Article: Shot string: shot patterns aren't round, as often advertised--they're long, and that's mostly a good thing for shooters.(Shotguns)

Virtually every time we discuss downrange performance, it is in relation to what percentage of the shot charge lands in a 30-inch circle. That's good information, but it's only part of the story. The fact is that if our shot charge flew downrange in a thin 30-inch pancake, we'd never hit anything. It is the coupling of the concentration of the shot charge in its vertical and horizontal dimension, along with the length of the shot string, that provides the necessary latitude for us to bag the bird. Of course, if we shoot behind, over, or under the bird, there's no way we'll hit it, but because the pattern has both width and length more like a sausage than a pancake it ...

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