3" Black Cloud in the 28" Stoeger 2000

[chowder]

Never shot this stuff before but wow, it's AWESOME! 2 man limit in 1 1/2 hours this morning.Took a while to find the last two but overall we found these loads in BB to shoot well out of these 'I-drive' auto loaders thru a a mod. choke for field geese.Getting the smoker ready now! -Andy

[seasquirrel]

Awesome Andy. I like the black cloud too but someone from this site last year reccomended the remington supersonic steel and I like that even better.

[carpedium]

I have the Stoeger 2000 as well... great gun. I've never been waterfowl hunting, but I use it for deer.

[BLOCKHEAD]

i like black cloud. stoned this bird with 2 3/4 2's. that i had left over. 3" kents (2 shot) have been performing well this year.

[chowder]

Great pic!

[Lund SSS]

Awesome Andy. I like the black cloud too but someone from this site last year reccomended the remington supersonic steel and I like that even better.

I'm hearing some scary reports from Biekerchs about recievers and barrels being BLOWN up from this stuff not sure I'd want to be anywhere close to that. Just my 2 cents, I've shot Black Cloud since it hit the market and really like the stuff

[flybuster]

I'm hearing some scary reports from Biekerchs about recievers and barrels being BLOWN up from this stuff not sure I'd want to be anywhere close to that. Just my 2 cents, I've shot Black Cloud since it hit the market and really like the stuff

is there any answer for why this happen , or is it just another case of some guy who cant read and shoots big steel through a tight choke? i searched and found no deffinative evidence on why. the only time i have ever seen that happen was with black cloud shot out of a 3 1/2 10gauge with bb and the old trusty x-full turkey choke, silly uncle still dont listen , but anyway i burnt through just shy of two cases in september and have two more ready for the ducks, shot it second half of last year when store was out of kent's with no issue what so ever .. i use a a400 xplor and 2 benellies sbe2 and a vinci. not one missfire. failure, cycling issue anything

ps if your back in there ask someone why it happened, would love to hear it thanks

[borderline 350]

Dear Chowder & Users of Black Cloud Ammo,

This shotgun load was developed for premium performance on game. The pellets will go THRU a coyote @ 60 YDS. The heavy duty plastic unslit wad stays with the pellets until approx. 40 yards. It performs as designed and is truly a fine unit for long range shotgun performance & costs a very pretty PENNY!.......And now some interesting info on frequent users of this ammo. Some high volume serious waterfowl hunters in the upper Midwest (2500 to 3000 rounds per season) have seen very small internal barrel dents just before the choke area....approx. .005 to .010" in depth. These were in high quality Beretta & Benilli barrels designed for steel shot. Actually feels like very small bumps on the outside of the barrel..(when running your fingers down the outside of the barrel just before the choke area.)...A few instances of this were reported on Trapshooting.com....I would suggest very carefull inspection of your barrel often. This type of barrel damage was very prevalent when steel shot ammo first came out. And remember the Copper sabot warnings from Hastings when used in a rifled barrel!! As far as blowups.......It takes a considerable blockage to blowup a shotgun or the wrong combination of reloading components to burst modern receivers and barrels. Federal makes fine shotgun ammo and the "Black Cloud" ammo is a great product when used as intended.....Respectfully Submitted....Ex-Jet Boat Bill.....150K reloads in my lifetime....

[jklawyer1]

The problems with black cloud comes from using wad stripping chokes. The wad on BC is very hard and will not constrict in a choke. The wad itself acts as a choke, staying with the pellets after they leave the barrel. Federal even recomends using an IMP cyl for them. I use them for ducks only as the pattern is to tight for decoyed geese. Even with the IMP cyl patterns are very tight. I have been shooting them through my benelli since they came out with no issues.

[ Post made via Android ]

[chowder]

Not sure what to make of these BC commentaries but it would be very helpful if those of you with access to credible BC user problem reports could provide us w/ a link to the info so we can read the reports ourselves. Thanks, -Andy

[jklawyer1]

when bc first came out people on shooting forums were complaining about choke tubes egg shaping and not coming out of the barrel. Some complained of barrels bulging. None of it is creddible as people complain about everything. If you go on Blackcloudammo.com. under faq. Federal recomends using a non stripping choke with little restriction. Like I said I've shot it for years and have never had an issue.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Gator]

I think that Steve was making reference to the SuperSonic shot in his post above...at least that's my interpretation. I've not heard personally of anyone having issues with BlackCloud.

[chowder]

JK- Thanks for the Fed link & I think I will try an IC choke on one of our model 2000 Autos.

Borderline- Anything on BC 'going right through a coyote at 60yds' would be appreciated. It seems like kind of a tall order to me but since my boys usually 'cover' my back when we're setting up on predators maybe we should consider swapping out our traditional 3" 00BK loads for BC which does have a 225 fps muzzle vel. advantage. -Andy

[borderline 350]

Dear Chowder,

I first saw the "Black Cloud" ammo display at the June Pa. State Trap Shoot in Elysburg, Pa. in 2009. The Federal Ammo rep. had pictures of coyotes that had "expired" using "BC". Actual distances and number of pellet counts were displayed. I asked some pointed questions at the time, because of the ammo performance. I would think that the data/pictures are available thru Federal Cartridge Company. The price of this ammo will stop your breathing, but it is the ammo for long range....The US government has some special shotgun ammo that costs around 8.00 a round that video performances have been seen on the internet. ......Respectfully submitted,..... Ex-Jet Boat Bill