Steel Shot - Pro's & Con's

[sakoshooter]

A Pro:
Many of us remember the good ol days of lead shot and killing ducks/geese at unheard of distances - I'm being sarcastic.
A pro of steel shot and any of the other alternatives that are hard and round is that they do not deform on impact and drag feathers into the meat like lead shot did so well. We always pick fault with steel shot but this is a darn good aspect of most of the new types of non toxic shot - clean wound channels. I've pulled many a feather out with my fingernails or tweezers and still found a few hundred more while eating them. Not with steel etc.
Just wanted to post a positive about steel or non toxic.

[duckmen1]

You also will have more pellets to hit your target being as steel is lighter than lead.

[JLS]

If I use steel for duck hunting I don't get an expensive ticket 

[singleshot12]

Not too many pro's except for the first fast FPS it has at 20 yrds. Con's are it doesn't do well in wind over 20 yrds out and looses power over 30 drastically and doesn't deform upon impact like lead thus causing less damage to bone and tissue. More through and throughs giving the bird more time to fly off out of recovery range eventually bleeding out and dieing for the scavengers to eventually eat. Steel shot sucks basically unless you can refrain your self to it's capable range.

[MtnMuley]

If I use steel for duck hunting I don't get an expensive ticket 

   That's be my only positive with steel!

[JJD]

Like cars when there was no emission controls, it's a moot point.

[AWS]

I've been using steel since the late 1970's and have no problems with it, even in my 20ga it kills just fine.  My only gripe is that I can't use it in my favorite shotguns and have to handload ITX and Nice Shot for them.

[gaddy]

ahh!! my old wingmaster with 2"3/4 #2 lead.  no real pros for steel.

[Curly]

I remember the days of lead well.  Those were the days.  30" full choke and some 1.5 oz of #5's..

Steel shot has gotten better since the early days of being required to use it.  Steel is a lot faster now than it was in the mid/late 80's when I started using steel.  The speed helps close the gap between the steel vs. lead range issues.

[JLS]

For all of the negative opinions against steel shot, I've shot a fair number of pheasants and chukars with it also and have not found myself handicapped in any way because of it. 

[sakoshooter]

The first few years of steel shot sucked. Slow velocities and lousy wads. And a learning curve on it's effective range. The high velocity steel today is as good at killing as any lead of yesteryear. Deformed lead pellets can cause more damage but also penetrate less because of the deformation. Steel patterns tighter than lead and has less flyers because of no deformation in the chamber or when forced thru a tight choke. Almost double the amount of pellets helps a lot also.

[akirkland]

Wait!!! I cant shoot with lead?!?!?!                                                                                                    

[lokidog]

The biggest con to me is the cost, I try not to shoot past 40 yards anyways so reduced range has never been a factor.  To the OP, I seem to have plenty of feathers in wound channels, very few in headshots though from swatting them.....   

Back in the day, 1986, when I first came to the West coast, I was thrilled to find out I could use lead on ducks as I had been using steel already for many years in WI on public hunt areas.  I crippled a lot of birds in the early season, then I switched back to steel and only lost one or two the rest of the season.  The reason being, of course, that steel was what I was used to shooting at ducks and had the leads figured out for them. 

[wadu1]

Like lokidog said "The biggest con to me is the cost" I try to get my next season shells at the end of the season after they discount them. Wally-World I got Winchester Blindside 3 and 3 1/2 #2s for $15 a box and I got them all a flat and a half. Since I like #4s for decoying ducks I load my own in 10 and 12, at 1250 - 1350 FPS they work just fine for me. 

[akirkland]

Shoot! The cost of all shotgun ammo has gotten out of control.Kent Faststeel used to be the cheap stuff. not anymore. Anyone have luck with the Winchester and Remington steel at Wal Mart? Both $13 a box.

[BigGoonTuna]

i buy mine from rogers, free shipping and no tax, and far cheaper than anywhere locally.  i bought 3 cases of remington nitro steel 2 3/4" shells for 90 bucks each this year, should last me a while.  they have good prices on federals too.

[sakoshooter]

Cost? I wonder what a box of 1 1/2oz #4 lead duck loads would cost these days if it were popular and legal. Probably quite a bit. Probably as much as steel does. Maybe more. Manufacturing processes would be the same.
The reason I started this thread is simply because of all the "steel sucks" and "the good ol days of lead" posts I read here and on other waterfowl websites.

[Brad Harshman]

I only started hunting within the last 8 yrs so I'm don't know about the "good days way back when...", however this year I started shooting Heavy Shot.  The steel tungsten mix loads and I have to say - I love it.  I've only had one or two cripples.  I did go diver hunting this last weekend and decided to shoot a box of blind side that I had from last year.  Needless to say after two cripples one being a bull canvas back that flew (over a mile) out of sight, obviously wounded, caused me to put the blind side away and finish my day with heavy shot.

Both loads were #2's.

Steel is fine but I'm sold on Heavy Shot.

[h2ofowlr]

Shoot! The cost of all shotgun ammo has gotten out of control.Kent Faststeel used to be the cheap stuff. not anymore. Anyone have luck with the Winchester and Remington steel at Wal Mart? Both $13 a box.

The Winchester works fine.  Haven't shot the Remington for a long time, but my son shoots it.  For the cost the Winchester works great.  I know I spent a few more shells chasing cripples with it, but I also like shooting in that 30-55 yard range.  I shoot a full choke.  That is my sweet spot.