by rc42 » 21 Jun 2022, 6:13 pm
Fixed chokes at 3/4 or Full can't use steel shot, even if the barrel is steel proofed and older SxS may not be steel proofed at all so the options for them will be lead whilst its available (and usable at your range) or Bismuth alloy (or equivalent) which will become easier to find as lead is phased out but will always be expensive.
If you are getting an older shotgun that can't use steel it will eventually be expensive to shoot, but that could be 10 or 20 years away, (or next year if the Greens get their way). Unless it's a crazy expensive collectors shotgun I'd say go for it and worry about the future sometime in the future.
If you don't ever want to worry about it then a shotgun with a steel proofed barrel with open or swappable chokes is the way to go.