Savage slug gun
- Thread starter jpbcal308
- Start date
cdn1canhunt
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- southwestern ontario
Honestly neither, I'd get a rifle 25cal or bigger. Bigger would be better.
But of the 2 choices the 20ga has a better rep. For accuracy and more manageable recoil. If you keep ranges reasonable either has a bullet is large enough to ethically take an elk.
But of the 2 choices the 20ga has a better rep. For accuracy and more manageable recoil. If you keep ranges reasonable either has a bullet is large enough to ethically take an elk.
I would check the regs. I seem to remember in some provinces using a shotgun on elk was illegal, any shotgun, even a rifled one - like in bc. Having said that, 20 gauge. It hits with the downrange energy, depending on sabot, of a 45-70 out to 200 yards. Very popular for game in shotgun only zones where legal. Surprisingly accurate too.
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[Having said that, 20 gauge. It hits with the downrange energy, depending on sabot, of a 45-70 out to 200 yards. Very popular for game in shotgun only zones where legal. Surprisingly accurate too.[/QUOTE]
Thanks Uplandguy, That is the answer of my question.
Thanks Uplandguy, That is the answer of my question.
Both will definitely kill the animal. Having heard that elk commonly cover great distances after a lethal hit I would choose the 12 over the 20. With the same trajectory the 12 delivers more energy and simply makes a bigger hole for blood trail. I have switched from 12 to 20 over the years for whitetail and I still recover the deer but have noticed lighter to absent blood trails. If you are recoil sensitive, you will be much happier with the 220 and sabots.
This may be so with big rifled slugs but not so much with Sabot s.
True statement, 3" Accutips in my 220 has embarrassed many hunting rifles at the local range.
- Location
- Southern Vancouver Island
Yep. Browning still makes the A Bolt 12 ga. and it ain't cheap at almost 1200.oo.
It would be nice to have a source for Dixie Slugs here.
prairie lover
CGN Regular
- Location
- southern MB
i second the 3 inch accutips. I had a open sight Mossberg barrel for an 870. shot everything well, mainly win platinum tips and hornady sst. 3-4 inch groups at 100 yards were the norm, open sight. win platinum tips were my favorites, dam good slugs, now discontinued. open sights and low light conditions don't go together so I sold the barrel and bought a Mossberg barrel again but a cantilever mount barrel. tried win platinum tips, partitions, hornady sst, the federal barnes slugs, all in 2.75 and everything shot 8 inches at 100 yards for the whole box(5). I was not too happy. read somewhere online that sometimes due to the way a chamber is cut some will shoot much better with 3 inch slugs. rem accutips were new and just coming into Canada so I got a box. put all 5 into less than 3 inches at 100 yards. every year before the season I shoot a group at 50 to make sure shes still on, its 1 to 1.5 inches, more often than not all 3 touching. last year I tried a box of the new federal trophy tip in 3 inch and it was over 3 inches at 100 yards so im simply gonna stick to 3 inch accutips. never tried the 2.75 inch accutips, maybe I should.
shot a buck that was almost straight on this winter, he was ever so slightly quartering. 60 yards, put it right in his shoulder found the beautifully mushroomed slug right in front of his opposite side rear ham. he fell right down, kinda slow motion. ive shot a bunch of deer with sabot slugs, from an accurate gun there very very lethal.
word of advise though, don't trust the factory ballistic tables. real world velocity is often much slower then the long barrel the manufacturer used to test. my groups fall apart after 150 yards. at 150 I will kill my deer every time. at 200yards they don't even stay on a sheet of paper. they must go subsonic somewhere shortly after 150 not after 200 like Remington would have you believe. do your own testing to see how far your gun will hold a tight group.
shot a buck that was almost straight on this winter, he was ever so slightly quartering. 60 yards, put it right in his shoulder found the beautifully mushroomed slug right in front of his opposite side rear ham. he fell right down, kinda slow motion. ive shot a bunch of deer with sabot slugs, from an accurate gun there very very lethal.
word of advise though, don't trust the factory ballistic tables. real world velocity is often much slower then the long barrel the manufacturer used to test. my groups fall apart after 150 yards. at 150 I will kill my deer every time. at 200yards they don't even stay on a sheet of paper. they must go subsonic somewhere shortly after 150 not after 200 like Remington would have you believe. do your own testing to see how far your gun will hold a tight group.
