Anytime I acquire a new shotgun, the first thing I do is pattern it. In years past, using vintage guns with fixed chokes you were usually stuck with what you had. But firearms produced in the last 40 years or so are equipped with choke tubes. An array of tubes both factory and aftermarket are available for most shotguns. Choke tubes have made quite a difference for shooters of all kinds from hunters to competition shooters. 

The first screw-in type choke was cataloged in 1961 for the model 59 Winchester. These tubes were called Versatile interchangeable chokes. These chokes were screwed into a thin, steel barrel wrapped around fiberglass. The Model 59, however, didn’t make the splash Winchester had hoped for and after a short six years, Winchester ceased production. Only 82,083 firearms were sold. These weren’t the first adjustable chokes.

The Cutts compensator and PolyChoke offered hunters and shooters different “chokes” for their shotguns. These were attached to the barrel and the choke was screwed into the end of the device or the entire unit was rotated to the “restriction” or choke the shooter was desiring. Choke tubes are screwed into the barrel. The bore of the tube hole on one side is slightly larger than the bore of the shotgun. The tube funnels down to the restriction section of the tube.  The restriction can range from the same as bore size down to more than .035-inch standard full choke for a 12 gauge. 

What Do Chokes and Choke Tubes Do?

Chokes restrict the shot pattern as it leaves the end of the barrel, producing either denser patterns or less dense depending on the restriction of the choke.

Choke tubes are screwed into machined threads inside the barrel. The bore of the tube hole on one side is slightly larger than the bore of the shotgun. Then the tube funnels down to the restriction section of the tube. The restriction can range from the same as bore size down to more than .035-inch restriction depending on gauge.

Fellow gun writer and shotgun editor of Field & Stream magazine, Phil Bourjaily, has the best analogy of chokes. He likens chokes to a garden hose with an  adjustable nozzle. The long stream represents a full choke and the tightest restriction, and the shot pattern is usually the tightest. As you change the nozzle, the stream of water becomes more dispersed. This is no different with chokes. The more open the choke, the more dispersed your pattern will be.

Selecting Choke Tubes

To determine what tube is needed, the shooter must pattern the shotgun. It is not difficult, and I recommend any shooter not familiar with their shotgun to pattern their shotgun with a variety of chokes and ammunition. One ammunition may pattern differently than another.

With a 48×48-inch piece of paper, put an aiming dot in the center of the paper and set the target at 40 yards. Shoot the target. Next, find the center of the pattern and draw a 30-inch circle around it. A full choke should have the most pellets in a 30-inch circle. This does not mean the center of the pattern corresponds with the aiming point, but that’s a completely different article. 

As you switch chokes, please ensure the shotgun is unloaded each time. Continue shooting with different chokes and you will see the patterns open up. I will count each pellet strike to get the percentage of shot in the 30-inch circle. Be sure to mark each target with the choke used so you can compare targets. Patterns aren’t 30-inch flying hula hoops headed at your intended target, instead they are more cone shaped. The more open the restriction, the larger the end of the cone will be. A shotgunner should spend an entire afternoon at the range patterning his or her shotgun at different ranges and choke tubes to give them a window for how their shotgun patterns.

Factory Versus Aftermarket Chokes 

When you purchase a new shotgun, it will be equipped with a choke tube. Some firearm manufacturers include a set of tubes. Choke tubes are not usually interchangeable from one manufacturer to another. For example, a Beretta tube will not fit a Mossberg shotgun. To muddy the water even more, over the years firearms manufacturers have often retooled their choke tubes for a new and improved choke system like Browning did with their Invector, Invector Plus and Invector DS. None of which will fit one another.

Aftermarket tubes can, but do not always improve patterns. Again, the best way you know is by shooting patterns through these chokes. This can get expensive, but I feel it’s worth the expense.

Specialty Chokes

Specialty chokes are designed with one task. For example, turkey choke tubes, this season when I received a new shotgun for testing, I used the factory choke tube and received satisfactory results. However, when I switched over to an Indian Creek Shooting Systems turkey tube, the pattern went to insane. I fired more than $250 worth of TSS ammo patterning, but the confidence I have in this rig now is worth the price.

There are other specialty tubes like waterfowl tubes which are designed to shoot non-toxic shot with better than average patterns. There are even rifled choke tubes designed for shooting rifled slugs. Having shot cases of slugs through some of these tubes I have found that many of these tubes will rival a fully rifled barrel if the right choke/shell combination is found possible only through patterning.

If you find your shotgun not performing like you think it should, maybe it’s the chokes in the end of the barrel. Try an aftermarket choke or maybe even a specialty choke. Chances are, it will make an improvement.