MudderChuck

Didn't know which forum topic to put this in.

A guy on another forum was talking about using Buckshot on Hogs in close quarters, my guess is he meant brush hunting. He said he was going to use a 6.8 mm on the hunt and switch to Buckshot in the brush?

I've used Buckshot on Fox and was underwhelmed. I've never tried it on Deer or Hogs. Some people swear by Buckshot, my feeling has always been if it won't reliably knock down a Fox. it is unlikely to knock down a Hog. I've had much better results with Goose loads on Fox than Buckshot. I've always used slugs for Hogs.

Buckshot IMO isn't all that, nothing like what is portrayed in the movies. I really can't picture taking a moderately sized Hog down with Buckshot at any distance over say 10-15 yards, even at close quarters it would likely be iffy IMO.

I picture a Hog shot with Buckshot to either head for the thickest most impenetrable brush it can find or head for the hills and likely be a mile away very quickly.

Maybe a Foxes fur messes with penetration with Buckshot, darned if I know? All I really know for sure is I've lost confidence in Buckshot.

hunters_life

In close quarters, according to the number of buck shot, it would absolutely put the hurt on a hog. Inside of 30 feet, according to the shotgun choke, it shouldn't be spread out all that much yet so all the pellets will be hitting. If I had my druthers, I really wouldn't mind having a 00 buck load looking at a big boar bayed up ready to tear my calf out 20 feet away.

MudderChuck

I guess an ounce of lead is pretty much an ounce of lead before the shot gets the distance to spread much.

European Boar will generally slash at your legs on the way by and/or maybe circle close in slashing.

The big Sows are the ones that give me the willies. They come in head back, mouth wide open, crotch high and have a bone crushing bite.

I had a buddy looking for a wounded Boar get chewed on a bit. There were three hunters in a group when the Boar came after him. He was afraid to shoot thinking he might hit another hunter as the Boar circled in close chewing/slashed on his legs. He dropped his rifle and went for his knife and eventually finished of the Boar. He was wearing leather paints so he wasn't cut, but his legs looked like he'd been in an industrial accident, swollen black and blue. That Boar had been hit by a brush Hog and was pretty torn up, but still had a lot fight left in him.

flags

I've shot a lot of deer with buckshot due to being in shotgun only areas for a large part of my Navy career. It works well as long as you keep it at bowhunting ranges. Get much passed 30 yards or so and it does more wounding than clean killing.

buffybr

Just pattern your buckshot load at say 25, 50, 75, and 100 yards. Use a paper plate as your target and count the number of pellets that hit the plate at each distance. Consider that each pellet will have at most twice the energy of a .22 LR bullet. Buckshot can be deadly at close range, but it looses its effectiveness as your range increases.

REM_7600

All said above is why I'll only use 00 buckshot for home defensive use. Someone here questioned my decision one day on how I could justify that vs hunting. I asked them to look around themselves as they typed and pick out the longest range they could find. In my fairly large home right now it might be 30 feet, 45 feet would be pushing it from any angle. Does it work on deer? I've seen a few shot with it at 25+ yards but none were definitive like a well placed rifle shot.

REM7600

younggun308

I've heard it's popular in the Deep South, in ridiculously thick brush.
If you want a perspective of someone who swears by it, here's an article. He says he's experience it is able to go through brush/pine needles/saplings without deflecting as badly as a conical projectile. But that's only in ranges where he can see the deer's eyes, clearly. That's his experience, but I doubt I'll ever be in a situation where I'm comfortable taking a shot with it.
https://www.biggamelogic.com/Article...e-Hunters-Edge

MudderChuck

I shot one Fox going away from me and saw the Buckshot balls hit, best guess at 35 yards. That Fox just gained speed heading for the hills. I broad sided a Feral Cat in a bird sanctuary with Buckshot at maybe 45 yards and it headed for the Brush, I sent the Dog in, who finished it off after a serious fight.

I shot another Fox going away with 2 shot semi magnum (Goose shot) at around 25 yards and it went down in a pile of dust.

Like mentioned maybe I should pattern my shotgun with Buck, it may be acting different than Bird shot. Though on all my shots with Buck I saw the hits.

I still picture a hundred plus pound Hog taking a load of Buck and heading over the next hill to never be seen again. Maybe one day I'll try it and see what happens.

JagMagMan

I've shot a few deer with buckshot and with my experiences, I'll never use it on game again. At short range, it can drop a deer in it's tracks, but they may also run for great distances usually without a good blood trail. The more you stretch the shot, the more likely it is that they will run and not be found!