2 dumb shotgun questions

[Longbranch]

1. Can one fire many slugs through a smoothbore barrel without accelerated wear and tear? Or should they only be used with a rifled barrel?

2. Is shot adversely affected if used in a rifled barrel? Will it screw up the rifling?

Bonus dumb question: are the walls to rifled barrels normally the same thickness as smoothbores, or are they thicker?

Thanks for your help.

 

[SDC]

Slugs shouldn't cause much more (if any) wear on a shotgun than shot loads; your shoulder, on the other hand...
Seriously, if slus WERE going to accelerate wear anywhere in a shotgun, I'd expect to see it happen on the locking lug(s) or shoulders first. Slug away.

Shot won't do anything to the rifling in a rifled slug barrel, but the rifling will spin a shot pattern out in a spiral, to the point where it won't be anywhere near as effective as when fired through a smooth bore.

 

[straightshooter]

BTW, Longbranch, there are no stupid shotgun questions - only people too proud to ask the question(s) BEFORE they risk damage to their guns or themselves.

SS

 

[257Roberts]

Speaking from experience. Slugs in a smoothbore, go out and have a blast. Standard slugs in a rifled barrel, don't shoot to many the cleaning time is not worth it.
Shot shells fired from a rifled barrel, I tried that once and at 30 yds. I got a pattern that was 30 yds wide and only a couple pellets on a 3'x3' cordboard. Sure did make the dirt fly at the backstop.