benneli choke tube?

[leaflawnandlimb]

I have a benneli nova w/ a 24" barrel shooting 3-1/2" hevi-shot and I'm having a hard time finding a choke tube that patterns well. Most of the chokes I've found are .655. Is that to tight for the hevi-shot? If you have this gun what works well for you?

[allaboutshooting]

Hey Ken,

First of all, welcome! It's good to have you here and we look forward to hearing from you. I've been shooting Benelli shotguns since 1991, when I purchased my first SBE. I also have a Nova with a 24" barrel that I shoot on a regular basis.

Benelli barrels have very tight inside diameter bores and usually need a choke tube with exit diameters that are somewhat tighter than other 12 gauge shotguns. We regularly shoot Hevi-Shot products, including Hevi-13 turkey loads through chokes as tight as .640 - .650 with that gun with excellent results.

I recommend the SSX http://allaboutshooting.com/product_info.php?cPath=23&products_id=79
with your gun, especially since it has the 24" barrel like mine.

I would also recommend that you consider trying some of the 3" Hevi-13 "Bronze" shells with 2 oz. of #6 shot with your gun. Many times they pattern better than the 3.5" shells. They cost less and they certainly kick less.

The 3" Winchester Xtended Range Hi-Density shell with 1.75 oz. of #6 shot is also an excellent shell with your gun.

You can also get great patterns with the 3" Winchester HV (Black Shells) with 1.75 oz. of #6 lead shot with that combination.

Lastly, I'd recommend that you "deep clean" your barrel. Benelli barrels are chrome-lined and can look clean when in fact they have a lot of "gunk" in them that can negatively effect patterns. I'd recommend the article, "Cleaning a Shotgun Barrel" http://allaboutshooting.com/article_info.php?articles_id=282
and the guidelines there.

Best of luck this spring and if I can be of help, just let me know.

Thanks,
Clark

[turkeyflopper]

try the primos jelly head choke tube. Shoots great out of my supernova.

[leaflawnandlimb]

Thanks guys, I was actually getting better patterns with the factory FULL choke than the Primos tight wad. I also have been using some older Remington hevi-shot. Not sure how much difference ther is between that and hevi-13.

[turkeylimb]

I shoot the supernova with primos jelly head also and i use rem wingmaster hd # 6 works for me.

[neal]

Hello
 
I also have a Nova I shoot the old Remington Hevi Shot 3 1/2" #6 and I use a Rhino choke tube and would'nt trade it. Not saying I would take a shot at 60yards but its fun to shoot that at the range and I put 24 in a 6" circle. But I have killed birds graveyard dead at 50. Great combo well worth the $. www.nitrocompany.com
 
 
Good luck
 
Neal

[flati]

I have several boxes of Remington HeviShot left and was wondering if I am able to shoot it out of my Benelli M1 Super 90 12 Gauge with a full choke tube that reads "No Steel"?  Thanks for the help.

[allaboutshooting]

Hey Fred,

That mainly depends of the size of the shot that you intend to shoot. You don't want to shoot "big" steel/tungsten shot through a full flush mounted choke but generally #5 or #6 "hard" shot is okay. You won't get patterns that are as good as you will with an extended choke tube but it should not hurt your choke.

An extended choke tube will have a longer parallel section and that will allow the shot charge to "settle" and shoot better patterns. An extended choke also takes the choke portion part out of your barrel and thus helps to avoid any other type of damage.

Thanks,
Clark

[leaflawnandlimb]

Thanks for the replies. I decided to go with the Primos Jelly head. Last Thursday I dopped a nice two year old at 46 paces (probably 35 yrds.) no floppin or flappin just dropped him. I thought I had blown the setup when at 5:10 am he gobbled in the tree not 25 yrds from were I sat. pitched out of the tree and walked right to me, I had to let him pass by cause the gun was still leaning against the tree. Once out in the field he dropped his head to feed and I shoulderd the gun (If anyone has the older Nova they know the noise the forend makes) he lifted his head alerted for the last time. All this within 50 yrds of the truck. I was home drinking coffe at 6:00. Love the choke. Thanks for the help guys.

[allaboutshooting]

Hey Ken,

I'm glad that you found a combination that works for you. That's what really counts. Congratulations on your bird!

Thanks,
Clark