shotguns, terminology, huntingI came across shotshell box that advertises “five shell holders for quick access to cripple loads”, but I’ve never heard of cripple loads (I just shoot clays) and can’t find any explanation of what they are. Can anyone here enlighten me?
A “cripple load” is a slang term for any shotgun shell that is used to kill a bird that was wounded but not killed by a previous shot. There doesn’t have to be anything special about these shells, they can just be several rounds of whatever a hunter normally uses. However, some people prefer a cheaper shell for these cripple loads so they’ll sometimes have a single box of cheaper ammunition set aside just for this purpose.
Hunters typically want to have quick access to them so they can quickly kill a wounded bird before it gets away, hides, and suffers somewhere on it’s own. So, you will see some field boxes with some sort of carrier on the outside for quick access.
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