I vividly recall a day even though 30±1 yrs ago. I had a 12ga Lefever which had a set of retro fitted Bohler Steel bbls with proper Italian smokless proof on them. I wanted some fairly stiff Duck loads but didn't want to submit the gun to full blown SAAMI spec "Express" loads. I loaded 1¼oz loads of #5 shot to just over 1100fps using 7625 powder to a pressure of about 7,000 psi. Load was taken direct from, then DuPont, handloader guide. I had patterned them & patterns were great. Even though i normally squirrel hunted with a .22rf when the season opened with leaves still on i carried the 12ga to a hickory grove a couple times & killed a couple limits of bush-tails. They fell as if hit by lightning.
HowEver!! opening day of duck season found the temps in the low 20's, my Son & I had to break ice across about 100yds of flooded soybean field to get our boat into the swamp we were going to hunt. Just after daylight we saw a couple of greenheads, so I called to them & brought them in to our pothole. The son dropped one with a 20ga & an ounce of 6's. Mine sorta shuddered but kept flying, so gave him the other bbl. He then came down but hit the water swimming. He was swimming away so the boy finished him. I had noted the report of my shots were very mild, even for a subsonic load, recoil was non-existent. When we dressed that drake, plenty of #5's had hit him but were all just under the skin, no penertration at all. I no longer shoot loads of 7625 below 8K if I have even the slightest suspicion there may be "Frost Upon the Punkin". Just one mans lowly opinion, but I load because I want loads which are not readily available to me, not because they will "OutKill" factory loads, because they won't.
