SCATTERGUN ALLEY: HEVISHOT 101

SCATTERGUN ALLEY

Hevi-Shot is probably best known in waterfowl hunting circles, thanks to steelshot alternatives in the form of proprietary tungsten and bismuth pellets, but loads for doves, pheasants and other upland birds are also on offer.

HEVI-SHOT 101

For 22 years, this Oregon company has been producing nontoxic shotshells; here’s their current lineup.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY LARRY CASE

Did you know that a small, specialized ammo company has been quietly pumping out millions upon millions of shotshells out of Sweet Home, Oregon, for the past 22 years? By o ering so many nontoxic ammo options for shotgunners, HeviShot is often misunderstood. HeviShot only produces nontoxic shotshell hunting loads. They don’t make centerfire or rimfire ammo (yet) and they don’t load anything with lead. So, for shotgunners looking for a big list of options for hunts in lead-restricted areas, Hevi-Shot has it.

In 2000, Hevi-Shot (Hevishot.com) started up with the goal of making waterfowl ammo that outperformed steel. To do this, they spent more than a year developing their very own alloy mixture using tungsten and other metals. The result was a very heavy pellet superior to steel, and that also outperformed lead due to its density. Along the way, Hevi-Shot also started crafting its own bismuth pellets, which the company might be best known for. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Earlier this year, the company

reevaluated its catalog of o erings, discontinuing many of its convoluted product names and condensing its list of products to be simple and streamlined. But that doesn’t mean Hevi-Shot’s current product list is small; it’s still huge and can be confusing to comprehend.

Let’s take a look.

PELLETS AND STACKS The first key to understanding HeviShot’s overall product line is grasping their overall strategy of pellet materials and stacked payloads. Hevi-Shot only loads nontoxic pellet materials: steel, bismuth or tungsten. Of these three shot materials, steel has the lightest density – 7.8 grams per cubic centimeter. Bismuth is next at 9.6 g/ cc, and tungsten is the heaviest at 12 g/cc. Hevi-Shot also loads a full line of turkey-hunting ammo using tungsten super shot (TSS) pellets, which have a density of 18 g/cc. Regarding lethality, it’s considered to be the same order: steel, bismuth, then tungsten and TSS.

Again, Hevi-Shot does not load any product containing lead pellets. But for comparison’s sake, the density of lead is 11.2 g/cc, which falls between bismuth and tungsten. A denser (heavier) material will carry its velocity and penetration energy longer. This means it will hit harder (faster) plus carry its lethality (in foot-pounds) out to greater distances.

Think about it: If you had a wi e ball, a tennis ball and a baseball thrown at you at the same speed, which one would hurt the most? Density also relates to shot size. A 1-centimeter cube of steel weighs a lot less than a 1-centimeter cube of bismuth or tungsten. Because bismuth is 22-percent denser than steel, hunters can choose loads that are one size smaller than steel and still have the same or better lethality. Using tungsten, hunters can choose three sizes smaller.

The size of the projectile also a ects penetration. If you were punctured in the foot by a large nail or a small needle, which one do you think would go deeper? That example of penetration is the same when shooting the large shot size No. 2 compared to the tiny size of No. 9. The size of shot also a ects pellet count. In a 3-inch shotshell hull, you can fit a lot more pellets of tiny No. 9s compared to No. 2s. So, if you choose a shotshell that features a material that is denser than another material, you will benefit by having more downrange energy, deeper penetration and/or higher pellet counts, which leads to fuller patterns with more hits on target at longer distances.

Hevi-Shot shells are loaded with either straight or stacked payloads. Straight means all of one material (100-percent bismuth, tungsten or whatever). Stacked means multiple shot types in one shell. For Hevi-Shot, this means a layer of steel pellets and a layer of bismuth pellets loaded in the same shell. This stacked, dual-shot design, according to HeviShot, improves on a shotgun shell’s performance.

To sum it up, Hevi-Shot’s three shot materials and two payload types all have a specific purpose in the company’s product line. Steel satisfies customers looking for a good option that is less expensive yet is e ective at close and medium distances. However, a load that has both steel and bismuth is a better solution because a stacked load o ers an increase to the shell’s overall lethal e ectiveness at only a modest increase in price. Bismuth is slightly more expensive than steel, but its performance is closer to that of lead loads, so a load with 100-percent bismuth is an even better solution. And finally, while tungsten comes with a larger price tag, it is the most e ective at long distances compared to anything else, so tungsten loads are Hevi-Shot’s best solution.

The Hevi-Metal line features stacked bismuth/ steel payloads available in 20 different loads.

SELECTED FOR THE GAME Hevi-Shot’s product line is organized by four hunting activities. Within each of those, the company o ers its customers good-better-best solutions to choose from based on their need, preference or budget. Hevi-Shot o ers only the most popular loadings with specific attributes for each type of wild game, making it easier for customers to know what to select.

Waterfowl. Hevi-Steel is o ered

in 23 popular loads for waterfowl in a long list of sizes and speeds. Hevi-Teal is o ered in just three options – all in shot size No. 6. Both are good, all-steel solutions.

Hevi-Metal Longer Range and HeviHammer feature stacked bismuth/ steel payloads, which are better than all-steel. Hevi-Metal is the more robust of the two products. It’s available in 20 di erent loads and features 30-percent bismuth pellets stacked on top of 70-percent steel shot. HeviMetal Longer Range also features two shot sizes so there’s more pellets in its payload. Its bismuth pellets are one size smaller than its steel pellets, but because of density, they have the same ballistic coe cient as the steel. Hevi-Hammer is available in only five popular loads, and it’s stacked with just 15-percent bismuth over 85-percent steel; both pellet types are the same size in this load.

Hevi-Bismuth Waterfowl is an even better choice because it’s loaded with all bismuth and it’s o ered in 23 di erent loadings. It’s also popular because it’s softer than steel and tungsten, meaning it can safely be used in both modern and classic, or older, fixed-choke shotguns.

Hevi-XII is the company’s best solution for waterfowl. It is named for the dense tungsten alloy that weighs 12 g/cc.

Upland. Hevi-Hammer Upland is o ered only in shot sizes No. 3 and 5. Hevi-Hammer Dove is o ered only in shot size No. 7. Both products have stacked bismuth/steel payloads (15-percent over 85-percent). HeviBismuth Upland is o ered in only the two loads that pheasant hunters choose the most: 2¾-inch, No. 5 in 12- or 20-gauge.

Turkey. Hevi-Metal Turkey is o ered in shot sizes No. 4 and 5. These loads feature stacked payloads with

Hevi-Metal Longer Range shotshells are topped with 30-percent bismuth pellets over 70-percent steel shot. The former are a size smaller than the latter, but because of their heavier density, they have the same ballistic coefficient.

bismuth on top of steel (30-percent over 70-percent). Turkeys are large upland birds, so payloads are heavier in ounces than Hevi-Metal for waterfowl.

Magnum Blend is a 12 g/cc tungsten load that features a mix of three di erent shot sizes – No. 5, 6 and 7 – all in one load, making it HeviShot’s best solution. This blend o ers a more powerful, versatile payload with a higher pellet count compared to a traditional No. 5 or No. 6 copper-plated lead turkey load.

Hevi-18 Turkey is the company’s new best-of-the best option. It features tungsten super shot pellets that deliver the ultimate in density (18 g/cc) in shot particular on what primers, powders, wads, hulls and sealants they use, and because of that, its overall product quality exceeds expectations. 

size 7 or 9. TSS is now widely known as being the most lethal pellet material on the planet, so it’s no surprise that Hevi-Shot loads it.

Predator. Hevi-Shot o ers its best solution for predator hunting, which is aptly named Dead Coyote. It features 12 g/cc tungsten pellets in shot size 00 Buck or T. Both can be deadly out to 70 yards.

The element of quality. Shot and payload type matters, but there are other characteristics of Hevi-Shot shotshells that set them apart from other shotgun shells, such as their all-season reliability and specialized components. Hevi-Shot is very Editor’s note: Larry Case has been a devoted outdoorsman since he was a child. He will admit to an addiction to turkey hunting (spring and fall), but refuses any treatment. He enjoys the company of gobblers and cur dogs that are loud and people who speak the truth softly. Case served 36 years as a game warden in West Virginia and retired with the rank of district captain. You can check out his podcast and other stories at gunsandcornbred.com.

“Quality exceeds expectations” when it comes to Hevi-Shot products, argues columnist Larry Case, making for satisfied shooters and busy hunting dogs.