Which slug to use for smoothbore ???

[suzyandal]

I have a Mossberg 500 that came with a smooth bore slug barrel. I was wondering if someone can help me out with slug selection.Can you use the rifled sabots in it ?? or should I just be using a regular non rifled slug. Any advice would be appreciated.Thanks in advance Al

[Pointers rule]

I was told you should not use a sabot slug in a smoth bore only use the standard rifled slugs.

[Masterblaster1]

Standard slugs only, no sabots. I've had good luck with federal tru-ball low recoil 1oz slug, standard velocity winchesters, and brenneke heavy field short magnum.

[jim sasser]

your right pr use rifled sluges,not sabots.do a search on the subject,the question is asked many times.try a few diff. ones till u find the one your gun likes.mine shoots good old cheap rem. just fine...good luck

[skipper34]

I have a Mossberg 500 that came with a smooth bore slug barrel. I was wondering if someone can help me out with slug selection.Can you use the rifled sabots in it ?? or should I just be using a regular non rifled slug. Any advice would be appreciated.Thanks in advance Al

Understand this...........sabots are not rifled. These shells are meant to be used in a fully-rifled barrel. A "regular non rifled slug" does not exist. A typical slug which is meant to be used in a smoothbore gun such as yours is indeed rifled. I think you are a little confused as to what is what here. Allow me to explain. A fully-rifled shotgun barrel is like a rifle barrel in that it has grooves(rifling)cut into the barrel in a spiral. This is to grip the bullet(in this case, a sabot) as it leaves the barrel and to impart a spinning motion to achieve aerodynamic flight, which will improve accuracy. The sabot is actually a plastic sleeve which surrounds the lead or copper bullet and this is what grips the barrel when fired. The sabot is then ejected shortly after leaving the barrel of the gun, and the bullet is then on its way to the target.
A rifled slug works the same way, only in this case, the rifling is actually on the lead slug. This type of slug is used in a smoothbore. The rifling is cut onto the slug in such a way that the smooth barrel will actually grip the slug and cause it to spin, but not as much as a sabot shot from a fully-rifled barrel. This spinning motion will improve accuracy.
As to the best rifled slug to use in your Mossberg, only your gun can give you that answer. This is why you must purchase several different brands of rifled slugs, and go to a shooting range and let the gun tell which brand of slug is the MOST ACCURATE. I emphasize most accurate because this is what you are striving for. Do not listen to the hype and hogwash about which slug has the most "knock-down power" or any other malarkey. ALL rifled slugs sold today will KILL a deer which is in range, PROVIDED THAT THE SLUG IS DELIVERED "ON TARGET". This is why accuracy is the most important consideration when choosing a hunting projectile. Good shooting, and good hunting. Hope this helped you out.

[Tru-N-Sea]

I use Brenneke Rottweil slugs in my Remington 870 with the standard barrel. Brenneke's are excellent shells and do the work easily. Brenneke also makes the Classic Magnum shells that are designed for all barrel types. The Rottweils are getting harder to find so Im thinking about going to their 3" Black Magic Magnums, they are for all barrels and accurate out to 100 yards.

Captn---

[eddiejohn4]

I believe Skipper34 said it just right. That was good advice. try many projectiles and see which one gives you the best performance.

Good luck this year.:)

[Cedar Swamp]

I use Brenneke Rottweil slugs in my Remington 870 with the standard barrel. Brenneke's are excellent shells and do the work easily. Brenneke also makes the Classic Magnum shells that are designed for all barrel types. The Rottweils are getting harder to find so Im thinking about going to their 3" Black Magic Magnums, they are for all barrels and accurate out to 100 yards.

Captn---

Brenneke is my choice as well.
I shoot them out of my Ithaca Model 37 Featherlight (pre-64) and they are very accurate out to 80 yards. My dad had taken many deer with this set-up before giving it to me.

Good Luck

[suzyandal]

Thanks to everyone,especially Skipper for the detailed explanation. I believe I finally understand.. Thanks again:xzicon_sm

[SPITFIRE]

Understand this...........sabots are not rifled. These shells are meant to be used in a fully-rifled barrel. A "regular non rifled slug" does not exist. A typical slug which is meant to be used in a smoothbore gun such as yours is indeed rifled. I think you are a little confused as to what is what here. Allow me to explain. A fully-rifled shotgun barrel is like a rifle barrel in that it has grooves(rifling)cut into the barrel in a spiral. This is to grip the bullet(in this case, a sabot) as it leaves the barrel and to impart a spinning motion to achieve aerodynamic flight, which will improve accuracy. The sabot is actually a plastic sleeve which surrounds the lead or copper bullet and this is what grips the barrel when fired. The sabot is then ejected shortly after leaving the barrel of the gun, and the bullet is then on its way to the target.
A rifled slug works the same way, only in this case, the rifling is actually on the lead slug. This type of slug is used in a smoothbore. The rifling is cut onto the slug in such a way that the smooth barrel will actually grip the slug and cause it to spin, but not as much as a sabot shot from a fully-rifled barrel. This spinning motion will improve accuracy.
As to the best rifled slug to use in your Mossberg, only your gun can give you that answer. This is why you must purchase several different brands of rifled slugs, and go to a shooting range and let the gun tell which brand of slug is the MOST ACCURATE. I emphasize most accurate because this is what you are striving for. Do not listen to the hype and hogwash about which slug has the most "knock-down power" or any other malarkey. ALL rifled slugs sold today will KILL a deer which is in range, PROVIDED THAT THE SLUG IS DELIVERED "ON TARGET". This is why accuracy is the most important consideration when choosing a hunting projectile. Good shooting, and good hunting. Hope this helped you out.
:yeahthat:

[Socks]

I agree with trying different shells. My 870 shoots the cheapy Rem sluggers great, but the more expensive Federal Truballs sucked.

[outdooralex]

Suzyandal, I have a Mossberg 500 with a slug barrel also. I have tried many different slugs out of that gun and the best one I have found ,believe it or not, was the good ole cheap Remington Sluggers 2 3/4". I have shot a few deer with them and never had a problem..

[john warren]

totaly depends on the distance you expect to shoot. in my case most shots are under 50 yards. the cheapest slug will be deadly at those distances.
and if you never shot a slug threw a critter, well you'll be impressed. makes a dandy hole right threw them.

[TrekJeff]

No need to get fancy when shooting a smooth bore slug gun. Any of the major brands, Winchester, Federal, Remington all make rifled slugs that will slam venison to the ground. Don't get caught up in all the hype. I buy what ever is on sale and havn't had a problem.

[skipper34]

No need to get fancy when shooting a smooth bore slug gun. Any of the major brands, Winchester, Federal, Remington all make rifled slugs that will slam venison to the ground. Don't get caught up in all the hype. I buy what ever is on sale and havn't had a problem.

I totally agree with this post. The hype over this slug and that slug is astounding. Like I said, if accuracy is your main concern, which for me it is always the first concern, some cheapies will shoot better through a certain gun than others. But at rifled slug ranges, which are well short of 100 yards, the wallop on deer sized game is tremendous. As long as long range is not an issue, which for rifled slugs would be about 70-80 yards max, they are indeed potent deer medicine. I prefer the rifled barrel and sabots simply for the accuracy, and to a lesser extent, the downrange energy compared to a rifled slug.

[Sam22]

Originally Posted by skipper34 View Post
Understand this...........sabots are not rifled. These shells are meant to be used in a fully-rifled barrel. A "regular non rifled slug" does not exist. A typical slug which is meant to be used in a smoothbore gun such as yours is indeed rifled. I think you are a little confused as to what is what here. Allow me to explain. A fully-rifled shotgun barrel is like a rifle barrel in that it has grooves(rifling)cut into the barrel in a spiral. This is to grip the bullet(in this case, a sabot) as it leaves the barrel and to impart a spinning motion to achieve aerodynamic flight, which will improve accuracy. The sabot is actually a plastic sleeve which surrounds the lead or copper bullet and this is what grips the barrel when fired. The sabot is then ejected shortly after leaving the barrel of the gun, and the bullet is then on its way to the target.
A rifled slug works the same way, only in this case, the rifling is actually on the lead slug. This type of slug is used in a smoothbore. The rifling is cut onto the slug in such a way that the smooth barrel will actually grip the slug and cause it to spin, but not as much as a sabot shot from a fully-rifled barrel. This spinning motion will improve accuracy.
As to the best rifled slug to use in your Mossberg, only your gun can give you that answer. This is why you must purchase several different brands of rifled slugs, and go to a shooting range and let the gun tell which brand of slug is the MOST ACCURATE. I emphasize most accurate because this is what you are striving for. Do not listen to the hype and hogwash about which slug has the most "knock-down power" or any other malarkey. ALL rifled slugs sold today will KILL a deer which is in range, PROVIDED THAT THE SLUG IS DELIVERED "ON TARGET". This is why accuracy is the most important consideration when choosing a hunting projectile. Good shooting, and good hunting. Hope this helped you out.
:yeahthat:

Search the forums on the subject, if my compromised memory serves me, I went off on a thread like this last year. I won't shoot a rifled slug more than 50 yards, actually, i will never shoot one again. They suck, a lot.

[2PawsRyno]

My good ol' 870 w/ smooth bore shoots just about all the less expensive rifled slugs equally as well. The best accrracy I found was from the standard Remingtons and the tru ball types. Try shooting a couple brands and find what fits your gun. Happy shooting.

[skipper34]

My good ol' 870 w/ smooth bore shoots just about all the less expensive rifled slugs equally as well. The best accrracy I found was from the standard Remingtons and the tru ball types. Try shooting a couple brands and find what fits your gun. Happy shooting.

Exactly. I have also found over the years that my smoothbores were not all that finicky about what they were being fed. Sabots, now that is another story. I have had good and bad results with different sabot slugs with different guns. For instance, one of my 1100's with the cantilever fully rifled would not group the Rem. Copper Solids at all. If I recall, I had the best accuracy with the Winchester Hi-Impact, of which I believe is no longer available. The Partition Golds would not hold a candle to the Hi's at 100 yards. On my daughter's 1100 Lt. 20 with a 24 inch Hastings, it would drive tacks with the Core-Lokt Ultra. In fact the Ultra's are what my son's 1100 likes the most. As for rifled slugs, like I said, the difference in accuracy at, say, 50 yards was not enough to worry about. If you can hold 3 inches at 50 with rifled slugs, you have a good slug.

[G5monotech]

Only Brenneke Rottweil. My father, brother and I all shot them. We all shot different smooth bore 12's. I have used different ammo do to not being able to find Brenneke Rottweil's, but if I can find them I will use no others.

[BeWild]

Suzyandal, I have a Mossberg 500 with a slug barrel also. I have tried many different slugs out of that gun and the best one I have found ,believe it or not, was the good ole cheap Remington Sluggers 2 3/4". I have shot a few deer with them and never had a problem..

I agree, I have a 500 and those sluggers fly pretty good for me at the distances i use them, which is 40 yards or less. I'd give them a try if i were you.

[SwiftHntr.17]

Well put Skipper, but I would like to add that having the same shotgun as mentioned, I've had great success with the Federal Truballs, very accurate at the 50 yard range.

[Happy Jack]

Just a heads up. Dunhams has Rem sluggers for under $3 a box. Rem copper sabots for $11, buckhammers or 12 and a $5 rebate. Lightfield sabots were $8.50

[cole1lc]

So you can use the rifled slugs in a smooth bore but do you have to take out the choke tubes? I'm sorry for being so ignorant with this, but I've never hunted the shotgun zone until this year. Also, I have my .300 short mag and .270 so I'm used to being able to reach out and poke'em if need be. It seems like with slugs you almost come back into bow range. Does 50 yards seem to be max knock down distance? :dizzy::dizzy: Thanks for the help.

[FREEPOP]

I hope you guys spent some time at the range to claim that any type of rifled slug would be okay in any smooth bore gun, as I haven't found that to be the case with any gun I have checked. The gun has always thrown one type better than the others and that's the one I shoot out of that particular gun.

[BallsRdragn]

So you can use the rifled slugs in a smooth bore but do you have to take out the choke tubes? I'm sorry for being so ignorant with this, but I've never hunted the shotgun zone until this year. Also, I have my .300 short mag and .270 so I'm used to being able to reach out and poke'em if need be. It seems like with slugs you almost come back into bow range. Does 50 yards seem to be max knock down distance? :dizzy::dizzy: Thanks for the help.

They make twist choke tubes. But no you dont take out your tubes. Brennke I found were the best.

Ben

[FREEPOP]

You should use an improved cylinder or cylinder choke tube. Modified might also work.

[Happy Jack]

Remington claims the Buckmaster slug can shoot 3 in groups at 100 yds. Where I hunt with my 870 12 ga my longest shot is maybe 50 yds and I've never had a problem with open sights. 6 deer with 7 shots. If you hit a deer with a slug I think you will be surprised with the knock down power that chunk of lead has.

[FREEPOP]

We processed deer more years than I want to remember. I've seen deer come in with more lead than you can pack in one pocket.

[tibs36]

Only Brenneke Rottweil. My father, brother and I all shot them. We all shot different smooth bore 12's. I have used different ammo do to not being able to find Brenneke Rottweil's, but if I can find them I will use no others.


Would have to agree on this one. I shot a Mossburg 500 and these seem to do well, at least for targets. Havent had the chance to shoot a deer yet with it. And the slugs are cheap. Also have used the brenneke shells that are green, but cant remember the name

[Socks]

So you can use the rifled slugs in a smooth bore but do you have to take out the choke tubes? Does 50 yards seem to be max knock down distance? :dizzy::dizzy: Thanks for the help.

If it were a trophy buck and the moons and stars were aligned right I'd take a 100yd shot, but I've been to range and know what it can do. 50 to 70 yards is my max typ, but I've never shot one farther than 30.

They make twist choke tubes. But no you dont take out your tubes. Brennke I found were the best.

Ben

Don't quote me, but aren't the twist choke tubes for sabots?

You should use an improved cylinder or cylinder choke tube. Modified might also work.

I use Improved Cylinder. I'd check their website about the Modified though

Remington claims the Buckmaster slug can shoot 3 in groups at 100 yds. Where I hunt with my 870 12 ga my longest shot is maybe 50 yds and I've never had a problem with open sights. 6 deer with 7 shots. If you hit a deer with a slug I think you will be surprised with the knock down power that chunk of lead has.

This goes to show that each gun is different. I can't hit a barn with the buckmasters with my 870, but it real well with the Rem Sluggers

[chrisu]

I shoot an 11-87 with a 21" smooth bore and a rifled choke tube. Just picked up 4 more boxes of Remington Sluggers at 2 boxes/$5. I have no problem maintaining 6" groups at 100 yards with open sights. My buddy is about as accurate shooting $11/box coper solids with a scoped/rifled barrel. To each their own...find what works and you will be an expert too!

[jayzbird]

I don't know how we all survived without rifled slug barrels and saboted slugs for so long???? Lol...:lol:

[skipper34]

I shoot an 11-87 with a 21" smooth bore and a rifled choke tube. Just picked up 4 more boxes of Remington Sluggers at 2 boxes/$5. I have no problem maintaining 6" groups at 100 yards with open sights. My buddy is about as accurate shooting $11/box coper solids with a scoped/rifled barrel. To each their own...find what works and you will be an expert too!

If I were your buddy I would get to the range with several brands of sabots and find out which one will group 2-3 inches at 100 yards. 6 inches at 100 yards with a rifled barrel, scope, and sabot slugs is poor to say the least. His gun deserves better than that. I tried the Copper Solids in my 1100 and could not hold a group either. As always, it is the accuracy that matters, not the so-called "knock-down" power.

[Michigander1]

Understand this...........sabots are not rifled. These shells are meant to be used in a fully-rifled barrel. A "regular non rifled slug" does not exist. A typical slug which is meant to be used in a smoothbore gun such as yours is indeed rifled. I think you are a little confused as to what is what here. Allow me to explain. A fully-rifled shotgun barrel is like a rifle barrel in that it has grooves(rifling)cut into the barrel in a spiral. This is to grip the bullet(in this case, a sabot) as it leaves the barrel and to impart a spinning motion to achieve aerodynamic flight, which will improve accuracy. The sabot is actually a plastic sleeve which surrounds the lead or copper bullet and this is what grips the barrel when fired. The sabot is then ejected shortly after leaving the barrel of the gun, and the bullet is then on its way to the target.
A rifled slug works the same way, only in this case, the rifling is actually on the lead slug. This type of slug is used in a smoothbore. The rifling is cut onto the slug in such a way that the smooth barrel will actually grip the slug and cause it to spin, but not as much as a sabot shot from a fully-rifled barrel. This spinning motion will improve accuracy.
As to the best rifled slug to use in your Mossberg, only your gun can give you that answer. This is why you must purchase several different brands of rifled slugs, and go to a shooting range and let the gun tell which brand of slug is the MOST ACCURATE. I emphasize most accurate because this is what you are striving for. Do not listen to the hype and hogwash about which slug has the most "knock-down power" or any other malarkey. ALL rifled slugs sold today will KILL a deer which is in range, PROVIDED THAT THE SLUG IS DELIVERED "ON TARGET". This is why accuracy is the most important consideration when choosing a hunting projectile. Good shooting, and good hunting. Hope this helped you out. Thanks Skipper :).Sock has some good questions as well.As for useing Imp before Mod .I rather be open then hurting my choke tube.Great post and reply from all.....So far :D Socks has a few good questions going in my book ;) Mich

[chrisu]

Yeah, we made a real expensive trip to the range after he got that barrel, and all of the high-dollar sabots did the same or worse than the copper solids. At any rate, I think before he optimizes any more, he needs to correct his flinch! That is the biggest problem right now, and besides, I always get the deer in gun season - he get's em in bow season!

[skipper34]

Yeah, we made a real expensive trip to the range after he got that barrel, and all of the high-dollar sabots did the same or worse than the copper solids. At any rate, I think before he optimizes any more, he needs to correct his flinch! That is the biggest problem right now, and besides, I always get the deer in gun season - he get's em in bow season!

Sorry, I wasn't thinking in terms of a flinch problem. Yes, you are right, the best slug in the best gun is worthless if the shooter is flinching. Hope he can correct it. Good luck this year.

[Ron L]

My Winchester 12 gauge used to shoot Brennekes best.

My one son has a 20 gauge Mossberg w/ rifled slug barrel and Lightfield and Hasting sabotted sluggs seemed to do equally as well thru his gun.

And for all the slug hype - my 12 year old can shoot around a 3 inch group at 50 yards off-hand with the cheaper Remington Sluggers. That's about the distance limit we hold him to on game for now.

[P.C. Tweek]

I agree with all. My shotgun deer cocktail is an ithica 37, 12 gauge with remington sluggers 1oz, 2&3/4 inch shells. I've used this combo for 20 years and I'll say, it really knoks them down hard!!! Only had a few run on me after the shot, but they don't go far.

Tweek,

Good Luck and stay safe!

[Michigander1]

So whats the differents on a 2 3/4 and a 3 in shot ? Mich

[skipper34]

So whats the differents on a 2 3/4 and a 3 in shot ? Mich

The only difference that I could ever tell at 50 yards was the 3 inch slug kicks like hell. 3 inch slugs are not needed at those ranges.

[vandermi]

I use Brenneke Rottweil slugs in my Remington 870 with the standard barrel. Brenneke's are excellent shells and do the work easily. Brenneke also makes the Classic Magnum shells that are designed for all barrel types. The Rottweils are getting harder to find so Im thinking about going to their 3" Black Magic Magnums, they are for all barrels and accurate out to 100 yards.

Captn---

Brenneke 3" magnum
That is what I used out of my smooth bore moss 500. They were the best after trying everything I could. Now I have a riffled 11-87 and the Hornady SST is unbelievable out of it. I still have 5 or 6 boxes of the brenneke in 3 inch.

[dansjeep2000]

I don't know how we all survived without rifled slug barrels and saboted slugs for so long???? Lol...:lol:

LMAO :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: