ORIGINAL: Paul L Mohr
ORIGINAL: Robert L E
A rifled barrel does not improve the accuracy of rifled slugs so the rifling benefit is wasted.
Bob
Really!? Your going to have to explain the theory behind that one to me. Any time you spin a projectile it will be more stable at longer distances. And the fins on a rifled slug don't actually impart any spin to the slug, they are there so the slug crushes and will fit through different sized chokes. They remain stable in flight because of the weight forward design, much like a shuttle cock in badmitten. They actually make foster slugs to be shot out of rifled barrels. I used to use Brenneke Gold Magnums.
I have owned both rifled barrels and smooth bores and shot various rifled slugs out of both. There is definitely an accuracy advantage with a rifled barrel over a smooth bore. My smooth bore was lucky to get 3 inch groups at 50 yards. My H&R ultra will clover leaf rifled slugs at 100 yards. Until the barrel fouls out that is, which is about 4 or 5 shots.
Shooting rifled slugs out of a rifled barrel will not hurt it, it just makes one hell of a mess when you clean it. It will take you much longer to clean it as well. The advantage of the newer sabot rounds is they actually perform better on game and will have more range than a rifled slug. Most of the sabot rounds are controlled expansion type bullets designed for game, where as a rifle slug is just a huge chunk of lead pretty much. Also a 1 ounce 50 caliber bullet will be longer than a full bore 1 ounce slug so it should be more stable in flight and have a better BC I believe.
Paul-
It is my understanding that most rifling in 12ga shotgun barrels is designed for the 50cal sabots and not an optimum rate for foster type slugs which are, of course, a full 12ga. I shoot open sights so, in any case, my equipment is more accurate than I am. I personally don't see an improvement, nor a degradation, of accuracy while using fosters. Almost all articles that I have read also say that a rifled barrel is mostly wasted on fosters. My smooth bore is designed for fosters, a "deer barrel", and at 50 yards any brand of foster slug will do.
You are right about everything else you wrote so you are probably right about this too.
ORIGINAL:Frank in the Laurels
I did some serious testing from the bench last summer on this topic, bought about 10 different kinds of 5 paks... cleaned the gun after each 5 paks..let it cool down etc..the clear winner was the FEDERAL TRU_BALL by leaps and bounds in my smooth bore with a mod. choke installed... even with a 1-4 power scope they easily grouped out to 100 yards better than all the others.. If you can find them, which is not easy to do sometimes, give em a try.. BY the way, on game performance, no deer took a step once hit with one.. awesome..
Frank- I too like the Tru-Ball slugs but I thought that they did not make them any more. I have not found them since the first two years of introduction. I've been saving the remaining ones that I have for actual hunting.
Bob