Questions for the Ontario slug gun hunters

billyc

billyc

BANNED
BANNED
BANNED
Rating - 89.6%
40   5   3
Location
Mid-Western Ontario, Bruce County
My inlaws own a few 100 acres down in Wellington County(Hardwood and cedar surrounded by Cropland). Lots of deer on the property. This year I've decided to enter the controlled deer hunt (Shotgun/Muzzleloader). Gonna be putting in a few food plots as well.
So a fellow CGN'r and I headed off to the range yesterday. He had just bought his wife a Mossberg 20gauge combo as a present for passing her CFC Course as well as the Hunter course. He threw on the rifled barrel and sighted in a red dot. Now I realize that you have to try plenty of shells to find the one that works but accuracy was no roaring hell. About a 2inch group at 75 yds with some challengers which was actually better then the groups of the Winchester Partition golds. We then threw the smooth bore on and took a few shots with the challengers as well as federal truballs. Accuracy was about the same with the smoothbore and open sights. After we were all done we both felt like we may just stick with our muzzleloaders since we know they are tack drivers and confident out to 200 yds with them.

I would say 90% of the hunting we will be doing will be from treestands or ground blinds. There may be some shots over fields which may be around the 200yd mark but I think we will design our food plots in the bush to have a max 175 range. We may do a little still hunting but if that was the case I think I would just take my SBE II and fire off some 12g challengers through an IC. I have got some fairly nice groups at 50 and 75 with this combo.

So here comes the questions.
1. For the scenarioI just described do any of you guys who hunt these controlled deer hunts find a rifled shotgun to be an advantage?

2. How many of you use Muzzleloaders during the shotgun muzzleloader season?

3. Do many guys still use smoothbores to hunt deer or has everyone switched over to rifled barrels?

Thanks
Billy
 
Hey Billy! I don't shoot a smokepole, but I do have a Remington 870 20ga. with a rifled barrel. I shoot the Remington solid copper sabots out of it, and it's serious deer medicine at 50yds or less, which is what I got it for. The drop tables are daunting after that distance. For anything over, I go to rifle (which I realize is not an option for you), but IMHO I'd use the shottie for thick cover or close-in work. Over that, if I had the field of fire, I'd stick to a known performer. Lots of luck in the season coming!
 
Hi, the group l used to hunt with always used rifle slug barrels, and of course slugs, worked great for us, accurate, and good to between 50-100 yrds.
We always pushed and always filled our tags.
 
Given the choice i would use the slug gun over the ML. I like my ML, but there a lot less cleaning with the slug gun.:)
 
we have guys that ues both smoth bore and fully rifled barrels .we will ues smoke pols sometimes if still hunting but are season here is just 6 days so most guys here do deer drives and that means shooting at deer on the move and most times more then one deer at a time a muzzel loader is a disadvantage at this time .most slug guns that we have shot well enoghe out to 150 yards say 5 or 6 inch groups .when we push a bush there can be 7 or 8 deer come out at a time this is were the slug gun shines .but a guy should still shot his weapon of choice and get to know it very well .this s a controled hunt and the idea is ti harvest a number of deer .we save are trophy hunting for bow season mostly .DUTCH
 
I shoot BP exclusively for deer...always have. There is just something addictive about it. :)
I've also converted alot of my shotgun friends, once they saw the accuracy I was getting.
 
Having used both I prefer hunting with the muzzleloader but during shotgun season I use my shotgun.

A Mossy Ulti-Mag 835, cantilever barrell, fixed power scope. Awesome at 100 yards with Winchester BRI lead slugs or Remington Copper Solids. It did not like the Winchester's gold or platinum partitions.

Iam not a bad shot, but I like the quick follow up with shotgun and its got me one deer I would have missed with the ML. Clean miss, he did not know where shot came from 2nd shot right on target.

Try a few more brands, I know its expensive but you have lots of timee to get it figured out.
 
Slug gun to 100 yards, 3 shots.

ML to 200 yards, 1 shot.

You don't need food plots if surrounded by cropland. Better off with apples or Rackstacker deer feed.
 
Well I have been hunting deer with shotgun for 16 years now. Never have hunted with ML. If you take the time to pratice with your shotgun and try some of the different preimum rifled slugs you can get good accuracy out to 200 yards. I can shoot 4" groups at 200 yrds out of my rifled barrel.
Last year I shot 3 deer all over 100yards with one shot kills. All it takes is pratice. I do have a scope mounted though on my BPS.
 
I've hunting just south of Belwood in Wellington County for 3 years now. Taken a deer each year, 2 with a smooth bore rifle sighted barrel and one with the muzzleloader. Zone 80 now has the late season Muzzeloader only season the first week of December. I prefer this time to hunt over the traditional November hunt. I still hunt and tree stand hunt only and have shot deer from less than ten yards to max of 25 yards. I found the smooth bore to be more than adequate but after getting my 8 pointer last December with the muzzloader I will never hunt shotgun again, I am addicted now.
 
billyc said:
Thanks for all the answers. One last question. If you limit your shots to 100 yards max is it possible to get decent groupings from a smoothbore barrel with a scope of red dot?
Thanks
Bill
Click to expand...

Anything is possible if you try different loads. Some brands may work better in certain barrels, as some 12ga barrels are overbored/backbored etc, and most chokes are different.

You may be better served by the rifled barrel, regardless of distance. The sabots are more expensive, but what is cheap in hunting? I can regularly shoot 2-3" groups at 100yds with Remington Copper-Solids. May not sound impressive, but that's with the iron sights...:)
 
9 guys I hunt with use smoothbores. Have for 20 years. I switched to a rifled barrel for this year coming up. I know guys that shoot deer around 150 yards no problem. THey got that gun dead on at 150 yards, 6 inch low at 200. Pretty damn accurate if you ask me

870, hastings 24" cantileverd rifled barrel shooting Hornady SST sabots. Deadly combination.

I have a mossberg 535 and I havnt shot my rifled barrel yet to find out how it works.
 
I use a Rem 870 with a rifled barrel 20", rifle sights. When I went to a rifled barrel I had the intent of using sabot loads. When I went to the range I was still unable to beat the accuracy with Challenger slugs through the rifled barrel. Mind you I shoot a hundred yards max and I must say Challengers cloverleaf a target at 50-75 yds....damn comfortimg when a big buck is in range. Out past 100yds Your muzzle rifle should shine, shooting a gun you have confidence with will make the difference.
 
billyc said:
Thanks for all the answers. One last question. If you limit your shots to 100 yards max is it possible to get decent groupings from a smoothbore barrel with a scope of red dot?
Thanks
Bill
Click to expand...

Shot smoothbore for years. Even had a red dot. You can get 2-3" groups at 100 with smoothbore. Just try different shells till you find ones that work for you.
 
Just came across this thread..........

My old 870 12 ga 2 3/4" smoothbore has killed probably forty deer in my hands over the years. Some of them were longer shots, for sure, some over a hundred yards. But at that range, I am holding well over fur. I did scope the gun a number of years ago, since my old eyeballs were getting less good with the open sights. Scoping it made it a more accurate gun, but even at low power magnification it is not nearly as fast to acquire a running deer in close cover. I do shoot with both eyes open, which helps.

I tried most of the slugs over the years, but my gun just tells me to go back to the el cheapo Winchester Western one ounce slugs. Most of the time I can put three shots into three inches at a hundred yards with this rig.

There is no question that MOST hunters can shoot further, and much more accurately, with a rifled barrel and saboted slugs. And as several folks have pointed out, you will need to find the ammo that YOUR gun likes - much like one needs to do this with rifles.

Doug
 
hi i use an 870 and have been using Hornady SSTs the last 3 years and three deer . 30yards and the other 2 between 40 and 55 yards i love those slugs all three dropped on the spot . ps and 2 of them in wellinton county . try those slugs yu will love them good luck
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom