With a longstanding legacy amongst bird hunters and clay shooters, and a reputation of building high-quality and dependable shotshells, Federal Ammunition solidified their position in the marketplace with the newest addition to the Federal Premium category, the High Over All (HOA) competition target load.

Federal Ammunition has been a mainstay at the shooting ranges and clay courses with their ever-popular Top Gun and Gold Metal Target Load, and producing premium shotshells for competition shooters and hunters is nothing new for the Minnesota-based company. HOA represents the culmination of years of testing and development to create a better shotshell for high-volume shooters and reloaders, and signifies the synergistic union of two iconic shotshell brands.

A Better Patterning, Softer Shooting Shell

The Remington STS shell has long been a top choice of competition and high-volume clay shooters and touted as one of the industry’s leading target loads based upon its consistent performance and reloadability. And while Federal had already begun the process of researching and developing a tapered hull design before their merger with Remington ammunition, the recent union could not have been timelier and more significant.

“The brass head and tapered hull of the HOA shell combines the form and function of the classic STS shell and includes a strong single piece integrated hull,” said Federal Ammunition’s Director of Product Development, Adam Moser. “The HOA shell was also designed for dependable performance time after time, with less failures and more reloads.”

Moser and his team are also behind the engineering of the new Podium wad featured in HOA. “The Podium wad is made from a softer material and intended to produce a softer shooting experience by absorbing more energy and delivering less felt recoil to the shooter. We’ve also increased the antimony content in HOA up to 5 percent, which leads to less scatter and less deformation and ultimately a better down-range pattern.” 

Whether you are a competition shooter or a bird hunter polishing up your wingshooting at the clays course, HOA translates to more comfortable, economic, and overall, a more enjoyable shooting experience.

Built for Bird Hunters

Wingshooters aspire to quickly and cleanly kill birds in the field. And while we employ our trusted canine counterparts to reliably recover crippled and wounded birds, our priority should always lean toward making the best shots possible. Successful shooting often comes from spending time at the range and learning how our guns and loads pattern. This includes assessing each part of the process including shoulder mounts, swings, and follow up shots. Developing confidence through repetition on the clays course will ultimately lead to better and more effective shooting during the hunting season. With a load that is now reload-ready and more forgiving to our thinly clothed off-season shooting stints, we can no longer blame the shell for misses on easy bird targets during the hunting season.

Federal Ammunition Product Line Manager, Dan Compton agrees, “I’m not a competition shooter, I’m not out there trying to win trophies, but I do shoot in a sporting clays league, and I find that’s the best way for me to really be brushed up as I go into the fall. On the years that I’ve done it, versus the years that I haven’t, those birds seem to be flying just a little bit slower and I’m just able to acquire the target better.” 

A Shotshell for All

High Over All will be available in a variety of load configurations, beginning in 12-gauge 1-ounce and 1 1/8-ounce with #7.5 through #9 shot in various velocities—perfect for matching up with your preferred game loads. After the initial launch, 20-gauge and smaller sub-gauge offerings will be also become available.

This specially designed shotshell and its components will also be available for reloaders looking to be more economic with their shooting activities. Given the current social and political climate and the apparent ammunition shortage, many hunters have opted to invest more time and energy in reloading. The new HOA hull and Podium wad components are specially made to offer more reloads—up to 20 or more uses—all while delivering consistent reliability.

The more time and repetition we have with our shotguns, the better and more proficient shooters we become, and after all, the whole idea of bird hunting is to reward our dogs with a mouthful of feathers and carry a heavy vest at the end of each hunt. Whether you prefer to practice with trap, skeet, sporting clays, or pattern boards, the new HOA shotshell has been masterfully crafted to give the gunner a softer shooting load with an increased reloadable output.