is the long shots in Annie Oakley for $$. 1 1/4 of #6s or #5s at 1500+ FPS with Longshot powder. Flamethrower....

I used to use a comp n choke xxx full for turkies. Longest tom was taken at 50 yards. At 40 yards it averaged 144 pellets on a piece of paper. Was shooting a 2 1/4 oz load of #6 3 1/2".