How many times has it been said in these forums - "no advantage", "a waste of lead", "no need for more", "nothing gained", and my personal favorite "breaks 'em just as good" when discussing the advantages/disadvantages of 3/4 oz. vs. 7/8 oz. vs. 1 oz. loads?
Thinking it is one thing, but proving it is something else altogether. You can pattern and chronograph until your eyes cross, but the only true measure is a direct comparison on real targets over time.
A few boxes or a flat of a new load shot over a few days or weeks proves almost nothing; so unless you're a far more motivated and methodical practice shooter than I am, the comparison needs to be done on targets shot in competition. Use scores and averages, and include shootoff performance or any combination of benchmarks you choose. If at the end of a season you can look back and show that nothing was gained by shooting that 1 oz. load vs. the 7/8, you've got your answer.
On the other hand, there just might be a clear advantage, and I'm not talking about a HUGE advantage either. IMO if a solid AA shooter can find just a half target per 100 improvement (that's only six or seven 12 ga. targets over a season), he'd be foolish not to take advantage of it.
I love that little 3/4 oz. 20 gauge load with a 6 lb. SxS. I often shoot practice with it using the tubed skeet gun; but just as Bob Unkalis can't bring himself to use anything less than the max payload allowed for a 12 ga. event, I'd never use 3/4 oz. in a 20 ga. event, and certainly not in any 12 ga. events.
Thinking it is one thing, but proving it is something else altogether. You can pattern and chronograph until your eyes cross, but the only true measure is a direct comparison on real targets over time.
A few boxes or a flat of a new load shot over a few days or weeks proves almost nothing; so unless you're a far more motivated and methodical practice shooter than I am, the comparison needs to be done on targets shot in competition. Use scores and averages, and include shootoff performance or any combination of benchmarks you choose. If at the end of a season you can look back and show that nothing was gained by shooting that 1 oz. load vs. the 7/8, you've got your answer.
On the other hand, there just might be a clear advantage, and I'm not talking about a HUGE advantage either. IMO if a solid AA shooter can find just a half target per 100 improvement (that's only six or seven 12 ga. targets over a season), he'd be foolish not to take advantage of it.
I love that little 3/4 oz. 20 gauge load with a 6 lb. SxS. I often shoot practice with it using the tubed skeet gun; but just as Bob Unkalis can't bring himself to use anything less than the max payload allowed for a 12 ga. event, I'd never use 3/4 oz. in a 20 ga. event, and certainly not in any 12 ga. events.
