shotgun hunting--???? on slugs and sabots

[newhunter1]

Shotgun hunting--? on slugs and sabot

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Just wanted to get the opinions of some of the more experenced shotgun hunters. At the close of hunting season here in Illinois, I bought a Mossberg 695 12 gauge shotgun with a leupold vx-II 1-4x20 scope. Got a deal at 200.00 bucks. I found that the scope was right on at 100 yards with Lightfield slugs, but the price was a kick in the teeth. 11.00 for 5 rounds, and I know this is the average price.

Here's my question:

Tonight I was a super wally world and crusing the hunting section (what little there is) and found several boxes of Federal premium and Federal ammo for a steal.

1) Federal Premium ammo: Hydra-shok Sabot slug HP, 2 3/4" 1 oz Max, and muzzle velocity 1450 fps. Boxes were marked 5.00 a box--bought two boxes.

2) Federal ammunition: Power-shok rifled slug HP, 2 3/4" 1 1/4 oz Magnum, muzzle velocity 1520 fps. Boxes were maked 2.00 a box--bought five boxes.

The question that I have is this, which one is a better slug for the job of killing deer. I only have 10 rounds of the Hydra-shok's and 25 rounds of the Power-shok.

I liked the Lightfield slugs, but will use what I have so that I don't spend to much money. These were a steal and bought what I could when I found them.

Give me your insights to these rounds or to some others. My shotgun has a rifled barrel in case your wondering. Should I shoot rifled slugs only or will a sabot slug engage the rifleing?

Thanks for your help...
Paul

[tcmech]

The rifled slugs were designed for smooth bore barrels. They will shoot accurately, but keep in mind that the most improved performance with rifled slug will be found in a smooth barrel. The saboted slugs are defintely not cheap but perform well in rifled barrels. If you shoot the rifled slugs in your gun it may cause lead to build up which will lead to poor performance with the saboted slugs.

If you truly want the best performance from a rifled barrel then the sabots are the way to go.

[edge]

newhunter1 said:

Shotgun hunting--? on slugs and sabot

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SNIP

The question that I have is this, which one is a better slug for the job of killing deer. I only have 10 rounds of the Hydra-shok's and 25 rounds of the Power-shok.
SNIP

No question there, the one that groups best ;D

tcmech hit the nail on the head, sabots are for rifled barrels only!

Save some time and shoot at 25 yards before you move to 100 with EACH type of slug, just because 1 worked great does not mean the next one will. I went through a whole box trying to figure where they were missing ;D

edge.

PS they are NOT long range projectiles no matter what the Mfg. says!! Much past 140 and there is not much energy left.

[ABinMD]

tcmech, edge,

Finally saw my error, went back and deleted the entire post. Definately meant to say saboted slug is best. Don't know what I was thinking- I quess I was'nt.. Been shooting them for quite a while! Thanks for posting your info.

[jjw]

Shoot what ever brands you have and see which group the best. Each shotgun, rifle and ML prefers its own brand of amo, so let it decide.

[indiana1234]

The Federals may have a different point of impact than the Lightfields. That means you have to rezero in your scope.

[Blue-Dot-37.5]

Each slug gun is different is an understatement! I'd check the accuracy @ 50 Yds to see what brand groups the tightest, then check for bullet drop @ 100 Yds. That's what was in the instructions that came with my Tar-Hunt...........

I tried a couple of shots @ 200 Yds too, just for the heck of it. I could hear the slug hitting the target, that's how much they slowed down. The Federal Barnes 3/4 oz expander shot a good 8" lower than the Hornady SST @ 200 Yds.

150 Yds Max for me on the slugs, even with a Mil-Dot scope.

[ohioguy]

I have a 695 and from my experience my gun likes the winchester/BRI slugs by far the best. I'd recommend giving them a try if you can in the future. But by far the best round out of that gun is the $16.00 winchester partition golds or the remington core loct ultras, if you can stand the pain of paying that much, but hunting in Ill I'm sure there's a good chance of shooting a nice buck so I'd definitely spend the money and gain the accuracy and performance of the new EXPENSIVE sabot slugs, you never know when you'll get that once in a lifetime chance. Those expensive slugs can give you alot more effective range. You'll have to try different loads and see what your gun likes best and also work some overtime to afford it. Good luck

[johnd]

Your gun has a rifled barrel so go with the saboted slug. Rifled slugs will lead up your barrel.

[indiana1234]

I'd stay with the Lightfields. They work. How many slugs do you shoot in a season?

[tar12]

Lightfields all the way! You will be hard pressed to find a saboted slug that will out perform them,terminally and accuracy wise.The Lightfields by their very design will be very accurate in a wide range of guns due to their skirt/base design which makes up for shotgun manufacturers bore tolerance differences.The same can not be said for any other slug out there.

[redneckrob]

i have an 1100 with a rifled choke tube and the best accuracy i have found is regular old federal rifled slugs. in my gun the will shoot a 2 to 2 1/2 inch group at 100 yd. i hve never had any problems with lead building up or anything like that. besides when you shoot as much as me and my group does you can't afford to shoot them rich guy slugs. any deer slug will do the job if you use it right.