Understanding Shotgun Chokes – A Bird Hunters Guide | Written by A.J. DeRosa

Let me be up front. Grasping the idea of shotgun chokes eluded me for many years. All that was ever explained to me was that the more open the choke, the faster the spread. Simple and accurate — but not helpful when it came to practical application. What I wish had happened was that someone would have said to me, “The choke you should use depends on the distance you are shooting at your game.” Being primarily a woodcock and ruffed grouse hunter, wide open chokes have always worked for me.

However, I never fully grasped the science underlying the reasons behind choosing one choke over another. My reasoning was simple: for fast birds in tight cover, I want the shot to spread quickly. My guiding principle should have been the idea that most birds will be shot between 10 and 25 yards, making the choice of a skeet and IC choke make sense in a double-barrel shotgun.

Before we go any further, let’s investigate the history of shotgun chokes.