The standard buckshot shell in 16 gauge is 12 pellets of #1 buck (.30 caliber). A 12 gauge 9 pellet load of #00 buck (.33 caliber) actually weighs less due to how the larger shot stacks in the shell.
I'm quite partial to 16's, I've got 8 at last count, including a CSMC RBL that I had built.
You owe me a new keyboard. This one was just ruined with drool.
Interesting. I didn't know that. I've never fired a 16-gauge that I can remember (maybe as a kid, but if so, that memory is lost in the mists of time), only 12s and 20s. 20s always seemed a little lightweight for my tastes. 12s are just right. So I thought 16s wouldn't pack the punch I like. Now I want to try one!
BTW, I've read that shells which mix shot sizes don't work very well, because while the smaller shot fill in the gaps of the larger shot, the higher drag-to-mass ratio means they separate out during flight. I wonder what experiments have been done with using a mixture of denser small shot with less-dense large shot? Since lead is cheaper and less dense than other materials, I would think mixing large lead shot with smaller tungsten or bismouth shot would be cheaper than filling the entire shell with the smaller more expensive shot.