Does a 20 Gauge Kick Less than a 12 Gauge?
If we are looking at standard field gun weights coupled with common target loads, the answer is clear. For starters, let's look at a 6-1/4 lb. 20 gauge firing 7/8 oz. 1200 fps loads. Next
up, a 7 lb. 12 gauge using the common 1-1/8 oz. 1200 fps
target load.
Finally, a 7 lb. 12 gauge
using a 1 oz. 1250 fps target load.
The 7 lb. 12 gauge has
about 34.7 percent more recoil than the 6-1/4 lb. 20
gauge when using 1-1/8 oz. loads. and still has about 18.5
percent more recoil when using 1 oz. 1250 fps load in
the heavier 12 gauge. Switching
over to my favorite 20 gauge dove load, 1 oz. Winchester AA
1165 fps shown above, the result is 20.3 ft. lbs.: ever so
slightly less than our 7 lb. 12 gauge using the 1250 fps 1 oz.
load. Let's
go pheasant hunting with Remington Nitro Mag 1-1/8 oz. 1175
fps loads out of our 6-1/4 lb. pound twenty gauge. To finish, we look at a popular 1400 fps 1-1/4 oz. 12 gauge load out of our 7 lb. 12 gauge.
It
does
depend, of course, but as a broad generalization with common
target loads (take, for example, what is allowed in
American
Skeet), 20 gauges do kick markedly less than 12 gauges.
While I
used 6-1/4 lbs. as the 20 gauge weight, there are certainly
much
heavier examples, the same goes for 12 gauges. The most
popular 20
gauge factory load is 7/8 oz. 1200 fps, the most popular 12
gauge
factory load there is, is 1-1/8 oz. 1200 fps. Those are the
most
popular, most used, and therefore the most available loads in
the U.S. I
cannot remember a time when I didn't have a few cases of each
on
hand. |
Copyright 2024 by Randy Wakeman. All rights reserved.
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