Anyone have a favorite?

Lots of information here
https://parkerguns.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11403

I can tell you this: a short ten loaded with 1 1/4 ounce of 4’s or 5’s can achieve what is very nearly miracles. Shot string must be extremely short and shot deformation minimal. It hits a high flying duck like a pancake. I love my short tens, all Parker’s except one early hammer gun with Jones underlever marketed by William Moore, London (Scott) in very high original condition.

I'm not a PGCA member and have no real interest in Parker guns. I do have two short 10s (a Darne and an Alfred Hollis hammer gun). Can someone send me the spreadsheet?

I'm not interested in Parker's either but still am a member as there is a host of other info there, including reloading for older shotgun,s an "Other than Parker" section. A lot of info there that is useful even for non-Parker shooters

I guess I am showing my age. I remember when they were $5 a box. Great duck load.

I remember going to the grocery/bait store in Lily WI and buying 2 7/8 10 ga 6's over the counter and hunting grouse with my great uncle Rem hammer SXS.

I load 1 1/8 oz over BP for coyotes and 7/8 oz of 8's over 700x for targets. A light weight English upland guncirca 1870's.

Short tens have a small, secret following. Great duck gun for those who give them a chance. Been looking to pick up a nice example from Holts auctions for some time. Seems any I want are wanted more by someone else, so far. I’ll get my lovely soon.

My favorite target load is 10ga cheddite hull cut down to 2 7/8", cheddite cx2000 primer, red dot powder, remington sp10 with four 1/8" nitro cards in the base of the wad 1 1/8oz shot, star crimp. The load can be found on the Parker site topic reloading the short 10. 7600psi and 1150fps. Nice mild load for the old guns.

My foray into short tens was less than intoxicating. I had acquired a nice condition L C Smith 32", 10 ga., 00 grade, for little money. Tight as a widow woman's purse strings, but 10 plus pounds and very muzzle heavy. I reloaded for it successfully, even used it on ducks in AR, with bismuth loads, but it was just too cumbersome for me to keep in my stable. When I acquired my 32" HE Fox 12 soon afterwards I found how nicely a big, heavy duck gun could handle. If I ever went the way of short tens again it would likely be an English or European gun that would be lighter in weights and more suitably balanced.

This is my lightweight short 10. Its' a model 25 Francotte originally sold by Von Lengerke & Detmold in 1928 to Oliver W. Bird. He was born in 1864 and was the president of a mining company. It was returned to VL&D in 1929 in unfired condition and re-entered in the inventory where it remained unsold until it was sold again by Abercrombie & Fitch in 1938 for $325.00 . (Verified by Bob Beach) It weighs in at 7 lbs. 11.1 ounces, which is over a pound less than my 32 inch Super Fox that I sold to a fellow Fox collector at Hauseman's in June. It has 32 inch barrels, 2 7/8 inch chambers, and is in chambered F/F. The buyer in 1938 was Giraud van Nest Foster, from a prominent blue blood family born in New York City on January 6, 1904. Giraud Van Nest Foster passed away in Palm Beach, Florida on March 14, 1980. I don't know when or where it came back out of his ownership but it now resides in my safe.

I reload fired RST's the best with it and pretty much use Craig's recipe but substitute a vintage Herter's fiber wad cut in half for the nitro cards. I have and do cut down 3 1/2 steel Federal hulls but the crimps can be ugly sometimes. I think if I finally bought a skiving bit they would turn out better.

One thing I also have had great success with is using original, hard to get Polywad inserts to make spreader loads. It tames those tight chokes and work great opening up the pattern. It just takes a alight adjustment in the thickness of the 16 gauge wad inserted into the SP-10 wad to make it work.