How Heavy Non-Toxic Shot Is Changing Everything

I’ve been a shotgun hunter for most of my life, but I’ll admit I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Black ducks, mallards and pintails were diving into our blind in a flooded cornfield, and one-by-one the birds were being folded with a 28-gauge shotgun. These weren’t glancing shots but dead-in-midair strikes, and not a crippled bird escaped. What’s more, the gun wasn’t even firing 3-inch shells but rather 2 ¾-inch Federal Custom Shop Rob Roberts ammo loaded with ¾-ounce of TSS.

Just a few years ago, killing big ducks with such a small amount of shot from a sub-gauge gun would be unthinkable. So what made the difference? Super shot. More specifically, Tungsten Super Shot.

Why We Suddenly Care About Shot Density

In 1991 the federal government banned the use of lead shot for waterfowl hunting. The cheapest and most widely available replacement for lead was steel shot, but steel presented several challenges. For one, steel shot is very hard, and it was believed that steel would damage older barrels. That was an issue with older guns, but every shotgunner who used steel shot had to cope with the fact steel was not as dense as lead.

Why does that matter? Lethality, for one. Lead has a density of 11.3 grams per cubic centimeter, while steel has a density of 7.85 grams per cubic centimeter, and that means steel pellets must be larger to match the weight of a lead pellet and strike with the same force. Larger pellets mean fewer pellets per shot, and the greater surface area of larger steel pellets mean they don’t penetrate as deeply. To combat this, shotshell manufacturers made steel loads shoot much faster, around 1,500 feet per second. Kinetic energy is a result of mass and velocity, so if the mass of each pellet dropped, increasing velocity would increase energy and lethality.

The Rise Of TSS

Tungsten Super Shot arrived on the scene less than a decade ago, and TSS shot boasted a density of 18.3 g/cc. Suddenly every waterfowl hunter had a non-toxic alternative that was 56 percent denser than lead from the old days. TSS first appeared in turkey loads, and suddenly there were reports of hunters killing mature gobblers at 40 yards or more with .410 shotguns. The reason TSS was first used for turkey hunting is one of simple economics; although turkey hunters don’t have to use lead-free shot under federal law, the average turkey hunter shoots just a few rounds a year and were more likely to pay the higher price for TSS.

Word got around to waterfowlers that TSS offered a level of lethality unheard of from other non-toxic loads. Because TSS is so dense, smaller shot carried the same energy per pellet as larger lead, and TSS waterfowl loads were being stoked with No. 7 and even No. 9 pellets. Those smaller pellets hit hard because of their high density, they penetrate well because of small surface area, and you can pack a lot of pellets in a single load.

That combination of pellets, great penetration, and full patterns allows hunters to accomplish things like I saw happen in that marsh with the 28 gauge.

Choosing The Right Non-Toxic Waterfowl Load

The three primary non-toxic pellets options for waterfowl hunters today are steel, bismuth and tungsten, and each has its advantages and disadvantages. Steel has the lowest density of the three and might damage some shotgun barrels, but it’s affordable. Bismuth is safe in older barrels and is denser than steel (but not as dense as lead), though bismuth costs more than steel. TSS is ultra-dense and kills with authority, but pure TSS ammo is expensive, around $10 a shell.

If price were no concern, TSS would be the natural choice. However, if you aren’t willing to spend $100 a day or even more on duck hunting ammo TSS might not be a realistic option. But a good alternative to pure TSS loads are “blended” ammo like Federal Premium Black Cloud TSS, which is available with a combination of FLITESTOPPER steel and TSS in each shell. Black Cloud with No. 3 FLITESTOPPER steel and No. 9 TSS is extremely effective, yet it costs considerably less than all-TSS loads.

Bismuth is still a great option, and Federal’s HEVI-Bismuth is one of my favorites. It’s 22 percent denser than steel, safe for older barrels, and it’s priced around $3 a round, which is much more affordable than TSS. Federal Premium HEVI-Bismuth uses pellets that are alloyed and cast in the USA, so they aren’t brittle like some competing bismuth shot.

Whichever non-toxic load you choose this season, make sure that you spend time at the range patterning and practicing with your shotgun. Misses are costly, but poor shooting also results in crippled and wounded birds, which is something every hunter should avoid.