Hunting gear earns high marks in pheasant fields

My South Dakota pheasant hunt was a welcome opportunity to test some gear, and I loved the results.

SHOTGUNS

I always take two shotguns on the road, but a bucket list trip like this one required three.

They were a Browning BPS Grade III 16-gauge, a 1982 vintage Browning Auto5 Sweet 16 with a rare 22-inch barrel, and a rare Remington 105 CTi autoloader.

I shot so well with the BPS that the Sweet 16 stayed in my room. I missed my first two shots with the BPS, but I hit almost every shot thereafter, including a bird that was so high that even the 12-gauge guys gave it a pass.

It was a one-shot, head shot with a Remington Express loaded with 11/8-ounce of No. 6 shot through an improved cylinder Invector tube. I led that bird about 4 feet. It crumpled, spun out and then helicoptered softly to the ground like a maple seed.

Browning made the Grade III BPS in 16-gauge for only one year — 2007 — but the BPS Medallion and Hunter models are available in 16-gauge for about $750 and $650, respectively.

The Remington 105 CTi won my heart.

Maybe it’s because it looks so funky, or maybe because it is such a radical departure from Remington’s traditional engineering, but hunters and target shooters rejected the 105 CTi. It’s their loss because it is a phenomenal upland bird gun.

Its light weight makes it effortless to carry. Remington claims it is the softest recoiling 12-gauge ever made, and I believe it. Without describing the mechanics and engineering that make it so, I assure you that it kicks as mild as a 20-gauge. That makes it easy to shoot as well.

Its 28-inch barrel is too long for quail hunting, but it’s ideal for swinging on pheasants, chukars, Hungarian partridge and sharptailed grouse in the open spaces of the West and Midwest.

The Blue Book value for a new condition 105 Cti is about $1,300, but you can find them for about $750 if you’re patient.

NONTOXIC AMMO

With the Remington autoloader I used nontoxic Kent 11/8-ounce No. 6 tungsten matrix loads.

Pushed through an Improved Cylinder ProBore tube, that load killed birds cleanly and decisively at all ranges. One was right over my head going behind me, and two were way out, going away fast.

Kent also makes upland and waterfowl tungsten matrix loads for 20- and 16-gauge. At $37.50 for a box of 10, they demand shooting discipline, but they work better than lead, and definitely better than steel. I’ve used Kent’s 16-gauge nontoxics to hunt ducks at Bayou Meto WMA with great effect.

HARD GUN CASE

For more than 20 years I have protected my camera equipment with a Pelican case, and the new Pelican 1750 extends the same beefy protection to my firearms.

In a truck crammed with the gear of four hunters, the Pelican 1750 held all three guns with a little room to spare, and the thick foam padding kept them immobile. Part of that trip was in the rain, with only a rapidly deteriorating blue tarp to protect our gear.

Four big latches ensure the lid stays shut, and two steel-reinforced hasps allow you to secure the case with large padlocks. A pressure-relief valve facilitates air transportation.

Two wheels on the end make it easy to roll through motel parking lots and lobbies without drawing undue attention.

I am disappointed that the rubber seal, which occupies a recess that encompasses the case, broke on its first road trip.

UPLAND GAME VEST

The weather was too warm for my full-size Browning vest, but a light, McAlister Waxed Wingshooting Vest was ideal.

It has only straps across the shoulders, which keeps your arms free and your upper body ventilated. Two spacious pockets in the front to carry shells and a large back pouch easily held three pheasants.

CHAPS

For all upland bird hunting I wear a pair of waxed Filson chaps. I’ve had them for about 15 years, and they have saved my legs from countless scratches from burrs, brambles, stalks and rocks.

You can buy bird hunting trousers that come with tough patches that serve the same function, but I prefer the chaps. They are like armor.

Regular treatments with Filson wax keep the chaps and the vest in good condition indefinitely.