Duck hunters, let's talk shells

[Dolphus Raymond]

For the past two seasons, I've shot 3.5# Rios and and some Kents. My old SBE 1 chews through them well but next year I may upgrade to Black Cloud or perhaps Blind Side. Number 2s work well on mallards but if I'm shooting 3 inch shells, I go with 3s to ensure a dense pattern.
Curious to know what other duck hunters shoot.

[State82]

My favorite shot size is #3. I shoot Winchester Dry Lock more than anything else but I like the Rios also. Good load.

[BB30]

For the past two seasons, I've shot 3.5# Rios and and some Kents. My old SBE 1 chews through them well but next year I may upgrade to Black Cloud or perhaps Blind Side. Number 2s work well on mallards but if I'm shooting 3 inch shells, I go with 3s to ensure a dense pattern.
Curious to know what other duck hunters shoot.

Depends on how much you plan to hunt and what you are hunting. When I am in timber I shoot 3" #4s and usually shoot kent or even xpert (most shots are anywhere from 10-20yds). In a pit I still stick with 3" and go down to #2s or #3s and shoot kent or blind side. Only time I switch to 3.5s are if we are setting up for specs as well or hunting somewhere with a bunch of local canadas we are setting up for.

As for brand, if the birds are working in tight and good like they are supposed to it really won't matter. If your having to take longer shots brand can play a role. I stay away from Black Cloud primarily because of the wad that is used in the shell and the choke that I use just isn't a good combo with my gun. If I am going to shoot a more expensive shell I always have a couple boxes of blindside for the season.

Up until this year I was hunting close to 10-15 days a season and guiding 35-40. This year I didn't guide nearly as much due to taking more responsibility on at my full time job(fortunately it is seasonal so my winters are pretty slow). But, I did hunt more myself/w friends not clients primarily timber so I kept it cheap. Hope this helped. What gun/choke are you shooting?