Gentlemen,

I picked up an NEF 20ga SB1, modified choke, for my son's first shotgun this weekend. He'll use it mostly for squirrel hunting but will at least sit in a goose blind with me this fall.

Even though he may not actually get to do much shooting, I need to keep him legal. What non toxic loads are ok for these guns? Steel? Bismouth? Hevi-Shot?

I'm not sure if these guns are ok for steel so I was leaning toward Bismouth to play it safe.

Any thoughts or experiences?

SSB

Contact the gun manufacturer to be certain.... however, it has been widely reported in the press that bismuth is as soft as lead shot.

Update,

I called NEF and was told (by a rather uninterested and rude lady) that steel shot was safe in this gun. I'm not sure this sounds right, any thoughts?

SSB

A modified choke for lead, which is what your shotgun has, is essentially a full steel choke. I don't see any reason why it would not be safe.

Hopefully, the birds will be right on top of you, so he'll have good results with that 20 gauge.

amndouglas

Thanks for the input amndouglas.

Sounds more reasonable coming from someone here than the lady at NEF.

SSB

I have an NEF 20 with a modified choke. I use Remington Hevishot loads to hunt waterfoul and they work great. Hevishot is heavier than lead so it has better ballistics. It uses a special wad to contain the shot so it should never contact the barrel. No problems yet and I've been shooting it 3 years. The manual I got with the gun said it would shoot lead, steel or bismuth. Hevishot says it will work in any gun that will shoot steel.

I'd stay away from steel shot in a 20ga if geese are the targets. He's not going to burn through a ton of shells with a single shot, so it should be a lot easier to swallow the exorbitant price of the Hevi-Shot loads.

I'd agree with that! Steel just doesn't make the grade in a 20 gauge. I use the Hevishot ounce and an eighth of number four's for geese out to 45 yards. I haven't had a cripple yet, they all pile up and drop. I use the Hevishot one ounce number six loads for ducks over decoys. Over decoys the shots are 30 yards and under. In the 12 gauge I've been using Kent Impact because it was a little cheaper than the Hevishot. I've had great luck with the Impact and was going to try some in the 20 but the price went up this year and there's not enough difference to make it worthwhile. I like the performance of the Hevishot better but the Impact is soft like lead so it's less likely to cause a trip to the dentist if you chomp on a pellet :D