5 Ways to Evaluate your Turkey Pattern

It takes a solid hit to the nervous system to put down a turkey on the spot. That means that one, or hopefully many more, pellets has to hit the brain and/or spinal column with enough energy to destroy it.

Many hunters forget to pattern their shotguns, decreasing their chances of dropping a bird. Turkey hunters should spend time on the range shooting at turkey targets and evaluating the patterns to find a turkey load that consistently places several pellets in the nervous system of a turkey.

Every time you change your choke tube, shotshell brand, go from led shot to extra dense, or change pellet size or sighting system, the pattern will most certainly change.

• Eliminate human error during your patterning session by using a solid rest
• Use a permanent in-ground shooting bench, otherwise resort to a portable bench
• Equip the bench with a recoil-absorbing, fully adjustable gun rest

• Start using a large target with a 30-inch outer ring to check the pattern’s center (try Red Star Shotgun Special target)
• Switch to using a smaller head and neck gobbler target that shows the spine and brain after the pattern is centered to the shotgun’s point of aim (try PreGame Gobbler target by Birchwood Casey)
• Shoot several times to confirm your pattern

• Use those targets to shoot at 20, 30 and 40 yards
• Study each target carefully
• Watch for point of impact changes, holes developing in the pattern and the pattern suddenly falling apart

• Adjust your sights if the center of the pattern’s mass is off
• Consider adding a shotgun scope or other optical sight to adjust the centering of the pattern’s mass

• Try a different choke tube, shotshell or shot size if holes are appearing in your pattern
• Use patience to solve the problem, trial and error is the best option