New to turkey hunting

[N7709K]

This spring I am going turkey hunting for the first time. Over this weekend I was going to pattern my gun. My question is what brand of ammo to get ,and what find of pattern to look for?

[Borch]

Welcome to FM and turkey hunting.

First off what gun and choke will you be using? That will give us a clue regarding shot size to start with for you. As far as brands go it's hard to say. Some popular brands are Winchester, Federal Cartridge, Remington, Hevishot and Nitro.

[N7709K]

I have Benelli Nova 12ga. I was told by the people that i'm gonna hunt with to usa a full choke.

[Borch]

If you already have the Full choke then go ahead and try that first. Many times it'll do the job just fine.

I'd look at the Federal Flite Control shells in #5 and 4 shot or The Rem HD loads. The Winchester turkey loads may be worth a shot.

You can find turkey targets in most stores. Otherwise in the back of the turkey regs book there is one you can copy and use.

Good Luck!

[goblueM]

Personally I've found the HeviShot ammo to add 5-10 yards to my knockdown range... I shoot a Benelli Montrefeltro 12 ga. With Federal MagShok (they aren't kidding, it kicked like a mule) I could go 40, maybe 45. HeviShot I'd feel comfortable out to 50 or even 55 with a good scope, though I'd probably never take that shot. It was unreal!