The spring season will officially open to hunters around the state March 20. With about a month left before the season begins, now is the time for hunters to start practicing their calling and patterning their shotguns. But hunters might first want to check out the latest in the new line of turkey products.
Many tried and true hunters aren’t willing to go out on a limb and test something new, but Remington’s new Premier Hevi-Shot Turkey loads are products that every hunter should consider.
First introduced in 2000, Hevi-Shot was designed as a nontoxic product for waterfowl hunting. Composed of tungsten, nickel and iron, this new shell has a 10 percent higher density than lead, which yields a denser pattern and returns a higher energy than lead. After dominating the waterfowl market, turkey hunters soon picked up on its success.
During Remington’s initial testing, company technicians recorded a remarkable 94 percent pattern at 40 yards. Simply put, 94 out of every 100 pellets that left the muzzle of the gun landed inside a 30-inch circle at 40 yards. In layman’s terms, that is a dead turkey.
Hevi-Shot soon began to dominate at the National Wild Turkey Federation Still Target Competitions. Nine out of 10 events were taken by shooters who shot Remington’s new product in the 2001 and 2002 contests. This domination soon led its way into the hunting world.
Along with a high percentage of pellets in the kill zone, this new product also allows turkey hunters and shooting competitors to go way beyond their normal range of shooting.
Outdoor writer Layne Simpson told how this new product took his hunting to a whole new level:
“According to my Bushnell laser rangefinder, the gobbler lay dead exactly 59 yards from the muzzle of my shotgun. Harold Knight of Knight & Hale Game Calls, who watched over my shoulder as I pressed the trigger, was absolutely amazed that a shotgun load could kill a turkey stone dead in its tracks at so great a distance. I was also amazed, but I was not the least bit surprised.”
Before taking a shot of that distance, Simpson patterned the shot with his model 11-87. Working at 10-yard increments, Simpson started at 30 yards and stopped at 70 yards with an amazing 17 pellets in the kill zone at 70 yards. No wonder he felt comfortable taking a 59-yard shot.
This new product may, in fact, change the world of turkey hunting forever. A shell that doubles the range of a hunter’s shot is sure to win over any hunter. So don’t complain when you see the price. Just keep in mind that hunting is just like anything else … you get what you pay for. And Remington’s new Hevi-Shot is one heavy hitter.
Jake Fagan can be reached at [email protected].