Dear Technoid,

First let me says thanks for all your writings I enjoy your columns immensely!!
Especially the last one regarding shot strings.And I like to note that the
turkey pan under the reloader has saved me on numerous occasions. My question is
what is the benefit of a faster shell say 1300 FPS vs 1200 FPS? I know a lot,
but not all of the top shots shoot fast shells anywhere between 1250 FPS and
1350 FPS, my question is what does the additional speed by them besides recoil,
since I remember at least some of the Physics I learned, the faster pellets slow
down faster than the slower pellets slow down, but what is the end result???

Thanks for your response.

Robert

Robert,

Faster pellets have more energy. There. That was a typical Technoidal cogent
statement for sure. BUT… it sure isn’t as much as you would think.

Compare a #7-1/2 pellet at 1200 fps to one at 1295 fps. That’s a difference of
95 fps at the start. At 40 yards, that #7-1/2 started at 1200 fps will be going
675 fps, while the one started at 1295 will have slowed down to 705 fps, only 30
fps faster. That’s because the faster a pellet starts out, the faster it slows
down. At 40 yards, that difference has gone from 1.3 ft/lbs pellet energy for
the 1200 load to 1.4 ft/lbs energy for the 1295 load.

In the real world, the faster shell will alter the lead distance a tiny bit and
increase the energy of the pellet a touch, but is it really enough to matter?
What does matter is that the faster shell will increase recoil 17%. That you
will definitely feel.

On the plus side, the faster pellet will drop .3″ less at 40 yards (2.6″ vs
2.9″), if that matters.

I got most of this info from the Lyman Shotshell Reloading Handbook. The rest I
made up. So there you go.

Bruce Buck
Shotgun Report’s Technoid