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L. P. Brezny
Strangler Chokes
Strangler choke tubes combine tight constriction with a wad-stop system of sorts. When the two systems come together, the result is a tight-shooting, high-performance choke that will drill 25-inch patterns at 40 yards with some loads, and produce 100-percent 30-inch patterns with others. In truth, I have found very few loads that don’t take well to the Strangler, and I now have these chokes mounted on my Berettas, Mossbergs, Remingtons, Brownings and Winchesters.
When we think of controlling a shotgun pattern we need to take a serious look at a simple formula: V + V + PD = WE. Volume plus velocity plus pattern density equals working energy at the target. What high performance chokes like Strangler do is control massive amounts of shot within the kill ring (30-inch circle). If a pellet of, say, BB steel is generating two ft/lbs of energy at a given range, a five pellet hit will generate a combined 10 ft./lbs of killing energy. Up that hit ratio to eight pellet strikes and you have reached 16 ft/lbs of game-harvesting energy.
Birds are taken by one of three events. The first is vital damage and bleeding, the second is nerve damage and the final cause is broken bones involved in flying. High pellet counts on airborne targets are critical. Strangler helps the shooter send a whole lot of shot into a bird at any working range. It can handle the new super shot, including Hevi-Shot and Tungsten Iron, leaving no thread expansion or choke damage. Most of the muzzle strain is in the section of the choke tube that extends an inch beyond the muzzle. This area has a set of teeth that guide and grip the wad as the payload exits the muzzle. This acts as a delay and yields a better chance at a tight pattern down range.
The Strangler’s constriction is so tight that it can double as a turkey choke as well as a great pass-shooting system. I have used the choke on river geese when gunning over wide open river flats in late winter conditions, and I have also shot passing mallards with solid results. Strangler shoots tight and if you are a bit cold on the swing, a missed target is common, but darn few cripples are created with the system.
I am taking my Strangler system afield on a gobbler-killing mission using Hevi-Shot or even Tungsten Iron, then, a month later, sending No. 8s at crows through it, and using it on early season geese a bit later. The advanced choke tube is a do-all piece of equipmentand, at the price of four common choke tubes, it should be.
