This month we look at the across-the-board best selling cartridges. Whatever you shoot, be it Skeet, Sporting or something spicier, there should be something here to whet your appetite
This is a global look at the bestsellers for all clay shooting disciplines, so if DTL is your thing, or Fitasc, or even just a Sunday morning straw bailer, there will be something here for you. Clay shooting is in rude health, with plenty of small clubs flourishing and more competitions of every variety to choose from than there were ten years ago.
For the Sporting shooter, the Beretta World is now a staple; the Fitasc World Championship held at EJ Churchill last month attracted a record entry; and the innovative Benelli SP Auto Championships shows that competitions with a twist are gaining popularity too.
These events and many more like them give everyone the chance to shoot competitively, shoulder-to-shoulder with the top shots. Most of us will never win, but that’s not the point. These shoots afford us a memorable and fun day out.
There is a massive selection of cartridges available for clay shooting these days, and while a lot of ideas are duplicated from manufacturer to manufacturer, every cartridge has its own merits.
As they have been dictated by the market, this month’s offerings are all 12-bore by default. Of course, being a bestseller doesn’t necessarily make a cartridge the best in its class, theoretically speaking. Then again, if everyone is buying it, there must be a very good reason…
Just Cartridges CSP Club
Load: 28gm Fibre 7.5 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1410fps
Price: £194 / 1,000
This is the ideal budget cartridge for practice and club use, especially now that most smaller clubs are fibre wad only. The Club gives the industry standard payload and mid-range performance for very sensible money. Massively popular, it’s the ideal economical all rounder.
Hull Pro One DTL 300
Load: 28gm Plastic 7.5 or 8 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1400fps
Price: £253 / 1,000
Hull Cartridge was one of the first manufacturers to produce a DTL-specific shell, and this is it. The thinking behind this smooth-to-shoot beauty was to achieve modest recoil without compromising performance. This enables the rapid second barrel target acquisition that’s so important for DTL.
Lyalvale Express Pro Skeet
Load: 28gm Plastic 9.5 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1400fps
Price: £251 / 1,000
Reducing muzzle flip is vital for Skeet. The Express Pro Skeet accomplishes this with smooth-shooting Vectan powder, while the 9.5 shot provides about a million pellets to play with. For the second target on station 4, use Lyalvale’s new Super Trap in a 7.5 shot and watch the 25-straights roll in.
Gamebore Dark Storm
Load: 28gm Plastic 6.5, 7.5 or 8 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1550fps
Price: £279 / 1,000
With out-and-out blistering performance, Dark Storm is the go-to shell for Fitasc. A wide variety of shot sizes offers options that can deal with long rabbits, close, quick edge-on targets, and everything in between with equal confidence and precision.
RC2 Competition
Load: 28gm Plastic 7.5,8 or 9.5 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1400fps
Price: £209
The RC2 Competition is the most popular cartridge for Compak Sporting. You’ll come across all kinds of Sporting targets on Compak’s minute layouts, so you’ll need a versatile shell. Soft recoil and a variety of shot sizes make this the ideal choice for such a fast and furious discipline.
Eley Olympic Blues
Load: 28gm Plastic or Fibre 7.5,8 or 9 shot
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1400fps
Price: £204 / 1,000 Plastic; £209 / 1,000 Fibre
English Sporting is probably the most popular discipline, and so every manufacturer has an extensive range for it, but Olympic Blues are the most popular, and with good reason: they do the business at a very competitive price. For those looking to move up a notch, the Eley Superb provide some extra oomph.
Fiocchi FBlack
Load: 28gm Plastic 7.5
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1450fps
Price: £219 / 1,000
Another massively popular cartridge for ESP, the FBlack has largely taken over from its little sister, the FBlu, as it is smoother, harder hitting and extremely economical in today’s market. Fiocchi makes a large range of competitively priced clay shells, and the FBlack is easily the most popular of these.
Gamebore Buffalo
Load: 32gm fibre SG
Case Length: 70mm
Muzzle Velocity: 1400fps
Price: £399 / 1,000
This one’s a bit off piste; it’s the bestseller for the increasingly popular Practical Shotgun discipline. While this is not strictly a clay sport, it’s certainly a lot of fun, and well… why not? The 9 shot pellets in these cartridges, which measure just 8.4mm in diameter, will have those steel plates ringing!
More cartridge round-ups from Clay Shooting Magazine
- Mid-range cartridges for club or competition
- Best clay shooting shells – our expert selections
- Best clay cartridges – the right kind for every discipline
- Best clay cartridges from budget to blow-out
- Most used clays at Atkin Grant & Lang
Leave a Reply