It is always a good sign when ducks are buzzing the decoys before the sun shows up. For my birthday this year, I could not think of a better place to be than hunkered down underneath flooded timber waiting on the birds to arrive. It has been a wet year in Central Texas, which has opened up new public land hunting areas that sit dry most years. Hunting ducks on public ground in a heavily populated area requires planning and preparation. Part of my pre-season prep includes shooting sporting clays and patterning shotguns.
Last season I picked up several boxes of Kent Bismuth in 12, 20, and 16 gauge. I originally began a search for non-toxic shot that I could safely shoot through older guns with fixed chokes. Kent’s bismuth offerings were available at multiple online retailers and reasonably priced compared to other premium steel shot shells. Kent claims that their bismuth has 24% greater density than steel. Bismuth is also softer than steel and is safe in older firearms with non-steel rated barrels and tight factory chokes (as long as these guns are rated for pressures generated by modern shotshells).
I have successfully utilized Kent Bismuth in a classic Browning Sweet 16 and Light 12 I took afield last season. I also utilized the shells in an older Remington Wingmaster with a fixed modified choke. The shells took birds cleanly and patterned extremely well in the older guns. I was so pleased with the results that I began running the shells in my newer guns with factory screw in chokes, mostly in the 12 gauge 2 ¾ 1 ¼ ounce #4 variation.
Back to the hunt. As I stood there solo in the frigid water, my eyes first caught a glimpse of Gadwall keyed into my sparse decoy spread. A few light calls and the birds were cupped and committed. As I took aim at the lead bird a large group of Green Wing Teal dropped in from behind the trees. I swung my Wingmaster through the lead bird as I pulled the trigger. The Gadwall drake dropped as I transitioned to the teal. A single shot brought down two birds as a racked in my final shell. At this point, the Gadwall were headed out and I carefully took aim at the last bird. At forty-five yards, the bird cleanly folded up and it was done.
There is often an over focus on the latest and greatest gear but often at the cost of increased complexity. I am fond of keeping things as simple as possible and I love my old guns. Kent Bisumth keeps it simple while offering improved performance and reliability. Kent now offers bismuth in 25 round packages. I found Kent Bismuth at online retailers for $35 box for 12 gauge and $33 box for 20 gauge with discounts on case purchases.
For questions or comments, please email me at eamyrick@gmail.com.
–Elijah Myrick