I've shot Winchester Supremes 2oz #6 - 3" 12 gauge for the past 4-5 years. As with gd357 most of the birds I shoot are 30 and under. I'd say out of the 60 some birds I've shot, I could probably count on 1 hand the ones that were 40 and beyond.
Bringing them in and controlling yourself to let them come that 10 more yards before pulling the trigger is one of the best parts of the hunts.
With that being said, this load patterns well out to 45 yards with 4-5 pellets in the kill zone of spine/brain.
Now just this year I got a box of Remington Hevi-shot. These are only 1.5 oz of #6. They seemed to pattern just as good as the Supremes with less shot. The recoil was considerably less. So for an extra $10 a box at a whopping $2 a shot you get;
Less Pellets, increased velocity, and less recoil. Is it worth it?? Well after these 10 are shot, I think I'll just stick to the Supremes at $8-$10 a box of 10 and take more pellets and more recoil.
For the shots I take, I could probably use pheasant loads...
ha ha. I just don't choose to shoot at a bird when he's 50 yards. (don't get me wrong, there's gun/load combos out there that'll do it every time even further than that) but what's the fun in that??
I don't like running a bird down through the woods. When I make up my mind to pull the trigger, he's laying there when the smoke clears.