What do you carry in your hunting pouch for your shotgun?

[loud-n-boomer]

I recently purchased a nicely restored W. C. Scott and Sons 12-bore double built in 1868 to use as a bird gun. This is my second percussion double. The first one, which I sold, was a Pedersoli, which was well made, but never appealed to me aesthetically. The Scott is beautiful to look at and the difference between carrying and swinging the two is like the difference between a willow wand and a fence post.

I am curious as to what those of you who hunt with a percussion shot gun carry in your hunting bag for a typical day's upland hunting?

The obvious things are:

• Shot pouch or shot snake (I use nickel platted #6 or #7 shot)
• Powder flask (I use 2F powder)
• Capper with appropriate size caps
• Tin of extra appropriate size caps
• Over powder wads
• Cushion wads (I soak mine in jojoba oil)
• Over shot wads
• Nipple pick
• Nipple wrench

What am I missing or what is handy to have that I have not listed for a day's hunt and what is modern verses traditional?

 

[tenngun]

Close to my round ball set.
I use a bag with a divider. Shot is about in a small vase shaped bag. Paper squares loose on one side, that I use as wads. The other side spare leather,flint and cleaning rag and worm. Some tins of grease. This os all except replace ball with shot and my paper for wads

 

[LongWalker]

I learned to load a shotgun from VM Starr when I was a kid and have seen no reason to change--no matter what I do I'm a lousy shotgunner, so I keep it simple!

In the bag: Irish shotflask, 5-6 roundball and patching material, cardwads punched out of poster board (2 go under the shot, one over the shot), loaded capper. Powder measure is tied to the strap. Powder horn is on a separate strap.

 

[BillinOregon]

Dave, yes, some sort of nod toward being able to clean -- and to pull a load or loads if need be -- and adjust a screw.

"And here be mindful constantly to Arm
With Choice of Flints, a Turn-Screw and a Worm;
The accidental Chances of the Field
Will for such Implements Occasion yield."
--Markland, "Pteryplegia"

 

[Brokennock]

Powder horn, powder measure.
Small leather bag of pre-lubed balls of tow/faux-tow (usually some extra overshot cards tossed in there too) is tied to my shot pouch strap but can be tucked into the pouch itself, a small tin of overshot cards and lubed felt wads and/or heavily lubed cushion wads and nitro cards (depends what I am gunning for), either a small tin of pre-made shot cup/cartridges or another small leather bag with cane/bamboo tubes full of premeasured shot, some strips of heavy brown grocery sack paper.
What of this stuff I carry and what I use depends on the type of shooting I will be doing. Squirrels and pheasants get loaded for differently than turkeys.

Very occasionally I will carry a small leather ball bag filled with shot and an extra powder measure of 10 grains more than I will measure my powder with, like a 60 grain powder measure and a 70 grain powder measure, the 70 grain gets used for shot though.

The long tube-like one across the bottom sometimes gets used for shot.

Tubes of premeasured shot. Bag gets tied to pouch strap or belt.

Cards and wads. I don't really need the 3 way divider anymore, I build my load at the muzzle so no longer need to nick the edges of some of the cards.

This size strip forms a good cup at the muzzle or about an inch can be torn off and the longer piece folded and seated on powder to keep gas from blowing through one's tow.

The chargers tethered together are 10 grain apart, as are the two ends of the one across the bottom.

A tin of squirrel or pheasant medicine.

Any or all of this would be in addition to the usual stuff like a small bag or wallet with a spare flint or two, turnscrew, worm, clean patches and tow.

 

[Sparkitoff]

You might need a short starter if a wad turns or you have any choke. A CO2 discharger is great if you get a fail to fire.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

when hunting i carry my stuff in my blaze orange vest pockets. Shot and powder are in flasks with Irish heads and a handful of cards an wads. I don't were bags or horns because they get all tangled up in the corn and fencing. You don't need anything more than a dozen shots anyway.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Wads, a couple balls, caps or flints, nipple or lock wrench. Shot and powder is in separate leather pouches/flasks. And, usually, some junk I don't need.

 

[Rob M.]

Hornets nest for wad , flint hammer / screw driver combo , touch hole pick , powder measure , shot dipper , balls , shot , roll of patching , powder horn , extra flint , knife

 

[TransYank]

Yep, I keep it simple (V.M. Starr). Small powder flask in my rear hip pants pocket, Powder measurer in front pocket, with card type wads (use 2 over powder and 1 over shot) Also an inline capper. A small leather shot pouch with an Irish style head for 7 1/2 or smaller shot. An English head for my go to shot size of #5's.. Own 3 original English double guns 12ga and 13ga. feel like part of your arm when using. 1 CVA 12ga double that really feels like a club but shoots a good turkey pattern with # 5's at 25 yards. And one of the older (1976 light weight) Pedersoli 12ga. that is choked full and modified. Still grab 1 of the Original's 90% of the time.

 

[Fisherking]

Powder horn, powder measure.
Small leather bag of pre-lubed balls of tow/faux-tow (usually some extra overshot cards tossed in there too) is tied to my shot pouch strap but can be tucked into the pouch itself, a small tin of overshot cards and lubed felt wads and/or heavily lubed cushion wads and nitro cards (depends what I am gunning for), either a small tin of pre-made shot cup/cartridges or another small leather bag with cane/bamboo tubes full of premeasured shot, some strips of heavy brown grocery sack paper.
What of this stuff I carry and what I use depends on the type of shooting I will be doing. Squirrels and pheasants get loaded for differently than turkeys.

Very occasionally I will carry a small leather ball bag filled with shot and an extra powder measure of 10 grains more than I will measure my powder with, like a 60 grain powder measure and a 70 grain powder measure, the 70 grain gets used for shot though.

View attachment 210467
The long tube-like one across the bottom sometimes gets used for shot.
View attachment 210468
View attachment 210469
Tubes of premeasured shot. Bag gets tied to pouch strap or belt.

View attachment 210470
Cards and wads. I don't really need the 3 way divider anymore, I build my load at the muzzle so no longer need to nick the edges of some of the cards.

View attachment 210475
View attachment 210472
This size strip forms a good cup at the muzzle or about an inch can be torn off and the longer piece folded and seated on powder to keep gas from blowing through one's tow.
View attachment 210471
The chargers tethered together are 10 grain apart, as are the two ends of the one across the bottom.

View attachment 210473
A tin of squirrel or pheasant medicine.

Any or all of this would be in addition to the usual stuff like a small bag or wallet with a spare flint or two, turnscrew, worm, clean patches and tow.

^^ This reeks of science!

 

[Darkgael]

V.M. Starr.
Premeasured powder charges in capped vials. pre-measured shot charges in capped vials. A handful of stiff OP wads for over the powder and over the shot. Extra flints. Pick. small brush. Priming powder flask (small). If I go with the Skychief, a tin with soaked wads.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

I use the pockets of my hunting vest to carry an afternoons worth of supplies. I hate a bag around my neck that gets hung up on everything.