TSS ammo...is it worth it?

[BeeMaa]

I am taking BB & 7 hunting Sandhill Cranes and Geese over decoys next week. I cant wait to try it out

Let me know how it goes.

 

[sureshot375]

I just ordered 100 1oz #8 waterfowl loads from apex. I found a coupon code for 15% off which got them down to under 6.00 per round.

I have a South Dakota waterfowl hunt coming up in October. I don’t get to hunt ducks very often. The price is worth it to me if they work as well as advertised.

 

[BeeMaa]

I just ordered 100 1oz #8 waterfowl loads from apex. I found a coupon code for 15% off which got them down to under 6.00 per round.

I have a South Dakota waterfowl hunt coming up in October. I don’t get to hunt ducks very often. The price is worth it to me if they work as well as advertised.

I'm very interested in hearing how these perform.

Another option is the Federal Black Cloud TSS 3 & 9 load that is supposedly for ducks. 3 shot is Flight Stopper Steel and 9 shot is TSS. Cost is ~ $4 per shell after shipping on BattleHawkArmory.com I did use this load on my first geese at 35-40 yards as they flew directly over me. The first one fell like a stone, the second one took two shots. I should have been using the BB & 7 load but got them mixed up in the dark before leaving. At least I found out they work on geese...

https://www.africahunting.com/threads/usa-early-season-fall-goose-hunt-in-ny.70719/post-962203

 

[igotit]

I bought a box of ten rounds while driving to my last turkey hunt. I fired two rounds, and killed two gobblers. I gave the remaining eight rounds To my guide. He later reported eight turkeys killed with those shells, one at a measured 55 yards. How much is a successful hunt worth?

 

[igotit]

I bought a box of ten rounds while driving to my last turkey hunt. I fired two rounds, and killed two gobblers. I gave the remaining eight rounds To my guide. He later reported eight turkeys killed with those shells, one at a measured 55 yards. How much is a successful hunt worth?

 

[igotit]

I bought a box of ten rounds while driving to my last turkey hunt. I fired two rounds, and killed two gobblers. I gave the remaining eight rounds To my guide. He later reported eight turkeys killed with those shells, one at a measured 55 yards. How much is a successful hunt worth?

 

[sureshot375]

My apex TSS just came in. To my surprise it came in a nice little ammo bag. I’m very interested to see how the preform.

 

[rookhawk]

I’ve hunted Turkey with 2.5” Kent Tungsten 16 gauge ammo and even in a moderate recoil shell, it was very effective. Dead instantly at 42 yards which I thought was more than satisfactory. I’ve had very good results from Bismuth, Nice Shot, and other alloys for vintage guns too.

The only shell I’ve had terrible luck with is steel. I hate that it is using speed to kill because its not fun to shoot 1500fps shells nor is it enjoyable to be relegated to shooting modern guns to get away with shooting steel.

 

[BeeMaa]

I’ve hunted Turkey with 2.5” Kent Tungsten 16 gauge ammo and even in a moderate recoil shell, it was very effective. Dead instantly at 42 yards which I thought was more than satisfactory. I’ve had very good results from Bismuth, Nice Shot, and other alloys for vintage guns too.

The only shell I’ve had terrible luck with is steel. I hate that it is using speed to kill because its not fun to shoot 1500fps shells nor is it enjoyable to be relegated to shooting modern guns to get away with shooting steel.

Wether it’s steel, TSS or other blends make sure you are buying a quality cartridge. Some less expensive shells are using standard wadding that’s too thin for these more dense metals that don’t deform the same way that lead and copper do. Even in a modern shotgun it can cause a problem in the barrel.

 

[JKS]

I'm going to follow this post for interest. My future brother in law wants me to join him on duck and goose hunts. I've never been waterfowl hunting. It is pretty crazy how many different brands/blends/sizes of shotgun shells are marketed. On a side note, does anyone use an over-under for waterfowl?? I just bought a Franchi Instinct SL because I always wanted an O-U and figured this was a good excuse..

 

[Marc Ret]

I’ve hunted Turkey with 2.5” Kent Tungsten 16 gauge ammo and even in a moderate recoil shell, it was very effective. Dead instantly at 42 yards which I thought was more than satisfactory.

When you refer to using 16ga "Kent Tungsten", would that be Tungsten-Matrix? If so, what were your reasons for choosing that over a lead load? As well, if TM, where did you find 2 1/2" 16ga loads?

 

[BeeMaa]

I'm going to follow this post for interest. My future brother in law wants me to join him on duck and goose hunts. I've never been waterfowl hunting. It is pretty crazy how many different brands/blends/sizes of shotgun shells are marketed. On a side note, does anyone use an over-under for waterfowl?? I just bought a Franchi Instinct SL because I always wanted an O-U and figured this was a good excuse..

I have a Browning Cynergy O/U with 3.5” chambers that was designed specifically for waterfowling. It’s also very common in the UK to use a blued and steel O/U or SxS, even near saltwater. Just need to take proper precautions before the hunt and at the end of each day.

Even with my SBE3, every day I ran a bore snake down the barrel and blew it out with compressed air. One day when we got poured on…I completely field stripped it, blew out the water, lubed and reassembled. It’s a tool to be used, but also cared for.

You are good with your Franchi, but I’d upgrade to Carlson’s chokes rated for Federal Black Cloud TSS. Some of the factory chokes aren’t rated for TSS use.

Get a long range (FULL) and mid range (MOD) and that will have you covered. Shoot bottom barrel with MOD first, then top barrel with FULL. This will minimize the barrel jump on the first shot and the chokes are set that way anticipating you needing a longer second shot.

 

[DLSJR]

I just saw this thread or would have replied back in December when I had my first exposure to TSS. A friend who is a .410 aficionado brought out some TSS shells by Foxtrot ammo for an Idaho waterfowl hunt with me. My duck club only allows 28 gauge and .410 for ducks, so I was keenly interested in seeing how they’d perform.

Over 3 days of hunting my friend shot limits of green heads AND honkers with the .410. 21 green heads and 12 honkers, all with the .410 and TSS shells with a mix of 9.5 & 10.5 shot. I personally watched him shoot 13 green heads with 17 shots and nearly every duck was stone dead when my lab picked them up.

Yes, I’ll be shooting some TSS loads this fall, especially when using my .410. I typically shoot Hevi-X tungsten 4’s or 6’s in my 28 gauge when duck hunting, but TSS is notably more effective.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

If your guns get wet regularly WD-40 can be your best friend. It sure gets that water out.

 

[Mekaniks]

I just returned from hunting Sandhill Cranes, Canadian Geese and Speckled Belly Geese with Federal TSS BB & 7, 3" shells, (steel BB and Tungsten #7) here are my thoughts....

I was using my Beretta 686 with extended long range chokes. We were shooting over decoys and the way the spread was set so most shots was 35-60 yards, most were 40-45 yards. There were 5 of us in the group. I was the only one shooting TSS.

I used up my 10 box of TSS and then started using Bismuth #2's for some comparison.

Here is what I like....

TSS hits like a hammer. You still gotta hit them, but when you do, they know it.

My first bird(s) with TSS was a double on cranes at 40 yards. Both birds were smacked down and piled up dead when they hit the ground. Canadians and Speckled Bellys were even more impressive with feathers flying. I did not have a wounded bird on the ground with TSS.

I hit a Speck at 60 yards going away fast and the bird piled up dead. It was a shot that likely would not have been successful, or would have ended with a wounded bird if using straight steel.

I like bismuth and it hits like the lead of old. TSS is defiantly another full step ahead.

Here is what I don't like...

Yeah the price. Even the mix Steel/TSS was 7$ a copy. That is not a big deal if only shooting a few rounds ( i.e. Crane limit is 3 birds) but when you start also chasing other folks wounded birds across the field I strongly suggest carrying some steel so you can switch out for those kill shots. I spent approx $28 killing other folks birds on the ground.....

The meat loss is also a concern. TSS hits hards and with that there is lots of blood shot meat. When we cleaned birds shot with TSS there was a significant amount of blood shot that I don't see with regular steel at those ranges.

In conclusion....

I am going to continue shooting TSS when I need it. But, I am going to try and be smarter about it by mixing in bismuth and steel. Probably going to start using Bismuth in the first barrel and TSS in the second with a pocket full of steel for kill shots.
If/ when TSS price comes down around the the cost of bismuth I will use TSS, but I am also going to go down to a 20 ga for the convenience of a smaller package that still hits hard and reduced meat loss.

 

[BeeMaa]

@Mekaniks - Thank you for the report and congratulations on the hunt. Were any of the birds banded?

On my recent hunt, I tried very hard to go for head shots to minimize meat damage. I know this isn't always possible, especially with "going away" shots, but myself and a friend were able to make this work.

Like you said, bringing some steel shells is also a good idea for finishing shots.

My friend and I want to try the Hevi-Shot HEVI-XII. This is a tungsten blend that is 12 g/cc (lead is 11 g/cc and TSS is 18 g/cc) made to duplicate what lead did so many years ago. I've seen a box for $60 for 25 shells. Plus I've seen it in 20 bore #4 shot ($55/box of 25) if you want to go with that smaller package.

 

[Mekaniks]

@Mekaniks - Thank you for the report and congratulations on the hunt. Were any of the birds banded?

On my recent hunt, I tried very hard to go for head shots to minimize meat damage. I know this isn't always possible, especially with "going away" shots, but myself and a friend were able to make this work.

Like you said, bringing some steel shells is also a good idea for finishing shots.

My friend and I want to try the Hevi-Shot HEVI-XII. This is a tungsten blend that is 12 g/cc (lead is 11 g/cc and TSS is 18 g/cc) made to duplicate what lead did so many years ago. I've seen a box for $60 for 25 shells. Plus I've seen it in 20 bore #4 shot ($55/box of 25) if you want to go with that smaller package.

I wish, but there were no bands.

As these companies get the blends dialed in, and if the prices start to drop, I believe more people will start using TSS regularly.

I am seriously considering buying a new 20. It may make a good excuse to buy a match to my 686, but we will see. A good 20 bore autoloader would be a dream out of lay out blinds also

 

[BeeMaa]

I wish, but there were no bands.

As these companies get the blends dialed in, and if the prices start to drop, I believe more people will start using TSS regularly.

I am seriously considering buying a new 20. It may make a good excuse to buy a match to my 686, but we will see. A good 20 bore autoloader would be a dream out of lay out blinds also

Too bad, I just sold a 686 20 bore about a year ago. I currently have a Browning Cynergy O/U 12 bore with 3.5" chambers with a synthetic camo stock that would be right at home in a layout or pit blind, but I shoot the SBE3 much better. Not sure what the future holds for the Cynergy, but it's going to stay in the safe for the time being.

 

[BeeMaa]

A good evaluation of several types of shotgun ammo...

 

[BeeMaa]

Opening day of duck for my friend IGS in NY and the Federal Black Cloud TSS 3 & 9 are knocking them down. 7 guys got their limit today...